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Properties
Participations

Property	Type	Value	Unit	Rank	Empirical method	Date	Comparison
Birth rate	Population property	19.61	Per 1000 Inhabitants	98	Estimation	2010	Birth rate
Death rate	Population property	16.99	Per 1000 Inhabitants	5	Estimation	2010	Death rate
Infant Mortality Rate	Health property	43.78	Per 1000 Live Births	61	Estimation	2010	Infant Mortality Rate
Life Expectancy at Birth	Population property	49.20	Years	215	Estimation	2010	Life Expectancy at Birth
Net Migration Rate	Population property	-3.13	Per 1000 Inhabitants	147	Estimation	2010	Net Migration Rate
Population growth rate	Population property	-0.05	Percent	203	Estimation	2010	Population growth rate
Total Fertility Rate	Population property	2.33	Born per Woman	102	Estimation	2010	Total Fertility Rate
Electricity production	Economic property	240300	Gigawatt hour	16	Estimation		Electricity production
Natural gas consumption	Economic property	6450	1 Mil. Cubic metre	54	Estimation		Natural gas consumption
Natural gas production	Economic property	3250	1 Mil. Cubic metre	53	Estimation		Natural gas production
GDP growth rate	Economic property	-1.80	Percent	141	Estimation		GDP growth rate
GDP - per capita (PPP)	Economic property	10100	Dollar	107	Estimation		GDP - per capita (PPP)
GDP	Economic property	505300	Million dollar	26	Estimation		GDP
Industrial production growth rate	Economic property	-7.00	Percent	122	Estimation		Industrial production growth rate
Inflation rate	Economic property	7.20	Percent	166	Estimation		Inflation rate
Oil consumption	Economic property	583	1000 Barrel per day	29	Estimation		Oil consumption
Oil production	Economic property	195	1000 Barrel per day	42	Estimation		Oil production
Unemployment rate	Economic property	24.00	Percent	173	Estimation		Unemployment rate
Area	Geo property	1219090	Square kilometer	25			Area
HIV/AIDS - Adult Prevalence Rate	Health property	18.10	Percent	4			HIV/AIDS - Adult Prevalence Rate
HIV/AIDS - deaths	Health property	350000		1			HIV/AIDS - deaths
People living with HIV/AIDS	Health property	5700000		2			People living with HIV/AIDS
Population size	Population property	49109107		25			Population size

Organisation / Group	Aim	status
Paris Club	to provide a forum for debtor countries to negotiate rescheduling of debt service payments or loans extended by governments or official agencies of participating countries;to help restore normal trade and project finance to debtor countries	associate
African, Caribbean, and Pacific Group of States	to manage their preferential economic and aid relationship with the EU
African Development Bank Group	to promote economic development and social progress
African Union	to achieve greater unity among African States;to defend states' integrity and independence;to accelerate political, social, and economic integration;to encourage international cooperation;to promote democratic principles and institutions
Bank for International Settlements	to promote cooperation among central banks in international financial settlements
Commonwealth	to foster multinational cooperation and assistance, as a voluntary association that evolved from the British Empire
Food and Agriculture Organization	to raise living standards and increase availability of agricultural products;a UN specialized agency
Financial Action Task Force	to develop and promote policies to combat money laundering and terrorist financing
Group of 20	to promote open and constructive discussion between industrial and emerging-market countries on any issues related to global economic stability;helps to support growth and development across the globe
Group of 24	to promote the interests of developing countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America within the IMF
Group of 77	to promote economic cooperation among developing countries;name persists in spite of increased membership
International Atomic Energy Agency	to promote peaceful uses of atomic energy
International Bank for Reconstruction and Development	to provide economic development loans;a UN specialized agency
International Civil Aviation Organization	to promote international cooperation in civil aviation;a UN specialized agency
International Chamber of Commerce	to promote free trade and private enterprise and to represent business interests at national and international levels
International Criminal Court	to hold all individuals and countries accountable to international laws of conduct; to specify international standards of conduct;to provide an important mechanism for implementing these standards;to ensure that perpetrators are brought to justice
International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement	to promote worldwide humanitarian aid through the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in wartime, and International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRCS;formerly League of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies or LORCS) in peacetime
International Development Association	to provide economic loans for low-income countries;UN specialized agency and IBRD affiliate
International Fund for Agricultural Development	to promote agricultural development;a UN specialized agency
International Finance Corporation	to support private enterprise in international economic development;a UN specialized agency and IBRD affiliate
International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies	to organize, coordinate, and direct international relief actions;to promote humanitarian activities;to represent and encourage the development of National Societies;to bring help to victims of armed conflicts, refugees, and displaced people;to reduce the vulnerability of people through development programs
International Hydrographic Organization	to train hydrographic surveyors and nautical cartographers to achieve standardization in nautical charts and electronic chart displays;to provide advice on nautical cartography and hydrography;to develop the sciences in the field of hydrography and techniques used for descriptive oceanography
International Labor Organization	to deal with world labor issues;a UN specialized agency
International Monetary Fund	to promote world monetary stability and economic development;a UN specialized agency
International Maritime Organization	to deal with international maritime affairs;a UN specialized agency
International Mobile Satellite Organization	acts as watchdog over Inmarsat (International Maritime Satellite Organization), a private company, to make sure it follows ICAO standards and recommended practices;plays an active role in the development of international telecommunications policies
International Criminal Police Organization	to promote international cooperation among police authorities in fighting crime
International Olympic Committee	to promote the Olympic ideals and administer the Olympic games: 2012 Summer Olympics in London, UK;2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia
International Organization for Migration	to facilitate orderly international emigration and immigration
Inter-Parliamentary Union	fosters contacts among parliamentarians, considers and expresses views of international interest and concern with the purpose of bringing about action by parliaments and parliamentarians, contributes to the defense and promotion of human rights, contributes to better knowledge of representative institutions
International Organization for Standardization	to promote the development of international standards with a view to facilitating international exchange of goods and services and to developing cooperation in the sphere of intellectual, scientific, technological and economic activity
International Telecommunications Satellites Organization	to act as a watchdog over Intelsat, Ltd., a private company, to make sure it provides on a global and non-discriminatory basis public telecommunication services
International Telecommunication Union	to deal with world telecommunications issues;a UN specialized agency
International Trade Union Confederation	to promote the trade union movement
Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency	encourages flow of foreign direct investment among member countries by offering investment insurance, consultation, and negotiation on conditions for foreign investment and technical assistance;a UN specialized agency
United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo	to establish contacts with the signatories to the cease-fire agreement and to plan for the observation of the cease-fire and disengagement of forces
Nonaligned Movement	to establish political and military cooperation apart from the traditional East or West blocs
Nuclear Suppliers Group	to establish guidelines for exports of nuclear materials, processing equipment for uranium enrichment, and technical information to countries of proliferation concern and regions of conflict and instability
Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons	to enforce the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling, and Use of Chemical Weapons and on Their Destruction;to provide a forum for consultation and cooperation among the signatories of the Convention
Permanent Court of Arbitration	to facilitate the settlement of international disputes
Southern African Customs Union	to promote free trade and cooperation in customs matters
Southern African Development Community	to promote regional economic development and integration
United Nations	to maintain international peace and security and to promote cooperation involving economic, social, cultural, and humanitarian problems
African Union/United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur	to contribute to the restoration of security conditions which will allow safe humanitarian assistance throughout Darfur, to contribute to the protection of civilian populations under imminent threat of physical attack, to monitor, observe compliance with, and verify the implementation of various ceasefire agreements
United Nations Conference on Trade and Development	to promote international trade
United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization	to promote cooperation in education, science, and culture
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees	to ensure the humanitarian treatment of refugees and find permanent solutions to refugee problems
United Nations Industrial Development Organization	UN specialized agency that promotes industrial development especially among the members
United Nations Institute for Training and Research	to help the UN become more effective through training and research
World Tourism Organization	to promote tourism as a means of contributing to economic development, international understanding, and peace
Universal Postal Union	to promote international postal cooperation;a UN specialized agency
World Customs Organization	to promote international cooperation in customs matters
World Federation of Trade Unions	to promote the trade union movement
World Health Organization	to deal with health matters worldwide;a UN specialized agency
World Intellectual Property Organization	to furnish protection for literary, artistic, and scientific works;a UN specialized agency
World Meteorological Organization	to sponsor meteorological cooperation;a UN specialized agency
World Trade Organization	to provide a forum to resolve trade conflicts between members and to carry on negotiations with the goal of further lowering and/or eliminating tariffs and other trade barriers
Zangger Committee	to establish guidelines for the export control provisions of the Nonproliferation of Nuclear Weapons Treaty (NPT)

Names

South Africa : Name
Republic of South Africa : Longname
Union of South Africa : Name
- Former
RSA : Abbreviation

Description

Dutch traders landed at the southern tip of modern day South Africa in 1652 and established a stopover point on the spice route between the Netherlands and the Far East, founding the city of Cape Town. After the British seized the Cape of Good Hope area in 1806, many of the Dutch settlers (the Boers) trekked north to found their own republics. The discovery of diamonds (1867) and gold (1886) spurred wealth and immigration and intensified the subjugation of the native inhabitants. The Boers resisted British encroachments but were defeated in the Boer War (1899-1902);however, the British and the Afrikaners, as the Boers became known, ruled together beginning in 1910 under the Union of South Africa, which became a republic in 1961 after a whites-only referendum. In 1948, the National Party was voted into power and instituted a policy of apartheid - the separate development of the races - which favored the white minority at the expense of the black majority. The African National Congress (ANC) led the opposition to apartheid and many top ANC leaders, such as Nelson MANDELA, spent decades in South Africa's prisons. Internal protests and insurgency, as well as boycotts by some Western nations and institutions, led to the regime's eventual willingness to negotiate a peaceful transition to majority rule. The first multi-racial elections in 1994 brought an end to apartheid and ushered in majority rule under an ANC-led government. South Africa since then has struggled to address apartheid-era imbalances in decent housing, education, and health care. ANC infighting, which has grown in recent years, came to a head in September 2008 when President Thabo MBEKI resigned, and Kgalema MOTLANTHE, the party's General-Secretary, succeeded him as interim president. Jacob ZUMA became president after the ANC won general elections in April 2009.

Government type

republic

Religions

Zion Christian 11.1%, Pentecostal/Charismatic 8.2%, Catholic 7.1%, Methodist 6.8%, Dutch Reformed 6.7%, Anglican 3.8%, Muslim 1.5%, other Christian 36%, other 2.3%, unspecified 1.4%, none 15.1% (2001 census)

Natural Resources

gold, chromium, antimony, coal, iron ore, manganese, nickel, phosphates, tin, uranium, gem diamonds, platinum, copper, vanadium, salt, natural gas

Export commodities

gold, diamonds, platinum, other metals and minerals, machinery and equipment

South Africa