Portal:South Africa

South Africa has the largest population of people of European descent in Africa, one of the largest Indian population outside of Asia, as well as the largest Coloured (of mixed European, Asian and African descent) community in Africa, making it one of the most ethnically diverse countries on the continent. Racial and ethnic strife between the black majority and the white minority have played a large part in the country's history and politics. The National Party began introducing the policy of apartheid after winning the general election of 1948; however, it was the same party under the leadership of F.W. de Klerk who started to dismantle it in 1990 after a long struggle by the black majority, as well as many white, coloured and Indian South Africans.

The country is one of the few in Africa never to have had a coup d'état, and regular free and fair elections have been held since 1994, making it a regional power and among the most stable and liberal democracies in Africa.

South Africa is ranked as an upper-middle income economy by the World Bank. It has the second largest economy in Africa after Nigeria, and the 34th-largest in the world. By purchasing power parity, South Africa has the 7th highest per capita income in Africa. Although being the second largest economy, South Africa has the most sophisticated economy in the continent, with modern infrastructure common throughout the country. The country is considered to be a newly industrialized country according to the World Bank classifications.

The Berg River Dam is a 68-metre (223 ft) high dam on the Berg RiverinSouth Africa. It is the centerpiece of the Berg Water Project (BWP) which is designed to capture the winter rainfall and store it for supply to Cape Town during the dry summer months. The project in turn forms an important part of the Western Cape Water Supply System (WCWSS), an intricate system of dams and bulk water infrastructure that provides water to more than 3 million people. At the inauguration of the dam in 2009, then President of South Africa Kgalema Motlanthe called the project "a good example of how public infrastructure projects can be used to contribute meaningfully to poverty eradication and to foster social empowerment of the people." The Berg River Dam was the first dam in South Africa to be designed and constructed in accordance with the guidelines of the World Commission on Dams. It has been completed on time and within budget. The Berg River basin and the adjacent metropolitan area of Cape Town are of particular importance to the Western Cape region because, although the basin generates only about 3% of the country's water resources, it is home to about 8% of South Africa's population, and produces about 12% of GDP.

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A family, or mob, of meerkats (Suricata suricatta) in the Tswalu Kalahari Reserve, South Africa. Meerkats, members of the mongoose family, are primarily insectivores, though they may eat other small animals or plants. They are social animals that live in groups of twenty or more. Meerkat family dynamics were featured in the series Meerkat Manor, first aired in 2005.

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"Feelings" is a song by South African singer Zonke from her third studio album Ina Ethe (2011). It was released as the parent record's second single on 12 July 2012 through TMP Entertainment. Solely written and produced by the singer herself, "Feelings" is a jazz song that is accompanied by a combination of African drums and beats. The single was nominated for "Record of the Year" at the 2013 South African Music Awards, but lost to "Kulungile Baba" by Sifiso Ncwane in the category.

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Replica of an East Indiaman of the Dutch East India Company/United East Indies Company (VOC). The Dutch East India Company was a major force behind the (c. 1590s–1720s) and Netherlandish cartography (c. 1570s–1670s). (from History of South Africa)

The statueofJan van Riebeeck, the founder of Cape Town, in Heerengracht Street. (from History of South Africa)

Daniel François Malan, National Party leader from 1934 to 1953 (from History of South Africa)

Shaka Zulu in traditional Zulu military garb (from History of South Africa)

Flag of the Republic of the Orange Free State (from History of South Africa)

Johannesburg before gold mining transformed it into a bustling modern city (from History of South Africa)

"For use by white persons" – sign from the apartheid era (from History of South Africa)

Image 8Emily Hobhouse campaigned against the appalling conditions of the British concentration camps in South Africa, thus influencing British public opinion against the war. (from History of South Africa)

Emily Hobhouse campaigned against the appalling conditions of the British concentration camps in South Africa, thus influencing British public opinion against the war. (from History of South Africa)

King Cetshwayo (ca. 1875) (from History of South Africa)

Harry Smith (from History of South Africa)

Enoch Sontonga (from Culture of South Africa)

Statue of Bartolomeu Dias at the High Commission of South Africa in London. He was the first European navigator to sail around the southernmost tip of Africa. (from History of South Africa)

Old Dutch church in Ladismith (from Culture of South Africa)

Regional geography during the period of the Anglo–Boer wars:
South African Republic/Transvaal
Orange Free State
British Cape Colony
Natal Colony (from History of South Africa)

Flag of the South African Republic, often referred to as the Vierkleur (meaning four-coloured) (from History of South Africa)

The British Empire is red on the map, at its territorial zenith in the late 1910s and early 1920s. (India highlighted in purple.) South Africa, bottom centre, lies between both halves of the Empire. (from History of South Africa)

ZulusinNatal (from Culture of South Africa)

Jan van Riebeeck, first Commander of the Dutch East India Company colony (from History of South Africa)

Members of 44 Parachute Brigade on patrol during the South African Border War. (from History of South Africa)

An array of traditional South African cuisine (from Culture of South Africa)

Indian indentured labourers arriving in Durban (from History of South Africa)

King Moshoeshoe with his advisors (from History of South Africa)

Meat on a traditional South African braai (from Culture of South Africa)

The Castle of Good Hope (Kasteel de Goede Hoop in Dutch), Cape Town. Founded officially in 1652, Kaapstad/Cape Town is the oldest urban area in South Africa. (from History of South Africa)

View of Table Bay with ships of the Dutch East India Company (VOC), c. 1683. (from History of South Africa)

An account of the first trekboers (from History of South Africa)

Oracles of the Pink Universe by Simphiwe Ndzube, 2021 (from Culture of South Africa)

Simon's Town harbour and naval base in South Africa were used by the Allies during World War II. (from History of South Africa)

Frederik W. de Klerk and Nelson Mandela, two of the driving forces in ending apartheid (from History of South Africa)

Looking out over the floodplains of the Luvuvhu River (right) and the Limpopo River (far distance and left) (from History of South Africa)

Boer Voortrekkers depicted in an early artist's rendition (from History of South Africa)

Church on Greenmarket Square in Cape Town, South Africa with a banner memorialising the Marikana massacre (from History of South Africa)

The Rhodes Colossus—Cecil Rhodes spanning "Cape to Cairo" (from History of South Africa)

Union Buildings, government administrative centre, Pretoria, c. 1925 (from History of South Africa)

The rise of the Zulu Empire under Shaka forced other chiefdoms and clans to flee across a wide area of southern Africa. Clans fleeing the Zulu war zone included the Soshangane, Zwangendaba, Ndebele, Hlubi, Ngwane, and the Mfengu. Some clans were caught between the Zulu Empire and advancing Voortrekkers and British Empire such as the Xhosa . (from History of South Africa)

Groot Constantia, the oldest wine estate in South Africa, was founded in 1685 by Simon van der Stel. The South African wine industry (New World wine) is among the lasting legacy of the VOC era. The recorded economic history of South Africa began with the VOC period. (from History of South Africa)

Painting of the Sharpeville massacre of March 1960 (from History of South Africa)

Generals Smuts (right) and Botha were members of the British Imperial War Cabinet during World War I. (from History of South Africa)

Cecil John Rhodes, co-founder of De Beers Consolidated Mines at Kimberley (from History of South Africa)

Nicolaas Waterboer, Griqualand ruler, 1852–1896 (from History of South Africa)

Olive Schreiner, the author of The Story of an African Farm (1883) (from Culture of South Africa)

Gateway to the Castle of Good Hope, the oldest building in South Africa (from Culture of South Africa)

Map of the black homelands in South Africa at the end of apartheid in 1994 (from History of South Africa)

Portal:South Africa

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