Namibia:Country Brief

World Bank

World Bank

关键词: ACCESS TO EDUCATION;    ACCOUNTING;    ADULT LITERACY;    ADULT MORTALITY;    ADULT POPULATION;   

DOI  :  10.1596/978-0-8213-7870-0
RP-ID  :  48596

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: World Bank Open Knowledge Repository

【 摘 要 】

Namibia is a large country in SouthernAfrica that borders the South Atlantic Ocean, between Angolato the north and South Africa to the south. With a surfacearea of 824,290 square kilometers, it is similar in size toMozambique and about half the size of the U.S. state ofAlaska. Namibia has a small population of approximately 2.1million people. It is also one of the least denselypopulated countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, with an averagedensity of approximately 2.5 people per square kilometer,compared to 34 people per square kilometer for the region asa whole. Namibia was the last colonized country inSub-Saharan Africa to become independent. After nearly 70years of South African rule, Namibia gained its independenceon March 21, 1990. Until 1990, Namibia's officiallanguages were German, Afrikaans, and English. Followingindependence, English became the official language, althoughit is the first language of only a very small percentage ofNamibians. Oshiwambo dialects are the mother tongue ofapproximately half of the population. Namibia, alower-middle-income country, has one of the highest levelsof per capita income in Sub-Saharan Africa. Namibia is oneof very few countries in Sub-Saharan Africa that maintains asocial safety net for the elderly, the disabled, orphans andvulnerable children, and war veterans. It also has a socialsecurity act that provides for maternity leave, sick leave,and medical benefits. Namibia has one of the most productivefishing grounds in the world. The fishing industry is animportant source of foreign exchange and a significantemployer. The tourism industry in Namibia is similar in sizeto that in Botswana and is the country's third-largestforeign exchange earner. Namibia is one of the largestproducers of gem quality diamonds in the world. It isestimated that 98 percent of its mined diamonds are gemquality. In 2006, almost half of total production wasrecovered from offshore sources. Namibia is the driestcountry in Sub-Saharan Africa, with deserts occupying muchof the country. It has no perennial rivers or any otherpermanent water bodies. Due to the low and erratic rainfalland scarce ground and surface water, less than five percentof the country is arable, including through irrigation.Namibia was the first country in the world to incorporateenvironmental protection into its constitution. Nearly sixpercent of its land is nationally protected, including largeportions of coastal areas within the Namib Desert.