South Africa occupied the German colony of South-West Africa during World War I and administered it as a mandate until after World War II, when it annexed the territory. In 1966 the Marxist South-West Africa People's Organization (SWAPO) guerrilla group launched a war of independence for the area that became Namibia, but it was not until 1988 that South Africa agreed to end its administration in accordance with a UN peace plan for the entire region. Namibia has been governed by SWAPO since the country won independence in 1990. Hifikepunye POHAMBA was elected president in November 2004 in a landslide victory replacing Sam NUJOMA who led the country during its first 14 years of self rule. POHAMBA was reelected in November 2009.

Southern Africa, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Angola and South Africa

slightly more than half the size of Alaska

desert; hot, dry; rainfall sparse and erratic

mostly high plateau; Namib Desert along coast; Kalahari Desert in east

diamonds, copper, uranium, gold, silver, lead, tin, lithium, cadmium, tungsten, zinc, salt, hydropower, fish

prolonged periods of drought

limited natural fresh water resources; desertification; wildlife poaching; land degradation has led to few conservation areas

first country in the world to incorporate the protection of the environment into its constitution; some 14% of the land is protected, including virtually the entire Namib Desert coastal strip

22.51 births/1,000 population (2010 est.)

13.3 deaths/1,000 population (July 2010 est.)

0.3 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2010 est.)

2.57 children born/woman (2010 est.)

black 87.5%, white 6%, mixed 6.5%

Christian 80% to 90% (Lutheran 50% at least), indigenous beliefs 10% to 20%

English 7% (official), Afrikaans common language of most of the population and about 60% of the white population, German 32%, indigenous languages 1% (includes Oshivambo, Herero, Nama)

13 regions; Caprivi, Erongo, Hardap, Karas, Khomas, Kunene, Ohangwena, Okavango, Omaheke, Omusati, Oshana, Oshikoto, Otjozondjupa

21 March 1990 (from South African mandate)

Independence Day, 21 March (1990)

ratified 9 February 1990, effective 12 March 1990

based on Roman-Dutch law and 1990 constitution; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

18 years of age; universal

bicameral legislature consists of the National Council, primarily an advisory body, (26 seats; two members chosen from each regional council to serve six-year terms) and the National Assembly (72 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)

Supreme Court (judges appointed by the president on the recommendation of the Judicial Service Commission)

All People's Party or APP [Ignatius SHIXWAMENI]; Congress of Democrats or COD [Benjamin ULENGA]; Democratic Turnhalle Alliance of Namibia or DTA [Katuutire KAURA]; Monitor Action Group or MAG [Jurie VILJOEN]; National Democratic Movement for Change or NamDMC; National Unity Democratic Organization or NUDO [Kuaima RIRUAKO]; Rally for Democracy and Progress or RDP [Hidipo HAMUTENYA]; Republican Party or RP [Hendrick MUDGE]; South West Africa National Union or SWANU [Usutuaije MAAMBERUA]; South West Africa People's Organization or SWAPO [Hifikepunye POHAMBA]; United Democratic Front or UDF [Justus GAROEB]

Earthlife Namibia [Berthchen KOHRS] (environmentalist group); National Society for Human Rights or NSHR; The World Information Services of Energy or WISE (group against nuclear power)

ACP, AfDB, AU, C, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MINURCAT, NAM, OPCW, SACU, SADC, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

a wide red stripe edged by narrow white stripes divides the flag diagonally from lower hoist corner to upper fly corner; the upper hoist-side triangle is blue and charged with a yellow, 12-rayed sunburst; the lower fly-side triangle is green; red signifies the heroism of the people and their determination to build a future of equal opportunity for all; white stands for peace, unity, tranquility, and harmony; blue represents the Namibian sky and the Atlantic Ocean, the country's precious water resources and rain; the yellow sun denotes power and existence; green symbolizes vegetation and agricultural resources

The economy is heavily dependent on the extraction and processing of minerals for export. Mining accounts for 8% of GDP, but provides more than 50% of foreign exchange earnings. Rich alluvial diamond deposits make Namibia a primary source for gem-quality diamonds. Namibia is the fourth-largest exporter of nonfuel minerals in Africa, the world's fifth-largest producer of uranium, and the producer of large quantities of lead, zinc, tin, silver, and tungsten. The mining sector employs only about 3% of the population while about 35-40% of the population depends on subsistence agriculture for its livelihood. Namibia normally imports about 50% of its cereal requirements; in drought years food shortages are a major problem in rural areas. A high per capita GDP, relative to the region, hides one of the world's most unequal income distributions, as shown by Namibia's GINI coefficient. The Namibian economy is closely linked to South Africa with the Namibian dollar pegged one-to-one to the South African rand. Until 2010, Namibia drew 40% of its budget revenues from the Southern African Customs Union (SACU). Increased payments from SACU put Namibia's budget into surplus in 2007 for the first time since independence. SACU allotments to Namibia increased in 2009, but will drop for 2010 and 2011. Increased fish production and mining of zinc, copper, uranium, and silver spurred growth in 2003-08, but growth in recent years was undercut by poor fish catches, higher costs of producing metals, and the global recession.

$13.87 billion (2009 est.)

$13.98 billion (2008 est.)

$13.41 billion (2007 est.)

$9.459 billion (2009 est.)

23.5% of GDP (2009 est.)

15.1% of GDP (2009 est.)

18% of GDP (2008 est.)

7% (31 December 2009)

10% (31 December 2008)

11.25% (31 December 2009)

13.74% (31 December 2008)

$1.983 billion (31 December 2008)

$2.149 billion (31 December 2007)

$1.158 billion (31 December 2008)

$1.493 billion (31 December 2007)

$3.43 billion (31 December 2008)

$4.446 billion (31 December 2007)

$967.7 million (31 December 2009)

$618.7 million (31 December 2008)

$702 million (31 December 2007)

millet, sorghum, peanuts, grapes; livestock; fish

meatpacking, fish processing, dairy products; mining (diamonds, lead, zinc, tin, silver, tungsten, uranium, copper)

1.491 billion kWh (2007 est.)

2.845 billion kWh (2007 est.)

40 million kWh (2007 est.)

2.045 billion kWh (2007 est.)

0 bbl/day (2009 est.)

22,000 bbl/day (2009 est.)

0 bbl/day (2007 est.)

19,120 bbl/day (2007 est.)

0 bbl (1 January 2009 est.)

62.29 billion cu m (1 January 2009 est.)

$240.6 million (2009 est.)

$178.2 million (2008 est.)

$3.491 billion (2009 est.)

$3.116 billion (2008 est.)

diamonds, copper, gold, zinc, lead, uranium; cattle, processed fish, karakul skins

$4.456 billion (2009 est.)

$3.833 billion (2008 est.)

foodstuffs; petroleum products and fuel, machinery and equipment, chemicals

$2.05 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$1.293 billion (31 December 2008 est.)

$1.184 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$807.3 million (31 December 2008 est.)

Namibian dollars (NAD) per US dollar - 8.54 (2009), 7.75 (2008), 7.18 (2007), 6.7649 (2006), 6.3593 (2005)

1.052 million (2008)

1 private and 1 state-run television station; satellite and cable TV service is available; state-run radio service broadcasts in multiple languages; about a dozen private radio stations operating; transmissions of multiple international broadcasters are available (2007)

Luderitz, Walvis Bay

Namibian Defense Force (NDF): Army, Navy, Air Wing (2009)

18 years of age for voluntary military service; no conscription (2010)

concerns from international experts and local populations over the Okavango Delta ecology in Botswana and human displacement scuttled Namibian plans to construct a hydroelectric dam on Popa Falls along the Angola-Namibia border; managed dispute with South Africa over the location of the boundary in the Orange River; Namibia has supported, and in 2004 Zimbabwe dropped objections to, plans between Botswana and Zambia to build a bridge over the Zambezi River, thereby de facto recognizing a short, but not clearly delimited, Botswana-Zambia boundary in the river