Economic Overview
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 half 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. the namibian economy is closely linked to south africa with the namibian dollar pegged one-to-one to the south african rand. increased payments from the southern african customs union (sacu) put namibia's budget into surplus in 2007 for the first time since independence, but sacu payments will decline after 2008 as part of a new revenue sharing formula. increased fish production and mining of zinc, copper, uranium, and silver spurred growth in 2003-07, but growth in recent years was undercut by poor fish catches and high costs for metal inputs.
Environmental Issues
Limited natural fresh water resources; desertification; wildlife poaching; land degradation has led to few conservation areas
Government Type
Republic
Population
2,088,669
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to aids; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality, higher death rates, lower population growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (july 2008 est.)
Location
Southern africa, bordering the south atlantic ocean, between angola and south africa
Area
Total: 825,418 sq km
land: 825,418 sq km
water: 0 sq km
Slightly more than half the size of alaska
Country Aliases
Conventional long form: republic of namibia
conventional short form: namibia
local long form: republic of namibia
local short form: namibia
former: german southwest africa, south-west africa
Capital
Name: windhoek
geographic coordinates: 22 34 s, 17 05 e
time difference: utc+1 (6 hours ahead of washington, dc during standard time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins first sunday in september; ends first sunday in april
Military Service
18-25 years of age for voluntary military service; no conscription (2008)
International Disputes
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
Sources: Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)
