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Namibia Country Guide

Explore Namibia in Africa

Namibia with the capital city Windhoek is located in Africa (Southern Africa, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean). It covers some 825,418 square kilometres (slightly more than half the size of Alaska) with 2,063,000 citizens.

Interactive map of Namibia

The terrain features mostly high plateau with Namib Desert along coast and Kalahari Desert in east. The average density of population is approximately 2 per km². The notable climate conditions in Namibia can be described as desert with hot, dry and rainfall sparse and erratic. Potential natural disasters are prolonged periods of drought.

To reach someone in Namibia dial +264 prior to a number. There are 142,100 installed telephones. And there are 1,217,000 registered mobile phones. The cellular networks commonly support frequencies of 900/1800 MHz. Websites registered in this country end with the top level domain ".na". If you want to bring electric equipment on your trip (e.g. laptop power supply), note the local power outlet of 220V - 50Hz.

About the flag and history of Namibia

Namibia Flag Icon

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.


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.



Geography Quick-Facts

SummaryContinent: Africa
Neighbours: South Africa, Botswana, Zambia, Angola
Capital: Windhoek
Size825,418 square kilometers (km² or sqkm) or 318,695 square miles (mi² or sqmi)
slightly more than half the size of Alaska
Population2,063,000
CurrencyName Dollar, Currency Code:NAD
Country Top Level Domain (cTLD).na
Telephone Country Prefix+264
Mobile Phone Connections1,217,000
Landline Phone Connections142,100

Country Position in World Rankings

Information about single country attributes and how these compare against the rest of the world. The information below is compiled with data from 2013. As such, it may differ a bit to the Information above in the text (which is from 2010).

Geography

Value nameValueWorld Rank
Area824,292 (sq km)34

People and Society

Value nameValueWorld Rank
Population2,182,852 142
Population growth rate0.75 (%)138
Birth rate20.72 (births/1,000 population)81
Death rate13.33 (deaths/1,000 population)17
Net migration rate0.10 (migrant(s)/1,000 population)72
Maternal mortality rate200.00 (deaths/100,000 live births)55
Infant mortality rate45.62 (deaths/1,000 live births)48
Life expectancy at birth52.03 (years)215
Total fertility rate2.33 (children born/woman)94
Health expenditures6.80 (% of GDP)90
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate13.10 (%)7
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS180,000 30
HIV/AIDS - deaths6,700 32
Obesity - adult prevalence rate9.50 (%)133
Children under the age of 5 years underweight17.50 (%)42
Education expenditures8.30 (% of GDP)10
Unemployment, youth ages 15-2458.90 (%)2

Economy

Value nameValueWorld Rank
GDP (purchasing power parity)17,030,000,000 138
GDP - real growth rate4.00 (%)76
GDP - per capita (PPP)7,900 134
Labor force818,600 147
Unemployment rate51.20 (%)194
Distribution of family income - Gini index59.70 6
Investment (gross fixed)21.40 (% of GDP)80
Taxes and other revenues36.40 (% of GDP)58
Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-)-4.90 (% of GDP)155
Public debt28.20 (% of GDP)117
Inflation rate (consumer prices)5.80 (%)155
Central bank discount rate7.00 (%)40
Commercial bank prime lending rate8.73 (%)105
Stock of narrow money3,898,000,000 110
Stock of broad money7,433,000,000 115
Stock of domestic credit6,431,000,000 112
Market value of publicly traded shares1,176,000,000 107
Industrial production growth rate6.50 (%)45
Current account balance49,300,000 54
Exports4,657,000,000 117
Imports5,762,000,000 122
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold1,840,000,000 125
Debt - external4,204,000,000 124

Energy

Value nameValueWorld Rank
Electricity - production1,643,000,000 (kWh)139
Electricity - consumption3,635,000,000 (kWh)127
Electricity - exports91,000,000 (kWh)72
Electricity - imports2,519,000,000 (kWh)50
Electricity - installed generating capacity508,000 (kW)137
Electricity - from fossil fuels33.30 (% of total installed capacity)177
Electricity - from hydroelectric plants66.70 (% of total installed capacity)24
Refined petroleum products - consumption22,990 (bbl/day)126
Refined petroleum products - imports20,810 (bbl/day)105
Natural gas - proved reserves36,810,000,000 (cu m)69
Carbon dioxide emissions from consumption of energy3,812,000 (Mt)132

Communications

Value nameValueWorld Rank
Telephones - main lines in use140,000 138
Telephones - mobile cellular2,240,000 136
Internet hosts78,280 84
Internet users127,500 151

Transportation

Value nameValueWorld Rank
Airports112 51
Railways2,626 (km)63
Roadways64,189 (km)70
Merchant marine1 151

Military

Value nameValueWorld Rank
Military expenditures3.70 (% of GDP)29

Data based on CIA facts book 2010 & 2013, wikipedia, national statistical offices and their census releases

List of current world heritage sites

NameSince
Namib Sand Sea
Namib Sand Sea is the only coastal desert in the world that includes extensive dune fields influenced by fog. Covering an area of over three million hectares and a buffer zone of 899,500 hectares, the site is composed of two dune systems, an ancient ...
2013
Twyfelfontein or /Ui-//aes
Twyfelfontein or /Ui-//aes has one of the largest concentrations of [...] petroglyphs, i.e. rock engravings in Africa. Most of these well-preserved engravings represent rhinoceros, . The site also includes six painteelephant, ostrich and giraffe, as ...
2007