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REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA, South Africa. State in southern Africa. Capital– Pretoria (1.9 million people – 2004). Territory– 1.219 million sq. km. Administrative division– 9 provinces. Population– 46.3 million people. (2005). official languages– Afrikaans, English, isiZulu, isiXhosa, isindebele, sesotho sa leboa, sesotho, setswana, siwati, tshivenda and hitsonga. Religions– Christianity, etc. Currency unit– rand National holiday– April 27 – Freedom Day (1994). South Africa is a member of more than 50 international organizations, incl. The UN since 1946, the Non-Aligned Movement, the Organization of African Unity (OAU) since 1994, and since 2002 its successor - the African Union (AU), the Southern African Development Community (SADC) since 1994, a member of the Commonwealth (an association of countries that were part of the British Empire) and etc.

The urban population is 64% (2004). The cities are inhabited by approx. 80% "white" population. Large cities - Cape Town (approx. 4 million people - 2005), Durban, Johannesburg, Port Elizabeth, Pietermaritzburg and Bloemfontein.

Among those who came to the country for permanent residence in con. 1990s - early In the 2000s, there were many citizens of Zimbabwe, which in turn accepted refugees from South Africa during the years of the apartheid regime (in 2004 there were 2 million Zimbabweans in South Africa), Nigeria, China and Great Britain. According to established tradition, labor migrants from Swaziland, Lesotho and Botswana come to work in the mines and on farms in South Africa (12 thousand people officially immigrate from Botswana to work in the mines annually, and about 30 thousand people work illegally in the manufacturing industry and on farms).

There is a Russian diaspora, which includes both the descendants of Russian gold and diamond miners who came to South Africa in the 1870s, and emigrants who left Russia after the 1917 revolution. There are also Russian entrepreneurs who immigrated to the country in 1990–2000.

Emigrants from South Africa live in Namibia and other African countries. There is a problem with the so-called "brain drain" In 2003 from South Africa to the USA, European countries, Australia and New Zealand more than 10 thousand people emigrated, among whom there were many medical workers(including about 200 experienced doctors), accountants, teachers (about 700 people), as well as specialists in the field of information technology.

Since the 2000s, the gap between the numbers of emigrants and immigrants has been slowly narrowing.

Religions.

Complete freedom of religion is enshrined in law. More than 80% of the population are Christians (the majority are Protestants). The spread of Christianity began in the middle. 17th century and is associated with the activities of European missionaries. In Midrand, located near the capital, there is a temple St. Sergius Radonezh (the first Russian church in Southern Africa). There are a number of Christian African churches that arose in the 1880s on the basis of schismatic movements. Some Africans adhere to traditional African beliefs (animalism, fetishism, cult of ancestors, guardians of the hearth, forces of nature, etc.). The Muslim community (the majority profess Sunni Islam) includes Cape Malays, Indians, people from northern Mozambique, etc. Among the Indian population there are also Shia Ismailis. There is a Hindu community. Judaism is widespread, there are approx. 200 Jewish societies.

GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS

State structure.

Parliamentary republic. The constitution adopted in 1996 is in force. The head of state and commander-in-chief of the armed forces is the president, who is elected during the first meeting of the National Assembly after the elections from among its deputies. The term of office of the president is 5 years, he can be elected to this post no more than two times. Legislative power is exercised by a bicameral parliament, which consists of the National Assembly (400 seats) and the National Council of Provinces (NCP, 90 seats). Members of the National Assembly are elected on the basis of proportional representation from the provinces for a 5-year term. The NSP performs the functions of the Senate and coordinates the activities of all regions. Composition of the NSP: 54 permanent representatives from the provinces (6 from each of the 9 provinces) and 36 alternative representatives (4 from each province).

Increased racial discrimination.

Apartheid became the cornerstone of National Party policy. A law passed in 1949 prohibited whites from marrying people of color or Africans. The Population Registration Act of 1950 provided for the classification and registration of South Africans by race; in accordance with the Group Settlement Act adopted in the same year, the so-called. “ethnic” zones were racial ghettos for Africans, Coloreds and Indians, where they had the right to own property. The government achieved the adoption of constitutional amendments that changed the voting rights of the colored population of the Cape Province: now it could elect four white deputies to parliament. Declaring that, in accordance with the Statute of Westminster, there was no longer a need to obtain the required two-thirds majority in Parliament, as provided for in the South Africa Act of 1910, which formed the basis of the South African Constitution, in 1951 the government passed the Separate Voting Act with a simple majority of votes. " The ensuing constitutional crisis was overcome in 1955 by increasing the number of members of the Senate in such a way that the government could always count on the two-thirds vote it needed. The Bantu Self-Government Act adopted in 1959 provided for the creation of new political institutions in South Africa - Bantustans (the first of them, Transkei, was created in 1963). The law provided that in 1960 the representation of the African population in the lower house of parliament by three white deputies would be abolished. In the 1960s, the process of dividing the population along racial lines and Africans along linguistic lines continued. Legislation passed in 1963–1964 regulated living and working in “white” areas. Under new legislation in 1968, the non-white population of the Cape Province was deprived of the right to elect four white MPs to Parliament.

In order to further strengthen the apartheid system, the Public Safety Act, better known as the “sabotage” law, was passed in 1962. Under this law, anyone who committed a criminal act, from a common offense to murder, or who attempted to “bring about or encourage social or economic change” in a country could be summarily sentenced to imprisonment and even to death penalty. The Law on Subversive Activities, adopted in 1967, provided for the detention of people without an arrest warrant, detention in solitary confinement, detention for an indefinite period, holding a general trial of people who committed different types crimes and sentencing a group of people for the illegal actions of one person in certain situations. According to the law of 1969, the Office was created in South Africa state security, whose activities could only be controlled by a minister specially appointed by the president. A law was also passed prohibiting the dissemination of information harmful to state security.

The situation of the Asian population.

The National Party government abolished the existing immigration system, under which more than 40 thousand British subjects entered the country between 1948 and 1950. In 1949, the period before which emigrants from the countries of the Commonwealth, led by Great Britain, did not receive voting rights was increased from 18 months to five years. Since many Afrikaners did not want to bother learning English, educational institutions The bilingual education system was abolished. In 1961, South Africa seceded from the Commonwealth and declared itself the Republic of South Africa, thereby avoiding harsh criticism from Asian and African members of the Commonwealth.

It had long been believed that the Indian population, concentrated mainly in the province of Natal and to a much lesser extent in the Transvaal, could not be assimilated. The South African government has developed a whole incentive system to encourage Indians to leave the country. But many Indians prospered in their new homeland and began to acquire property, which caused growing concern among the white population of Natal. In 1940 and 1943, commissions were set up to investigate the “penetration” of Indians into the country; in 1943, the rights of Indians to own property in South Africa were curtailed. According to the law of 1946, areas of the country were established where immigrants from India had the right to own property. After 1950, under the Group Resettlement Act, many Indians were forcibly relocated to designated areas.

Organizations of non-white people.

Before the nationalists came to power in 1948 and in subsequent years, the activities of organizations of the non-white population that professed nonviolent methods of struggle did not have much influence on the political life of the country. The leading organization of the African population was the African National Congress (ANC), created in 1912, which until 1960 adhered to non-violent methods of opposing the white minority regime.

Attempts were made to create trade unions for African workers. However, the Union of Industrial and Trade Workers, created in 1917, and the South African Federation of Trade Unions, which emerged in 1928, lost their influence by the early 1930s.

For many years, the main spokesman for the interests of the colored population was the African Political Organization, created in 1902 (it later renamed itself the African People's Organization). In 1909–1910 she tried unsuccessfully to extend the suffrage enjoyed by the colored population of the Cape Province to the colored people of the northern provinces. In 1944, the National Union of Colored People was formed, which called for cooperation with the white authorities rather than with the African majority of the South African population.

In 1884, Gandhi, who lived in South Africa, created the Natal Indian Congress, which in 1920 merged with the South African Indian Congress (SIC). It was the Indians who introduced methods of nonviolent resistance into political struggle. During the Second World War, the UIC took more decisive action and began to advocate for the unity of non-white forces, which ultimately led to the unification of the efforts of the UIC and the ANC.

In 1952, a campaign of nonviolent action against discriminatory laws began, during which 10 thousand Africans were arrested. The government brutally suppressed the speeches of non-white people. In March 1960, the radical Pan Africanist Congress (PAC), created in 1959, organized a mass demonstration in Sharpeville, which was dispersed by the police, with 67 demonstrators killed. After this, the government banned the activities of the ANC and PAC, which abandoned nonviolent methods of struggle and went underground.

In the 1960s and early 1970s, South Africa experienced a period of economic prosperity. The government ensured the country's internal security by strengthening the police force and modernizing and increasing the size of the army.

Speeches by the African population. After the fall of the Portuguese colonial empire in Africa in the mid-1970s, South Africa's ruling regime faced a serious threat. In 1974–1975, the national liberation struggle in Mozambique ended with the rise to power of left-wing radical Africans, who provided political asylum to guerrillas fighting the white minority regime in Southern Rhodesia (modern Zimbabwe). The South African police assisted the Southern Rhodesian government. In Angola, after the departure of the Portuguese, Civil War between rival factions that waged armed anti-colonial struggle. South Africa provided assistance to the one supported by the United States. However, the victory in 1976 was won by a group that enjoyed the support of the USSR and Cuba. Thus, a regime hostile to South Africa became a neighbor of South-West Africa (modern Namibia). The national liberation movement also covered a significant part of the territory of Namibia itself. South Africa unsuccessfully tried to create a multiracial independent government in this country, which should not include figures of the national liberation movement, and in 1990 South African troops were withdrawn from Namibia.

On June 16, 1976, race riots swept South Africa itself. On this day, students from the black Johannesburg suburb of Soweto, where approx. 2 million inhabitants demanded the abolition of Afrikaans as a compulsory language in schools. The police opened fire on the students, after which the riots spread throughout Soweto. Although the government made concessions to students, until the end of 1976, protests against the apartheid regime continued among the urban African population. More than 600 Africans were killed during the suppression of the unrest.

In the 1970s and early 1980s, approx. 3.5 million Africans were forcibly evicted to the territory of Bantustans, created along ethnic lines. On October 26, 1976, the South African government announced the granting of “independence” to the Bantustan Transkei, December 6, 1977 - Bophuthatswana, September 13, 1979 - Venda and December 4, 1981 - Ciskei. Millions of Africans living in and assigned to Bantustans were stripped of their South African citizenship.

In 1977, one of the leaders of the African movement, Stephen Biko, was killed in police cells. That same year, the South African authorities banned almost all organizations that opposed apartheid policies. Against this background, the number of sabotage acts by the ANC against state-owned enterprises and institutions has increased. In June 1980, riots occurred in Cape Town, during which more than 40 people were killed.

New constitution.

In 1983, Prime Minister P.V. Botha proposed changes to the constitution that would provide for some participation of the colored and Asian population in government. Despite stubborn resistance from the most conservative elements of the white population and opposition from Africans, the proposed constitutional changes received the support of the majority of the white population in a referendum held in November 1983. On September 3, 1984, a new constitution came into force, under which President Botha also became head of the executive branch and a tricameral parliament (representatives of whites, coloreds and Indians) was created. The majority of the colored and Indian population considered the reforms insufficient and refused to participate in the elections.

The ANC's armed struggle against the apartheid regime continued. A new generation of African and colored youth rioted in the streets, clashed with the police, and attacked those Africans who collaborated with the white minority regime. Demonstrations were prohibited, but the funerals of Africans killed by police bullets turned into rallies of thousands. Forces opposed to the regime demanded the release of ANC leader Nelson Mandela from prison.

Intensifying the struggle against the apartheid regime.

In the face of ongoing unrest, local authorities in African settlements practically ceased to function, and young ANC activists began to create new bodies of self-government. In July 1985, the government introduced a state of emergency across large parts of the country. By the end of November of that year, more than 16 thousand Africans had been arrested. Many of those subsequently released spoke about the use of torture in the dungeons.

In the summer of 1985, South Africa faced serious financial difficulties. The country's external debt reached $24 billion, of which $14 billion were short-term trade loans, which were to be renewed periodically. As the struggle against the racist regime of South Africa intensified, foreign banks refused to provide short-term loans. In September, the South African government announced a freeze on foreign debt payments.

By intensifying the fight against the opposition, the South African government tried to create the appearance of reforming the apartheid system. In April 1986, the pass laws for Africans were repealed, but the replacement of passes with identity cards made little difference. The state of emergency was lifted in March, but already in June measures to maintain law and order were tightened throughout the country. Many thousands of Africans were thrown into prison.

Real power in South Africa increasingly passed into the hands of the command of the country's armed forces. In May 1986, South African commandos carried out attacks on ANC bases in Zambia, Zimbabwe and Botswana. Between September 1984 and August 1986, more than 2.1 thousand people were killed in South Africa itself, almost all of them were Africans.

On the way to reforms.

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, South Africa embarked on a path of gradual abandonment of apartheid policies. This government course was largely forced: the country’s economic situation has deteriorated significantly, not least because of economic sanctions undertaken by the EU countries, the USA and other countries in order to put pressure on the South African authorities. In addition, private foreign companies and lenders began to curtail their activities in South Africa, fearing further destabilization. Despite state repression and strict censorship of the media, African resistance to the racist regime grew steadily.

At the beginning of 1989, P.V. Botha suffered a stroke, and instead of him, the leader of the party’s branch in the Transvaal, Frederick W. de Klerk, became the leader of the National Party and the president of the country. During his election campaign on the eve of the 1989 parliamentary elections, de Klerk put forward a five-year plan to dismantle the apartheid system, which, however, did not provide for the transfer of power to the African majority. The National Party won the parliamentary elections, but a large number of The far-right Conservative Party received votes.

Changes in government policy began almost immediately after the elections. In September, one of the leaders of the ANC, Walter Sisulu, was released from prison; in November, racial segregation on beaches and in some places where the white population lived was eliminated. In February 1990, the government lifted the ban on the ANC, and Nelson Mandela was released from prison. In May, at meetings of President F.V. de Klerk with the ANC delegation headed by N. Mandela, an agreement was reached on the terms of negotiations on a new constitution. As a gesture good will The government lifted the state of emergency throughout the country except Natal, and the ANC suspended military operations.

In 1991, the government allowed ANC fighters in Zambia to return to their homeland and released all political prisoners. Two main racist laws were repealed - “On population registration” and “On settlement by groups”. Some states, including the United States, Japan, Canada and India, responded to these steps by easing economic sanctions against South Africa. After 21 years of exclusion from the international Olympic movement, South Africa was allowed to participate in Olympic Games 1992.

In the second half of 1991, facts of secret government funding of the Inkatha movement, a predominantly Zulu organization led by Chief Mangosuthu Buthelezi, became public. Part of the funds was used to organize rallies of this organization, which the white authorities intended to turn into a reliable counterweight to the more radical ANC and PAC. The government also financed the secret training of Inkatha militants by South African military personnel, many of whom subsequently participated in attacks on the population of African townships that supported the ANC. Inkatha supporters living in workers' dormitories in the 1980s and early 1990s were believed to be responsible for numerous bloody clashes that swept through black townships.

Transition to multiracial democracy.

In December 1991, the first meeting of the Convention for a Democratic South Africa (CODESA), a forum created by de Klerk and N. Mandela to discuss a new constitution and the country's transition to a multiracial democratic society, took place. The Convention was criticized by pro-apartheid whites, as well as by militant African organizations such as the PAC, which refused to participate in the negotiations. Nevertheless, in the white referendum held on March 18, 1992, de Klerk's efforts to overhaul the country's political system received support in a ratio of 2:1.

Negotiations within the framework of CODESA were almost disrupted in June 1992, when representatives of the ANC and some other African organizations declared it was impossible to continue their work. This demarche was caused by the fact that Inkatha supporters, with the approval or even the active participation of the police, killed at least 45 residents of one of the black townships near Johannesburg. Three months later, during a demonstration in the Bantustan of Ciskei against the local military ruler, 35 ANC supporters died at the hands of soldiers. The escalation of political violence forced F.V. de Klerk and N. Mandela to meet at the end of September; During this meeting, the ANC leader agreed to continue negotiations within the framework of CODES. A protocol was signed stipulating that a new constitution would be drafted by an elected constitutional assembly and that a multiracial transitional government should be formed following the elections. The Inkatha Movement, which now became known as the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP), opposed this agreement, and in December 1992, Chief Buthelezi published a draft constitution for the future state of the ethnic bantustan of KwaZulu and the province of Natal. The conservative wing of the Afrikaners responded to the agreement by creating a secret committee to mobilize the disaffected white population to fight the reforms. The ultimate goal of the conspirators was to create, if necessary, a separate Afrikaner state.

Negotiations between the ANC and the de Klerk government continued in 1993 against the backdrop of continued bloody terror against the ANC by Inkatha militants, who enjoyed the support and protection of the South African security forces, who continued the usual practice of carrying out terrorist acts at the hands of their African agents. Supporters of the ANC and PAC responded to the killings with murders. On April 10, 1993, the Secretary General of the South African Communist Party, Chris Hani, was killed at the hands of a white extremist. Several members took part in the conspiracy Conservative Party, three of them were later convicted and imprisoned.

In November 1993, 19 CODESA members approved a draft interim constitution, which in December was ratified by the South African Parliament, thereby voting for self-dissolution.

Now no terrorist actions or provocations on the part of Afrikaner extremists and PSI militants could prevent changes in the life of the country. In March 1994, the bantustan populations of Ciskei and Bophuthatswana overthrew their rulers, and the provisional government of South Africa took over the administration of these territories. That same month, a state of emergency was declared in Natal, where the PSI called for a boycott of the elections and again resorted to violent tactics. However, at the last minute, the PSI leadership still decided to participate in the elections, which took place on April 26–29. On April 27, 1994, an interim constitution came into force, and South Africa became a multiracial democracy.

The ANC came to power with the support of an absolute majority of voters - 63%, while 20% voted for the National Party and 10% of voters voted for the Inkatha Freedom Party. The remaining political parties were unable to overcome the 5% threshold required to include their representatives in the government. As a result, a coalition government of national unity, which was to govern the country for the next five years, was formed from representatives of the ANC, the National Party and the Inkatha Freedom Party.

On May 9, 1994, the National Assembly elected Nelson Mandela as President of South Africa. The outstanding personal qualities of the new president played a role decisive role in maintaining stability in the country during the transition period.

In November 1995, local elections were held throughout the country, with the exception of KwaZulu-Natal and Cape Town, again ending in a landslide victory for the ANC, which received the support of 64% of voters, while the National Party - 16% and the Inkatha Freedom Party - 0.4%.

Having expressed disagreement with the policies of the ANC several times, the National Party left the government of national unity in July 1996, becoming the largest opposition force. One of the reasons for the conflict between the parties was the fact that the draft of the new constitution did not provide for the continuation of the coalition government after 1999. The Inkatha Freedom Party made claims to the ANC regarding some provisions of the constitution. This party wanted the country's main document to more firmly enshrine the principles of federalism and boycotted meetings of the Constitutional Assembly as a sign of protest. The Freedom Front also expressed its dissatisfaction, which insisted on mentioning the Volkstaat (Boer People's State) in the text of the constitution. However, the Constitutional Assembly in October 1996 approved a new constitution for South Africa, which came into force on February 4, 1997.

At the end of 1998, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission published its final report, which accused the National Party, as well as the ANC and other political organizations, of massive human rights violations during the apartheid period. Although charges were brought against some members of his own party, Nelson Mandela supported this document.

Throughout 1998, South Africa was preparing for the second democratic elections, scheduled for May 1999. In 1997, Thabo Mbeki, the likely successor to Mandela and Vice President of South Africa, became the leader of the African National Congress, and in 1998, the de facto leader of the country. The National and Democratic parties gradually lost their political positions, and the Inkatha Freedom Party continued to collaborate with the ANC in a coalition government of national unity. Trade unions were increasingly disillusioned with the government's policy of creating market economy and in Mbeki's approach to social and economic problems. Throughout 1998, South Africa continued to move extremely slowly towards achieving its goals of economic growth and a just reconstruction of society. GDP growth was less than 2% per year, and the population was increasing, access to education became more difficult, and medical care for the population deteriorated.

In the parliamentary elections held on June 2, 1999, the ANC won a landslide victory, collecting 66% of the vote. The second place was taken by the Democratic Party (10% of the votes), the third place was taken by the Inkatha Freedom Party.

On June 16, 57-year-old Thabo Mbeki, a friend and ally of N. Mandela, officially took office as President of South Africa.

The new President Mbeki continued the course of his predecessor's government. The political and social base of the government was expanded to include members of opposition parties representing all racial and ethnic groups in the country.

At the turn of the 21st century. The concept of the “African Renaissance” became a key element of South Africa’s foreign and domestic policy. It was put forward by President Mbeki in May 1996 at a meeting of parliament dedicated to the adoption of the constitution as a new " national idea”, which determined the role and place of South Africa in Africa. The concept of “African Renaissance” was officially announced by him at a conference on attracting capital to Africa (Virginia, 1997). Mbeki, together with President of Algeria A. Bouteflika and President of Nigeria O. Obasanjo, became one of the authors of “The Millennium Partnership for the African Recovery Program (MAP), put forward at the OAU summit in 1999. In October 2001 in Abuja (Nigeria) at the first meeting of the Program Implementation Committee (by that time the so-called “Omega Plan” of Senegalese President A. Wade had been integrated into it), amendments were made to the document and it was approved called the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD). The committee secretariat was located in Midrand (a suburb of Pretoria). At the first summit of the African Union (AU), held in Durban on 9–10 July 2002, NEPAD was declared its operational economic programme. Mbeki was elected chairman of the AU.

South Africa in the 21st century

In the beginning. The 2000s saw growth in the South African economy, which was driven by high prices for mineral raw materials, an active influx of investment and increased consumer demand, which in turn led to an increase in imports and a strengthening of the national currency. In 2004, government revenues from privatization amounted to $2 million.

In the general elections held on April 14, 2004, the ruling ANC party won a landslide victory, receiving 69.68 votes. She won 279 seats in the National Assembly. In addition, the parties “Democratic Alliance”, DA (50), “Inkatha Freedom Party” (28) and “United Democratic Movement”, UDD (9) received seats in parliament. 131 members of parliament are women. Women have also been appointed to the posts of chairman and speaker of parliament.

In May 2005, celebrations were held in Pretoria, Cape Town, Johannesburg and Durban to mark the 60th anniversary of victory in the Second World War. (334 thousand volunteers from South Africa fought in parts of the British army in Italy, North and East Africa). On June 26, 2005, the 50th anniversary of the adoption of the Freedom Charter, which became the basis of the 1996 constitution, was widely celebrated. In October 2005, Mbeki participated in the next AU summit (Abuja, Nigeria), dedicated to the problem of forming a unified government for the African continent.

In 2005, GDP amounted to 527.4 billion US dollars, its growth was 5%. In the same year, investment was 17.9% of GDP and inflation was 4.6%. The strengthening of the rand in 2003–2005 led to a decrease in exports (in 2005 there was a deficit foreign trade balance reached the highest figure in the last 22 years - 4.7% of GDP) and job cuts. Unemployment in 2005 was 27.8%. The appreciation of the national currency also led to a decrease in income in the mining industry. The income gap between different segments of the population has increased. The share of the middle class in 2004 was 7.8% (in 1994 – 3.3%). More than 50% of the 7.5 thousand dollar millionaires in Africa are South Africans.

The government's economic policy is aimed at further liberalizing the economy, attracting foreign investment, and combating poverty. In 2005, a special fund of R42 billion was created to issue loans to low-income South Africans for housing construction.

The Africanization policy is being actively pursued not only in relation to changing the racial composition of legislative and executive authorities, but also in the economic sphere - black businessmen are increasingly heading private companies and banks, white citizens are being forced out of some areas of entrepreneurship (for example, taxi services). According to the official statement of the authorities, in March 2006, in order to speed up the progress of land reform, large-scale confiscation of the lands of white farmers with whom the authorities could not agree on compensation within the established time frame will begin. The first case of such confiscation took place in October 2005.

The government is trying to develop a set of measures to eliminate unemployment and fight crime. In April 2005, a law on combating terrorism was adopted.

On June 14, 2005, ANC Deputy President Jacob Zuma, considered the main candidate to succeed the head of state, was dismissed after a case was opened against him for involvement in corruption. According to the decision of the ANC general council, he nevertheless remained as deputy president of the party. In the apparatus of the ruling party, the struggle has intensified over the issue of electing a new leader of the ANC at the congress, which is scheduled for 2007. In early February 2006, President Mbeki announced that he did not intend to amend the constitution in order to gain the opportunity to once again run for the presidency in elections in 2009. The question of a successor, in his opinion, will be decided at the party congress in 2007. Around the same time, Zuma was brought to trial on charges of raping a woman who was a close friend of his family. Zuma's supporters say the campaign against him is political.

In November 2005, a new Anti-Corruption Commission was created. As part of the anti-corruption campaign, 66 South African Home Affairs officials were fired in 2004–2005. At the beginning of February 2006, a new political scandal began, at the center of which was the new deputy president, Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka. Accusations were brought against her of embezzling government funds (approx. $100 thousand), which she used to travel with family and friends to the UAE (December 2005) on a government plane. President Mbeki spoke in defense of the accused.

Lyubov Prokopenko

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Square: 1.2 million km2
Population: 49 million people
Capital: Pretoria

Geographical position

The Republic of South Africa (RSA) is located in the extreme south of Africa, south of the Tropic of the South and is washed by two oceans. The cold Benguela Current in the west and the warm Cape Agulhas Current in the east determine the climate and nature of the country. Slightly rugged coastline and the desert areas of the west coast are not conducive to its intensive development. The southern coast has a more favorable geographical location for the development of maritime transport. On the territory of South Africa there are two small independent states - Lesotho and Swaziland. (Use the map to determine which countries South Africa borders on.)

Natural conditions and resources

South Africa has the most powerful economic potential in Africa and is the only African country among developed countries peace. The Republic of South Africa was proclaimed in 1961.

Most of the country's territory lies above 1000 m above sea level. The geological structure of the territory determined the wealth of South Africa in ore minerals and the absence of oil and gas deposits. The country's subsoil is extremely rich in manganese ores, chromites, platinum, diamonds, gold, coal, iron and uranium ores.

The territory of South Africa is located in the subtropical and tropical zones. The climate is arid, but cooler than in the north of the mainland. Average annual temperatures are +20…+23 °C. The difference in temperatures between the hottest and coldest seasons is only about 10 °C. Annual rainfall ranges from 100 mm on the west coast to 2000 mm on the slopes of the Drakensberg Mountains.

The territory of South Africa is crossed by several large rivers: Orange, Limpopo, Tugela. Largest river South Africa - Orange, the length of which is almost 2 thousand km. Its basin contains the most important industrial and agricultural areas of the country. Large hydraulic structures were built on the river, including reservoirs and hydroelectric power stations. The Drakensberg Mountains are crossed by the Tugela River, on which is located the highest waterfall in Africa - Tugela (933 m).

The soils are varied and mostly fertile: red-brown, black, gray-brown. A significant part of the territory in the center and in the east is occupied by savannas. Along the banks of the rivers there are preserved rainforests. In the south, subtropical forests and evergreen shrubs are common. The country's flora numbers about 16 thousand species, dominated by savannah formations. In the most humid areas there are savannas with palm trees and baobabs, in the Kalahari and Karoo there is a deserted savanna (dry-loving trees, shrubs and succulents (aloe, spurge, etc.). In the Kalahari, peculiar depressions - pens, in which moisture accumulates after rains, are of particular value and lush grass appears - good food for sheep.

In the Cape floristic region (Cape Town area) there are more than 6 thousand plant species, most of which are endemic. The flower of the silver tree (protea) has become national symbol SOUTH AFRICA. Deserts and mountains, river valleys, a significant length of the ocean coast determine the diversity of animals and flora SOUTH AFRICA. Most diverse animal world V national parks, the most famous of them are Kruger, Kalahari-Gemsbok, in which all representatives of the animal world are concentrated, including endemics. About 200 species of snakes, more than 40 thousand species of insects are known in the country, and pockets of malaria mosquitoes and tsetse flies have been preserved.

South Africa is the richest country in Africa in terms of reserves mineral resources. Climatic conditions allow you to grow cultivated plants all year round.

Population

The ethnic composition of the South African population is very complex. About 80% of the country's citizens are black Africans who belong to various ethnic groups (Zulu, Xhosa, Suto, etc.). The population of European origin is less than 10%. The third largest group of the population of South Africa are mulattoes and mestizos. There is a significant population of Asian origin.

Population density 37 people/sq. km. The most densely populated areas are Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban. Over 35% of the population lives in cities. Since the late 90s. Natural population growth due to morbidity has sharply decreased and has been negative since 2005.

In terms of the employment structure of the population, South Africa is a post-industrial country (65% of the working population is employed in the service sector, more than 25% in industry).

The high level of economic development made it possible to resolve many social issues and ethnic relations. Previously, the majority of the local population was oppressed. The apartheid policy lasted 45 years in South Africa. She preached racial oppression of the colored population, the creation of reservations for blacks, the ban on mixed marriages, etc. In 1994, the apartheid political regime was overthrown as a result of general elections and the refusal of whites to renounce their monopoly on power. South Africa was restored to the world community.

Cities

The capital is the city of Pretoria (more than 800 thousand people). The urban population is 64%. South Africa is dominated by small towns with a population of up to 10 thousand people. In addition to Johannesburg (3.2 million people) and Pretoria, the largest cities are port cities - Cape Town, Durban, Port Elizabeth.

Industry

The country's economy produces 2/3 of the continent's GDP. The country's economy is determined by its mining industry. About 52% of the country's exports come from mining products. The country ranks second in the world in diamond production, third in mining uranium ores. Almost all types of minerals, excluding oil, are found in South Africa. Coal mining is developed - South Africa ranks third in the world in the use of coal for energy.

Closely related to the mining industry is the production of gold bars (25% of world production) and platinum. The main center of gold mining is Johannesburg, the largest city in South Africa, the “economic capital” of the country. Several dozen gold mines operate here, and an urban agglomeration has formed (about 5 million people). The country's industry of specialization is ferrous metallurgy. South African steel is the cheapest in the world. Non-ferrous metallurgy is represented by the production of most non-ferrous metals: from copper, antimony and chromium to rare earth metals.

The service sector is developing rapidly. Greatest development received the banking sector, trade. The service sector accounts for up to 62% of GDP.

Agriculture

In agriculture, livestock farming plays a leading role, primarily sheep breeding for wool. Sheep wool and leather form a significant part of exports. Cattle and goats are also raised. South Africa is the world's largest producer of mohair from the wool of Angora goats (South African mohair is considered the best in the world). They are also involved in breeding ostriches.

The development of agriculture is affected by droughts, 1/3 of all lands are susceptible to erosion. Cultivable lands make up about 12% of the territory. The main grain crops are corn, wheat, sorghum. South Africa provides itself with all basic food products, exports sugar, vegetables, fruits and berries, and citrus fruits. Many lands are infertile and require constant irrigation and fertilization.

Transport

The main inter-district mode of transport in South Africa is rail. Railways connect port cities with industrial centers. The role of road transport is increasing, accounting for 80% of all transport in the country. The most important seaports are Durban, Cape Town, Port Elizabeth, etc.

South Africa is the only highly developed country in Africa. South Africa is known in the world as the leader in gold production - 25% of world production. The South African economy accounts for 2/3 of the continent's GDP.

South Africa or the Republic of South Africa (RSA) is one of the largest states in Africa. The country is located in the extreme south of this continent and, figuratively speaking, is a giant breakwater separating two oceans, the Atlantic (in the west) and the Indian (in the east).

The border between these two giant bodies of water runs through the southernmost point of Africa, also known as Agulhas.

Visually, it will not be too impressive, but if you study the history of shipwrecks... It is relatively easy to get there if you take Cape Town as the starting point for distances - only 170 km along the highway.

Capitals of South Africa

There are THREE capitals in South Africa! Pretoria is the city where the government and other executive institutions are located. Cape Town is home to Parliament and Bloemfontein is home to the Supreme Court!

This unique “triplicity” of capitals dates back to the beginning of the 20th century, when, under the auspices of the British Empire, the Union of South Africa was formed in 1910, the capitals of the states included in this confederation (the British colonies of Cape and Natal, the Boer : Republics of the Orange Free State, and the South African Republic or Transvaal), each received its own branch of government.

It is noteworthy that the symbol and cornerstone of the English political system - parliament - was left in British Cape Town.

Johannesburg, Joburg, is not one of the capitals, but the most populous city. Like Pretoria, it is located in the northern part of the country and is not considered the most welcoming place for tourists - crime is rampant.

Visas

The interstate agreement, which entered into force on March 31, 2017, abolished visas to the Republic of South Africa for Russians. The rule applies to those who plan to stay in the country for no more than 90 days and are traveling for tourism or business purposes.

Everyone else will have to apply for a visa to South Africa at the embassy in Moscow. In addition to your passport, tickets and hotel reservations, you will also need to provide a detailed travel program. As well as evidence of creditworthiness.

However, a tourism boom among Russian citizens is a long way off. Only a couple of tens of thousands of people visit the African country every year.

Population of South Africa

The population of the Republic of South Africa at the beginning of 2016 was about 55 million people. Its composition is heterogeneous!

• 80% of the nation - indigenous people of these places, Africans from various tribes
• About 9% are white (European, mainly from the Netherlands and the UK) and about 9% are mixed race
• People from Asia - about 2.5% of the total population
• The highest population densities are observed in Cape Town, Gauteng province (Pretoria and Johannesburg) and the port of Durban on the Indian Ocean coast.

official languages

South Africa is a multinational and multicultural country, so as many as 11 languages ​​have been approved as official:

• Afrikaans (derived from Dutch), very common here and in neighboring Namibia (it is considered the main language of about 7 million people)
• English
• Local African languages: Ndebele, Southern and Northern Sotho, Swazi, Tsonga, Tswana, Venda, Xoza and Zulu

Brief description of South Africa

Currently, the Republic of South Africa is administratively divided into 9 provinces (Western, Northern and Eastern Cape, North West Province, Free State, Limpopo, Gauteng, Mpumalanga and KwaZulu-Natal) - this division has existed since 1994

• Before this period, the country had only four historical provinces: the Cape or Cape - the largest in area, Natal, the Orange Free State and Transvaal

Province Map, Mart Bouter

The head of the executive branch is the president - the leader of the majority party in the lower house of parliament (National Assembly) is appointed to this post. The parliament is bicameral, consists of the National Council of Provinces (90 members) and the National Assembly (400 members), re-elected every 5 years.

• Territory of South Africa: 1,221,037 km2
• Official currency: rand (ZAR). In 2018, 1 South African rand is approximately equal to 5 rubles
• Telephone code: +27

The modern national flag of South Africa was designed for the general elections in April 1994. Red, white and blue colors represents the country's past, closely associated with the colonists from the Netherlands.

Against this background is a fork-shaped cross made from the traditional colors of the African National Congress party, which fought against apartheid.

Big cities

Johannesburg, also known as Jozi or Jo'burg. The largest city in the country and the capital of the Gauteng province, the richest and most economically developed. The population of Johannesburg is about 1 million people, together with its suburbs - more than 4 million.

Cape Town (Cape Town or Kaapstad) is the second most populous in the country: about 500 thousand people live in the city itself and up to 3.8 million in the suburbs. The capital of the Western Cape and the seat of parliament.

Cape Town is the country's most popular tourist destination among international travelers. There is a special boom at Christmas and New Year, when summer is in full swing in South Africa and the sun is shining hotly.

Durban is the third most populous city in the country (3.5 million inhabitants including suburbs) and the largest port in Africa. In addition, Durban is a major tourist destination due to its excellent subtropical climate and beaches.

Pretoria (Pretoria Philadelphia) - about 700 thousand people live in the city itself, and together with the suburbs the population reaches almost 3 million. It is in Pretoria that the executive authorities and main government institutions are located.

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Africa Tur → Reference materials → EAST AND SOUTH AFRICA → Population of South Africa

Population of South Africa

It is difficult to find a country on the globe where the national question has become as acute and topical as in South Africa. People with non-white skin color - the absolute majority of the country's population - are subjected to strong national oppression here. The non-European population, which makes up the bulk of South Africa's labor force, is brutally exploited by local and foreign monopolies.

In South Africa you can meet representatives of a wide variety of races and nationalities, hear English, French, German speech, the melodious dialect of the Bantu peoples, and the “clicking” sounds of the languages ​​of the Bushmen and Hottentots. But more often you can hear Afrikaans, which developed on the basis of ancient Dutch dialects and is very different from the modern Dutch language. Such ethnic and linguistic diversity is the result of the complex history of the formation of the country's population.

South Africa is an exception among other African countries in its high proportion of people of European descent - about 50% of the country's total population. Other characteristic feature- a relatively high proportion of people from Asian countries - approximately 3% of the population. This part of it is subject to brutal exploitation, just like the local African population. National and class interests. African and other racial groups of the non-white population basically coincide, which objectively creates a common platform for their joint struggle.

Discovery in the second half of the 19th century. The richest deposits of gold and diamonds in the interior regions contributed to their rapid settlement and development. In less than a quarter of a century, the white population of southern Africa has grown 20-fold. Immigration still exists today. It has decreased noticeably in recent years, although the government encourages skilled labor from Europe to enter the country.

The number of immigrants arriving annually does not exceed 1% of the total

the size of the white population. Previously, the majority were immigrants from Great Britain, but now their number has noticeably decreased, but the number of immigrants from Germany and the Netherlands has increased (many former Nazis also found refuge in South Africa).

Now the population of South Africa is growing mainly due to natural growth, and its rate, especially among the non-European population, is significant (2.5-3% per year). The entire population of South Africa is officially divided into 4 groups: Africans* (according to 1979 estimates, 21.1 million), whites (4.7 million), mestizo, or, according to the official terminology adopted in South Africa, “colored” ( 2.6 million) and people of Asian origin (0.8 million).

Fearing the unification of national liberation forces in the country, the government artificially seeks to divide individual ethnic groups, preserve ancestral remnants among Africans, and incite national enmity between different peoples.

Bantu are the largest ethnic group in South Africa. It accounts for over 70% of the total population. The Bantu speak several languages, the most important of which are Zulu, Xhosa, Sutho, Tswana and Swazi. The Zulu, Xhosa and Swazi languages ​​are closely related and are usually grouped into a group of languages ​​called Nguni.

Significant changes took place in Bantu social life. Large patriarchal families gave way to small ones; the number of polygamous families has sharply decreased; Religious views have changed. Instead of traditional tribal cults, European colonists imposed Christianity on the Bantu. In Bantustans, the long-established Bantu division of labor between men and women has also been violated. Previously, men were engaged in cattle breeding, and women – in agriculture, but now almost all the work in Bantustans is performed by women and old people. Young men are forced to spend most of their time working outside the Bantustans.

Until now, the main clothing in Bantustans remains loincloths and “karossa” capes. Only the traditional karossams made from the skins of wild animals were replaced by karossams made from blankets.

Europeans are the second largest ethnic group. Its backbone consists of Afrikaners, or Boers (about 60% of the European population), and the British (38%). People from other European countries and the Middle East also live in South Africa. The most numerous of them are Germans and Jews (1% each). Jewish community in

South Africa is one of the richest in the world. The spiritual kinship of the rulers of South Africa and Israel, the identity of the tasks assigned to them by world imperialism, explain the increasingly strengthening alliance between Pretoria and Tel Aviv.

Afrikaners have long lost ties with the Netherlands and consider South Africa their homeland. In contrast, the British maintain close ties with Great Britain. First of all, this is expressed in the commonality of the language. At the same time, language is one of the significant differences between Afrikaners and the British. Both Afrikaans and English are recognized as official languages ​​in South Africa. Even in schools, teaching is often conducted in parallel in two languages. Afrikaners and the British also differ in religion. Afrikaners belong to the Dutch Reformed Church, and the British belong to the Anglican, Lutheran, etc.

The historical division of spheres of activity between these ethnic groups is now disappearing. Previously, the Boers were predominantly farmers and pastoralists and lived on isolated farms. The British mainly settled in cities, where they were engaged in trade and industry. Over the past quarter century, the process of Afrikaners taking over key positions in various industries has intensified. Afrikaners predominate in the police, army and civil servants.

The "colored" group has a very diverse ethnic composition. It includes the Cape Coloureds, Hottentots, Bushmen, Malays, Zanzibaris and the entire group constitutes the Cape Coloureds, whose racial identity is uncertain. Singling them into a special group is artificial and has no linguistic or cultural basis. The Cape Coloreds appeared early on European colonization as a result of mixed marriages of Europeans with the indigenous inhabitants of southern Africa. In 1949, nationalists passed a law banning marriages between members of different racial groups. But even now about U3 of South African whites have an admixture of African blood.

An ethnic group of people of Asian origin began to form only in the 60s of the 19th century, when contracted agricultural workers from India began to be imported to southern Africa to expand sugar cane plantations in Natal and due to a lack of skilled labor. In less than half a century, from 1870 to 1911, the number of imported Indians reached 100 thousand.

Different ethnic groups in South Africa have some kind of territorial centers. Thus, the most “English” is the province of Natal, the “Afrikaner” are Transvaal and Orange, the largest number of mestizos live in the Cape Province.

The economically active population makes up approximately 40% of the total population. Around Uz he works in agriculture, followed by the service sector, manufacturing and mining. The non-white population is employed mainly in those sectors of the economy where labor is most difficult and exhausting. At the same time, among non-Europeans there is a large number of actually unemployed. Persons in public service are mainly Europeans. South Africa has the largest police force in Africa and regular army, consisting mostly of whites.

South Africa is experiencing an acute shortage of skilled labor, which is explained primarily by the apartheid policy: the “color barrier” deprives non-whites of the opportunity to obtain high qualifications and perform more complex and highly paid jobs.

The working class accounts for 44 of the country's population. Urban workers - Africans and other non-whites - are the most revolutionary part of the South African working class.

Over 75% of whites live in cities. Almost half of them are concentrated in the south of the Transvaal - in the Witwatersrand industrial region. Most of the rural population of European origin lives in the south and southwest of the Cape Province, an area of ​​intensive agriculture. Some areas of the Namib and Kalahari deserts are almost deserted, and in the vast arid spaces of the internal plateau, settlements are located mainly along river valleys and in areas of artificial irrigation.

Sharp contrasts are presented by the deserted Cape Mountains and the densely populated fertile valleys adjacent to them in the west with orchards and vineyards, the swampy river valley. Limpopo and the mining centers of the Bushveld, Drakensberg and Natal foothill valleys.

The process of industrialization resulted in a rapid increase in the urban population in post-war years. Mining centers are growing, both old ones - the cities of the Witwatersrand, and new ones: Phala Borwa, Saishen, Prisca, etc. Their rapid growth is largely due to the immigration of the African and “colored” population, and not only the male population of the Bantustans comes here in search of work , but also residents of other countries in Southern and Eastern Africa (Lesotho, Botswana, Malawi, etc.). A significant number of Africans living in cities and industrial centers are temporary residents who, when unable to work or at the end of their contract, return to the bantustans or to the country from which they came. Cities - centers of manufacturing industry - are also growing as a result of the arrival of immigrants from European countries.

South Africa is dominated by small towns with populations ranging from 2 to 10 thousand people. According to existing legislation, all settlements that have local municipal government in one form or another are considered cities. These are small towns - centers of agricultural areas (for example, Fran Schuk or Swellendam), and numerous mining centers in South Africa (Tabazim bi, Postmasburg, Saichen, etc.), and cities - centers of the manufacturing industry, often with pronounced specialization ( "metallurgical" fer riniching - Vanderbijlpark or "chemical" - Sasolburg and Moddervon Tein).

The ports that stand out are Durban, Cape Town, Port Elizabeth and East London. These are modern large multifunctional cities. They owe their appearance and growth to their favorable geographical location. For a long time, a significant part of the immigrants arriving in Africa settled in them; various industrial enterprises equipped with imported equipment and often working on imported raw materials.

There are many cities in the country - administrative centers, among which Pretoria and Cape Town occupy a special position.

The country's largest city, its financial and commercial capital, is Johannesburg, whose population has exceeded 1.5 million people and continues to grow steadily: in the last 30 years alone it has more than doubled. Johannesburg is not only the most important center, but also the link between the leading industrial region of South Africa - the Witwatersrand complex and its surroundings. This main economic core, occupying approximately 1% of the country's territory, concentrates up to 2/5 of its population. Of the 20 South African cities with a population exceeding 50 thousand people, 10 are part of the Witwatersrand metropolitan area.

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND SCIENCE, YOUTH AND SPORTS OF UKRAINE

Odessa National Academy of Food Technologies

Individual scientific work

By discipline

"International Economic Relations"

"South African Republic"

Performed:

4th year student, MiM-471

Suprunyuk Anna

Supervisor:

Dyukova I.V.

Odessa 2011

1. Brief historical reference

2. Ethnic composition population

3. Religious features of Australia

4. National characteristics (mentality)

5. Structure of the Australian economy

6. Specifics of the Australian economy

7. Economic relations with other countries

8. Analysis of the state of the level of economic development

9. Welfare of the population

List of used literature

Brief historical background

REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA, a state in southern Africa. It is washed by the Atlantic and Indian oceans. Area 1.2 million km2. The population as of 2011 was 49,004,031 people, including Africans (76%; Zulu, Xhosa, etc.), mestizos (9%), people from Europe (about 13%), mainly Afrikaners (Boers) and the British.
In South Africa, 11 languages ​​of various nationalities and ethnic groups inhabiting the country have been approved as state languages: Afrikaans, English, Ndebele, Xhosa, Zulu, Pedi, Sutho, Tswana, Swazi, Venda, Tsonga. Almost 80% of the population of South Africa are adherents of the Christian faith. Other numerous religious groups are Hinduism, Islam and Judaism. A small part of the population does not give preference to any of the main religions, but considers themselves adherents of traditional beliefs or does not have any religious preferences at all.

Member of the Commonwealth. The head of state is the president. The legislative body is parliament (National Assembly). The capital of South Africa is Pretoria, Cape Town (the official capital); Bloemfontein (judicial capital) Administrative division: 9 provinces. The monetary unit is the rand.

The Republic of South Africa traces its history back to the first millennium AD. At this time, the territory where South Africa is now located was inhabited by Hottengoth tribes who were engaged in animal husbandry. In the middle of the 11th century they were driven out by the Bantu tribes. After this, the South African lands were inhabited by Bantu tribes for a long time. In the 17th century, Europeans came to South Africa - immigrants from the Netherlands and France, who gradually subjugated the lands of South Africa. In 1652 at the Cape Good Hope a settlement was founded. In 1797, England began to own the Cape Colony - that was the name of the land where South Africa is now located. In the second half of the 19th century, rich deposits were discovered in the Cape Colony, which is why emigrants began to flock there. The Anglo-Boer War took place in 1880-1881. The Boers, that is, the local population, won this war. Another Anglo-Boer War took place in 1899-1902. In 1910, the Union of South Africa was formed, which was subordinated to England. In 1948, all government policies were aimed at creating conditions for whites. Thus, the black population was infringed upon by the government in its rights. New policy authorities began to call it apartheid, and was abolished only at the end of the 20th century.

Ethnic composition of the population

The ethnic composition of the South African population is very complex. The most ancient inhabitants of the country are the Bushmen, Hottentots and numerous peoples language family Bantu. On rocks and in mountain caves South Coast Bushmen rock paintings dating back thousands of years have been found. Archaeological excavations discovered a number of Bantu settlements in the central regions of the country dating back to the 1st millennium AD.

The population of South Africa exceeds 49 million people (25th place in the world). South Africa is characterized by a very large diversity among the people inhabiting the country, both by race and nationality.

The majority of the population, about 80%, are blacks belonging to various ethnic groups(Zulu, Xhosa, Ndebele, Tswana, Sotho and others). This group also includes immigrants from other African countries (particularly Zimbabwe and Nigeria).

The white population makes up about 10% and is mainly made up of descendants of the Dutch, French, British and German settlers who began settling South Africa from the late 17th century; immigrants from Europe who arrived in South Africa in the twentieth century and Portuguese who moved to South Africa from the former Portuguese colonies in South Africa (Angola and Mozambique)

On English language spoken by about 8.6% of the population. However, this language is widely used in official and business contacts.

Africans are the largest group (about 77% of the total population). The African population consists of Bantu, Bushmen and Hottentot peoples. As the Bantu moved south, they pushed back the Bushmen and Hottentots, who, having settled in the Transvaal and Orange Province, were partially assimilated among the Bantu. There are now very few Bushmen left, most of them living in the barren, malarial areas of the northwestern Kalahari.

The Bechuanas, numbering more than 0.5 million people, occupy the northeastern regions of the Cape Province and the Transvaal. In the areas of Natal and Transvaal adjacent to Mozambique, the Bavenda live, and in the northwestern regions of the Cape Province, near the border with Namibia, Bantus can be found speaking the Herero language.

Significant changes have occurred in the social life of Africans: large patriarchal families have been replaced by small ones; the number of polygamous families has sharply decreased; Religious views have changed.

Instead of traditional tribal cults, European colonists imposed Christianity on the Bantu. In Bantustans, the long-established Bantu division of labor between men and women has been violated. If earlier men were engaged in cattle breeding, and women – in agriculture, now almost all work in bantustans is performed by women and old people. Young men are forced to spend most of their time working outside the Bantustans. Africans are the main labor force in the South African economy: 58.6% of employees in non-agricultural sectors and 84.9% in agriculture.

Whites (people of European descent) are the second largest population group in the country (11%). Its core consists of Afrikaners, or Boers (about 60% of the European population), and the British (38%). People from other European countries and the Middle East also live in South Africa. The most numerous of them are Germans and Jews (1% each). The Jewish community in South Africa is one of the richest in the world. The spiritual kinship of the rulers of South Africa and Israel, the identity of the tasks assigned to them by world imperialism, explain the increasingly strengthening alliance between Pretoria and Tel Aviv.

Afrikaners, descendants of the first Dutch colonists, have long lost ties with the Netherlands and consider South Africa their homeland.

People of color (9%) are a highly heterogeneous population group. Three quarters of this group are actually people of color, whose racial identity is not possible to determine. These are descendants of mixed marriages of Europeans with representatives of the indigenous population of South Africa - mestizos. Along with them, this group includes the Cape Malays and others. Official South African statistics also wrongfully include the Bushmen and Hottentots here.