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Southern Africa
Southern Africa (UN subregion) geographic, including above Southern African Development Community (SADC)
Southern Africa is the southernmost region of the African continent, variably defined by geography or geopolitics. Within the region are numerous territories, including the Republic of South Africa (a successor country to the Union of South Africa); nowadays, the simpler term South Africa is generally reserved for the country in English. Definitions and usageUN scheme of geographic regions and SACUIn the UN scheme of geographic regions, five countries constitute Southern Africa: The Southern African Customs Union (SACU), created in 1969, also comprises the five countries in the UN subregion of Southern Africa. SADC membershipThe Southern African Development Community (SADC) was established in 1980 to facilitate co-operation in the region. It includes:
General usageThe region is often reckoned to include other territories:
The Democratic Republic of the Congo and Tanzania, though more commonly reckoned in Central and Eastern Africa respectively, are occasionally included in Southern Africa. Another geographic delineation for the region is the portion of Africa south of the Cunene and Zambezi rivers – that is, South Africa, Lesotho, Swaziland, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe and the southern half of Mozambique. This definition is most commonly used in South Africa. Geography
A composite satellite image of southern Africa.
The terrain of Southern Africa is varied, ranging from forest and grasslands to deserts. The region has both low-lying coastal areas, and mountains. In terms of natural resources, the region has the world's largest resources of platinum and the platinum group elements, chromium, vanadium, and cobalt, as well as uranium, gold, titanium, iron and diamonds. (Read more) |
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