t - current issues:
lack of important arterial rivers or lakes requires extensive water
conservation and control measures; growth in water usage outpacing
supply; pollution of rivers from agricultural runoff and urban
discharge; air pollution resulting in acid rain; soil erosion;
desertification

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living
Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate
Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered
Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine
Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands,
Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography - note:
South Africa completely surrounds Lesotho and almost completely
surrounds Swaziland

People South Africa

Population:
42,718,530
note: South Africa took a census October 1996 that showed a
population of 40,583,611 (after an official adjustment for a 6.8%
underenumeration based on a postenumeration survey); 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 and death rates, lower population and growth
rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex
than would otherwise be expected (July 2004 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 29.5% (male 6,337,468; female 6,254,925)
15-64 years: 65.3% (male 13,898,269; female 14,017,559)
65 years and over: 5.2% (male 886,801; female 1,323,508) (2004 est.)

Median age:
total: 24.7 years
male: 24.2 years
female: 25.3 years (2004 est.)

Population growth rate:
-0.25% (2004 est.)

Birth rate:
18.38 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Death rate:
20.54 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Net migration rate:
-0.29 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.67 male(s)/female
total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2004 est.)

Infant mortality rate:
total: 62.18 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 58.4 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
male: 65.87 deaths/1,000 live births

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 44.19 years
male: 44.39 years
female: 43.98 years (20