Multi-Cultural Week South Africa

South Africa Continent: Africa Current Population: 51,770,560 Official languages (11): Afrikaans, English, S. Ndebele, N. Sotho, S. Sotho, Swahili, Tsonga, Tswana, Venda, Xhosa, Zulu. How to say hello: Hallo Ethnic Groups: 79.6 Black, 9% Colored, 8.9% White, 2.5% Asian South Africa is the 25th largest country in the world by area and the 24th most populous country with over 51 million people.

RELIGIONS IN SOUTH AFRICA Religion & The Rainbow Nation RELIGIONS IN SOUTH AFRICA Religion Number % of total Christianity 35 750 641 79.8% Islam 654 064 1.5% Hinduism 551 668 1.2% Judaism 75 549 0.2% Other beliefs 283 815 0.6% No religion 6 767 165 15% Undetermined 610 974 1.4% TOTAL 44 819 774 100%

MID-YEAR POPULATION ESTIMATES 2011 Population group Number % of total African 40 206 275 79.5% White 4 565 825 9% Coloured 4 539 790 Indian/Asian 1 274 867 2.5% TOTAL 50 586 757 100% According to the 2001 census, isiZulu is the most common home language is, spoken by nearly a quarter of the population. It is followed by isiXhosa at 17.6%, Afrikaans at 13.3%, Sepedi at 9.4%, and Setswana and English each at 8.2%.

Coat of Arms Of South Africa South Africa flag In 1652 the Dutch claimed a refreshment station at the Cape of Good Hope for sailors and established a colony. This later was named “Cape Town”. When diamonds and gold was discovered the British wanted the area and it was fought over. In 1795 the British controlled the area. In 1806 the Dutch again controlled Cape Town. In 1900 the British again held control.

Apartheid: the legally institutionalized segregation of people of races. The Natives' Land Act of 1913 severely restricted the ownership of land by blacks; natives controlled only seven per cent of the country. 1948 The National Party was elected and controlled the government. It classified all people into three races and developed rights and limitations for each race. Apartheid was accepted for many years. Nelson Mandela: Born: July 1918- now 94 years old. He was a anti-apartheid militant and was imprisoned in 1962 where he remained until 1990; 27 years in jail. A symbol of courage of the South African oppressed people, he was elected President in 1994-99.

Government In 1990 the National Party government took the first step towards dismantling discrimination (Apartheid). First democratic election was held in 1994. Elections: National elections were held in 1994, 1999, 2004 and 2009. Head of state: The President is elected by the National Assembly. Under the Constitution, the President is permitted to serve a maximum of two five-year terms. Current President is Jacob Zuma. The Constitution's Bill of Rights protects equality, freedom of expression and association, property, housing, health care, education, access to information, and access to courts. Form of state: A federal state, comprising a national government and nine provincial governments. Capitals: Pretoria (administrative) Cape Town (legislative) Bloemfontein (judicial) Legal system: Based on Roman-Dutch law and the 1996 Constitution.

Table Mountain forms part of Table Mountain National Park, one of few conservation areas in the world that is entirely surrounded by a city Geography

Plant Life South Africa's national flower. Widely distributed in the southern areas of the Western Cape and parts of the Eastern Cape, the giant or king protea is the largest of the proteas Plant Life A baobab or 'upside down‘ tree in the Kruger National Park. Carpet of Namaqualand daisies. The bizarre halfmens – 'half human' - plant of the arid Northern Cape g

Several National Parks Protect Animals

Traditional Clothing Today most South Africans wear Western-style clothing. South Africa has a rich cultural heritage when it comes to to dress. With many different ethnic groups living within the country's borders, this is to be expected.

African Cuisine For the more daring diner, South Africa offers culinary challenges ranging from crocodile sirloins to fried caterpillars to sheep heads. All three are reputed to be delicious. Meals are heavily meat based “braai” or BBQ. For the not-quite so brave, there are myriad indigenous delicacies such as biltong (dried, salted meat), bobotie (a version of Shepherd's pie) and boerewors (hand-made farm sausages, grilled on an open flame).

Sports!!! Rugby Futbol (soccer) Cricket A serious young supporter

Other Facts About a quarter of the population is unemployed[ and lives on less than US $1.25 a day. A “Rand” is the currency. 1 rand = 100 cents Mining (world's largest producer of platinum, chromium), automobile assembly, metal- working, machinery, textiles, iron and steel, chemicals, fertilizers, foodstuffs, commercial ship repair. Infant Mortality Rate: 42 deaths/ 1000 live births AIDS is a big issue!! In 2005 31% of PG women had AIDS. 1,200,00 AIDS orphans. 5.6 million people are infected with AIDS—more than any other country in the world. Life Expectancy: Male: 57 years Female: 63 years Or: 71 years for whites, 48 years for blacks Literacy: School life spans 13 years or grades, from grade 0, otherwise known as grade R or "reception year", through to grade 12 or "matric" – the year of matriculation. Under the South African Schools Act of 1996, education is compulsory for all South Africans from the age of seven (grade 1) to age 15, or the completion of grade 9. There are currently around 450 registered private FET colleges, which cover training provided from Grades 10 to 12, including career-oriented education and training.