Namibia

Namibia

Harsh and inhospitable, yet austerely beautiful, Namibia is essentially a desert country. Along its Atlantic coast the Namib stretches, parched and raw; to the East lies the Kalahari Desert, arid and forbidding; in its central escarpment, mountains - like jumbled Palaeolithic axes - rise, while in the North water may occasionally turn green a landscape that normally aches with drought. Yet for all who appreciate the unique, this mysterious land in Africa's south-western corner is a singular place in every part of its existence.

An uncompromising climate; in a "wilderness" (in many areas hardly touched by man) zebra, elephant and giraffe and a host of exotic birds and insects co-exist with rarely seen creatures. Here are the flora and fauna which have developed sophisticated techniques of survival. Here live the Bushmen, so perfectly in harmony with their environment and the Kaokoland dwellers, on whom the twentieth century has hardly impinged. The Owambo, who more than most have embraced both the ravages and the rewards of the modern world, the Khoikhoi, the Nama, the Herero... all are here; as are the legacies left by generations of colonial powers who came in search of wealth and glory.

 

Fact sheet

Type of government: President: Capital: Population: Area: Official language: Time difference: Currency: Calling code:

Republic Hifikepunye Pohamba Windhoek 2,088,669 825,418 km2 English GMT+2 Namibian dollar +264