Namibia officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and...
Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and east. Although it does not border Zimbabwe, less than 200 meters (660 feet) of the Botswana right bank of the Zambezi River separates the two countries. Namibia gained independence from South Africa on 21 March 1990, following the Namibian War of Independence. Its capital and largest city is Windhoek. Namibia is a member state of the United Nations (UN), the Southern African Development Community (SADC), the African Union (AU) and the Commonwealth of Nations.
The driest country in sub-Saharan Africa, Namibia has been inhabited since pre-historic times by the San, Damara and Nama people. Around the 14th century, immigrating Bantu peoples arrived as part of the Bantu expansion. Since then, the Bantu groups, the largest being the Ovambo, have dominated the population of the country; since the late 19th century, they have constituted a majority. Today Namibia is one of the least densely populated countries in the world.
It has a population of 2.55 million people and is a stable multi-party parliamentary democracy. Agriculture, tourism and the mining industry – including mining for gem diamonds, uranium, gold, silver and base metals – form the basis of its economy, while the manufacturing sector is comparatively small.
In 1884, the German Empire established rule over most of the territory, forming a colony known as German South West Africa. Between 1904 and 1908, it perpetrated a genocide against the Herero and Nama people. German rule ended in 1915 with a defeat by South African forces. In 1920, after the end of World War I, the League of Nations mandated administration of the colony to South Africa. As mandatory power, South Africa imposed its laws, including racial classifications and rules. From 1948, with the National Party elected to power, this included South Africa applying apartheid to what was then known as South West Africa. In the later 20th century, uprisings and demands for political representation by native African political activists seeking independence resulted in the UN assuming direct responsibility over the territory in 1966, but the country of South Africa maintained de facto rule. In 1973, the UN recognised the South West Africa People’s Organisation (SWAPO) as the official representative of the Namibian people. Following continued guerrilla warfare, Namibia obtained independence in 1990. However, Walvis Bay and the Penguin Islands remained under South African control until 1994.
Namibia has a population of about 2.1 Million inhabitants and an area of 824292 km².
Namibia is one of the most fascinating and diverse countries in the world and a number 1 travel destination. Namibia is world famous for the highest dunes in the world at Sossusvlei and for the Etosha National Park, one of world’s greatest conservation areas.
The official name of Namibia is “Republic of Namibia”. Namibia is an independent country since 1990, a presidential republic with a democratic constitution following democratic principles including freedom of speech, press and religion. The motto of Namibia is “Unity, Liberty, Justice”.
The country has an area of 824 268 km² and a population of only 2.1 Million inhabitants. Namibia belongs to the most sparsely populated countries in the world.
The capital of Namibia is Windhoek with about 350.000 inhabitants, many of them living in Katutura, a township in the north of the city.
TOP 10 TOURIST ATTRACTIONS
The Etosha National Park is centered around the vast Etosha salt pan. The pan itself is usually dry and only fills with water briefly in the summer, but is enough to stimulate the growth of a blue-green algae which lures thousands of flamingos. Most of the wildlife, including herds of zebra, wildebeest and antelope, can be seen around the waterholes that border the pan. Etosha is served by three well established rest camps and offers a great self-drive safari experience.
The Fish River Canyon in southern Namibia is second only in grandeur to the Grand Canyon in Arizona. It is absolutely magnificent and breathtaking in its immensity. The canyon features a gigantic ravine, in total about 160km (100 miles) long, up to 27 km wide and in places almost 550 meters deep. Because the Fish River is being dammed it only contains a small amount of running water.
located in the Namib Desert, Sossusvlei is a enormous clay pan surrounded by gigantic, red sand dunes. The Tsauchab River flows through the desert, and its rare flooding waters the vegetation that survives in the clay soil. During sunrise and sunset, the colors of the sand dunes are constantly changing and provide an opportunity for photographers. The fierce desert winds continually alter the shape and texture of the dunes, providing an ever-changing desert landscape.
Situated 120km north of Swakopmund, Cape Cross is home to one of the largest colonies of Cape Fur Seals in the world. The surrounding area was proclaimed a reserve in 1968 to protect the biggest and best known of the 23 colonies of Cape Fur Seals which breed along the coast of South Africa and Namibia. During the November / December breeding season as many as 150,000 seals gather at Cape Cross. The name refers to the large stone cross erected here by Portuguese explorers in the 15th century.
Swakopmund is Namibia’s biggest coastal town and a popular beach resort for Namibians on holiday. The city’s German origins are quite pronounced in beautiful old German Colonial buildings throughout the city, making a stark contrast with the Namib Desert at the edge of town. The nearby sand dunes provide several activities such as sandboarding, horse riding and quad biking while the beaches of Swakopmund provide plenty of surf and sand.
Nicknamed the “Matterhorn of Namibia”, The Spitzkoppe is a group of bald granite peaks in the Namib desert. The highest peak stand out about 700 meter (2,300 ft) above the flat desert floor. The granite massif, was created by the collapse of a gigantic volcano more than 100 million years ago and the subsequent erosion exposed the volcanic rock. Attractions include the many bizarre rock formations and several San (Bushman) paintings found in various places.
The Caprivi Strip is a narrow strip of land between Botswana on the south, Angola and Zambia to the north, and Namibia’s Okavango Region to the west. The Caprivi is the wettest region in Namibia with its high rainfall and a number of major rivers like the Okavango, Kwando and Zambezi. The abundance of water sustains a large variety of animals, including a large population of elephants. The wildlife is being protected in four reserves. There are no fences however, so the animals can roam freely across the borders of the neighboring countries.
The Skeleton Coast is the northern part of the Atlantic Ocean coast of Namibia. Dense fogs, mighty storms and violent surf caused many ships in the past to run aground along the Skeleton Coast, and the desolate coastline has become known as the world’s biggest ship graveyard. Those who were shipwrecked and managed to swim through the heavy surf and reach the coast, still had to face the waterless, hostile coastal desert. The coast north of Terrace Bay, which is dominated by high sand dunes, is the most attractive stretch of the Skeleton Coast.
Located in north-western Namibia, Twyfelfontein contains one of the largest concentrations of rock engravings in Africa. Most of the carvings were created over 6,000 years ago by ancient Bushmen. The carvings were made by cutting through the hard surface layer of sandstone and represent animals such as rhinoceroses, elephants, ostriches and giraffes as well as depictions of human and animal footprints.
Kolmanskop is a ghost town in the Namib desert, a few kilometers inland from the port town of Lüderitz. Lots of German settled in this area after a diamond was found here in 1908. Driven by the enormous wealth of the first diamond miners, the residents built Kolmanskop in the architectural style of a German town, with amenities and institutions including a hospital, ballroom, school, casino as well as the first tram in Africa. The town declined when the diamond-field slowly exhausted and was ultimately abandoned in 1954. The forces of the desert mean that tourists now walk through houses knee-deep in sand.
Introduction to the BUZZ Network.
The BUZZ network is an International Digital Tourist Information Centre with a Unique Website Domain name connection, but with a Local town to town connection as a listed Digital Yellow pages’ application that combines Your Local Town with a World Wide Network of information on a Website with a Smartphone APP, this capability on your Handheld Device.
The Namibia BUZZ network consists of 14 Websites / Smart Phone APP’s that Brings you a Digital footprint for the Business or service provider, linked to an International and National Network that will soon include South Africa, Botswana and Swaziland.
Inleiding tot die BUZZ-netwerk.
Die BUZZ-netwerk is ‘n Internasionale Digitale Toeriste inligting sentrum met ‘n Unieke Webwerf-domein naam verbinding, maar met ‘n Plaaslike dorp-tot-dorp-verbinding as ‘n gelyste Digitale Geelbladsye-toepassing wat Jou Plaaslike Dorp kombineer met ‘n Wêreldwye Netwerk van inligting op ‘n Webwerf met ‘n Slimfoon-APP/TUP , hierdie vermoë op jou handtoestel.
Die Namibië BUZZ-netwerk bestaan uit 14 webwerwe / slimfoon-APP’s wat vir jou ‘n digitale voetspoor vir die besigheid of diensverskaffer bring, gekoppel aan ‘n internasionale en nasionale netwerk wat binnekort Suid-Afrika, Botswana en Swaziland sal insluit.
