Geography

South Africa is divided in 9 provinces:

- Eastern Cape

- Free State

- Gauteng

- KwaZulu-Natal

- Limpopo

- Mpumalanga

- North West

- Northern Cape

- Western Cape 

(Click on the names of the provinces for more information.)

 

In the country live about 55 million people. The population density is very different in each province. But in total it is about 42 people per square km. The country has 3 capitals: Cape Town, Bloemfontein and Pretoria. Most of South Africa's landscape is made up of high, flat areas called plateaus. On these plateaus you can find grassland and trees.

At the side of the plateaus is a mountainous region called the Great Escarpment.

South-Africa's climates vary from a Mediterranean climate in the southwestern corner of South Africa to a temperate climate in the plateaus. There is a subtropical climate in the northeast. And a small area in the northwest has a desert climate.

 

There are a lot of races in South Africa. The dominant ones are:

1. Black African
2. Coloured
3. Indian or Asian
4. White

Statistics South Africa asked the population to divide themselves in these categories.

76% of the people were Black African. 9%  of the people are white and 9% are coloured. 0,5% of the people has an other race, so that means that 5,6% was  Asian/Indian. The life expectancy of the females is 63 years old, but for the males it is 59 years old. There are more females in South Africa than males. 51%of the population consist of females, the other 49% of males.

 

South Africa has many cities. Only in the southwest  and the east of South Africa are very big cities. The rest is mostly nature. The people often live in the cities. The most populated city is Cape Town.

 (Click on Cape Town for more Information.)

The Netherlands has 12 provinces. It is very populated compared to South Africa. The Netherlands has a population density of 488 people per square kilometre. The country's capital is Amsterdam. A lot of land in the Netherlands is under sea level. And there are no mountains, only hills. You can find them in the province Limburg.

The Netherlands has a maritime climate. The winters are not super cold and the summers are not very hot.

 

There are a lot of races in The Netherlands because of immigration. But most people are white. There are just a few more females living in the Netherlands. 51% consists of females and 49% of males. The life expectancy on average is about 82 years old. That is almost 20 years older than the people in South Africa! The most people in the Netherlands live in cities or towns, but there are also farmers or families who live in the countryside.