Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in southern Africa whose western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana and Zimbabwe to the east, and South Africa to the south and east. It gained independence from South Africa on 21 March 1990 following the Namibian War of Independence. Its capital and largest city is Windhoek. Read More
Namibia is a member state of the United Nations (UN), the Southern African Development Community (SADC), the African Union (AU), the Commonwealth of Nations and many other international organisations.
In 1966, uprisings and demands by African leaders led the United Nations to assume direct responsibility over the territory, and recognizing South West Africa People’s Organization (SWAPO) as official representative of the Namibian people in 1973. Namibia, however, remained under South African administration during this time. Following internal violence, South Africa installed an interim administration in Namibia in 1985. Namibia obtained full independence from South Africa in 1990 (with the exception of Walvis Bay—a city that remained under South African control until 1994). The country also officially changed its name from South West Africa to Namibia in 1990.
Agriculture, herding, tourism and mining of precious stones and metals form the backbone of Namibia's economy. Approximately half the population live below the international poverty line of U.S.$1.25 a day,[4] and the nation has suffered heavily from the effects of HIV/AIDS, with 15% of the adult population infected with HIV in 2007.
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