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Namibia is in southwest Africa. It is a large and mainly arid country sharing borders with Angola to the north, Botswana to
the east, South Africa to the south and, in the Caprivi Strip, a narrow panhandle of Namibian territory jutting from the northeast
corner of the country, with Zambia and Zimbabwe. To the west is 1280km (795 miles) of some of the most desolate and lonely
coastline in the world. The port of Walvis Bay, situated roughly halfway down Namibia’s coast, was returned by South Africa
to Namibian jurisdiction in February 1994. Along its entire length, the vast shifting sand dunes of the Namib Desert spread
inland for 80 to 130km (50 to 80 miles). In the interior, the escarpment of a north–south plateau slopes away to the east
and north into the vast interior sand basin of the Kalahari. In the far northwest, the 66,000 sq km (25,500 sq miles) of the
Kaokoland mountains run along the coast, while further inland lies the Etosha Pan (a dried-out saline lake), surrounded by
grasslands and bush which support a large and varied wildlife. The Etosha National Park & Game Reserve is one of the finest
in Africa, in that it remains, to a large extent, free of human influence.
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Republic. Gained independence from South Africa in 1990. Head of State: President Hifikepunye Pohamba since 2005. Head of Government: Prime Minister Nahas Angula since 2005. Recent history: Hifikepunye Pohamba, representing the ruling Swapo party, won a landslide victory in Presidential elections in November 2004
and was inaugurated in March 2005. He promised to pursue the land reforms proposed by his predecessor President Nujoma.
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Overview 
