Location:
Southern Africa, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Angola and South Africa
Geographic coordinates:
22 00 S, 17 00 E
Map references:
Africa
Area:
total: 825,418 sq km
water: 0 sq km
land: 825,418 sq km
Area - comparative:
slightly more than half the size of Alaska
Land boundaries:
total: 3,936 km
border countries: Angola 1,376 km, Botswana 1,360 km, South Africa 967 km, Zambia 233 km
Coastline:
1,572 km
Maritime claims:
contiguous zone: 24 NM
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM
Climate:
desert; hot, dry; rainfall sparse and erratic
Terrain:
mostly high plateau; Namib Desert along coast; Kalahari Desert in east
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Konigstein 2,606 m
Natural resources:
diamonds, copper, uranium, gold, lead, tin, lithium, cadmium, zinc, salt, vanadium, natural gas, hydropower, fish
note: suspected deposits of oil, coal, and iron ore
Land use:
arable land: 0.99%
permanent crops: 0%
other: 99.01% (1998 est.)
Irrigated land:
70 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards:
prolonged periods of drought
Environment - current issues:
very limited natural fresh water resources; desertification; wildlife poaching; land degradation has led to few conservation areas
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note:
first country in the world to incorporate the protection of the environment into its constitution; some 14% of the land is protected, including virtually the entire Namib Desert coastal strip
NOTE: The information regarding Namibia on this page is re-published from the 2003 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Guinea Geography 2003 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Namibia Geography 2003 should be addressed to the CIA.