Namibia Geography - 2023

GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES 

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: 824,292 sq km

land: 823,290 sq km

water: 1,002 sq km

Area - comparative

almost seven times the size of Pennsylvania; slightly more than half the size of Alaska

Land boundaries

total: 4,220 km

border countries (4): Angola 1,427 km; Botswana 1,544 km; South Africa 1,005 km; Zambia 244 km

Coastline

1,572 km

Maritime claims

territorial sea: 12 nm

contiguous zone: 24 nm

exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

Climate

desert; hot, dry; rainfall sparse and erratic

Terrain

mostly high plateau; Namib Desert along coast; Kalahari Desert in east

Elevation

highest point: Konigstein on Brandberg 2,573 m

lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m

mean elevation: 1,141 m

Natural resources

diamonds, copper, uranium, gold, silver, lead, tin, lithium, cadmium, tungsten, zinc, salt, hydropower, fish; note - suspected deposits of oil, coal, and iron ore

Land use

agricultural land: 47.2% (2018 est.)

arable land: 1% (2018 est.)

permanent crops: 0% (2018 est.)

permanent pasture: 46.2% (2018 est.)

forest: 8.8% (2018 est.)

other: 44% (2018 est.)

Irrigated land

80 sq km (2012)

Major rivers (by length in km)

Zambezi (shared with Zambia [s]), Angola, Botswana, Zimbabwe, and Mozambique [m]) - 2,740 km; Orange river mouth (shared with Lesotho [s], and South Africa) - 2,092 km; Okavango (shared with Angola [s], and Botswana [m]) - 1,600 km
note – [s] after country name indicates river source; [m] after country name indicates river mouth

Major watersheds (area sq km)

Atlantic Ocean drainage: Orange (941,351 sq km)
Indian Ocean drainage: Zambezi (1,332,412 sq km)
Internal (endorheic basin) drainage: Okavango Basin (863,866 sq km)

Major aquifers

Lower Kalahari-Stampriet Basin, Upper Kalahari-Cuvelai-Upper Zambezi Basin

Population distribution

population density is very low, with the largest clustering found in the extreme north-central area along the border with Angola as shown in this population distribution map

Natural hazards

prolonged periods of drought

Geography - note

the Namib Desert, after which the country is named, is considered to be the oldest desert in the world; Namibia is the 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; Namib-Naukluft National Park (49,768 sq km), is the largest game park in Africa and one of the largest in the world

NOTE: The information regarding Namibia on this page is re-published from the 2023 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Namibia 2023 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Namibia 2023 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.