Zimbabwe Geography - 2024

Location

Southern Africa, between South Africa and Zambia

Geographic coordinates

20 00 S, 30 00 E

Map references

Africa

Area

total: 390,757 sq km

land: 386,847 sq km

water: 3,910 sq km

Area - comparative

about four times the size of Indiana; slightly larger than Montana

Area comparison map:

Land boundaries

total: 3,229 km

border countries (4): Botswana 834 km; Mozambique 1,402 km; South Africa 230 km; Zambia 763 km

Coastline

0 km (landlocked)

Maritime claims

none (landlocked)

Climate

tropical; moderated by altitude; rainy season (November to March)

Terrain

mostly high plateau with higher central plateau (high veld); mountains in east

Elevation

highest point: Inyangani 2,592 m

lowest point: junction of the Runde and Save Rivers 162 m

mean elevation: 961 m

Natural resources

coal, chromium ore, asbestos, gold, nickel, copper, iron ore, vanadium, lithium, tin, platinum group metals

Land use

agricultural land: 42.5% (2018 est.)

arable land: 10.9% (2018 est.)

permanent crops: 0.3% (2018 est.)

permanent pasture: 31.3% (2018 est.)

forest: 39.5% (2018 est.)

other: 18% (2018 est.)

Irrigated land

1,740 sq km (2012)

Major rivers (by length in km)

Zambezi (shared with Zambia [s]), Angola, Namibia, Botswana, and Mozambique [m]) - 2,740 km; Limpopo (shared with South Africa [s], Botswana, and Mozambique [m]) - 1,800 km
note – [s] after country name indicates river source; [m] after country name indicates river mouth

Major watersheds (area sq km)

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

Major aquifers

Upper Kalahari-Cuvelai-Upper Zambezi Basin

Population distribution

Aside from major urban agglomerations in Harare and Bulawayo, population distribution is fairly even, with slightly greater overall numbers in the eastern half as shown in this

Natural hazards

recurring droughts; floods and severe storms are rare

Geography - note

landlocked; the Zambezi forms a natural riverine boundary with Zambia; in full flood (February-April) the massive Victoria Falls on the river forms the world's largest curtain of falling water; Lake Kariba on the Zambia-Zimbabwe border forms the world's largest reservoir by volume (180 cu km; 43 cu mi)