Namibia Geography

What is the terrain and geography like in Namibia?

Overview

Namibia is an arid country covering more than 320,000 square miles. The Caprivi Strip juts out to the northeast to touch both Zimbabwe and Zambia. Namibia has four distinct geographic regions. The Namib Desert forms a 50- to 70-mile wide belt along the entire coastline. A semiarid and mountainous plateau, varying in altitude from 3,000 to 6,000 feet, covers the central part of the interior and includes Windhoek, the capital city.

The low-lying eastern and southeastern plains are extensions of the dry Kalahari Region of Botswana and South Africa. The northern, bush-covered plains include the relatively high rainfall areas of the Kavango and the eastern Caprivi. Windhoek, the capital, has a population of 282,300 and is at an altitude of 5,600 feet.

The city itself is hilly and surrounded by sparsely vegetated mountains, creating a landscape that calls to mind Arizona or New Mexico. Indeed, with its bustling downtown commercial section, good-quality roads and public services, and trim residential areas, Windhoek proper could easily pass for a small, southwestern, American city.

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

Namibia Use of Natural Resources

Geographic Location	Africa
Total Area	318,259 Square Miles 824,292 Square Kilometers
Land Area	317,872 Square Miles 823,290 Square Kilometers
Water Area	387 Square Miles 1,002 Square Kilometers
Land Boundaries	2,446 Miles 3,936 Kilometers
Irrigated Land	29 Square Miles 75 Square Kilometers
Border Countries	Angola 1,376 km, Botswana 1,360 km, South Africa 967 km, Zambia 233 km
Coastline	977 Miles 1,572 Kilometers
Geographic Coordinates	22 00 S, 17 00 E
Terrain	mostly high plateau; Namib Desert along coast; Kalahari Desert in east
Highest Point	2,606 Meters
Highest Point Location	Konigstein 2,606 m
Lowest Point Location	Atlantic Ocean 0 m
Natural Resources	diamonds, copper, uranium, gold, lead, tin, lithium, cadmium, zinc, salt, vanadium, natural gas, hydropower, fish
Time Zone	UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
Daylight saving time	+1hr, begins first Sunday in September; ends first Sunday in April

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