South Africa, on the continent's southern tip, is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean on the west and by the Indian Ocean on the south and east.

Highweek Community Primary & Nursery School

Geography activity contributed by Highweek Community Primary & Nursery School

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South Africa

Its neighbours are Namibia in the northwest, Zimbabwe and Botswana in the north, and Mozambique and Swaziland in the northeast. South Africa is unusual in that it has three capital cities instead of only one. These are Pretoria, Bloemfontein and Cape Town. Johannesburg, however, is the largest city.

Farming is very important to South Africa but it is also the world's largest producer of platinum, gold and chromium. It also sells a lot of diamonds and other gemstones.

Over 1 million tourists a year visit South Africa, often to look at wildlife such as whale watching trips to see southern right whales. Land animals such as elephants, lions, buffaloes, rhinos and leopards are also very popular.

Most of South Africa has warm, sunny days and cool nights. Rainfall generally occurs during the summer months (November to March), although in the south-west, around Cape Town, rainfall occurs in winter (June to August).