Zimbabwe

Overview

Flag
Anthem	Simudzai Mureza wedu WeZimbabwe (Shona) (Blessed be the land of Zimbabwe)
Capital	Harare
Largest city	Harare
Official languages	Chewa, Chibarwe, English, Kalanga, Koisan, Nambya, Ndau, Ndebele, Shangani, Shona, sign language, Sotho, Tonga, Tswana, Venda, Xhosa
Demonyma name for a resident of a locality, often the same as the name of the people's native language	Zimbabwean
Government	Semi presidential, parliamentary, consociationalist republic
Area	390,757 km2, 150,871 sq mi
Population	~ 13 million
Currency	US dollar (USD)
Internet TLD	.zw

Geography

Zimbabwe is a landlockeda term used to refer to a region, especially a country, that does not border the sea country located in the southern part of the continent of Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. The capital of Zimbabwe is Harare. It has an estimated population of 1.6 Million. It is also the largest city of the country. Other large cities are Bulawayo, Chitungwiza and Mutare.

Society and culture

Population

Zimbabwe's total population is 12 million. Black ethnic groups make up 98% of the population. The majority people, the Shona, comprise 80 to 84%. The Ndebele are the second most populous with 10 to 15% of the population. Other Bantu ethnic groups make up 2 to 5%. These are Venda, Tonga, Shangaan, Kalanga, Sotho, Ndau and Nambya.

Languages

Zimbabwe has 16 official languages: Chewa, Chibarwe, English, Kalanga, Koisan, Nambya, Ndau, Ndebele, Shangani, Shona, sign language, Sotho, Tonga, Tswana, Venda, Xhosa

Religion

Some 85% of Zimbabweans are Christian. 62% of the population attends religious services regularly. The largest Christian churches are Anglican, Roman Catholic, Seventh-day Adventist and Methodist. As in other African countries, Christianity may be mixed with traditional beliefs. Besides Christianity, ancestralpertaining to people from whom a person is descended worship is the most practised non-Christian religion.

Government and politics

Zimbabwe is a republic with a semi-presidential system. It has a parliamentary government. The upper chamber of Parliament is the Senate, while the lower chamber is the House of Assembly. The current president is Robert Mugabe. His party, the Zimbabwe African National Union – Patriotic Front (commonly abbreviated ZANU-PF), has been the dominant political party in Zimbabwe since independence.

Economy

Mineral exports, agriculture, and tourism are the main foreign currency earners of Zimbabwe. The mining sector remains very lucrativebringing financial profit. The Marange diamond fields, found in 2006, are considered the biggest diamond find in over a century. Zimbabwe is the biggest trading partner of South Africa on the continent. Zimbabwe maintained positive economic growth throughout the 1980s and 1990s. However, the economy declinedto fall; to reduce from 2000.