Namibia vs. Angola
Geography
| Namibia | Angola | |
|---|---|---|
| Location | Southern Africa, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Angola and South Africa | Southern Africa, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Namibia and Democratic Republic of the Congo |
| Geographic coordinates | 22 00 S, 17 00 E | 12 30 S, 18 30 E |
| Map references | Africa | Africa |
| Area | total: 824,292 sq km land: 823,290 sq km water: 1,002 sq km | total: 1,246,700 sq km land: 1,246,700 sq km water: 0 sq km |
| Area - comparative | almost seven times the size of Pennsylvania; slightly more than half the size of Alaska | about eight times the size of Georgia; slightly less than twice the size of Texas |
| Land boundaries | total: 4,220 km border countries (4): Angola 1427 km, Botswana 1544 km, South Africa 1005 km, Zambia 244 km | total: 5,369 km border countries (4): Democratic Republic of the Congo 2646 km (of which 225 km is the boundary of discontiguous Cabinda Province), Republic of the Congo 231 km, Namibia 1427 km, Zambia 1065 km |
| Coastline | 1,572 km | 1,600 km |
| Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm | territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
| Climate | desert; hot, dry; rainfall sparse and erratic | semiarid in south and along coast to Luanda; north has cool, dry season (May to October) and hot, rainy season (November to April) |
| Terrain | mostly high plateau; Namib Desert along coast; Kalahari Desert in east | narrow coastal plain rises abruptly to vast interior plateau |
| Elevation extremes | highest point: Konigstein on Brandberg 2,573 m lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m mean elevation: 1,141 m | highest point: Moca 2,620 m lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m mean elevation: 1,112 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 | petroleum, diamonds, iron ore, phosphates, copper, feldspar, gold, bauxite, uranium |
| 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.) | agricultural land: 45.7% (2018 est.) arable land: 3.9% (2018 est.) permanent crops: 0.3% (2018 est.) permanent pasture: 41.5% (2018 est.) forest: 54.3% (2018 est.) |
| Irrigated land | 80 sq km (2012) | 860 sq km (2014) |
| Natural hazards | prolonged periods of drought | locally heavy rainfall causes periodic flooding on the plateau |
| Environment - current issues | depletion and degradation of water and aquatic resources; desertification; land degradation; loss of biodiversity and biotic resources; wildlife poaching | overuse of pastures and subsequent soil erosion attributable to population pressures; desertification; deforestation of tropical rain forest, in response to both international demand for tropical timber and to domestic use as fuel, resulting in loss of biodiversity; soil erosion contributing to water pollution and siltation of rivers and dams; inadequate supplies of potable water |
| Environment - international agreements | party to: Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping-London Protocol, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
| 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 | the province of Cabinda is an exclave, separated from the rest of the country by the Democratic Republic of the Congo |
| Total renewable water resources | 39.91 billion cubic meters (2017 est.) | 148.4 billion cubic meters (2017 est.) |
| 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 | most people live in the western half of the country; urban areas account for the highest concentrations of people, particularly the capital of Luanda as shown in this population distribution map |
Source: CIA Factbook
