Zimbabwe:
Geography

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Other pages in this profile of Zimbabwe:
People, Government, Economy, Communications & Transportation, Military & Transnational Issues.


Background	Definition The UK annexed Southern Rhodesia from the [British] South Africa Company in 1923. A 1961 constitution was formulated that favored whites in power. In 1965 the government unilaterally declared its independence, but the UK did not recognize the act and demanded more complete voting rights for the black African majority in the country (then called Rhodesia). UN sanctions and a guerrilla uprising finally led to free elections in 1979 and independence (as Zimbabwe) in 1980. Robert MUGABE, the nation's first prime minister, has been the country's only ruler (as president since 1987) and has dominated the country's political system since independence. His chaotic land redistribution campaign, which began in 2000, caused an exodus of white farmers, crippled the economy, and ushered in widespread shortages of basic commodities. Ignoring international condemnation, MUGABE rigged the 2002 presidential election to ensure his reelection. The ruling ZANU-PF party used fraud and intimidation to win a two-thirds majority in the March 2005 parliamentary election, allowing it to amend the constitution at will and recreate the Senate, which had been abolished in the late 1980s. In April 2005, Harare embarked on Operation Restore Order, ostensibly an urban rationalization program, which resulted in the destruction of the homes or businesses of 700,000 mostly poor supporters of the opposition. President MUGABE in June 2007 instituted price controls on all basic commodities causing panic buying and leaving store shelves empty for months. General elections held in March 2008 contained irregularities but still amounted to a censure of the ZANU-PF-led government with significant gains in opposition seats in parliament. MDC opposition leader Morgan TSVANGIRAI won the presidential polls, and may have won an out right majority, but official results posted by the Zimbabwe Electoral Committee did not reflect this. In the lead up to a run-off election in late June 2008, considerable violence enacted against opposition party members led to the withdrawal of TSVANGIRAI from the ballot. Extensive evidence of vote tampering and ballot-box stuffing resulted in international condemnation of the process, and calls for the creation of a power-sharing government have been ignored.

Location	Definition Southern Africa, between South Africa and Zambia
Geographic coordinates	Definition 20 00 S, 30 00 E
Map references	Definition Africa
Area	Definition - World rank and map total: 390,580 sq km land: 386,670 sq km water: 3,910 sq km
Area - comparative	Definition slightly larger than Montana
Land boundaries	Definition total: 3,066 km border countries: Botswana 813 km, Mozambique 1,231 km, South Africa 225 km, Zambia 797 km
Coastline	Definition 0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claims	Definition none (landlocked)
Climate	Definition tropical; moderated by altitude; rainy season (November to March)
Terrain	Definition mostly high plateau with higher central plateau (high veld); mountains in east
Elevation extremes	Definition lowest point: junction of the Runde and Save rivers 162 m highest point: Inyangani 2,592 m
Natural resources	Definition coal, chromium ore, asbestos, gold, nickel, copper, iron ore, vanadium, lithium, tin, platinum group metals
Land use	Definition - World rank and map arable land: 8.24% permanent crops: 0.33% other: 91.43% (2005)
Irrigated land	Definition 1,740 sq km (2003)
Total renewable water resources	Definition 20 cu km (1987)
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural)	Definition total: 4.21 cu km/yr (14%/7%/79%) per capita: 324 cu m/yr (2002)
Natural hazards	Definition recurring droughts; floods and severe storms are rare
Environment - current issues	Definition deforestation; soil erosion; land degradation; air and water pollution; the black rhinoceros herd - once the largest concentration of the species in the world - has been significantly reduced by poaching; poor mining practices have led to toxic waste and heavy metal pollution
Environment - international agreements	Definition party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note	Definition 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

Zimbabwe: Geography

Zimbabwe:
Geography