Revealing The Emptiest Country In Africa

Do you know that somewhere in Africa lies a country where there are more cows than people, it’s beaches can be empty and calm, on a Sunday you can drive for an hour without seeing anyone and if you happen to find yourself in a bar or a restaurant you might just be the only customer? A trip down the road in this country can often feel like you’re on the edge of the world because the terrain is so vast but eerily empty. In fact, this country is so empty that it has been named the emptiest in Africa and one of the top five emptiest in the world. Can you guess which country it is? Ta-da it’s Namibia. And in the video, we will show you everything you need to know about this empty but beautiful country.

Namibia is a country in South Africa that is bounded on the west by the Atlantic Ocean, on the north by Zambia and Angola, on the east by Botswana, and on the south and east by South Africa. The country was once known as South West Africa after being colonized by Germany but was renamed to its current name in 1968. Namibia spans 825, 615 kilometers, meaning that it is larger than any European country excluding Russia and it is nearly the size of Germany and Spain combined. But despite its size, Namibia is one of the world’s least densely populated areas with a population of 2.6 million people that’s about 3.13 kilometers per square mile with most of them living in the urban areas, leaving large expanses of space begging to be explored.

Although the country is sparsely populated it is home to a wide diversity of cultures like most African countries. It has 13 ethnic groups including the Herero, the Owambo, the Kavango, and the Damara just to name a few. Of these tribes, the Owambo and the Kavango make up sixty percent of the population. There are also a small number of white people, about 7 percent of the population who still have a strong German influence hailing from the days when Namibia was a colony of Germany.

It’s not really hard to see why Namibia is the emptiest country in Africa, with its landscape and extreme climate. The Namibian landscape is divided into five geographical areas: the Central Plateau, the Namib, the Great Escarpment, the Bushveld, and the Kalahari Desert. Two of the main geographical areas are deserts, the Namib and the Kalahari Desert, which cover up to 16% of the country and make it difficult to obtain resources to sustain Namibians. In fact, due to this geographical phenomenon, Namibia has the least rainfall of any sub-Sahara country, about 370 mm every year.

The climate in Namibia is very extreme because the country lies across the Tropic of Capricorn which explains the intense heat, hot and arid air, more than 300 days of sunshine per year and a frequent clear sky. The overall temperature is very high making it difficult to live in most parts of the country. The harsh climate means that droughts are very frequent in the country, sometimes extending over a long period. With its arid climate and high evaporation rate Namibia is the driest country in Africa. And as the driest country in Africa, access to water is challenging. This is also another reason why the country is sparsely populated.

Namibia relies heavily on groundwater; in fact, groundwater supplies 80% of the water utilized in the country’s mining, agriculture, and tourism industries. Surface water is only accessible in the country’s interior during the summer, when rivers overflow following extremely severe rains. Aside from a few large storage dams that hold back and dam up these seasonal floods and their discharge, surface water is extremely scarce. The only perennial rivers are found on the national borders with South Africa, Angola, Zambia, and a brief border with Botswana in the Caprivi. It also has a section of the Orange River running through it. Over the last century, more than 100,000 boreholes have been sunk in Namibia to address the country’s water shortage problem. However, over 30% of them have been drilled dry, making it extremely difficult for people to reside outside of Namibia’s most populous region.

The irregular rainfall and scarcity of water explain why less than one percent of Namibia is arable. Despite the fact that less than one percent of Namibia is arable, agriculture remains an important aspect of the Namibian economy. Commercial farming, which is primarily done by white settlers, is focused on the production of Karakul sheep and beef for export. Crop production is clearly a secondary activity on commercial farms, but it is nearly equivalent to animal production on small African family farms, many of which are run by women.

The Namibian economy however is centered on mining, which generates 25% of the country’s income. It produces minerals such as diamond, uranium, copper, and base metals, with diamond accounting for the vast majority of earnings. The country is the fourth-largest producer of uranium in the world as well as a leading producer of zinc. Apart from agriculture and mining, tourism contributes significantly to the Namibian economy.

Namibia boasts a unique blend of wildlife and breathtaking scenery despite its climate and landscape. It is a haven for those who adore natural scenery on a truly epic scale. Natural attractions include the Namib Desert, the world’s oldest desert; the Fish River Canyon, the world’s second-largest canyon after the Grand Canyon; the world-famous sand dunes at Sossusvlei; and the Skeleton Coast, with its spectacular panoramas. Its large swaths of the desert give rise to a variety of rare plants and animals suited to the severe climate, such as the Welwitschia (which can live for more than 1000 years) and the famed desert elephants, who are only found in one other location on the continent.

In terms of big game safaris, Namibia boasts several parks and reserves including the Etosha National Park, one of the largest game reserves in Africa. And despite its arid climate, the region is home to a remarkable number of living organisms. There are almost 200 species of terrestrial animals, 40 species of marine mammals, 645 species of birds, 50 types of amphibians, 115 types of fish, 250 species of reptiles, 4334 species of plants, 683 of which are endemic, and thousands of insects and arachnids. Namibia, being the first African country to include environmental protection in its constitution, paved the path for responsible tourism in a variety of ways. One example is that a whopping 40% of the country is now under conservation management, and as a result, Namibia is home to the last wild populations of black rhino and desert elephant.

Since the country gained independence in 1990, English has been its official language, although it is the native language of less than 1% of the population.German is another frequently spoken language among people of German heritage, with approximately 15,000 black Namibians currently speaking Namibian Black German. Many different languages and dialects are spoken in Namibia, the most common of which is Oshiwambo.

The capital city of Namibia is Windhoek and is regarded as one of the cleanest cities in Africa. Windhoek is home to about 450,000 people and still retains some colonial traditions and architecture. It is the the social, economic, political, and cultural centre of the country and nearly every Namibian national enterprise, governmental body, educational and cultural institution is headquartered there.

Over the years, Namibia has been recognized as one of the safest countries in Africa, and its democracy is one of the continent’s most stable, having had multiple peaceful multi-party elections since independence. It boasts some impressive infrastructure,its road network has been named top in Africa for five years in a row and it was one of the first countries in Sub-Saharan Africa to achieve complete internet access, with 4G presently available across 85% of the country. It also has one of the most advanced postal infrastructures in Africa.

So, despite the fact that the majority of Namibia’s land cannot support human life, the country opted to transform these areas into conservation zones, which is very smart, don’t you think?

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