Southern Africa has four main climatic regions: deserts in the southwest, a maritime climate in the far south and southeast, steppe in the middle, and savanna forest in the north. The Namib Desert along the coast is very dry due to the cold Benguela ocean current and lack of moisture in the winds. Inland is the Kalahari Desert, surrounded by steppe grasslands. Agriculture and livestock depend on the rainfall pattern, with nomadic herding in the drier north and ranching and mixed farming further south. South Africa has important mineral resources like diamonds, gold, iron ore and coal, supporting industries like steel manufacturing.

1. South Africa Regional
Pankaj Kumar Singh

9. Arid Desert
Maritime
Steppe
Savanna
Forest

10. Climatic Regions
Southern Africa has four distinct climatic regions.
1. The deserts are in the southwest,
2. far south and southeast the climate is marine with the dry season in the
winter.
3. the middle is steppe,
4. in the north is the Savanna forest,
Much of Southern Africa is covered with steppe and desert.
Rainfall amounts decrease from the Eastern Highlands of Tropical Africa
south and westward to the Atlantic coast.

11. Benguela
Cold Current
Namib Desert

12. Climatic condition of Namib
Desert
The Namib Desert, located along the coast, is often foggy, but very little
moisture falls to the ground. The result is one of the driest deserts in the
world. The Benguela Current, a cold ocean current, flows northward in the
Atlantic Ocean just off the coast. Winds that blow over this current pick up
very little moisture because the cold water does not evaporate. Thus, the
winds carry hardly any moisture onto the land. The conditions are very
similar to those in the Atacama Desert on the west side of South America,
and for similar reasons.
Inland toward the coast from the Namib, another great desert area begins.
The Kalahari Desert of Namibia and Botswana.
Steppe surrounding the Kalahari on all sides are the steppe grasslands.
Forest Region - North of the grasslands, the thorn forests and dry
woodlands begin. Most of the rain in the region falls during the Southern

13. Agriculture
The livestock raising and agriculture regions of Southern Africa depend on
the rainfall pattern. Because of the dryness of the Kalahari and the Namib, a
large part of the region's is devoid of any agricultural activities. On the
northern edge of the Kalahari in Botswana, Namibia, and Zimbabwe, rainfall is
sufficient to support grass. The major occupation of that area is nomadic
herding.
father north, where it is wetter, the grassland gives way to what was once forests
of broadleaf, deciduous trees .Forests have now been replaced with farms.
A similar sequence of rainfall and natural vegetation is found south and east of
the Kalahari—first grassland, then the forests. The grasslands, however, are
used for ranching, and the once-forested parts are now mixed farming
regions.
.For example, the areas of Botswana and the Republic of South Africa that are
not desert are grassland, and the predominant industries of both Slates are
cattle raising and sheep raising.

14. Farmlands in Zimbabwe are rich, and the seasonal rainfall is sufficient to
grow such products as tobacco, sugar, and cotton; cattle also are
important. Thus, meat, tobacco, and sugar are Zimbabwe's major
exports, and cotton-textile production is the major industry.
Mozambique is in the wettest part of Southern Africa, and the country
exports copra (dried coconut from palm trees). Cotton is also produced in
Mozambique.
The leading industry in Lesotho is livestock raising, and its important
exports are wool.
Rubber grown in the wet eastern half of Madagascar is that country's
leading export, but rice, coconuts are also grown.

15. Rubber
Tobacco, Cotton,
Sugarcane & Meat
Copra
Corn, Wheat , Sugar, Wine
Livestock raising

16. Agricultural Resources in
Republic of South Africa
Only about 12 per cent of the country is arable. Generally, the climate is too
dry. and the typically poor African soils are not fertile. In some places,
however, conditions are good for farming:
(1)the Natal, part of the coastal plain north of Durban, between the Vaal and
Orange rivers, and the coastal lowlands surrounding Cape Town.
(2)The most notable farm products of these regions are corn, wheat and
sugar, but wine is produced in the vineyards along the south coast.
Livestock raising is also important. Wool and mutton come from the
numerous sheep ranches, and butter, cheese, and fresh milk are
produced on the many dairy farms. Much of the beef that is eaten is
imported from Botswana. South Africa ranks second in the export of
wool in the world.
Southern west of the country is famous for growing grapes and citrus fruits.

18. Diamond, Gold &
Iron ore, Coal
South Africa is the only African State with large coal and iron ore deposits, which
makes steel production possible. Thus, the manufacturing of steel is one of
the major industries of South Africa.
Discovery of Diamond in Kimberley: discovery of best quality diamond. Today,
because of its central location. Kimberley is the transportation hub of the state,
and it still leads the world in the production of diamonds.
Discovery gold in Transvaal - gold was discovered north of the Vaal. known as
the Transvaal, or "on the other side of the Vaal.“ The gold was found on a
ridge called Witwatersrand. which means "ridge of white water.“The original
mining town is now called Johannesburg, one of the largest cities in Africa.
The Witwatersrand today is dotted with towns and is one of the most famous
and productive mining areas of the world. Coal and Iron ore too was found in
the Witwatersrand. Industrially, the coal became mors important than the gold
and the steel industry followed soon after.

19. Transportation
The Republic of South Africa is the only country of Africa with a railroad
network.
In addition to the routes that lead to other states in the region, ail its major
cities, ports, and resource regions are connected by rail.