Republic of Zimbabwe
About Zimbabwe:
Officially Zimbabwe is known as Republic of Zimbabwe and formerly was known as theSouthern Rhodesia. Zimbabwe is thelandlocked country situated in southern part in the continent Africa, among the rivers Limpopo and Zambezi. The country is surrounded in south by South Africa, in east by Mozambique, in northwest by Zambia and in southwest by Botswana.
Zimbabwe Etymology:
Zimbabwe has derived its name from Dzimba dza mabwe which means the great houses of stone in Shona language. In German language, the initial letter Z is replaced by S, for producing the same phonic sound as Zimbabwe is spelled as Simbabwe.
Zimbabwe History:
The hunters of the Stone Age, related to the current Khoisan people have taken the area around 5000 years earlier. They depict the scenes of the life in the rock painting in Zimbabwe; all these paintings were called as Bushman paintings.
Zimbabwe Demographics:
According to United Nations World Health Organization in the year 2006, the life expectancy for women is 34 years and for men it is 37 years, which is the lowest in the entire world. The country has very elevated HIV infection rates. The HIV rate in the country in year 2006 was determined to be 20.1%for the age group of 15 to 49 years.
Zimbabwe Government and Policies:
There is a parliamentary government in Zimbabwe. In the year 2005, under the constitutional changes, the Senate and the upper chamber were reinstated. The lower chamber of the parliament is the House of Assembly.
Zimbabwe Culture:
In the southern region of the continent Africa, there lays a small country named as Zimbabwe. Zimbabwe has the diverse culture and is also uprising in the requirements ofeducation. The people of the country believe that the teamwork and education are their equipments for gaining the success in the future. The official language of the country is English but it is not so important in the rural areas. The other languages that are also spoken widely are Ndebele and Shona.
Zimbabwe Economy:
The government of Zimbabwe has faced many economic troubles after having abandoned former efforts for developing the economy which is market oriented. The troubles include:
- Soaring inflation
- Supply shortage
- Shortage of foreign exchange
The involvement of the country in War in Democratic Republic of the Congo from the year 1998- 2002 drained the large amount of money from economy.
Zimbabwe Infrastructure:
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country with the very well established road network of approximately 18,338 km of the roads out of which 8,692 km are paved. The closest seaport to the country is Beira to Mozambique. The country also has the direct link of the railway with Zambia and also links it with the Tanzanian port of the Dar es Salaam with the help of the Tazara railway. The rail service in the country is operated by National Railways of Zimbabwe.
Zimbabwe Education:
The adult literacy rate in Zimbabwe is near about 90% which is the highest in the continent Africa. Nevertheless, since from the year 1995, the adult literacy rate of the country has slowly decreased. In the year 1988, the school education in the country was free but the government of the country in the year 1988 has slowly increased charges. The government schools in the country are operated and managed by Ministry of Education of the country and the fees which are charged by the independent schools are operated by cabinet of country.
Zimbabwe Neighboring Countries:
The countries that are very near to the Zimbabwe are:
- South Africa
- Zambia
- Mozambique
- Botswana
Zimbabwe Geographical Settings:
Zimbabwe covers the total area of 390,757 sq km. The highest peak in the country is Mount Nyangan which was earlier known as the Mount Inyangani. This highest peak lies in the east of Zimbabwe within Nyanga National Park. The country’s lowest point is junction of Save and Runde rivers. The most famous tourist destination in country is Victoria Falls which is located on Zambezi.
Zimbabwe Independence:
Zimbabwe gained its independence from United Kingdom on 11th November 1965.
Zimbabwe Capital City:
The capital of Zimbabwe is Harare formerly which was known as Salisbury. It is the largest and the metropolitan city in the entire country. The country is located at 170 50’S 310 3’E.
Zimbabwe Currency:
The currency of Zimbabwe is Zimbabwe. The dollar is divided in 100 cents. Generally it is abbreviated with $ sign.
Zimbabwe Country Famous For:
The Zimbabwe is famous for:
- Victoria Falls
- Vumba
- Nyanga
- Kariba
Zimbabwe Total Population:
The total population of Zimbabwe is 13,349,000 according to the census of the year 2008.
Zimbabwe Previous Records Medals:
Till date the country has won 2 gold medals, 1 silver and 1 bronze medal in the summer Olympics. The country has not won any medal in the Winter Olympics.
