From why South Africa is so rich to how you can attack flame throwers to your car, here are 15 Awesome facts about South Africa that you need to know.
Fun Facts about South Africa
1. With a GDP of over $329.53 Bn, South Africa ranks as the 3rd richest country in Africa. The only African countries that outrank South Africa are Nigeria($514.05 Bn) and Egypt($394.28).
2. Almost 80% of South Africa’s population is Christian. With the other 20% being from Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist, or other religions.
3. South Africa has three capitals: Pretoria is the Executive Capital, Cape Town is the Legislative Capital, and Bloemfontein is the Judicial Capital.
4. With nearly 90% of all the platinum metals on earth and around 41% of all the world’s Gold, South Africa is extremely rich in mining and minerals and is considered the world’s leader.
5. Residents in South Africa are legally permitted to attach a flamethrower to their vehicles to prevent hijacking.
Interesting Facts about South Africa
6. South Africa has the only place in the world where two Nobel Peace Prize winners lived on the same street. Both Nelson Mandela and Archbishop Desmond Tutu lived on Vilakazi Street in Soweto.
7. South Africa is the only country that willingly gave up its nuclear weapons program.
8. The Bloukrans Bridge, Western Cape, South Africa, is home to the highest commercial natural bungee jump(216m or 709ft) in the world.
9. Table Mountain, one of the most famous South African monuments, is one of the world’s oldest mountains. The iconic mountain has more than 2,200 species of plants, 70 percent of them being endemic.
10. South Africa is a land full of record-breaking animals. In SA, you’ll get to see The largest land mammal (elephant), largest bird (ostrich), tallest animal (giraffe), largest fish (whale shark), largest reptile (leatherback turtle), quickest land mammal (cheetah), and the largest antelope (eland).
Insane Facts about South Africa
11. South Africa is also home to almost half the gold ever mined on Earth.
12. The first successful heart transplant was conducted by a South African Doctor, Chris Barnard, at the Groote Schuur Hospital in Cape Town, South Africa.
13. South Africa has hosted the Soccer, Cricket, and Rugby World Cup! It is the only country in the world other than England to have done so.
14. South Africa has the 3rd best quality tap water in the world.
15. With 12% of the population infected, South Africa has the highest number of people with HIV/AIDs in the world.
Bonus Fact:
South Africa has 10 UNESCO-designated World Heritage sites. This also includes the oldest meteor scar in the world, the Vredefort Dome in a town called Parys.
That’s it for this post guys, I hope you had fun while reading 15 Interesting South Africa facts for kids.
Take care 🙂
