South Africa

Did you know?

South Africa’s wine industry is over three hundred years old. The first vineyards were planted in the Cape in 1655. Winemaking spread to the “new” world with the 16th century explorers, arriving first in Mexico in 1530, then spreading 30 years later to Argentina and Peru, followed by the Cape and then California 1697. Australia and New Zealand wine dates back to 1813.

Johannesburg has ten million trees and is one of the biggest man-made forests in the world. Many trees were originally planted to provide wood for the mining industry.

Less than 10 per cent of South Africa’s rainfall is available as surface water. The country has no large rivers or natural lakes able to reliably supply quality water. The government calls water shortages one of South Africa’s “most limiting factors in the 21st century”.

South Africa has three capitals, Cape Town is the legislative capital, Bloemfontein is the judicial capital and Pretoria is the administrative capital.