Global - Technology - Review

Namibia is a large and arid country in south western Africa. With only two million inhabitants, only Mongolia is less densely populated. On the coast is the sandy Namib Desert, with virtually no vegetation and the world’s tallest dunes. Part of the desert is known as the Skeleton Coast, famous for its fogs. The Cape Cross Seal Reserve has the largest colony of Cape Fur Seals. In the south is the Kalahari Desert, which has enough rain to support succulents and animals. In the Etosha National Park are lion, elephant, giraffe and zebra and the huge desert salt pan, which, when briefly filled with rain each summer, attracts flamingos and pelican. At Twyfelfontein is a location occupied by hunter-gatherers for six thousand years. On the sandstone slabs are thousands of rock carvings and some paintings showing animal and human figures. Some depict humans transformed into animals, suggesting they were part of a shamanistic ritual. Windhoek, the capital, was founded by German colonists, and is surrounded by a rocky mountainous area. Namibia main industry is mining for Uranium, gold, and diamonds. The road and rail systems are better developed than many in Africa.