Country Cultural Briefing for Business Associates Assignment

Country Cultural Briefing for Business Associates - Assignment Example There have been many sites that have been excavated the reversal the history of the country as a home of Australopithecus. The country was inhabited by Bantu speaking people who were originally iron smelters, agriculturalist and herdsmen. The country was discovered by Portuguese in 1487. Bartlomeu Dias was the first Europeans to the reach the region and he named it as the Cape of Storms from the stormy conditions that were prevalent in the area but his sponsor renamed it as Cape of Good Hope. This is because it gave a promise of viable sea route to India the Portuguese were desperately seeking for. (Thompson, 2001) From the discovery of the region, the Dutch settlers followed and colonized the country. It became an important slave trade center for the region and Dutch settlement expanded. But it was the British who made an impact on colonization of the region when they annexed the cape colony in 1806. The Britons found the country ideal for slave trade. The discovery of diamond and gold in 1867 and 1884 respectively was perhaps the beginning of serious trade in the region. This was followed by mass settlement of whites in the country. South Africa carries the history of one of the worst form of racial discrimination in the world by the name apartheid. Under apartheid, there were different settlement and different public facilities for the white and the blacks. The was followed by a long history of struggle for freedom which was led by Nelson Mandela, a renown world figure, and the ANC party. Eventually Mandela was released after serving 27 years in Robin Island and the country was granted independence in 1994. (Kalley, 1999) Business wise, the history spins since the aforementioned discovery of Gold and diamond in the country. This led to establishment of commercial centers and large white farms that supported the trade. Since then the country has grown its economy to become the largest in Africa. Size South Africa has an area of around 470,979 Sq mi which is approximately 1,219,912 km2 which makes the 25th largest country in the world. It has a coast line that stretches fro more than 2,500 kilometers across the Atlantic and Indian Ocean. The country is made up of nine provinces with 52 districts. It has 6 metropolitan and 46 municipalities. These municipalities hold about 231 local municipalities. South Africa has a population of about 44,819,768 people which is one of the highest populations in Africa. Political System South Africa has a peculiar political system in the sense that it is the only country in the world that has three capitals. Cape Town which is the largest capital in the country is the center for legislative. Pretoria is the centre for administrative while Bloemfontein is the judicial capital. This is a peculiar political arrangement in the world but which has been planned to give the country a kind of equal representation in the political and legal matters. The country has a bicameral parliament with ninety members forming the upper house. These members form the National Council of Provinces. There are other 400 members who make the lower house or the national assemble. These members are elected directed by the people and their representation is based on population basis. Ten members are elected to represent each province in the National council of provinces but which is not