South Africa as a Educational Destination

Location: South Africa lies at the southern tip of the African continent. It is flanked in the west by the Atlantic 0cean, in the south and the east by the Indian 0cean, in the north by Namibia, Botswana and Zimbabwe, and in the north-east by Mozambique and Swaziland.

Population
The population is currently estimated at about 46,000,000 people. This heterogeneous composition embodies a unique diversity of cultures, religions, languages and lifestyles.

Size
South Africa covers an area of 1,127,000 square meters - about one-eighth the size of the USA and nearly five times the size of the United Kingdom.

Time
Throughout the year, Standard Time in South Africa is two hours ahead of Greenwich Mean Time, one hour ahead of Central European Wintertime, and seven hours ahead of US Eastern Standard Winter Time.

Climate

Languages
There are 11 official languages in South Africa: English, Afrikaans, Ndebele, Northern Sotho, Southern Sotho, Swati, Tsonga, Tswana, Venda, Xhosa and Zulu. Most South Africans understand and speak English.

Banks in South Africa:

Despite their sophistication, South African banks are widely accused of the same ills as banks in Australasia, Europe and NorthAmerica, including high charges, poor levels of customer service, over-regulation (particularly foreign-controlled banks) and generally cartel-like behaviour. As anywhere, you should therefore shop around and compare rates before signing any contracts or taking out a loan (banks must publish their conditions).

Bank opening hours vary but are generally from 9am until 3.30pm, Mondays to Fridays, and 9am until 11am on Saturdays. 

Currency:

The South African unit of currency is the rand (R), which is divided into 100 cents.