KwaZulu-Natal

KwaZulu-Natal
Province of South Africa
The Province of KwaZulu-Natal
Flag
Motto(s):  Masisukume sakhe (Let us rise and build)
Location of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa
Coordinates: 29°S 31°E / 29°S 31°E / -29; 31
Country	South Africa
Natalia Republic	12 October 1839
Colony of Natal	4 May 1843
Natal Province	31 May 1910
KwaZulu-Natal	27 April 1994
Capital	Pietermaritzburg
Districts	List eThekwini Ugu Umgungundlovu Uthukela Umzinyathi Amajuba Zululand Umkhanyakude King Cetshwayo iLembe Harry Gwala
Government
• Type	Parliamentary system
• Premier	Sihle Zikalala (ANC)
Area [1]
• Total	94,361 km2 (36,433 sq mi)
• Rank	7th in South Africa
Highest elevation	3,451 m (11,322 ft)
Lowest elevation	0 m (0 ft)
Population  (2007)[2][3]
• Total	10,259,230
• Estimate  (2010)	10,645,400
• Rank	2nd in South Africa
• Density	110/km2 (280/sq mi)
• Rank	2nd in South Africa
Demonym	Natalian
Population groups [4]
• Black African	86.0%
• Indian or Asian	8.1%
• White	4.4%
• Coloured	1.4%
Languages [5]
• Zulu	80.0%
• English	13.4%
• Xhosa	3.5%
• Afrikaans	1.5%
Time zone	UTC+2 (SAST)
ISO 3166 code	ZA-NL
Website	www.kwazulunatal.gov.za

KwaZulu-Natal (/kwɑːˌzuːluː nəˈtɑːl/, also called KZN or Natal) is a province in South Africa. Before 1994, KwaZulu-Natal was made up of the province of Natal and the KwaZulu homeland.

In the 1830s, the northern part of KwaZulu-Natal was part of the Zulu Kingdom. The southern part of KwaZulu-Natal was a Boer republic called Natalia (1839-1843). In 1843, Natalia became a British colony. Zululand remained independent until 1879.

Today KwaZulu-Natal is the traditional home of the Zulu nation. It is called the "garden province." Two natural areas, the iSimangaliso Wetland Park and the uKhahlamba Drakensberg Park, have been declared UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

KwaZulu-Natal is located to the east of South Africa. It borders the Indian Ocean as well as three other provinces, and the countries of Mozambique, Eswatini, and Lesotho. Its capital is Pietermaritzburg and its largest city is Durban.

KwaZulu-Natal is about 92,100 square kilometres (35,600 sq mi) in area, making it about the same size as Portugal. The province has three different geographic areas. The lowland region lies along the Indian Ocean coast. It is very narrow in the south and widens in the northern part of the province. The central region is called the Natal Midlands. The midlands are hilly plateaus that rise toward the west.

The third region is mountainous. The two mountain ranges are the Drakensberg Mountains in the west and the Lebombo Mountains in the north. The Drakensberg mountains are basalt cliffs that rise 3,000 m (9,800 ft) near Lesotho. The Lebombo Mountains are ancient granite mountains that run south from Swaziland. The Tugela River flows west to east across the center of the province and is the region's largest river.

The coastal areas have dense stands of subtropical trees and shrubs and deep ravines. Afromontane Forest grows on the steep sides of the ravines. The midlands have moist (wet) grasslands and small pockets of Afromontane Forest. The north is mostly wet savanna. The Drakensberg region is alpine grassland.

One of the biggest problems in the province is HIV infection. South Africa has more HIV-positive citizens than any other country in the world.^[6] KwaZulu-Natal has the highest rate of HIV infection of all of the provinces. According to UNAIDS in 2009, the infection rate is 39%.^[7]

Many people die from complications from AIDS. Infected people in KwaZulu-Natal do not have the health care, medicine, and proper food they need to stay healthy. HIV/AIDS has slowed economic growth by destroying human capital, the ability of people to make money in society.^[8]

• Comrades Marathon – A yearly marathon run between Pietermaritzburg and Durban.
• Midmar Mile – A mile-long swimming race held yearly at Midmar Dam
• Dusi Canoe Marathon – A yearly canoe marathon, starting in Pietermaritzburg and ending in Durban.
• Durban July – South Africa's premier annual horse racing event at Greyville Racecourse in Durban.
• Mr Price Pro – a premier international surfing event at Durban during winter. It used to be known as the Gunston 500.

• Football
  • Premier Soccer League (PSL), with the following teams from KwaZulu-Natal:
    • AmaZulu and Golden Arrows, from Durban
    • Thanda Royal Zulu from Richards Bay
    • Maritzburg United, from Pietermaritzburg

• Rugby union
  • The Sharks, who compete in the Super Rugby competition with four other South African teams, five teams from Australia, and five teams from New Zealand
  • Natal Sharks (different from the Super Rugby team), who compete in South Africa's domestic competition, the Currie Cup

• KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Government Archived 2007-12-22 at the Wayback Machine
• KwaZulu-Natal Tourism Authority
• Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife