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Eswatini (formerly Swaziland), is a country in Southern Africa lying between Mozambique and South Africa. The country is located at the geographic coordinates 26°30′S31°30′E / 26.500°S 31.500°E . Eswatini has an area of 17,363 square kilometres, of which 160 are water. The major regions of the country are Lowveld, Midveld and Highveld.
The climate varies from tropical to near temperate. The seasons are the reverse of those in the Northern Hemisphere with December being mid-summer and June mid-winter. Generally speaking, rain falls mostly during the summer months, often in the form of thunderstorms. Winter is the dry season. Annual rainfall is highest on the Highveld in the west, between 1,000 and 2,000 mm (39.4 and 78.7 in) depending on the year. The further east, the less rain, with the Lowveld recording 500 to 900 mm (19.7 to 35.4 in) per annum. Variations in temperature are also related to the altitude of the different regions. The Highveld temperature is temperate and seldom uncomfortably hot while the Lowveld may record temperatures around 40 °C (104 °F ) in summer.
| Climate data for Mbabane | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 24.9 (76.8) | 24.5 (76.1) | 24.1 (75.4) | 22.6 (72.7) | 21.4 (70.5) | 19.3 (66.7) | 19.8 (67.6) | 21.3 (70.3) | 23.2 (73.8) | 22.8 (73.0) | 22.5 (72.5) | 23.7 (74.7) | 22.5 (72.5) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 14.9 (58.8) | 14.5 (58.1) | 13.4 (56.1) | 11.0 (51.8) | 7.9 (46.2) | 4.7 (40.5) | 4.6 (40.3) | 6.6 (43.9) | 9.5 (49.1) | 11.3 (52.3) | 12.9 (55.2) | 14.2 (57.6) | 10.5 (50.9) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 253.2 (9.97) | 224.6 (8.84) | 151.6 (5.97) | 87.9 (3.46) | 33.8 (1.33) | 19.4 (0.76) | 20.1 (0.79) | 35.1 (1.38) | 69.4 (2.73) | 141.9 (5.59) | 197.8 (7.79) | 206.9 (8.15) | 1,441.7 (56.76) |
| Average rainy days | 16.9 | 14.3 | 13.8 | 9.8 | 5.1 | 2.8 | 3.1 | 6.5 | 9.2 | 14.9 | 17.0 | 16.5 | 129.9 |
| Source: World Meteorological Organization [1] | |||||||||||||
| Climate data for Big Bend | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 32.2 (90.0) | 31.7 (89.1) | 30.6 (87.1) | 29.1 (84.4) | 27.0 (80.6) | 25.2 (77.4) | 25.2 (77.4) | 26.5 (79.7) | 28.4 (83.1) | 29.8 (85.6) | 30.2 (86.4) | 31.6 (88.9) | 29.0 (84.1) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 26.2 (79.2) | 26.0 (78.8) | 25.0 (77.0) | 22.8 (73.0) | 19.9 (67.8) | 17.3 (63.1) | 17.1 (62.8) | 19.0 (66.2) | 21.4 (70.5) | 23.4 (74.1) | 24.3 (75.7) | 25.6 (78.1) | 22.3 (72.2) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 20.3 (68.5) | 20.4 (68.7) | 19.5 (67.1) | 16.6 (61.9) | 12.8 (55.0) | 9.4 (48.9) | 9.1 (48.4) | 11.5 (52.7) | 14.5 (58.1) | 17.1 (62.8) | 18.5 (65.3) | 19.6 (67.3) | 15.8 (60.4) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 98 (3.9) | 75 (3.0) | 63 (2.5) | 32 (1.3) | 20 (0.8) | 9 (0.4) | 9 (0.4) | 12 (0.5) | 31 (1.2) | 51 (2.0) | 79 (3.1) | 82 (3.2) | 561 (22.3) |
| Source: Climate-Data.org [2] | |||||||||||||
| Climate data for Manzini | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 28.2 (82.8) | 28.1 (82.6) | 27.3 (81.1) | 26.0 (78.8) | 24.0 (75.2) | 22.2 (72.0) | 22.0 (71.6) | 23.6 (74.5) | 25.3 (77.5) | 26.4 (79.5) | 26.8 (80.2) | 27.9 (82.2) | 25.6 (78.2) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 23.0 (73.4) | 23.0 (73.4) | 22.1 (71.8) | 20.1 (68.2) | 17.2 (63.0) | 15.0 (59.0) | 14.6 (58.3) | 16.6 (61.9) | 18.7 (65.7) | 20.5 (68.9) | 21.5 (70.7) | 22.6 (72.7) | 19.6 (67.3) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 17.9 (64.2) | 17.9 (64.2) | 16.9 (62.4) | 14.3 (57.7) | 10.5 (50.9) | 7.8 (46.0) | 7.3 (45.1) | 9.6 (49.3) | 12.2 (54.0) | 14.7 (58.5) | 16.2 (61.2) | 17.3 (63.1) | 13.6 (56.4) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 145 (5.7) | 133 (5.2) | 100 (3.9) | 54 (2.1) | 26 (1.0) | 15 (0.6) | 15 (0.6) | 19 (0.7) | 45 (1.8) | 84 (3.3) | 119 (4.7) | 126 (5.0) | 881 (34.6) |
| Source: Climate-Data.org [3] | |||||||||||||
The terrain largely consists of mountains and hills, with some moderately sloping plains. The lowest point is the Great Usutu River at 21 metres (69 ft), and the highest is Emlembe at 1,862 metres (6,109 ft).
As a landlocked country, Eswatini has neither coastline nor maritime claims. In terms of land boundaries, Eswatini borders Mozambique for 105 kilometres (65 mi) and South Africa for 430 kilometres (270 mi), giving a total land boundary length of 535 kilometres (332 mi).
Eswatini's natural resources are asbestos, coal, clay, cassiterite, hydropower, forests, small gold and diamond deposits, quarry stone and talc.
670 square kilometres (260 sq mi) of the country's land is irrigated. The following table describes land use in Eswatini:
| Use | Percentage by area |
|---|---|
| Arable land | 9.77 |
| Permanent crops | 0.7 |
| Other | 89.53 |
Eswatini is prone to floods and drought. Soil erosion as a result of overgrazing is a growing problem.
Eswatini is part of the following international agreements: Biodiversity, Endangered Species, Nuclear Test Ban and Ozone Layer Protection. The country has signed, but not ratified the agreement on desertification and the law of the sea.
| |
This is a list of the extreme points of Eswatini, the points that are farther north, south, east or west than any other location.
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Veld, also spelled veldt, is a type of wide open rural landscape in Southern Africa. Particularly, it is a flat area covered in grass or low scrub, especially in the countries of South Africa, Lesotho, Eswatini, Zimbabwe and Botswana. A certain sub-tropical woodland ecoregion of Southern Africa has been officially defined as the Bushveld by the World Wide Fund for Nature. Trees are not abundant—frost, fire and grazing animals allow grass to grow but prevent the build-up of dense foliage.
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Hhohho is a region of Eswatini, located in the north western part of the country. Hhohho was named after the capital of King Mswati II, who expanded the Swazi territory to the north and west, taking in the districts of Barberton, Nelspruit, Carolina and Piet Retief. These areas were later acquired by what was the Province of Transvaal and today they form part of the Mpumalanga Province of South Africa. It has an area of 3,625.17 km², a population of 320,651 (2017), and is divided into 14 tinkhundla. The administrative center is the national capital of Mbabane. It borders Lubombo Region on the southeast and Manzini Region in the southwest.
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Lobamba is a city in Eswatini, and is one of the two capitals, serving as the legislative, traditional, spiritual, seat of government of the Parliament of Eswatini, and Ludzidzini Royal Village, the residence of Queen Ntfombi, the Queen Mother.
Manzini is a large city in Eswatini (Swaziland), which is also the capital of Eswatini's Manzini Region. The city is the country's second largest urban center behind Mbabane, with a population of 110,000 (2008). It is known as "The Hub" of Eswatini and lies on the MR3 road. Eswatini's primary industrial site at Matsapha lies near the town's western border.
Eswatini Railways (ESR), formerly known as Swaziland Railway or Swazi Rail, is the national railway corporation of Eswatini.
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