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SOUTH AFRICA

South African facts & stats

  • Percentage of endemic plant species on Table Mountain 70% 70%
  • South African red wine exports as a total of all natural wines exported globally 42% 42%
  • Percentage of the World's Platinum reserves found in South Africa 90% 90%
  • Percentage of the world's mammalian fossils found in the Karoo 80% 80%
  • South Africa's rail infrastructure as a percentage of Africa's total rail infrastructure 80% 80%
  • Percentage of global bird species found in South Africa 10% 10%

World No.1

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World's highest bungy jump

Bloukrans Bridge: 216 m

World's most luxurious train

Rovos Rail

World's oldest mathematical instrument

Lebombo bone: 35 000 BC

Invention of the CAT scan machine

Allan Cormack: 1979

World's most successful amnesty commission

Truth and Reconciliation Commission: 1995

The only place in the world where Rooibos Tea grows

Cederberg
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Only country to voluntarily dismantle its nuclear arms

SAAEC: 1989
,

World's longest wine route

Route 62: 850 km

World's first digital laser

Sandile Ngcobo – CSIR (2013)

World's first fully-encrypted ecommerce web server

Mark Shuttleworth:  Thawte/VeriSign (1999)

World's first oil-from-coal refinery

Sasol: 1950

Birthplace of the Pinotage grape and wine

Abraham Izak Perold: 1925

First mine-resistant military vehicle

Casspir: 1979

World's first online payment system

Elon Musk: X.com/PayPal (1999 – 2001)

World's oldest bacterial microfossil

Northern Cape: 2.52 billion years

World's first heart transplant

Dr Chris Barnard – 3 Dec 1967

World's largest individually-timed cycling race

Cape Argus: 35 000+ cyclists

Invention of the Kreepy Krauley

Ferdinand Chauvier: 1974
"

Deepest Mine in the World

Mponeng Gold Mine

First country to outlaw discrimination based on sexual orientation

Constitution of SA: 2000

First Country to launch a prepay mobile network

Vodacom: 1996

Spio(e)nkop

The only place in the world where three future heads of government converged before becoming world leaders (Anglo-Boer War).

  • Mahatma Ghandi – medic in Indian Ambulance Corpse. Became leader of the Indian Independence Movement.
  • Winston Churchill – military courier and correspondent. Became prime minister of Britain.
  • Louis Botha – general and leader of the Boer resistance. Became first prime minister of the Union of South Africa..

#SAFFAabroadFastFact

Source

Guinness World Record 2006

Largest donation of pet food in one week by the Tshwane SPCA Volunteers from 29 October to 4 November 2016:

  • 18 468,5 kg of pet food collected in one week – South African Guinness World Record 2016.

#SAFFAabroadFastFact

Source

Top 10 global rankings

Best countries in the world…

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