In political geography, the term Southern Africa generally includes Angola, Botswana, the Comoros, Eswatini (formerly known as Swaziland), Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mayotte ( France), Mozambique, Namibia, Réunion ( France), Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha ( United Kingdom), the Scattered Islands in the Indian Ocean ( France), South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. 1.1 UN scheme of geographic regions and the SACU.In cultural geography, the island country of Madagascar is often not included due to its distinct language and cultural heritage. Countries commonly included in Southern Africa include Angola, Botswana, the Comoros, Eswatini, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
Southern Africa includes both subtropical and temperate climates, with the Tropic of Capricorn running through the middle of the region, dividing it into its subtropical and temperate halves. Victoria Falls is one of the largest waterfalls in the world and a major tourist attraction for the region. Along the way, the Zambezi River flows over the mighty Victoria Falls on the border between Zambia and Zimbabwe. The Zambezi flows from the northwest corner of Zambia and western Angola to the Indian Ocean on the coast of Mozambique. Southern Africa is home to a number of river systems the Zambezi River is the most prominent. The physical location is the large part of Africa to the south of the extensive Congo River basin. Southern Africa is the southernmost subregion of the African continent, south of the Congo and Tanzania.
For the region of the African Union, see Regions of the African Union § Southern.