Komatipoort
| Komatipoort | |||
|---|---|---|---|
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| Coordinates | 25 ° 27 ′ S , 31 ° 58 ′ E | ||
| Basic data | |||
| Country | South Africa | ||
| Mpumalanga | |||
| District | Ehlanzeni | ||
| ISO 3166-2 | ZA-MP | ||
| local community | Nkomazi | ||
| Residents | 4683 (2011) | ||
| founding | 1887 | ||
| Website | www.komatipoort.com (English) | ||
 Street in Komatipoort
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Komatipoort (German roughly: "Tor am Komati") is a small South African town in the Mpumalanga province . It belongs to the Nkomazi community in the Ehlanzeni district . The city has 4,683 inhabitants (as of the 2011 census) and is located near the border with Mozambique .
Surname
Komatipoort is located on the Komati River . Poort is Afrikaans and means "gate" or "gate".
Geographical location
The city is located about five kilometers west of the border with Mozambique, eight kilometers south of the Kruger National Park and about 65 kilometers north of Swaziland at the confluence of the Komati and Crocodile Rivers . Near the city, the Komati breaks through the Lebombo Mountains . Komatipoort is located in the hottest climate zone in South Africa. The average temperatures are 26 ° C in winter and 33 ° C in summer.
history
The city was founded in 1887 as a South African border town on the Pretoria – Lourenço Marques railway line (today: Maputo ). From 1899 to 1903 cavalry troops fought against the Boers in the Second Boer War . In 1903 Komatipoort received city rights .
On March 17, 1984, the South African President Pieter Willem Botha and Mozambican President Samora Machel signed the Nkomati Accord here . This peace treaty stipulated that South Africa and Mozambique should stop supporting the rebel organizations in each other's territory.
On October 19, 1986, Samora Machel and 34 other inmates died in a plane crash in the Lebombo Mountains near Komatipoort. The cause is assumed to be a flight error by the Soviet pilot or an influence by the South African military .
economy
Nearby are sugar cane , bananas and citrus fruits grown. Furthermore, Komatipoort is important as a place to stay in tourism due to the nearby Kruger National Park.
traffic
Komatipoort is located on the Pretoria-Johannesburg-Maputo rail and trunk roads ( Maputo Corridor ). The city is a major rail hub on the border with Mozambique and near Swaziland. Goods are transported to and from the port of Maputo via the city .
Another route branches off to the west of Komatipoort at the Kaapmuiden railway junction and leads north via the Tshukudu junction to Tzaneen and Louis Trichardt to the Zimbabwean border at Musina . A branch line from Komatipoort to Swaziland was completed in 1986. It is mainly used for the transit of goods from northern countries such as Zimbabwe and Zambia and the mining area around Phalaborwa to the South African ports of Richards Bay and Durban .
Komatipoort Airport ( IATA airport code KOF ) is located near Komatipoort .
The city is connected to Pretoria via the N4 national road and, across the border, to Maputo via the EN4 . The R571 leads towards Swaziland.
Web links
- Official Website of Komatipoort (English)
- History Komatipoorts (English)
Individual evidence
- ^ District website , accessed September 20, 2012
- ↑ 2011 census , accessed November 16, 2013
- ^ History of Komatipoorts , accessed November 10, 2009
- ↑ http://www.world-airport-codes.com/south-africa/komatipoort-3732.html , accessed on November 10, 2009