The North West province lies on the border of Botswana in the north and Witwatersrand in Gauteng in the east. West of the North West Province lies the Kalahari Desert. The Magaliesberg Mountains and Pilanesberg lopolith, close to Gauteng, was formed by internal forces millions of years ago.

The grasslands and savannah vegetation are ideal for cattle farming. Maize, peanuts, sunflowers and wheat are produced by crop farmers. Tobacco, cotton, subtropical fruit, oranges, peaches, vegetables and flowers are also produced in North West. The Platinum mines of the Rustenburg region are the largest producers of platinum in the world. Gold, diamonds, marble and fluorspar are also mined in North West. Most industries are mining related.

Mafikeng is the capital of North West. Other important urban areas are Rustenburg, Brits, Klerksdorp, Potchefstroom, GaRankuwa, Lichtenburg, Vryburg and Zeerust. The Sun City entertainment centre is one of the country’s most popular tourist destinations. The population of 3.8 million mainly speaks Setswana, Afrikaans and IsiXhosa.

North West falls in the summer rainfall region of South Africa. The rainfall decreases from east to west. Mafikeng’s annual rainfall is 539 mm per year. The rainfall occurs often in the form of late afternoon thundershowers. The summers are warm to very hot, while the winter days are sunny and temperate and the winter nights are cool to cold.

The main attractions of North West include the following:

• Sun City entertainment centre:
Four luxurious hotels, theatres, golf courses, artificial beach and sea, gambling halls etc.
• Hartbeespoort Dam:
Popular spot for weekend outings, beautiful scenery, fishing, motorboats, warer skiing, cable car and snake park.
• De Wildt cheetah farm:
Breeding programme for cheetahs, wild dogs and vultures .
• Nature reserves:
Pilanesberg nature reserve, Madikwe nature reserve, Magaliesberg nature reserve.
• Historic Route of Mafikeng:
Includes an Anglo-Boer/ South African War siege site.