Africa Notes

SSA = Sub-Saharan Africa

The Land

• A series of steplike plateaus dominates lands south of the Sahara

• High elevations and a narrow coastal plain have historically hindered travel to the interior of Africa

The Land

• The Great Rift Valley slices through East Africa and affects the landforms of nations from Ethiopia to Mozambique

• Most of Africa’s large freshwater lakes nestle in cuts in the Great Rift Valley

The Land – Great Rift Valley

The Land

• Four major river systems tumble over escarpments (cliffs that separate plateaus) in dramatic rapids and falls as they spill off the continent

The Land – Victoria Falls

The Climate and Vegetation

• Although most of Africa lies in the tropics, it still exhibits diverse climates and vegetation

• Elevations and rainfall are the main factors influencing climate variations in Africa south of the Sahara

The Climate and Vegetation

• The main climate regions in Africa south of the Sahara include: desert, steppe, tropical savanna, and tropical rain forest

• Africa has an abundance of mineral wealth, but it lacks the fuels to develop it

• Deserts and steppes cover more than two-thirds of the land surface in Africa

Population Patterns

• With more than 625 million people, sub-Saharan Africa is the third most populous region in the world

• The uneven distribution of people in sub-Saharan Africa is linked to the region’s physical geography

Population Patterns

• Inadequate food, water, and health care contribute to short life expectancies in sub-Saharan Africa

• Sub-Saharan Africa is urbanizing faster than any other region in the world

Population Patterns

• More than 2,000 ethnics groups, speaking some 800 languages, make up the population of Africa south of the Sahara

History and Government

• The movement of the Bantu south from Niger formed one of the largest human migrations in history

• European colonization remapped traditional ethnic territories

History and Government

• Most of Africa’s nations have won independence since the 1960s

• In the 1990s, South Africa ended apartheid and created a democracy open to all ethnic groups

Cultures and Lifestyles

• Sub-Saharan Africa’s many languages and variety of religions contribute to the region’s diversity

• Sub-Saharan Africans have influenced the artistic cultures of the world

• One of the biggest challenges facing sub-Saharan African governments is how to raise literacy rates

Living in Africa South of the Sahara

• Most of sub-Saharan nations depend on the export of one or two cash crops

• The majority of sub-Saharan Africans work as subsistence farmers

Living in Africa South of the Sahara

• Mineral deposits, as well as the profits from their export, are spread unevenly throughout Africa south of the Sahara

• Industrialization is hindered by a lack of capital and a shortage of skilled workers

Living in Africa South of the Sahara

• To reduce foreign dependence some nations are developing regional trade and transportation systems

People and Their Environment

• Desertification, drought, and war have contributed to hunger in sub-Saharan Africa

• In the 1990s Ethiopia and Eritrea took steps to restore their battered environment

• Destruction of the rain forests is a global problem

People and Their Environment

• Increasing human population and hunting has placed some African wildlife at risk of extinction

• To win rural support of game preserves, some nations have shared the profits of ecotourism

People and Their Environment

• As sub-Saharan Africans head into the next century, they hope to win economic independence