Human Environment Interaction Physical Geography Of SubSaharan Africa

Human Environment Interaction

Physical Geography Of Sub-Saharan Africa

• The Sahel is a narrow band of dry grassland that runs east to west along the southern edge of the Sahara. • The Sahel is known as the “shore of the desert” and literally means “coastland” in Arabic. • People use the Sahel mostly for herding.

• Desertification is an expansion of dry conditions into moist areas that are next to deserts. • Humans can also cause desertification through their land use choices, such as over-farming.

• Overgrazing of vegetation by livestock can also result in desertification. • Animals also trample the soil, making it more vulnerable to erosion.

• When farmers drill for water to irrigate, the resulting loss of vegetation can also cause a loss of moisture, which can lead to erosion and/or further desertification. • As moisture is leached (removed) from soil, it can cause an increase in the salt levels of the soil, preventing the growth of new vegetation. • LESS moisture = More erosion = MORE salt in soil = MORE desertification

• Growing population levels are an indirect cause of desertification. • More people= the need for more food. More food= the need for more farming.

More Human Interaction with Environment of Africa: • Oil discovered in Nigeria in 1956 • Niger Delta-a region that contains most of Nigeria’s oil. • Nigeria is the 6 th leading oil exporter in the world. • 2 million barrels are extracted each day & much of it is shipped to the U. S.

• While drilling for oil, the Nigerian government & foreign oil companies have often damaged the land & harmed the people living in the Niger delta.

• Damage by the oil companies & the Nigerian government has been severe. • 4, 000 oil spills over the past 4 decades. • Cleanup operations are slow/nonexistent.

• In 2000, there was an explosion & fire spread along 1 mile of the pipeline. • This accident cost thousands of lives & major environmental ruin in the region.

• Oil-related fires have often resulted, causing acid rain & soot. • There is a high incident of people in the region who have contracted respiratory diseases.

• Many of the explosions were not accidents but caused intentionally. • Bandits, in cooperation with corrupt government officials & the military, drain fuel from the pipelines & then resell it. ANSWER NOW: (1) Describe the major natural resource & economic reason for HEI in Nigeria, and (2) with reference to the natural resource in Nigeria, how has political corruption affected the people and environment in Nigeria?

• During the 1970 s, high oil prices made Nigeria one of the wealthiest nations in Africa. During the same time, the government borrowed heavily against the future sale of its oil. • BUT, prices fell & the Nigerian government owed millions to other nations, including the U. S.

• Mismanagement, poor planning, corruption, & a decline in oil prices left Nigeria poorer than before the oil boom.

^ ^ Mt. Kenya Mt. Kilimanjaro

Continuing with West Africa

• The empires of Ghana, Mali, & Songhai thrived in West Africa because of their location on trade routes across the Sahara.

• Gold & salt were the main products traded in this region.

• By the 17 th C. , Goree Island, off the coast of Senegal, emerged as another powerful trading center, but the items being sold forever changed the development and history of Africa and the Western Hemisphere.

• Goree Island served as one of the busiest points for exporting slaves during the 17 th through early 19 th Century slave trade.

• West Africa, since ancient times, has been a region of many different cultures and peoples. • Prior to 19 th and 20 th C. colonialism, these different African cultures practiced self-rule within their respective cultures or tribes, creating what is known as a stateless society.

• A Stateless society is one in which people rely on family lineages to govern themselves rather than an elected government or monarch. • Lineage is a family or group that has descended from a common ancestor.

• An example of a stateless society is the Igbo of southeast Nigeria. • Many stateless societies faced challenges from 19 th and 20 th Century European colonizers, who expected one ruler, not someone of lineage, to govern the society.

• Trade is as important in West Africa today as it was in the past. • The economic well being of West Africa is based on the sale of its products to industrialized countries of Europe, North America, & Asia.

To help strengthen the economic power of Western Africa… • The Economic Community of West Africa (ECOWA) was formed in 1975. • 15 of the 16 nations in Western Africa are part of the ECOWA, helping them better compete against years of former economic domination that had begun during colonization. • The West African country that is not part of ECOWA is Mauritania.

West African country of Ghana • Ghana’s economy relies primarily on mining and cash crops and the export of gold, diamonds, magnesium, bauxite and cocoa. • Ghana’s transition from colonialism to democracy has had setbacks, including military & civil war.

• As a result, in part, of a new constitution that was adopted in 1992, Ghana has held free elections since the 1990’s. • The new political stability that has been achieved through the smooth transitions in power has also provided a better climate for economic growth. More Stability

Major West African trouble spot… • The worst economic conditions in West Africa are in Sierra Leone, which once produced some of the world’s highest quality diamonds. • Years of political instability & civil wars have left the economy in shambles.

• Sierra Leone’s relatively uneducated population causes a shortage in skilled workers. • The road & transportation system contains few highways & only 800 miles of road!

Culture Symbols of West Africa • Ashanti, who live in what is now Ghana, are known for their work in weaving colorful asasia. • Westerners usually refer to asasia as kente cloth.

• Designs of kente cloth contain colorful woven geometric figures with specific meanings. • Only royalty were allowed to wear kente cloth.

West African Music • West African popular music involves a blend of traditional African music with American forms of jazz, blues, and reggae. • Over the years, West African musicians used French and English lyrics to attract an international audience.

East Africa

• East Africa, which includes the Horn of Africa, is called the “cradle of humanity” because of the large number of prehistoric human remains found in the region.

• In 1931, Louis Leakey, an English archaeologist, began research in the Olduvai Gorge, located in Tanzania.

Olduvai Gorge

Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania

• The Olduvai Gorge has provided archaeologists with the most continuous record of humanity, including the remains of 65 individual hominids • Hominids were the first humans that walked upright.

• In 1959, Louis & Mary Leakey discovered a species called homo habilis, who were the 1 st human creatures to make stone tools. • Homo habilis lived approximately 2 million years ago.

• East Africa has been a crossroads of humanity because of its geographic position near water routes and seas & oceans.

• Aksum was an important civilization that emerged in present day Ethiopia in the A. D. 100 s. • Its location on the Red Sea & Indian Ocean made it an important trading center & contributed to its expansion & power.

Economy of East Africa • Agriculture forms the economic foundation of East Africa. • In addition, East Africa’s worldfamous wildlife parks generate millions of dollars for the region’s economy.

• East Africa is more than 70% rural. • Since European colonization, countries have relied more on cash crops like coffee, tea & sugar. • Relying on cash crops can be risky because the price of crops varies according to the world market.

• At present, East Africa’s agricultural balance is changing because people are beginning to leave their rural farms for greater economic opportunities in the cities.

• Besides farming, one of the main economic activities in East Africa is tourism. • The wildlife parks in Kenya, Uganda, & Tanzania are world famous. • 1938 the game reserves were created because Europeans were killing animals for sport at a high rate.

• In east Africa, farmers and people in the tourism industry are competing against each other for use of game reserve parklands. • Some groups want to eliminate or reduce the size of the wildlife reserves to create more farmland. vs vs

Cultures of East Africa • There are 2 major ethnic groups in East Africa • the Masai and • the Kikuyu

Ø The Masai: • Masai groups live on the grassland of the rift valleys in Kenya & Tanzania. • Most herd livestock & farm the land. • They make their clothes from calfskin or buffalo hide, often greasing their clothes with cow fat to protect themselves from the sun & rain. • The Masai are also known for their intricate beadwork & jewelry.

• Kikuyu are the largest ethnic group in Kenya-6. 6 million. • Homeland is centered around Mt. Kenya • Traditionally herders, but now they live throughout the country and work in a variety of jobs.

Health Care in Modern Africa • AIDS- Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome. • AIDS is caused by HIV- Human Immunodeficiency. • People with HIV do not necessarily have AIDS & can carry HIV for years without not knowing it. • As a result, AIDS statistics can be misleading.

• The number of people who have AIDS lags behind those infected with HIV. • Some medical geographers predict that the populations of Africa’s worst affected countries could decline by 10 to 20%.

• Egypt faces environmental challenges caused by water. • Egyptians tried to control the floodwaters of the Nile throughout history. • Egyptians built the 1 st Aswan Dam in 1902.

• Four miles upriver from the 1 st Aswan Dam, the Egyptians cut a huge channel through the land beside the Nile River. • The builders used the rocks from the channel as a base for their new creation—the Aswan High Dam, which was completed in 1970.

• Lake Nasser, which Egypt shares with Sudan, is the artificial lake created behind the dam. • It stretches nearly 300 miles!

• The dam gives farmers a regular supply of water. • It holds the Nile’s floodwaters, releasing them as needed so that farmers can use the water effectively for irrigation.

• As a result of the dam, farmers can have 2 or 3 harvests per year. • The dam has increased Egypt’s farmable land by 50%. • The dam has also helped Egypt avoid droughts & floods.

Problems With the Dam • During the dam’s construction, many people had to be relocated. • The dam decreased the fertility of the soil around the Nile. • The river no longer deposits rich silt or sediment on the farmland. • Farmers must now rely on expensive fertilizers to enrich the soil.

• Rates of malaria & other diseases have increased due to greater numbers of mosquitoes, which thrive on the still waters of Lake Nasser & the irrigation canals.

Colonization Disrupts Africa • In the 19 th century, Europe’s industrialized nations became interested in Africa’s raw materials. • They wanted to colonize & control parts of Africa to obtain the resources.

Scramble for Africa • Europeans did not want to fight over Africa. • To prevent wars, 14 European nations convened the Berlin Conference. • Berlin Conference-in 1884 -1885 to lay down the rules for dividing Africa.

• No African ruler was invited to attend this conference, even though it concerned Africa’s land & people. • By 1914, only Liberia & Ethiopia remained free of European control.

• Nations that attended the conference decided that any European country could claim land in Africa by telling other nations of their claims & showing they could control the area.

• The European nations divided Africa without regard to where African ethnic or linguistic groups lived. • They set boundaries that combined peoples who were traditional enemies & divided others who were not.

• Europe’s division of Africa is often cited as one of the root causes of the political violence & ethnic conflicts in Africa in the 20 th century.

• During the Europeans 19 th & 20 th Century colonization of Africa’s countries, Ethiopian emperor Menelik II protected his country from takeover by the Italians. • Ethiopia, in 1896, defeated Italy’s attempted armed takeover by fighting back with their own arms that had been provided, in part, by the French.

Conflict in East Africa • By the 1970 s, most of East Africa has regained its independence from Europe. • Internal disputes & civil wars became a serious problem.

• One problem was that European colonial powers had not prepared East African nations for independence. • Ethnic boundaries created by the Europeans forced cultural divisions that had not existed before colonialism.