CHAPTER SEVEN

Sub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa
Figure 7.1
I. THE GEOGRAPHIC SETTING
750 million people
Fast-growing economies,
rich mineral deposits
Neocolonialism: continued
flows of wealth out of Africa
following the end of
colonialism
Lowest average per capita
income in the world
Exporting Natural
Wealth: Tropical Logs
A. Physical Patterns
Landforms
Center of Pangaea
Arabian Plate breaking away to
the east
Coastal lowlands surrounding a
plateau
Southeast Africa has uplands
Steep escarpments hinder
transportation
Few natural harbors (long, uniform
coastlines)
Opening of the Great Rift Valley
Figure 7.4
A. Physical Patterns
Climate
Mostly tropical seasons change
more in rainfall than temperature
Intertropical Convergence Zone:
warm winds rising and dropping rain
Shifts north-south seasonally
Sahel: Southern fringes of
Sahara; steppe and savanna
grasses
Sahel
Climate Zones
Figure 7.5
A. Physical Patterns
Climate
Problem 1: parasites and insects thrive in warm,
wet climates
Problem 2: water shortage in drier climates
Problem 3: leaching of minerals in tropical soils
Laterite: sun-baked silt
Shifting cultivation: method of dealing with leaching
Problem 4: global warming will lead to
marginalization of existing land
B. Human Patterns Over Time
The Dark Continent
Term historically used to
marginalize Africa and make it
liable to colonization
Little education outside of
Africa about African history
prior to colonization
City of Loango (Congo Basin)
B. Human Patterns Over Time
The Peopling of Africa and Beyond
Africa: original home of the human species
Evolved in eastern Africa over 2 million years ago
Migrated as far as the Caucasus
Modern humans evolved in Africa and intermingled
with existing human populations throughout Eurasia
Human spread,
55,000 years ago
B. Human Patterns Over Time
Early Agriculture, Industry, and Trade in
Africa
Farming begins 7000 years ago just south of
the Sahara
Bantu farmers migrate into Southern Africa,
displacing hunter-gatherers
Trade networks stretched to Europe, India,
China
Iron production began 2500 years ago
Slave trade emerged as a result of tribal conflict
Expanded with arrival of Islam to create
Mediterranean and Indian Ocean trade
Iron Furnace
Great Zimbabwe National Monument
Figure 7.7
B. Human Patterns Over Time
The European Slave Trade
Portuguese organize trans-Atlantic
trade
Later adopted by British, Dutch, and
French
More brutal than earlier trade, slaves
treated only as a commodity
Europeans controlled coast, required
locals to kidnap people and sell them
to Europeans
died during trip to Americas
Primary destinations: Caribbean and
Brazil
16001865: about 12 million captives
taken
Schematic of Slave Ship
Slave Trade
Figure 7.8
B. Human Patterns Over Time
The Scramble to Colonize Africa
End of slave trade brought use of
African labor in Africa
Formal colonization occurs in late
1800s
Europeans exploited fertile agricultural
zones, areas of mineral, and places with
large populations
Africas borders today largely result
from colonial boundaries set up
without the consultation of Africans
Ivory: Another
commodity driving
colonization by
Europeans
Colonial Borders, 1914
Figure 7.9
B. Human Patterns Over Time
The Scramble to Colonize Africa
Basic geographic patterns:
Europeans lived in high densities only in places
with lots of resources or a comfortable climate
Africans remained in possession of only the worst
land, but were forced to grow cash crops
Places with few resources served as labor pools
for large projects
Main goals of colonization
Extract resources
Create markets
Keep administrative costs to a minimum
B. Human Patterns Over Time
The Colonization of South Africa
Dutch occupation pushed KhoiKhoi
off land
British invade to take control of
resources
Dutch move north, enslave Africans
British occupy all the territory, South
Africa created in 1910
Apartheid created to maintain racial
segregation
Black Africans 80% of the population
Resistance began in 1912; Apartheid
ended in 1994
Mandela: First president of
the free South Africa
Apartheid
Figure 7.11
B. Human Patterns Over Time
The Aftermath of Independence
Formal colonization in Africa relatively short
Roughly, 1880s1960s
Most postcolonial governments were authoritarian,
anti-democratic
Recent growth of pro-democracy movements
23 of 47 countries are currently democracies
Neocolonial dependence on former colonizers
Rapidly growing poverty
C. Population Patterns
Misperception: Sub-Saharan Africa is
densely populated
Geographic fact: Sub-Saharan Africa is
unevenly, but generally sparsely,
populated
However, some countries are very high
density (Rwanda, Burundi, Nigeria)
Other countries have over 3% population
growth (Chad, Liberia, Mali, Niger)
Population Distribution
Figure 7.13
C. Population Patterns
Africas Carrying Capacity
Carrying capacity: maximum number of
people that can be supported sustainably
Affected by cultural, social, economic, political,
and physical landscapes
Africa has about 33% of the worlds
refugees
If you include internal refugees, about half of
the worlds refugees
Impacts development strategies
Somali Refugees
Figure 7.14
C. Population Patterns
Population Growth
Fastest growing population in the world
Has tripled in less than 50 years (~752 million)
Main threat to human well-being
Lagging in demographic transition
Children both economic advantage and spiritual
link to past and future
Declining fertility rates in most developed
countries, where women are empowered
Low rate of contraception use (half of other
world regions)
Population Pyramids
Figure 7.15
C. Population Patterns
Population and Public Health
Troubled by infectious diseases
Schistosomiasis, sleeping sickness,
malaria, river blindness, cholera,
HIV/AIDS
50% of all deaths
Most linked to particular ecological
zones
An African child dies every 30
seconds of malaria
Short supply of medicine goes to
Western tourists
Areas Malaria Occurs
Comparison
of
Cause of
Death
Statistics
Figure 7.16
C. Population Patterns
HIV/AIDS in Africa
24.5 million HIV-infected people
63% of the worldwide total
6.1% of adults are infected
Highest in Southern Africa
Bias towards women
4/5 of the worlds HIV-infected women are in sub-
Saharan Africa
Results from inability of wives to refuse their
husbands who visit sex workers
Similar inability to insist on condoms
Change in Female Life Expectancy
C. Population Patterns
HIV/AIDS in Africa
Education key to reducing infection
rates
Successes in Uganda and Senegal
Poor government effort in late 1990s South
Africa
Treatment too expensive for most
Africans
$10,000 per year per patient
Patent-busting in Cuba and India has
helped
$365 per year per patient
Still too expensive for most
11% of AIDS patients in sub-Saharan
Africa have access to antiretroviral
drugs
AIDS Orphans in
Kenya
HIV/AIDS
Figure 7.17
II.CURRENT GEOGRAPHIC ISSUES
Fifty years of independence
However, disadvantages
created by colonialism long-
lasting
Achieving viability as states is
difficult
Some countries achieving
successes
Kwame Nkrumah
declaring Ghana
Independent
A. Economic and Political Issues
Africas difficulties following
independence include:
Role in global economy providing cheap
resources and labor
Corruption and poor leadership
Civil unrest, some related to the Cold War
High cost of fuel
SAPs from IMF and World Bank
A. Economic and Political Issues
Subsistence Agriculture Remains A
Major Source of Livelihood
Most Africans engage in farming
Subsistence, with some cash cropping
Most farms between 2 and 10 acres
Intercropping with crop rotation
Mixed agriculture: farming with some
livestock
Urban farming: 15% of households grow
food in small gardens
Kikuyu Small Farms
Figure 7.22
A. Economic and Political Issues
Exports of Raw Materials to the
Global Economy
African economies beginning to
diversify
Still linked to raw materials exports
Southern Africa: 27% of worlds gold
and 50% of its platinum
West Africa: oil and cacao beans
East Africa: copra, palm oil, and
soybeans
Central Africa: tropical hardwoods
Young people processing
vanilla beans in Madagascar
One-Commodity Countries
Figure 7.23
A. Economic and Political Issues
Need to expand commercial agriculture
and industry
Cashews, cotton, coffee, tea, corn (maize),
peanuts, poultry, meat, and dairy
However, U.S. and EU tariffs protect
against African products
Also, lack of infrastructure, marginal soils
Difficulty of smallholder horticulture
(mechanized equipment, fertilizers)
A. Economic and Political Issues
Botswana: A Case Study
2
nd
largest GDP per capita in sub-
Saharan Africa
3
rd
largest diamond producer in the world
Diamond wealth has financed
infrastructure
63% of government revenues
High income disparity
HIV/AIDS threatens growth
40% infection rate among adults
Government program to provide antiretroviral
drugs
Diamond Mine, Botswana
Figure 7.25
A. Economic and Political Issues
South Africa: An Economic Leader
GDP is 1/3 that of rest of region combined
10
th
largest in the world
Historically well-off minority European
population with skills and external
connections
Dutch and British kept profits within South Africa
Massive income inequality based on race
25% unemployment, 50% below poverty line
A. Economic and Political Issues
The Current Economic Crisis
Low value of exports, high prices for imports
Failure of ventures because of corruption and
debt
Some SAP successes: less corruption, better
bookkeeping, elimination of bureaucracy
Some SAP failures: bigger burden for poor,
increasing debt payments, still no FDI,
perpetuated underskilled workforce
Growth of remittance payments
More annually than FDI
Public Debt, Imports, and Exports
Figure 7.26
Foreign Direct Investment
Figure 7.27
A. Economic and Political Issues
Agriculture and Economic Restructuring
Incentives for cash crop production
SAPs reduced food available for local consumption
Currency devaluation increases cost of production
Displacement of women from traditional role in family
food production
Export-oriented manufacturing stymied by U.S. and EU
tariffs
Some success since 1995: requires continued foreign
and domestic investment
A. Economic and Political Issues
The Informal Economy and
Economic Restructuring
With SAPs reducing govt and
competition increasing, informal sector
growing
Some useful, some illicit
Over 2/3 of economy in some cities
Helpful, but not the answer
No tax revenue generated
Unreliable income
Does not create new jobs, qualify owner
for credit
Informal Economy: Doily
Momma from Zimbabwe
A. Economic and Political Issues
Alternative Pathways to Economic
Development
Regional Economic Integration: individual
states too small to compete, provide resources
Only 11% of the regions trade is intra-region
Poor intra-region transportation, communications
links
Still, ECOWAS, CEEAC, SADC, EAC, COMESA,
UEMOA, MRU
African Union: still loose, but active,
organization
Regional Trade Organizations
Figure 7.29
A. Economic and Political Issues
Alternative Pathways to Economic
Development
Grassroots economic development
Attempt to stave off urban-rural migration
Local skills used to produce products, services for
local consumption
Often women-focused, therefore need more low-
tech transportation help (donkeys, bicycles)
Problems: require many talented facilitators,
encourage govt disinvestment
Traditional Female Transport
Figure 7.30
A. Economic and Political Issues
Alternative Pathways to Economic
Development
Technological Development
Young people seeking new niches for Africa in the
global economy
Want to stay in Africa and contribute rather than
leaving (Brain Drain)
Example: Africa Online, ISP founded by three MIT,
Harvard, and Princeton graduates (largest ISP in
Africa)
A. Economic and Political Issues
Colonial Legacies and African
Adaptations
28% of African population lives in countries
with a high risk of armed conflict
Origins of Conflict:
European-created borders; Cold War-based
geopolitics
Governmental ethnic oppression and
subsequent civil wars
Ethnic Boundaries vs. National Boundaries
Figure 7.32
A. Economic and Political Issues
Case Study: Conflict in Nigeria
Large, diverse population
395 indigenous languages in 11 groups
Four main ethnicities
Hausa and Fulani have dominated
since independence
Yoruba and Igbo live in South, more
prosperous and better educated (1966
attempt to secede)
Today, oil is 90% of foreign trade
earnings
Pollution in Ogoni territory, no
profits
111 oil spills in Ogoniland
between 1985 and 1994
Diversity in Nigeria
A. Economic and Political Issues
Effects of the Cold War in Africa
U.S .opposition to socialism in region
Angola, Congo, Namibia, Mozambique
Proxy wars: Ethiopia vs. Somalia
Shifts in African Geopolitics
Move towards democracy in West and Southern
Africa
Second Independence: end of elite, autocratic rule
Mixed results: only 23 countries in region have
open, multiparty, secret-ballot elections with
universal suffrage
Democracy in Sub-Saharan Africa
Figure 7.35
Rural Settlements
Over 65% of sub-Saharan Africans live in
villages
Many variations on village structure
Usually extended-family compounds
Several houses around a common space
Often grouped with other familes compounds
B. Sociocultural Issues
Examples of Rural Village Structures
B. Sociocultural Issues
Urbanization
Worlds fastest-growing urban
areas (5%)
Attraction: perception of upward
mobility, money, prestige (not
necessarily true)
Often a primate city draws most
migrants
Overwhelms urban infrastructure
Lagos is 48x bigger than it was in
1950 (230,000 11 million)
Growth of shantytowns, long
commutes
Lagos, Nigeria
Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
Urbanization
Figure 7.37
B. Sociocultural Issues
Indigenous Belief Systems
Animism: oldest religion on earth, found
throughout Africa
All entities (plants, animals, landscapes) are part
of a whole
Departed ancestors part of unified whole that
includes future family members
Rituals intended to placate ancestors, connect
with past and future
Syncretism: animism often fuses to nearby
religions
B. Sociocultural Issues
Islam and Christianity in Africa
Islam crossed the Sahara shortly after
Muhammads death
Spread by Islamic traders throughout North,
West, and coast of East Africa
Advantaged by connections to British
colonialism
Christianity in Ethiopia older than in Europe
Later spread by American and European
missionaries along coast of West Africa and in
Central and Southern Africa
Religions
Figure 7.39
B. Sociocultural Issues
Gender Relationships
Generally, women responsible for domestic
activities
Child care, tending the sick and elderly, carrying
water, collecting firewood, food preparation
Men responsible for preparing land for farming
Women farm family plots, men farm cash crops
When men go away for jobs, women assume all
their duties; about 70% of farming effort is expended
by women
Gender roles established during colonization
However, polygyny pre-dates both colonization and
the introduction of Islam/Christianity
Polygyny
Figure 7.42
B. Sociocultural Issues
Female Circumcision
Ancient practice found in Central Africa
Predates both Christianity and Islam
Intended to reduce interest in sex
Removal of labia minora and clitoris
Medical implications
Difficulty in urination, menstruation, intercourse,
and childbirth
Danger during childbirth for both mother and child
Cultural value vs. human rights
Female Circumcision, 1997-2005
Figure 7.43
B. Sociocultural Issues
Ethnicity and Language
Ethnicity in Africa is less territorial than
elsewhere
Often several groups share a space, fulfilling
different economic niches
Some countries have few ethnic groups,
others as many as 250
Over 1000 languages spoken in Africa
Lingua franca: language of trade
Swahili, Hausa, English, French
Languages
Figure 7.44
C. Environmental Issues
Many unique animals and plants are
found in sub-Saharan Africa
Require protection and preservation
Increasing population and resource
requirements place pressure on
environments
Especially water and fuelwood resources
Human Impacts on Sub-Saharan Africa
C. Environmental Issues
Desertification
Sahara growing to the south
Fragile environments: barely meet the
needs of native plants and animals
Non-native species allow topsoil to blow away
Caused by long-term natural cycles with
human activity increasing the scope
Also, irrigation leads to salinization, which ruins
soil
C. Environmental Issues
Forest Vegetation as a Resource
Over 60% of original African rainforests gone
Growth of population using forests for
farmland and firewood
Also, intrusion of Asian timber companies
Agriforestry: raising of economically useful
trees; multiple products from same land
Dry forests: forests that lose their leaves
during dry seasons
Exploited for fuelwood by nearby communities
C. Environmental Issues
Wildlife and National Parks
Wildlife: long source of skins,
protein, ivory for export
Pressure on wildlife populations has
become extreme
Solutions: game farming to increase
food supplies; ecotourism
National parks: 1/3 of the worlds
preserved land; 10% of earths surface
National parks vulnerable to poachers
Okapi in Congo
(Kinshasa)
C. Environmental Issues
Water
In many places, water being pumped
from aquifers faster than replaced by
nature
Large development projects divert water
Even moist areas suffer from pollution
of water sources
Globally, agriculture uses 70% of
global water
Efforts to rediscover lost cultural
practices related to water
conservation
Carrying drinking
water in Lagos
D. Measures of Human Well-Being
Low GDP per capita
Does not include informal economy
Most African countries are within the
lowest 1/3 of the HDI rankings
Little money to invest; poor treatment of
women
No data for GEM; low rankings on GDI
Human Well-being Rankings
Table 7.1