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Chapter 19
Human Geography of Africa
► East Africa- “Cradle of Humanity”, because of the number of prehistoric
human remains found in the region.
► Hominids- humans that walk upright.
► Scientists believe that the world’s first humans lived in this area.
► In the 1800s European nations wanted to colonize and control parts of
Africa to obtain the raw materials/resources.
► Berlin Conference- was setup to divide Africa peacefully.
► Europe’s division of Africa is often cited as one of the root causes of the
political violence and ethnic conflicts in Africa in the 20th century.
► Farming and tourism (wildlife parks) are the foundation of East Africa’s
economy.
► More than 160 different ethnic groups live in this region.
► AIDS is the most critical health problem in the region. It began to spread in
the 1980s and 1990s.
North Africa
► During the Middle Kingdom, Egyptian god-kings, called Pharaohs, ruled
Egypt.
► Pyramids were built to house the Pharaohs remains after they died,
because it was believed that they ruled after death.
Egyptians
► Pioneered geometry.
► Famous for their medicine.
► Trade and travel along the Nile River, Mediterranean and Red Sea help
spread these concepts.
► Islam is the main religion of most North African countries.
► It is based on the teaching of the prophet Muhammad.
Economy of North Africa
► Early in history it was based on agriculture- Cash crops and mining. (Nile
River)
► Centered around oil today.
 European first began their African colonization in Central Africa.
 Belgians and French colonized Central Africa
 The slave trade occurred because Europeans wanted slaves for their
plantation in the Americas.
King Leopold II
 King of Belgium
 Wanted to develop Central Africa
 Paved way for the Berlin Conference
 Used forced labor to gather rubber, palm oil, ivory and other resources
 Borders set by Europeans; disrupted long-standing systems of
government in Africa, did not consider ethnic regions and grouped
traditional enemies together.
 Today Central Africa is still struggling to get on it’s feet. Most leaders have
been corrupt.
 Great hope is being placed to get education as a main priority of the
region.
 Problems: Few teachers, high drop out rate and a shortage of secondary
schools.
 Through education they hope to slow the spread of AIDS, the Ebola virus,
cholera and other diseases.
Chapter 20
Economy
Based on providing raw materials to the world’s industrialized countries.
Due to exploitation Africa is limited on how it can grow economically.
Without political stability, consistent economic growth is difficult.
To further economic growth transportation of goods is extremely
important. (Railroads, airports, roads and ports need to be adequate
enough to ship goods from one place to the next).
In addition Africa does not have much access to computers today.
Most European countries left African nations without transportation,
education and business. So they had to borrow money. (Over $220
billion).
Many Western countries have forgiven Africa for debts owed to help them
out.
Education can help Africa’s economies grow by providing skilled workers.
A main priority for Africa is to slow the departure of African professionals
to Western countries.