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Sahara Desert Culture, Economy and Attractions
Article #1
This is the image many people have of the Sahara: a vast sea of sand dunes. The terrain is actually quite varied.
In the north, the Sahara reaches to the Mediterranean Sea in Egypt and portions of Libya. In Cyrenaica and the
Maghreb, the Sahara experiences a more Mediterranean climate with a winter rainy season.
Major cities located in the Sahara include Cairo, Egypt; Tripoli, Libya; Nouakchott, the capital of
Mauritania; Tamanrasset, Ouargla, Bechar, Hassi Messaoud, Ghardaia, and El Oued in Algeria;
Timbuktu in Mali; Agadez in Niger; and Faya-Largeau in Chad.
Egypt Basic Facts:
Egypt, one of the world's oldest continuous civilizations, still draws visitors and
businessmen by the plane-load. Ancient monuments, the Red Sea coast, Nile Cruises
and Africa's largest city, Cairo, are among its many attractions.
Location: Egypt is located in North Africa bordering the Mediterranean Sea. Libya is on
the west and the Gaza Strip and the Red Sea make up the eastern border;
Area: Egypt covers just over 1 million square kilometers, about the same size as France
and Germany combined.
Capital City: Cairo
Population: Around 78 million people live in Egypt
Language: Arabic (official), English and French are widely understood by educated
classes.
Religion: Muslim (mostly Sunni) 94%, Coptic Christian and other 6%.
Climate: It's hot and sunny for most of the year in Egypt. Winters (November to
February) are generally mild.
When to Go: October - April when it's a bit cooler, but the Red Sea coast is a yearround destination.
Currency: Egyptian Pound.
Egypt's Main Attractions:
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The Pyramids of Giza: The Pyramids represent one of the greatest architectural
feats by man. The last surviving member of the Seven Wonders of the World, the
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Great Pyramid is one of the world's oldest tourist attractions and the reason most
people visit Egypt today. More about the Pyramids .
Egyptian Museum in Cairo: With over 120,000 artifacts, the museum houses an
incredible display depicting ancient Egypt's glorious reign. Mummies, sarcophagi,
pottery, jewellery and of course King Tutankhamen's treasures... more about the
Egyptian Museum
Abu Simbel: The two temples built for the pharaoh Ramesses II have been attracting
visitors since Victorian times. Almost as impressive as the monument itself is the story
of its restoration in the 1960's.
Hurghada/Red Sea Coast: The Red Sea coast is hugely popular with beach lovers
and divers. Package tours operate from every European country and are often very
affordable.
Egypt's Economy and Politics
Economy: Occupying the northeast corner of the African continent, Egypt is bisected by
the highly fertile Nile valley, where most economic activity takes place. Egypt's economy
was highly centralized during the rule of former President Gamal Abdel Nasser but has
opened up considerably under former President Anwar El-Sadat and current President
Mohamed Hosni Mubarak. Cairo has aggressively pursued economic reforms to
encourage inflows of foreign investment and facilitate GDP growth. In 2005, Prime
Minister Ahmed Nazif's government reduced personal and corporate tax rates, reduced
energy subsidies, and privatized several enterprises. The stock market boomed, and
GDP grew about 7% each year since 2006. Despite these achievements, the government
has failed to raise living standards for the average Egyptian, and has had to continue
providing subsidies for basic necessities. Foreign direct investment has increased
significantly in the past two years. Egypt's export sectors - particularly natural gas have bright prospects.
Politics/History: The regularity and richness of the annual Nile River flood, coupled
with semi-isolation provided by deserts to the east and west, allowed for the
development of one of the world's great civilizations. A rapidly growing population (the
largest in the Arab world), limited arable land, and dependence on the Nile all continue
to overtax resources and stress society. The government has struggled to meet the
demands of Egypt's growing population through economic reform and massive
investment in communications and physical infrastructure. Egyptian youth and
opposition groups, inspired by events in Tunisia leading to overthrow of the government
there, organized a "Day of Rage" campaign on 25 January 2011 (Police Day) to include
non-violent demonstrations, marches, and labor strikes in Cairo and other cities
throughout Egypt. Protester grievances focused on police brutality, state emergency
laws, lack of free speech and elections, high unemployment, rising food prices, inflation,
and low minimum wages
Article #2
Sahara Desert
The Sahara Desert is The World's Largest Hot Desert
From Amanda Briney
Sahara Desert
Since the Sahara Desert makes up nearly 10% of the African continent, the Sahara is
often cited as the world's largest desert. This is not entirely true, however, as it is only
the world's largest hot desert. Based on the definition of a desert as an area receiving
less than 10 inches (250 mm) of precipitation per year, the world's largest desert is
actually the continent of Antarctica at 5,339,573 sq mi (13,829,430 sq km).
Geography of the Sahara Desert (Abiotic)
The Sahara covers parts of several African nations including Algeria, Chad, Egypt, Libya,
Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Niger, Sudan and Tunisia. Most of the Sahara Desert is
undeveloped and features a varied topography. Most of its landscape has been shaped
over time by wind and includes sand dunes, sand seas called ergs, barren stone
plateaus, gravel plains, dry valleys and salt flats. Around 25% of the desert is sand
dunes, some of which reach over 500 ft (152 m) in height.
The only permanent river in the desert is the Nile River that flows from Central Africa to
the Mediterranean Sea. Other water in the Sahara is found in underground aquifers and
in areas where this water reaches the surface, there are oases and sometimes small
towns or settlements like the Bahariya Oasis in Egypt and Ghardaïa in Algeria.
Climate of the Sahara Desert (Abiotic)
Although hot and extremely dry today, it is believed that the Sahara Desert has
undergone various climatic shifts for the last few hundred thousand years. Scientist
believe that approximately eight thousand years ago, the precipitation in the desert
increased because of the development of low pressure over ice sheets to its north. Once
these ice sheets melted, the low pressure shifted and the northern Sahara dried out but
the south continued to receive moisture due to the presence of a monsoon.
Around 3400 BCE, the monsoon moved south to where it is today and the desert again
dried out to the state it is in today. In addition, the southern Sahara Desert prevents
moisture from reaching the area, while storms north of the desert stop before reaching
it as well. As a result, the annual rainfall in the Sahara is below 2.5 cm (25 mm) per
year.
Being extremely dry, the Sahara is also one of the hottest regions in the world. The
average annual temperature for the desert is 86°F (30°C) but during the hottest months
temperatures can exceed 122°F (50°C), with the highest temperature ever recorded at
136°F (58°C) in Aziziyah, Libya. Death associated with dehydration, exhaustion and
stroke can occur due to the extreme temperature.
Plants and Animals of the Sahara Desert (Biotic)
Due to the high temperatures and arid conditions of the Sahara Desert, the plant life in
the Sahara Desert is limited to around 500 species. These consist mainly of drought and
heat resistant varieties and those adapted to salty conditions (halophytes) where there
is sufficient moisture.
In the central and driest part of the desert there are around 70 different animal species,
20 of which are large mammals like the spotted hyena. Other mammals include the
gerbil, sand fox and Cape hare. Reptiles like the venomous sand viper and the
dangerous monitor lizard are present in the Sahara as well.
People of the Sahara Desert (Biotic) Egyptians, Phoenicians, Greeks and Europeans
have been among the peoples that have historically lived in the African desert. Today
the Sahara's population is around 4 million with the majority of the people living in
Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Mauritania and Western Sahara.
Most of the people living in the Sahara today do not live in cities; instead they are
nomads (wanderers) who move from region to region throughout the desert. Because
of this, there are many different nationalities and languages in the region but Arabic is
most widely spoken. For those who do live in cities or villages on fertile oases, crops and
the mining of minerals like iron ore (in Algeria and Mauritania) and copper (in
Mauritania) are important minerals.