Sahel- a dry savanna region along the southern border of the Sahara suffering the effects of desertification Mauritania, Mali, Niger, Chad, and Burkina Faso Coastal- wetter region along the coast of the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Guinea Senegal, Gambia, Guinea Bissau, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo, Benin, and Nigeria

Brief History  West Africa was a focal point of 3 trading empires prior to European colonization. (Ghana, Mali, Songhai)  The region was the location of trade routes for gold and salt (the most valuable commodity).  West Africa was not “discovered” by Europeans until the 1400s.  The slave trade began in the mid 1400s and lasted until the mid 1800s.  Country boundaries were not drawn until the 1800s with no regard to tribal boundaries. Many groups had/have more loyalty to their own group than the government.

Coastal Countries are “better off” than the Sahel countries: wetter, access to the sea, & more resources However… Governments  hard to be on their own after European control  weak economies & gov’ts allow for armies to easily take over a nation  also heavily in debt: more imports than exports and borrowing from other nations

The following products come from West Africa: cacao beans- 56%(chocolate), Rubber, gold, oil, cloth, hardwoods, coffee, palm oil, peanuts, cashews, cotton

Way of Life Women in charge of farming, running the market Family life very important, elders teach children through stories & elders are given high honor even in death. Voodoo is incorporated into established religions Brer Rabbit originated in West Africa

Largest cathedral in the world! It has 7000 individually air conditioned seats and only 12% of the population is Christian. Yamoussoukro, Ivory Coast Our Lady of Peace Basilica

Ghana- “Fantasy” coffins are built to represent the person’s life.

Not something you see everyday…Giraffe Crossing

Benin- AKA the “slave coast” in the 19th century Burkina Faso- “land of the honest people”; half the population is under 15 Chad- less than 1% of the people own a car; 4/5 the size of Alaska Gambia- peanuts are the main cash crop; except for the coastline Senegal surrounds it. Ghana- AKA the “Gold Coast” by the Portuguese

Camel Caravan in Mauritania

Guinea-1/3 of the world’s bauxite reserves Guinea-Bissau- considered bad manners to stretch in public; polygamy is common- a measure of a man’s wealth Ivory Coast- named Ivory Coast by French sailors in the late 1400s for vast amount of ivory found there Liberia-capital (Monrovia) named after Pres. James Monroe; Latin for “free land” Mali- only 10% of roads are paved; size of Texas & California Timbuktu, Mali

Niger River

Mauritania- literacy rate of 20%; portable classrooms Niger- no railroads; leading uranium producer and exporter Nigeria- parents wink when they want their children to leave the room Senegal- considered bad luck to ask specific questions about another person’s children Sierre Leone- practice “fostering,” a custom where a child is loaned to a childless woman and the child is raised as one who will care for her in her old age Togo- only 20% of students attend high school Baobab trees- some get so large that the trunks can be hollowed out and made into a small shelter

The End