1. © RG Ruggiero

2. Unit 7: Africa Topic: Current Issues in Africa
Content Objective: Which of the issues do you think needs to be addressed first?

3. Broad Overview of Issues

4. 1975 to 2005 population more than doubled
Tsunamis/Droughts
Epidemics/pandemics
1975 to 2005 population more than doubled
335 million to 751 million
1.1 billion by 2025
Growth rate 2.2% year
300 million Africans do not have access to safe water
313 million have no access to sanitation
88 million people are malnourished
AIDS
Bush meat
Poaching
Small vs. large widespread (diseases)
Sources: FAO, Population Reference Bureau

5. Current Crises

6. It is a CRISIS when… Demand has grown
Beyond what nature can sustainably supply
The scale of commercial hunting of wildlife for meat has increased to a level where it is no longer sustainable almost everywhere that it occurs.

7. Causes Poverty Food Insecurity Increased demand
Few protein & income (livelihoods) alternatives
Ineffective policy & law enforcement
Limited awareness
© RG Ruggiero
Today the bushmeat trade has escalated far beyond a subsistence level and in recent years has exploded into a multi-billion dollar industry. The driving forces behind this trade crisis involve uncontrolled access to wildlife, lack of economic alternatives, absence of substitutes, and minimal capacity to enforce hunting laws. The result has been the establishment of an industry based on wildlife that is not only generally illegal but also highly unsustainable. This trade takes place around the globe and is particularly acute in Africa.

8. Common Animals from Region
Group/Species
Part/Form
Destination
Elephant
Tusks
Asian continent
Rhino
horns
Asia
Leopard
Skin/pet
Asia/Europe/US/Mid East
Cheetah
Asia/Europe/US/Mid Eas
Snakes
Pet/poison
Europe/US
Chameleon
pet
Pancake tortoise
Mt bush viper
Reed Frogs

9. Environmental

10. Mt. Kilimanjaro, Tanzania
Disappearing Icecap of
forest belt having rich diversity of ecosystems
1976: Glaciers covered most of the summit
2000: The glaciers had receded alarmingly
Mt. Kilimanjaro, Africa’s highest mountain, is located 300 km (186 miles) south of the equator in Tanzania. A forest belt that spans between m (5 249 ft) and m ( ft) surrounds it. The forest has a rich diversity of ecosystems, particularly of vegetation types that result mainly from the large range in altitude and rainfall of about 700 to mm/yr (28 to 118 in/yr). It hosts a very large diversity of species, with about 140 mammal species and over 900 plant species. But of greater concern are the glaciers atop the mountain. In 1976, glaciers covered most of the summit of Mt. Kilimanjaro. By 2000, the glaciers had receded alarmingly. An estimated 82 per cent of the icecap that crowned the mountain when it was first thoroughly surveyed in 1912 is now gone, and the remaining ice is thinning as well—by as much as a metre per year in one area. According to some projections, if recession continues at the present rate, the majority of the remaining glaciers on Kilimanjaro could vanish in the next 15 years.

11. Mozambique under water
2000
Severe flooding
Half a million people were made homeless

12. Aids in Africa

13. Sub-Saharan Africa 70% of the world’s estimated 40 million
Home to 90% of the world’s HIV infected children
Of 30 children born in sub-Saharan Africa- 10 will acquire the virus simply by being born
4 will be infected from breast feeding
Most will not live to their 5th birthday
12 million children orphaned

14. 17 million Africans have died
Health care in Kenya (budget)
$9.50 to less than $3.00
In 10 years the average life expectancy in 11 countries in Africa will drop below 40 as HIV/AIDS continues to shorten life spans

15. Rhino Horn

16. Rhino Numbers 5 living species 3 native to Asia 2 native to Africa
Sumatran
left
Javan
35-45 left
Indian
3,264
2 native to Africa
Black
4,880
White
20,165 (from 20-50)

17. Rhino Poaching 668 killed 2012 2009-2012 One horn 4,000 illegal sold
12.6 tons
One horn
1-3 kg depending on species
2.2 – 6 lbs
1 kilogram = 2 pounds

18. Rhino horn used for Worth more than gold
1 kilogram = $60,000 ($100,000 in Vietnam)
1 kilogram gold = 40,600
Used for
Revive comatose patients
Cure fevers, headaches, hangovers
Cure Cancer
Devil possessions
NONE of this has been confirmed by medical science
Also to make ornately carved handles for ceremonial daggers, called jambiyas (elites)

19. Elaborate… Highly organized groups Well-financed groups Helicopters
Night-vision goggles
Tranquillizer darts
Silenced heavy-caliber guns

20. The Ivory Trade

21. The Ivory Trade 1977, 1.3 million elephants lived in Africa
today the population is about 470,000 – 650,000
1989 banned ivory trade
200 elephants killed daily
2012
30,000 killed
Experts predict extinction of wild African elephants by 2020

22. Asia
Status of wealth

23. While some countries petition to be allowed to sell their ivory stockpiles, others burn them
Kenya burned 5 tons of ivory this year (which would have been worth about $16 million on the black market), though they have about 60 tons stockpiled

24. Mountain Gorilla

25. Less than 790 mountain gorillas currently exist
Can’t survive in captivity
t is impossible to see a mountain gorilla in a zoo because they cannot survive in captivity. The western lowland gorilla is the sub-species of gorilla most commonly seen in zoos, and approximately 50,000 of them currently live in West Central Africa. In recent years, the eastern lowland gorilla population, which exists in the eastern Congolese rainforest, has significantly declined. In 1960, the eastern lowland gorilla population was estimated to range between 5,000 and 15,000. Presently, however, only about 2,500 live in the wild, while less than fifty reside within zoos. Mountain gorillas, who live in the Virunga mountains of East central Africa, are the most endangered of the three subspecies, and are seriously threatened by the possibility of extinction. There are less than 790 of them left in the world, and they can only exist in the wild.
In the 1960s and 70s numerous attempts were made to capture live mountain gorillas and start a captive population. Many adult gorillas were killed to obtain live babies, none of which survived in captivity. The reason why they failed to survive is unclear, since lowland gorillas have been kept and even bred successfully in captivity. Perhaps their dietary needs are more specific, or they were affected by stress and therefore succumbed to disease more rapidly. To date, no mountain gorillas are known to exist in any captive facility.

26. Threats… Habitat loss Hunting Oil and gas exploration
War and instability
Disease
Trophies
Baby gorillas