1. AFRICA
GEOGRAPHY & PEOPLES

2. OBJECTIVES Identify key landforms and resources.
Locate nations and geographic features on a map of Africa.
Explain how geographic features have influenced where people live and contributed to the cultural diversity of the continent.

3. Warm up
List the features you associate with Africa’s geography & climate.

4. Geography Hospitable coasts Inhospitable interior 5 geographic regions
Northern Africa
Western Africa
Eastern Africa
Central Africa
Southern Africa
“Regions of Africa Video”

5. Climate, Landforms, & Vegetation
Most Africa plateau
80% tropics = warm
Rainfall decreases w/distance from equator
Tropical Rainforests
Tropical Savanna
Drought/Desertification
Deserts
Mediterranean Climate
Africa Climate video clip
Plateau – large area of high land that is flat or gently rolling…continent tilts downward toward west and north.
Land drops sharply toward the coast….steep cliffs divide plateau from coastal plain.
Equator runs nearly through middle of Africa – as result 80% of the continent is in the tropics – climates generally warm throughout yr
Coolest regions in highlands (temp drops as elevation increases)
Major feature of climate is alternating wet and dry seasons. Wet in north, dry in south and vice versa. Farther north or south you go, the shorter the rainy pd and longer the dry season.
Four major climate zones – distinguished by amount of rainfall:
1.Rainforests – 8% of Africa wet tropical climate, hot & humid yr round, abundant rainfall = lush biodiversity…poor soil quality (rain leeches nutrients), hard to settle (diseased insects, dampness & mold/rot)
2. Savanna – tropical with wet and dry season – grassland covers almost half the continent, warm all year, wet in summer/dry in winter. Most people live here. Face issues of drought (unpredicatble rainfall) causes them to slaughter livestock or destroy crops and desertification (growing population & human activity destroys land turning into desert – especially in region known as Sahel)
3. Deserts – 40% Africa – Sahara (means desert in Arabic) in north, Kalahari and Namib in South
Sahara – windswept rock, gravel, sand dunes, 130 F, 10 yrs can pass w/out rainfall…may have grasses to support grazing animals
Highway and barrier (trade helped develop diverse societies and cultures)…southern deserts not quite as dry as the Sahara
4. Mild climate (like LA) in North Africa – summers hot and dry, winters cooler and wet = fertile soil, crops & herding
Attracted Europen settlers…similar in southern tip Africa

6. Climate, Landforms, & Vegetation
Mountains:
Atlas in NW
Drakensberg in SE
Mt. Kilimanjaro – Tanzania
Great Rift Valley
Break in Earth’s crust
Deserts:
N.Africa – Sahara (3.2mm2)
Kalahari & Namib in south
Rivers:
Nile Zambezi
Congo Niger
Geographic Features Video Clip

7. Natural & economic resources
Hydroelectric power
Minerals – gold, diamonds, copper, uranium, coltan (cell phones & computer chips)
Oil – Algeria, Libya, Nigeria, Angola
Tropical woods, palm oil
Agriculture – rubber, coffee, cotton
Underdeveloped = political instability, transport issues
Foreign co’s make $
Largely underdeveloped resources due to obstacles such as geography, transportation, and political instability. Many nations lack money to develop resources (allows for foreign investment which means many of the profits flow out of Africa)

8. Activity: Wish you were mine
Read the article “Wish you were Mine”
Highlight and underline the important aspects
Be prepared to discuss

9. Human diversity 763 million people & growing
Many ethnic groups w/unique languages
Most live in rural areas, in savanna
Recent migration to cities

10. Language

11. Climate & Health Disease-carrying insects Unclean water Hunger Malaria
Tsetse fly
River blindness
Unclean water
Parasites
Diarrheal diseases
Hunger
Drought = no crops
Lack protein
Tsetse fly - There are 22 different species of tsetse fly, and they live only in Africa. These flies are slightly larger than a horsefly. They breed along rivers and streams. They are active during the day and feed exclusively on blood. They can transmit a disease called trypanosomiasis, an infection of the central nervous system. There are 2 forms of trypanosomiasis: Rodesian (sometimes called East African trypanosomiasis) and Gambian (sometimes called West African trypanosomiasis). Rhodesian trypanosomiasis, also known as nagana, is transmitted from animal to animal and mostly affects cattle, horses, and wild animals like antelope--although humans can also be infected. The Gambian form is much more prevalent and only affects humans. It is commonly called sleeping sickness.
It is nearly impossible for many African villagers to avoid the river blindness, which is transmitted by black flies that breed in the clean, fast-moving water used for drinking, bathing and washing clothes. The flies are the vector for parasitic worms that are transmitted to humans through fly bites. The worms enter the body, nestling near bone protuberances, where they breed millions of offspring.

12. Activity 1 Map : Label all nations Color geographic regions
Make key on map
Label mountains and rivers

13. closure
What resources do African nations export to the world?