East Africa
Overall physical geography
•East Africa, though on the same degree of
latitude is cooler and drier than West Africa.
•Deserts are common in East Africa and
droughts are frequent.
•The Great Rift Valley runs through East Africa
and is its dominant landform.
East Africa Political Geography
Farming and fishing are common occupations,
with very little industry or manufacturing
Islam is the dominant religion along the coast
Probably the most unstable region in Africa with
civil wars, poor governments, terrorist cells and
piracy in the Gulf of Aden
Three countries to focus on
Sudan
✗Ethiopia
✗Somalia
✗
Sudan
Physical Geography
Third largest country in Africa, and 12th largest in
the world.
Sudan is mostly flat plains
Desert dominates the North while the South is
mostly rainforest and swamps
The White Nile and Blue Nile have their
confluence in Sudan at Khartoum, the capital.
Sudan
Political Geography
Oh my, is Sudan a mess!
Nearly 600 ethnicities in Sudan who speak over
400 languages and dialects in the country of
about 40 million (best guess due to the last
census being in 1993)
70 percent of the population is Muslim, 5 percent
Christian
Sudan Political Geography
continued
Sudan is becoming a major oil exporter, with much of it
going to China in exchange for small arms.
80% of Sudanese workers are in agriculture, most along
the Nile.
Various civil wars and regional disputes have devastated
Sudan since the early 1980's.
Sudan is one of only FOUR countries in the world that
the US government calls “State Sponsors of Terrorism.”
State Sponsor of Terrorism
explanation
"defined in this report as ungoverned, under-governed, or ill-governed
areas of a country and non-physical areas where terrorists that
constitute a threat to U.S. national security interests are able to
organize, plan, raise funds, communicate, recruit, train, and operate in
relative security because of inadequate governance capacity, political
will, or both. Physical safe havens provide security for terrorist leaders,
allowing them to plan acts of terrorism around the world."
Sudan Political Geography
continued
Current leader of Sudan came to power in 1989
through an overthrow of the former prime
minister and has done everything possible since
then to make himself a supreme autocratic
dictator in complete power for life.
Many of Sudan's neighbors have poor relations
with them
Sudan Political Geography
continued
Genocide in Darfur region. This song by Mattafix
was dedicated to the Darfur refugees (click to
black box and click again)
July 9th of last year, South Sudan became an
independent country, breaking away from Sudan.
Ethiopia
Physical Geography
Ethiopia is mountainous in West, semi-desert
lowlands in the East.
Lake Tana is the source of the Blue Nile.
Because of its high elevations, Ethiopia is cooler
than most parts of the world at a similar line of
latitude.
Deforestation is a major concern in Ethiopia.
Political Geography
Coffee was first grown in Ethiopia and is its
largest export today.
10th largest producer of livestock in the world.
Ethiopia is making efforts to become one of the
world's largest flower and plant exporters in the
world.
Ethiopia's water resources are described as its
“white oil” and its coffee production as its “black
gold.”
Ethiopia Political Geography
continued
Ethiopia's population has more than doubled in
the last 25 years or so, going from about 33
million in the mid 80's to over 75 million today.
Ethiopia was one of the first countries in the
world to officially adopt Christianity, doing so in
the 4th century. It remains the majority religion
today, but Islam is fast growing there.
Ethiopia Political Geography
Continued
Life expectancy is only about 45 in Ethiopia.
High infant mortality rate due to few trained
doctors.
There are more Ethiopian doctors in
Chicago, Illinois than there are in ALL of
Ethiopia, a country of over 75 million!
•Somalia
Did I say Sudan
was a mess??
Somalia makes
Sudan look like
Disneyland!
•Somalia Physical Geography
• Somalia has the longest coastline of any
African country.
• Somalia is plains, plateaus, highlands and
semi-desert.
• Like some parts of West Africa, it has rainy
and dry seasons, but is much hotter on
average.
•Somalia Political Geography
●
●
●
Somalia is one of the poorest and most violent
countries in the world.
Somalia has not had a truly functioning
government since 1991.
Crippling poverty and lack of governmental
intervention has led to widespread criminal
activity making Mogadishu one of the most
dangerous places on Earth.
Somali Pirates
When the government broke down in the
early 1990’s, there was no authority to
protect the waters in the Indian Ocean
belonging to Somalia.
The first pirates may have been attempting
to stop illegal fishing and dumping off the
coast of their country.
Now, there are powerful groups that are
heavily armed taking advantage of the
situation to enrich themselves.
•Key things to know about East
Africa
Cooler and wetter than the West
Islam still dominant, but not as much in North
Nile River is the major water source
Great Rift Valley is the major landform
Most unstable of the five regions
Darfur region of Sudan is experiencing genocide
South Sudan will gained independence last July.
Somali pirates are a result of no government
The End!