It includes a territory (with an area of about 10 million sq. km and a population of 170 million people) adjacent to the Mediterranean, inhabited mainly by Arabs professing Islam. Countries located in this territory (, Western Sahara,), due to their geographical location (coastal, neighboring in relation to countries and) and higher (compared to the states of Tropical Africa) level of economic and industrial development, are distinguished by greater involvement in ( export of oil, gas, phosphorites, etc.).
The economic life of North Africa is concentrated in the coastal zone. Almost the entire population of the region is concentrated in this same zone.
Tropical Africa includes the territory located south of, within which, in turn, are distinguished, and. The overwhelming majority of those located on their territory belong to the equatorial (Negroid) race. It is distinguished by great diversity (there are more than 200 peoples), multinational states predominate.
The main activity of the population is agriculture (with the exception of the countries of South Africa, in which industry and the service sector play a decisive role). Tropical Africa is the most economically backward, least industrialized and least urbanized part of the developing world. Of the 49 countries within its borders, 32 belong to the group of “least developed countries in the world.” The average per capita GNP in the countries of Eastern, Western and Central Africa is several times (5-7 or more times) less than in the countries of Northern and Southern Africa.
Among the countries located south of the Sahara, it occupies a special place.
Firstly, by its geographical location it no longer belongs to Tropical Africa.
Secondly, in terms of socio-economic development it does not belong to developing countries. This is a country of “settler capitalism”. It accounts for: 5.5% of the territory, 7%, but 2/3 of its GDP, more than 50% of manufacturing products and the automobile fleet.
The largest industrial region in Africa, the Witwatersrand, was formed with its center in, which plays the role of the “economic capital” of the country.
In the MGRT, the face of South Africa is represented by the mining industry (gold, platinum, diamonds, uranium, iron, manganese ores, coal), some manufacturing industries (, as well as the production of certain types of agricultural products (cereals, subtropical crops, fine-wool sheep breeding, cattle livestock).
South Africa has the densest transport network on the continent and major seaports.
However, the country's economy is still feeling the effects of apartheid policies. There are great differences between “whites” on the one hand and “blacks” and “coloreds” on the other. Therefore, South Africa is often called a dual economy country. It has the features of economically developed and developing countries.
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Africa is a part of the world with an area of 30.3 million km 2 with islands, this is the second place after Eurasia, 6% of the entire surface of our planet and 20% of the land.
Geographical position
Africa is located in the Northern and Eastern Hemispheres (most of it), a small part in the Southern and Western. Like all large fragments of the ancient continent, Gondwana has a massive outline, with no large peninsulas or deep bays. The length of the continent from north to south is 8 thousand km, from west to east - 7.5 thousand km. In the north it is washed by the waters of the Mediterranean Sea, in the northeast by the Red Sea, in the southeast by the Indian Ocean, in the west by the Atlantic Ocean. Africa is separated from Asia by the Suez Canal, and from Europe by the Strait of Gibraltar.
Main geographical characteristics
Africa lies on an ancient platform, which causes its flat surface, which in some places is dissected by deep river valleys. On the coast of the mainland there are small lowlands, the northwest is the location of the Atlas Mountains, the northern part, almost entirely occupied by the Sahara Desert, is the Ahaggar and Tibetsi highlands, the east is the Ethiopian Highlands, the southeast is the East African Plateau, the extreme south is the Cape and Drakensberg mountains The highest point in Africa is the Kilimanjaro volcano (5895 m, Masai plateau), the lowest is 157 meters below ocean level in Lake Assal. Along the Red Sea, in the Ethiopian Highlands and to the mouth of the Zambezi River, the world's largest crustal fault stretches, which is characterized by frequent seismic activity.
The following rivers flow through Africa: Congo (Central Africa), Niger (West Africa), Limpopo, Orange, Zambezi (South Africa), as well as one of the deepest and longest rivers in the world - the Nile (6852 km), flowing from the south to north (its sources are on the East African Plateau, and it flows, forming a delta, into the Mediterranean Sea). Rivers are characterized by high water content exclusively in the equatorial belt, due to the large amount of precipitation there; most of them are characterized by high flow rates and have many rapids and waterfalls. In lithospheric faults filled with water, lakes were formed - Nyasa, Tanganyika, the largest freshwater lake in Africa and the second largest lake in area after Lake Superior (North America) - Victoria (its area is 68.8 thousand km 2, length 337 km, maximum depth - 83 m), the largest salty endorheic lake is Chad (its area is 1.35 thousand km 2, located on the southern edge of the world's largest desert, the Sahara).
Due to Africa's location between two tropical zones, it is characterized by high total solar radiation, which gives the right to call Africa the hottest continent on Earth (the highest temperature on our planet was recorded in 1922 in Al-Aziziya (Libya) - +58 C 0 in the shadow).
On the territory of Africa, such natural zones are distinguished as evergreen equatorial forests (the coast of the Gulf of Guinea, the Congo basin), in the north and south turning into mixed deciduous-evergreen forests, then there is a natural zone of savannas and woodlands, extending to Sudan, East and South Africa, to In northern and southern Africa, savannas give way to semi-deserts and deserts (Sahara, Kalahari, Namib). In the southeastern part of Africa there is a small zone of mixed coniferous-deciduous forests, on the slopes of the Atlas Mountains there is a zone of hard-leaved evergreen forests and shrubs. Natural zones of mountains and plateaus are subject to the laws of altitudinal zonation.
African countries
The territory of Africa is divided between 62 countries, 54 are independent, sovereign states, 10 dependent territories belonging to Spain, Portugal, Great Britain and France, the rest are unrecognized, self-proclaimed states - Galmudug, Puntland, Somaliland, Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR). For a long time, Asian countries were foreign colonies of various European states and only gained independence by the middle of the last century. Depending on its geographical location, Africa is divided into five regions: Northern, Central, Western, Eastern and Southern Africa.
List of African countries
Nature
Mountains and plains of Africa
Most of the African continent is plain. There are mountain systems, highlands and plateaus. They are presented:
- the Atlas Mountains in the northwestern part of the continent;
- the Tibesti and Ahaggar highlands in the Sahara Desert;
- Ethiopian Highlands in the eastern part of the mainland;
- Drakensberg Mountains in the south.
The highest point of the country is the Kilimanjaro volcano, 5,895 m high, belonging to the East African Plateau in the southeastern part of the continent...
Deserts and savannas
The largest desert zone of the African continent is located in the northern part. This is the Sahara Desert. On the southwest side of the continent is another smaller desert, the Namib, and from there into the continent to the east there is the Kalahari Desert.
The savannah territory occupies the bulk of Central Africa. In area it is much larger than the northern and southern parts of the mainland. The territory is characterized by the presence of pastures typical of savannas, low bushes and trees. The height of herbaceous vegetation varies depending on the amount of precipitation. These can be practically desert savannas or tall grasses, with a grass cover from 1 to 5 m in height...
Rivers
The longest river in the world, the Nile, is located on the African continent. The direction of its flow is from south to north.
The list of major water systems of the mainland includes the Limpopo, Zambezi and Orange River, as well as the Congo, which flows through Central Africa.
On the Zambezi River is the famous Victoria Falls, 120 meters high and 1,800 meters wide...
Lakes
The list of large lakes on the African continent includes Lake Victoria, which is the second largest freshwater body of water in the world. Its depth reaches 80 m, and its area is 68,000 square km. There are two more large lakes on the continent: Tanganyika and Nyasa. They are located in faults of lithospheric plates.
There is Lake Chad in Africa, which is one of the world's largest endorheic relict lakes that have no connection with the world's oceans...
Seas and oceans
The African continent is washed by the waters of two oceans: the Indian and the Atlantic. Also off its shores are the Red and Mediterranean Seas. From the Atlantic Ocean in the southwestern part, the waters form the deep Gulf of Guinea.
Despite the location of the African continent, the coastal waters are cool. This is influenced by the cold currents of the Atlantic Ocean: the Canary in the north and the Bengal in the southwest. From the Indian Ocean, the currents are warm. The largest are Mozambique, in northern waters, and Agulhas, in southern...
Forests of Africa
Forests make up a little more than a quarter of the entire territory of the African continent. Here are subtropical forests growing on the slopes of the Atlas Mountains and the valleys of the ridge. Here you can find holm oak, pistachio, strawberry tree, etc. Coniferous plants grow high in the mountains, represented by Aleppo pine, Atlas cedar, juniper and other types of trees.
Closer to the coast there are cork oak forests; in the tropical region, evergreen equatorial plants are common, for example, mahogany, sandalwood, ebony, etc...
Nature, plants and animals of Africa
The vegetation of the equatorial forests is diverse, with about 1000 species of various types of trees growing here: ficus, ceiba, wine tree, oil palm, wine palm, banana palm, tree ferns, sandalwood, mahogany, rubber trees, Liberian coffee tree, etc. . Many species of animals, rodents, birds and insects live here, living directly on the trees. On the ground live: brush-eared pigs, leopards, African deer - a relative of the okapi giraffe, large apes - gorillas...
40% of Africa's territory is occupied by savannas, which are huge steppe areas covered with forbs, low, thorny bushes, milkweed, and isolated trees (tree-like acacias, baobabs).
Here there is the largest concentration of such large animals as: rhinoceros, giraffe, elephant, hippopotamus, zebra, buffalo, hyena, lion, leopard, cheetah, jackal, crocodile, hyena dog. The most numerous animals of the savannah are herbivores such as: hartebeest (antelope family), giraffe, impala or crown-toed antelope, various types of gazelles (Thomson's, Grant's), blue wildebeest, and in some places there are also rare jumping antelopes - springboks.
The vegetation of deserts and semi-deserts is characterized by poverty and unpretentiousness; these are small thorny bushes and separately growing tufts of herbs. The oases are home to the unique Erg Chebbi date palm, as well as plants that are resistant to drought conditions and salt formation. In the Namib Desert, unique plants such as Welwitschia and Nara grow, the fruits of which are eaten by porcupines, elephants and other desert animals.
Animals here include various species of antelopes and gazelles, adapted to hot climates and capable of traveling vast distances in search of food, many species of rodents, snakes, and turtles. Lizards. Among the mammals: spotted hyena, common jackal, maned sheep, Cape hare, Ethiopian hedgehog, Dorcas gazelle, sabre-horned antelope, Anubis baboon, wild Nubian ass, cheetah, jackal, fox, mouflon, there are resident and migratory birds.
Climatic conditions
Seasons, weather and climate of African countries
The central part of Africa, through which the equator line passes, is in an area of low pressure and receives sufficient moisture; the territories north and south of the equator are in the subequatorial climate zone, this is a zone of seasonal (monsoon) moisture and an arid desert climate. The far north and south are in the subtropical climate zone, the south receives precipitation brought by air masses from the Indian Ocean, the Kalahari Desert is located here, the north has minimal precipitation due to the formation of a high pressure area and the peculiarities of the movement of trade winds, the largest desert in the world is the Sahara, where the amount precipitation is minimal, in some areas it does not fall at all...
Resources
Natural Resources of Africa
In terms of water resources, Africa is considered one of the poorest continents in the world. The average annual volume of water is only sufficient to satisfy primary needs, but this does not apply to all regions.
Land resources are represented by large areas with fertile lands. Only 20% of all possible lands are cultivated. The reason for this is the lack of adequate water volume, soil erosion, etc.
African forests are a source of timber, including valuable species. The countries in which they grow, export raw materials. Resources are being used unwisely and ecosystems are being destroyed little by little.
In the depths of Africa there are deposits of minerals. Among those sent for export: gold, diamonds, uranium, phosphorus, manganese ores. There are significant reserves of oil and natural gas.
Energy-intensive resources are widely available on the continent, but they are not used due to the lack of proper investment...
Among the developed industrial sectors of the countries of the African continent, the following can be noted:
- the mining industry, which exports minerals and fuels;
- the oil refining industry, distributed mainly in South Africa and North Africa;
- chemical industry specializing in the production of mineral fertilizers;
- as well as the metallurgical and engineering industries.
The main agricultural products are cocoa beans, coffee, corn, rice and wheat. Oil palm is grown in tropical regions of Africa.
Fishing is poorly developed and accounts for only 1-2% of the total agricultural output. Livestock production indicators are also not high and the reason for this is the infection of livestock by the tsetse fly...
Culture
Peoples of Africa: culture and traditions
There are approximately 8,000 peoples and ethnic groups living across 62 African countries, totaling approximately 1.1 billion people. Africa is considered the cradle and ancestral home of human civilization; it was here that the remains of ancient primates (hominids) were found, which, according to scientists, are considered the ancestors of people.
Most peoples in Africa can number several thousand people or several hundred living in one or two villages. 90% of the population are representatives of 120 nations, their number is more than 1 million people, 2/3 of them are peoples with a population of more than 5 million people, 1/3 are peoples with a population of more than 10 million people (this is 50% of the total population of Africa) - Arabs , Hausa, Fulbe, Yoruba, Igbo, Amhara, Oromo, Rwanda, Malagasy, Zulu...
There are two historical and ethnographic provinces: North African (the predominance of the Indo-European race) and Tropical African (the majority of the population is the Negroid race), it is divided into such areas as:
- West Africa. Peoples speaking the Mande languages (Susu, Maninka, Mende, Wai), Chadian (Hausa), Nilo-Saharan (Songai, Kanuri, Tubu, Zaghawa, Mawa, etc.), Niger-Congo languages (Yoruba, Igbo, Bini, Nupe, Gbari, Igala and Idoma, Ibibio, Efik, Kambari, Birom and Jukun, etc.);
- Equatorial Africa. Inhabited by Buanto-speaking peoples: Duala, Fang, Bubi (Fernandans), Mpongwe, Teke, Mboshi, Ngala, Como, Mongo, Tetela, Cuba, Kongo, Ambundu, Ovimbundu, Chokwe, Luena, Tonga, Pygmies, etc.;
- South Africa. Rebellious peoples and speakers of Khoisani languages: Bushmen and Hottentots;
- East Africa. Bantu, Nilotes and Sudanese people groups;
- Northeast Africa. Peoples speaking Ethio-Semitic (Amhara, Tigre, Tigra), Cushitic (Oromo, Somali, Sidamo, Agaw, Afar, Konso, etc.) and Omotian languages (Ometo, Gimirra, etc.);
- Madagascar. Malagasy and Creoles.
In the North African province, the main peoples are considered to be Arabs and Berbers, belonging to the southern European minor race, mainly professing Sunni Islam. There is also an ethno-religious group of Copts, who are direct descendants of the Ancient Egyptians, they are Monophysite Christians.
The total area of Tropical Africa is more than 20 million km2, the population is 650 million people. It is also called “black Africa”, since the population of the subregion overwhelmingly belongs to the equatorial (Negroid) race. But the ethnic composition of individual parts of Tropical Africa differs quite greatly. It is most complex in Western and Eastern Africa, where at the junction of different races and linguistic families the greatest “strip” of ethnic and political borders has arisen. The people of Central and Southern Africa speak numerous (with up to 600 dialects) but closely related languages of the Bantu family (the word means "people"). The Swahili language is especially widespread. And the population of Madagascar speaks languages of the Austronesian family.
There is also a lot in common in the economy and population settlement of the countries of Tropical Africa. Tropical Africa is the most backward part of the entire developing world, with 29 least developed countries within its borders. Nowadays, this is the only large region of the world where agriculture remains the main sphere of material production.
About half of the rural residents practice subsistence agriculture, the rest engage in subsistence farming. Hoe tillage predominates with the almost complete absence of a plow; It is no coincidence that the hoe, as a symbol of agricultural labor, is included in the image of the state emblems of a number of African countries. All major agricultural work is performed by women and children. They cultivate root and tuber crops (cassava or cassava, yam, sweet potato), from which they make flour, cereals, cereals, flatbreads, as well as millet, sorghum, rice, corn, bananas, and vegetables. Livestock farming is much less developed, including due to the tsetse fly, and if it plays a significant role (Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia), it is carried out extremely extensively. In the equatorial forests there are tribes, and even nationalities, that still live by hunting, fishing and gathering. In the savannah and tropical rainforest zones, the basis of consumer agriculture is the fallow-type slash-and-burn system.
Areas of commercial crop production with a predominance of perennial plantings - cocoa, coffee, peanuts, hevea, oil palm, tea, sisal, and spices - stand out sharply against the general background. Some of these crops are cultivated on plantations, and some on peasant farms. They primarily determine the monocultural specialization of a number of countries.
According to their main occupation, the majority of the population of Tropical Africa lives in rural areas. Savannas are dominated by large villages near rivers, while tropical forests are dominated by small villages.
Tropical Africa is the least urbanized region of the world. Only eight of its countries have “millionaire” cities, which usually tower over numerous provincial towns like lonely giants. Examples of this kind include Dakar in Senegal, Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Nairobi in Kenya, Luanda in Angola.
Tropical Africa also lags behind in the development of its transport network. Its pattern is determined by “penetration lines” isolated from each other, leading from the ports to the hinterland. In many countries there are no railways at all. It is customary to carry small loads on the head, and over a distance of up to 30-40 km.
Finally, environmental quality is rapidly deteriorating in sub-Saharan Africa. It was here that desertification, deforestation, and depletion of flora and fauna assumed the most alarming proportions. Example. The main area of drought and desertification is the Sahel zone, which stretches along the southern borders of the Sahara from Mauritania to Ethiopia across ten countries.
24. Basic patterns of population distribution in Australia: historical and natural prerequisites.
The distribution of the population across the continent is determined by the history of its development by Europeans and natural conditions. Coastal areas in the east and southwest of the continent have population densities 10 times or more greater than the average population density. The interior of the mainland is almost deserted. The bulk of the population lives in cities. Moreover, 2/3 of the population lives in large cities. In Sydney and Melbourne alone there are more than 6 million people. The Commonwealth of Australia is the only state in the world that occupies the territory of the entire continent, as well as the island of Tasmania and a number of other small islands. The Commonwealth of Australia belongs to the group of developed capitalist countries. This is an economically highly developed state, the formation of whose economy was facilitated by both historical and favorable natural factors.
Before the start of European colonization, 300 thousand aborigines lived on the mainland, and now there are 150 thousand of them. The Aborigines belong to the Australo-Polynesian race and ethnically do not form a single whole. They are divided into numerous tribes speaking different languages (over 200 in total). Aboriginal people received civil rights in 1972.
The population is distributed extremely unevenly throughout the country, with its main centers concentrated in the east and southeast, northeast and south. Here the population density is 25-50 people. per 1 km2, and the rest of the territory is very sparsely populated, the density does not reach even one person per 1 km2. The deserts in the Australian outback are completely devoid of population. In the last decade, there have been shifts in the distribution of the country's population, thanks to the discoveries of new mineral deposits in the north and south. The Australian government encourages the movement of the population to the center of the mainland, to poorly developed areas.
Australia occupies one of the first places in the world in terms of urbanization - 90% of the population. In Australia, cities are considered to be settlements with a population of over 1 thousand people, and sometimes less. The population lives in cities that are significantly distant from each other. Such settlement predetermined the uneven distribution of the manufacturing industry and the high cost of its products due to very significant transport costs.
The country's largest urban agglomerations are Sydney (3 million people), Melbourne (about 3 million people), Brisbane (about 1 million people), Adelaide (over 900 thousand people), Canberra (300 thousand people .), Hobart (200 thousand people), etc.
Australian cities are relatively young, the oldest are 200 years old, most of them were centers of colonies, and then became state capitals, performing several functions: administrative, commercial, industrial and cultural.
The second largest continent in the world (after Eurasia) is Africa. Its subregions (their economy, population, nature and states) will be discussed in this article.
Options for dividing the continent's territory
The territory of Africa is the largest geographical region of our planet. Therefore, the desire to divide it into parts is quite natural. The following two large areas are distinguished: Tropical and North Africa (or Africa north of the Sahara). There are quite large natural, ethnic, historical and socio-economic differences between these parts.
Tropical Africa is the most backward region of the developing world. And in our time, the share of agriculture in its GDP is higher than the share of industrial production. 28 of the 47 least developed countries in the world are located in Tropical Africa. Also here is the maximum number of countries that are landlocked (there are 15 such states in this region).
There is another option for dividing Africa into regions. According to him, its parts are Southern, Tropical and Northern Africa.
We now turn to consideration of regionalization itself, that is, the identification of large macroregions (subregions) of the continent of interest to us. It is currently believed that there are only five of them. Africa has the following subregions: Southern, Eastern, Central, Western and Northern Africa (on the map above). At the same time, each of them has specific features of the economy, population and nature.
North Africa
North Africa opens to the Red and Mediterranean Seas, as well as the Atlantic Ocean. Thanks to this, its connections with Western Asia and Europe have been established since ancient times. Its total area is approximately 10 million km2, where about 170 million people live. The Mediterranean "façade" defines the position of this subregion. Thanks to him, North Africa neighbors South-West Asia and has access to the main sea route that runs from Europe to Asia.
Cradle of Civilization, Arab Colonization
The sparsely populated areas of the Sahara Desert form the “rear” of the region. North Africa is the cradle of the civilization of Ancient Egypt, which made a great contribution to culture. The Mediterranean part of the continent in ancient times was considered the granary of Rome. To this day, among the lifeless sea of stone and sand, you can find the remains of underground drainage galleries, as well as other ancient structures. Many cities located on the coast trace their origins to Carthaginian and Roman settlements.
Arab colonization, which took place in the 7th-12th centuries, had a huge impact on the culture of the population, its ethnic composition and way of life. And in our time, the northern part of Africa is considered Arab: almost the entire local population professes Islam and speaks Arabic.
Economic life and population of North Africa
The economic life of this subregion is concentrated in the coastal strip. The main manufacturing enterprises are located here, as well as the main agricultural areas. Naturally, this is where almost the entire population of this subregion lives. Mud houses, with earthen floors and flat roofs, predominate in rural areas. The cities also have a very distinctive appearance. Therefore, ethnographers and geographers distinguish the Arab type of city as a separate type. It is characterized by division into old and new parts. North Africa is sometimes called the Maghreb, but this is not entirely accurate.
Economy
There are currently 15 independent states in this subregion. 13 of them are republics. Most countries in North America are underdeveloped. In Libya and Algeria, the economy is slightly better developed. These countries have significant reserves of natural gas and oil, which are hot commodities on the world market these days. Morocco is engaged in the extraction of phosphorites used in the production of fertilizers. Niger is a major uranium producer, but remains one of the poorest countries in North Africa.
The southern part of this subregion is very poorly populated. The agricultural population lives in oases in which the main commercial and consumer crop is the date palm. Only nomadic camel breeders can be found in the rest of the area, and even then not everywhere. There are gas and oil fields in the Libyan and Algerian parts of the Sahara.
A narrow “strip of life” only along the Nile Valley wedges itself into the desert far to the south. For the development of Upper Egypt, the construction of the Aswan hydroelectric complex on the Nile with the technical and economic assistance of the USSR was very important.
West Africa
The subregions of the continent we are interested in are a rather extensive topic, so we will limit ourselves to a brief description of them. Let's move on to the next subregion - West Africa.
There are zones of savannas, tropical deserts and moist equatorial forests, which are located between the Sahara Desert. It is the continent's largest subregion by population and one of the largest by area. The natural conditions here are very diverse, and the ethnic composition of the local population is the most complex - various peoples of Africa are represented. This subregion was a major slave trading area in the past. Currently, agriculture is developed here, represented by the production of various plantation consumer and cash crops. There is also industry in the subregion. Its most developed industry is mining.
Population of West Africa
According to 2006 data, the population of West Africa is 280 million people. It is multi-ethnic in composition. The largest ethnic groups are the Wolof, Mande, Serer, Mossi, Songhai, Fulani and Hausa. The indigenous population is divided into 3 metagroups based on language - Nilo-Saharan, Niger-Congo and Afro-Asian. The most common European languages in this subregion are English and French. The main religious groups of the population are Muslims, Christians and animists.
Economy of West Africa
All the states located here are developing countries. As we have already said, the subregions of Africa differ significantly economically. The table presented above characterizes such an important economic indicator of the countries of the continent we are interested in as gold reserves (2015 data). West African states in this table include Nigeria, Ghana, Mauritania and Cameroon.
Agriculture, as well as the mining industry, plays a leading role in creating GDP in this subregion. The minerals available in West Africa are petroleum, iron gold, manganese, phosphates and diamonds.
Central Africa
From the very name of this subregion it is clear that it occupies the central part of the continent (equatorial). The total area of the region is 6613 thousand km 2. A total of 9 countries are located in Central Africa: Gabon, Angola, Cameroon, Congo and Democratic (these are two different states), Sao Tome and Principe, Chad, Central African Republic and also the island of St. Helena, which is a British overseas territory.
They are located in savannah and humid equatorial forest zones, which greatly influenced their economic development. This subregion is one of the richest areas, not only in Africa, but in the world. The ethnic composition of the local population, unlike the previous region, is homogeneous. Nine-tenths of it are the Bantu peoples of Africa, who are related to each other.
Economy of the subregion
All states in this subregion, according to the UN classification, are developing. Agriculture and the mining industry play a major role in creating GDP. In this respect, West and Central Africa are similar. The minerals mined here are cobalt, manganese, copper, diamonds, gold, natural gas, oil. The subregion has good hydropower potential. In addition, significant reserves of forest resources are located here.
These are the main Central ones.
East Africa
It is located in tropical and subequatorial climate zones. East Africa faces the Indian Ocean, so it has maintained trade relations with Arab countries and India since ancient times. The mineral wealth of this subregion is less significant, but the diversity of natural resources in general is very high. This is what largely determines the various options for their economic use.
Population of East Africa
East Africa is a highly ethnically mosaic subregion. The borders of many countries were set arbitrarily by former colonial powers. At the same time, the cultural and ethnic differences that the population of East Africa has were not taken into account. Due to significant social and cultural differences, there is significant potential for conflict in this subregion. Wars often broke out here, including civil ones.
South Africa
It is located in the southern part of the continent, which is farthest from Asia, America and Europe, but it opens up to the sea route that goes around the southern tip of Africa. This subregion is located in the subtropical and tropical latitudes of the Southern Hemisphere. There is a significant amount of natural resources, of which mineral resources are especially prominent. The Republic of South Africa (RSA) is the main “core” of this subregion. It is the only economically developed state on the continent.
Population and economy of South Africa
A significant number are of European origin. Bantu peoples make up the vast majority of the inhabitants of this subregion. The local population as a whole is poor, but South Africa has a well-established road network, efficient air traffic, and good tourism infrastructure. Mining, as well as deposits of gold, platinum, diamonds and other minerals, form the basis of the economy. In addition, southern Africa is increasingly developing technology, tourism and manufacturing industries.
Finally
As you can see, in general the mainland is not very developed economically. Its population is unevenly distributed. Currently, about a billion people live on the continent of Africa. Its subregions were briefly characterized by us. In conclusion, I would like to note that this continent is considered the ancestral home of humanity: the oldest remains of early hominids, as well as their probable ancestors, were found here. There is a special science of African studies, which studies the cultural, political, economic and social problems of Africa.