1. The forgotten continent
Getting to know Africa
The forgotten continent

2. African History Slave trade Scramble for Africa Current issues
European exploration
Slave trade
Colonization
Scramble for Africa
Decolonization
Current issues

3. Place of Africa on Global Scene
Population
Total exports
Percentage of people with high education
Territory
USA (blue) compared to Africa (orange)
Political stability Indicator
Number of patents per capita
Low economic importance
Unstable unaccountable regimes
Enrollment in elections
Low cultural and technological importance
Low political participation
Political stability Indicator source World Bank 2006
Most of other indicators are gross and based on information from nationamaster.com
Nominal GDP
GDP per capita

4. African Regions
North Africa: Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, Tunisia and Western Sahara.
East Africa: Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Madagascar, Somalia, Sudan and Uganda.
Central Africa: Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Rwanda.
West Africa: Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Togo.
Southern Africa: Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, Zambia, Tanzania and Zimbabwe.

5. Geography 2nd largest continent (after Asia)
53 countries (biggest Sudan, Nigeria largest population)
Mt. Kilimanjaro (no mountain chains)
Lakes: Victoria, Tanganyika, Nyasa & Chad
Rivers: Nile, Congo, Niger & Zambezi
Deserts: Sahara & Kalahari
Biggest island Madagascar
Africa: Africa is the second-largest of the seven continents on Earth (Asia is the largest continent). Africa is bounded by the Atlantic Ocean on the west, the Indian Ocean on the east, the Mediterranean Sea on the north, and the Red Sea on the northeast.
Africa covers 11,700,000 square miles (30,300,000 square kilometers).
Countries: There are about 53 countries in Africa (some countries are disputed). The biggest country in Africa is Sudan, which covers 967,500 square miles (2,505,816 square kilometers). The countries with the largest populations in Africa are Nigeria (107,000,000 people), Egypt (64,800,000 people), and Ethiopia (58,700,000 people).
Highest and Lowest Points: The tallest point in Africa is Mt. Kilimanjaro, in Tanzania (eastern Africa). Mt. Kilimanjaro is 19,340 feet (5895 meters) tall. Africa has no long mountain chains.
The lowest pont in Africa is Lake Assal, in Djibouti (in eastern Africa near the Horn of Africa); it is 512 feet (156 meters) below sea level.
Lakes: Africa's largest lake is Lake Victoria; it covers 26,836 square miles (69,500 square kilometers). Other large lakes in Africa are Lake Tanganyika, Lake Malawi, and Lake Chad.
Rivers: The longest river in Africa is the Nile River; it is 4,241 miles (6825 kilometers) long. Other long rivers in Africa include the Congo River, the Niger River and the Zambezi River.
Deserts: Africa has many vast deserts, including the largest hot desert in the world, the Sahara. The Sahara Desert is located in northern Africa and covers 3,500,000 square miles (9,065,000 square kilometers). The Kalahari, in southern Africa, is another large desert.
Islands: The biggest island off Africa is Madagascar, which is near the coast of southeast Africa. Madagascar covers 226,658 square miles (587,000 square kilometers). Other islands include the Seychelles (a chain of islands north of Madagascar), the Comoros (another chain of islands north of Madagascar), the Canary Islands (a chain of islands off the northwest coast), the Madeira Islands (another chain of islands off the northwest coast), the Cape Verde Islands (off the coast of western Africa), Equatorial Guinea (off the coast of Cameroon), and Sao Tome (southwest of Equatorial Guinea).
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6. Languages & Religion More than 1000 different languages Religions
Colonial European languages - official, government
Indigenous – most used
Namibia: English, Afrikaans, German, Oshivambo, Herero, Nama
Nigeria: nearly 400 native languages
Religions
North Africa – Islam
South from Sahara: mixture of Islam, Christianity & indigenous beliefs (natural spirits)
Languages: More than 1,000 different languages are spoken in Africa. Although most countries in Eastern and Southern Africa have adopted colonial European languages for official government business, most people speak indigenous or local languages. In Namibia, people may speak English, Afrikaans, German, Oshivambo, Herero, or Nama. In Tanzania, people can speak English or Swahili. Due to their colonial pasts, the majority of the countries in West Africa have adopted French, English, Spanish, or Portuguese as national languages. The majority of each countries' inhabitants, however, also speak one or more indigenous languages. Cameroonians may speak one or more of 24 different languages, in addition to French or English.
Yoruba, Hause, and Igbo are some of the nearly 400 native languages of Nigeria. Most people in the North African countries speak Arabic and follow Islam. In some parts of North Africa, however, people are multilingual and speak several languages. For example, the official languages of Chad and Djibouti are Arabic and French. In Ethiopia, people may speak one or more of 70 unique languages or 200 different dialects. A dialect is a form or variety of a spoken language. Religion: Most people in the fourteen independent countries in North Africa are Muslim. The religion they believe in is called Islam. Muslims pray to their god Allah and his prophet Muhammad five times a day facing the city of Mecca. A prophet is someone who is believed to speak for a god. The Koran is the Muslim holy book. In African countries south of the Sahara Desert, people follow many different religions. Some are Muslim, although the majority of the people are Christian. Missionaries from other parts of the world brought Christianity to many countries in Africa. Some people, however, choose to follow ancient religions and believe that natural spirits and ancestors affect everyday life.
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7. Population Rapidly growing population of around 800 million
75% of continent sparsely inhabited
Mostly rural (slow urbanization)
Highest birth rate (average 6 children) & infant mortality rate (1-2 stage)
Low life expectancy (40-49 years, Sierra Leone – 34, Zambia – 37)
No infrastructure
Unsatisfied basic needs
Africa has a rapidly growing population of 500 million people, yet 75% of the continent is sparsely inhabited. Most people still live a traditional rural lifestyle, though many Africans move to cities in search of employment. Most people live where water is available, in the Nile Valley, the coasts of North and West Africa, along the Niger, in the eastern highlands, and in South Africa. With the highest birthrate of any continent, Africa is projected to grow to two billion by Women in sub-Saharan Africa bear an average of 6 children each. Life expectancy is low (Sierra Leone: 34 years, Zambia: 37 years, other countries: 40–49 years) compared to the developed countries. The fastest growing region on earth, Africa faces the most serious shortages of food and water.
Political instability and the lack of infrastructure make distribution of supplies difficult. Since the 1960s most countries have seen improvements in life expectancy, health care, and education. However, the continent lies well behind the rest of the world in many basic human needs.
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8. African Political Systems
Only 20% of African states are multiparty democracies
In transition to democracy.
Many countries have authoritarian regimes or limited freedom

9. Wars
Some examples of ongoing wars in Africa (since 1991 to the present date):
Namibia & Niger – civil war
Nigeria – ethnic, religious and political conflict
Rwanda – ethnic conflict
Senegal – separatist conflict
Sierra Leone – civil war
Somalia – civil war
South Africa – civilian uprising, political violence
Sudan – civil war
Togo – war of independence
Tunisia – war of independence
Uganda – brutal dictatorship, civil war, rebel/ethnic violence
Western Sahara – unresolved war of independence
Zambia – ethnic and political conflict
Zimbabwe – political and ethnic violence
Causes:
Borders
Religion
Tribal disputes
Resources
Source:
Wars in Africa (since 1991 to the present date)
NAMIBIANIGER1991-regional civil war
NIGERIA1997 -recurrent ethnic, religious and political conflict
RWANDA , 1992, ethnic conflict and aftermath ethnic conflict and aftermath
SENEGAL separatist conflict
SIERRA LEONE , civil war and aftermath
SOMALIA1988-civil war and factional struggles
SOUTH AFRICA1976civilian uprising political violence
SUDAN , civil war
TOGO1991 war of independence
TUNISIA war of independence
UGANDA1966ethnic unrest brutal dictatorship civil war1990- rebel/ethnic violence
WESTERN SAHARA unresolved war of independence
ZAMBIA1964ethnic and political conflict
ZIMBABWE political conflict political and ethnic violence
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10. Wealth Slow urbanization No developed industry
The poorest region of the world
Rich in natural resources
Dependent on export of agricultural products or raw materials (coffee, cocoa, oil)
Negative import-export balance (dependence)
Economic difficulties caused by political instability
Africa is home to one eighth of the world’s population. The most populated areas are along the Nile, Niger, Congo and Senegal rivers. The population is growing quickly due to increasingly better health care. Birthrates are very high, and families are often large. Many people have moved from countryside to cities, because of the poverty and lack of work, or to escape civil wars, droughts, and famines. Most countries rely on the export of coffee, cocoa, or oil. In recent years, the prices have fallen. The amount that African countries earn from exports is often less then what they have to spend on imports. These factors, along with the growing population and effects of wars and droughts, mean economic difficulties for many African countries.
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11. Health
Poor health care, education, family planning, nutrition, lack of clean water.
AIDS crises
In developed countries where people enjoy better health care, education, family planning, and nutrition, women tend to have healthy babies. In Africa, however, few people have access to medicine and malnutrition is a constant problem. Lack of clean water and other basic necessities, disease, and human conflicts make survival difficult for most on this continent. Besides lack of appropriate health care and nutrition, HIV/AIDS is a major health issue in Africa. Due to sufficient educational programs and financial resources, the number of HIV/AIDS cases has risen to tragic heights in Africa. In some countries, such as Zambia and Botswana, 20% or more of the adult population is believed to be infected with HIV. Tragically, the children of Africa suffer the most from this epidemic. Millions of children have been left orphaned because of the disease.
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