Only in 1970-1990. There were 78 coups d'etat in Africa, which cost the lives of 25 presidents.
According to estimates, various types of territorial disputes in Africa concern approximately 1/5 of the entire territory of this continent. In addition, 40% of the entire length of state borders here is not demarcated at all, 44% are drawn mechanically along parallels and meridians, 30% along arched and curved lines, and only 26% along natural boundaries, partly coinciding with ethnic ones.
The first diamond in South Africa was found in 1869 by a shepherd boy. A year later, the city of Kimberley was founded here, after which the diamond-bearing rock became known as kimberlite. The diamond content in kimberlites is very low - no more than 0.0000073%, which is equivalent to 0.2 g or 1 carat, for every 3 tons of kimberlites. Nowadays, one of the attractions of Kimberley is a huge pit 400 m deep, dug by diamond miners - “ Big hole».
Although the Congo River carries five times less water into the ocean than the Amazon, its hydroelectric potential is higher. This is explained by the fact that on a 300-kilometer stretch of its lower course, the river’s drop is 275 m with 32 waterfalls and rapids. Here it is possible to build hydroelectric power plants with a capacity of 80-90 million kW, which is approximately equal to the entire capacity of hydroelectric power plants in the United States.
The birthplace of AIDS is Tropical Africa, which still remains the epicenter of its spread. If in developed countries it is possible to keep the infection rate of the adult population with the AIDS virus at a level of less than 1%, then in Botswana this figure is 39%! It is slightly lower in Zimbabwe, Namibia, Zambia, Swaziland, and a number of other countries. If the situation does not change, these countries may lose up to 1/5 of their adult population from AIDS over the next decade alone. In 2001 alone, 2.2 million people died from this disease in Africa (out of 3 million worldwide).
In 17 African countries, French remains the state (official) language, in 11 countries - English, in 5 countries - Portuguese. In addition, in a number of countries they are combined with local languages.
Among the cultural heritage sites are such world-famous monuments as the monuments of Ancient Egypt (Great Pyramids, Luxor, Karnak and the Valley of the Kings on the site of ancient Thebes, monuments of Nubia), the ruins of Roman cities in North Africa, the Muslim towns of Cairo, described by many travelers. Timbuktu in Mali, Great Zimbabwe in Zimbabwe. Among the natural heritage sites are national parks and reserves of the Serengeti, Ngoro Ngoro, Kilimanjaro, Mount Kenya, Rwenzori, and the Drakensberg Mountains in South Africa. And the famous Algerian Tassilien-Ajjer with rock paintings of the ancient inhabitants of the Sahara is classified as a cultural and natural heritage site.
The capital of Burundi, Bujumbura, is home to 100% of the country's urban population; in the capital of Guinea Conakry - 81%, in the capital of Congo Brazzaville - 67%, in the capital of Angola Luanda - 61%, in the capital of Chad N'Djamena - 55%, in the capital of Burkina Faso Ouagadougou - 52%.
Images of many traditional African cultural plants can be found on the coats of arms of states. Thus, the image of a coffee tree adorns the coats of arms of Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania; cocoa tree - coat of arms of Ghana; oil palm - coats of arms of Ivory Coast, Liberia, Congo, Rwanda; olive or laurel - coats of arms of Algeria, Libya, Egypt, Ethiopia; cotton - coats of arms of Angola, Tanzania, Zimbabwe; sugar cane - coats of arms of Mauritius, Mozambique; wheat - coats of arms of Ager , Zimbabwe, South Africa; rice - the coat of arms of Madagascar; sorghum - the coats of arms of Botswana and Burkina Faso.
[ 10] V Arabic writing direction is from right to left. The alphabet has 28 letters representing consonants and long vowels. Letters can have from two to four styles, depending on their position in the word. Many words have penetrated from Arabic into European languages, for example: algebra, zenith, shop, admiral, tariff, halva, coffee. In the Middle Ages, Europe borrowed the number system from the Arabs.
After the high-rise Acyan dam was commissioned in 1971, the Nasser reservoir was formed, stretching for 500 km and occupying an area of more than 5 thousand km 2. In terms of volume (157 km3), it ranks fourth in the world. It made it possible to additionally provide year-round irrigation to almost 800 thousand hectares of land, where two or three crops are obtained per year.
The originality of the Austronesian languages is also manifested in geographical names. Africanist writer S. Kulik gives the following names settlements Madagascar: Ambinanibeanatsindravu, Tratramarapamamanindrangaronto, Marumiandrahimahavelona.
After the decision was made in 1983 to move the capital of Cote d'Ivoire from Abidjan to Yamoussoukro to new capital a grandiose Catholic cathedral, Notre-Dame de la Paix (Our Lady of Peace), was built, which is believed to be larger in size even than St. Peter's Cathedral in Rome. This is despite the fact that Catholics make up only 1/5 of the population of this country.
In the Muslim countries of Tropical Africa, polygamy (polygyny) is still quite widespread. Previously, it often took on monstrous forms: individual leaders of large tribal formations had several hundred wives; the presence of several dozen wives was considered common. And today, according to the Koran, a Muslim can have up to four wives.
The lives of 9 out of every 10 inhabitants of the Sahel zone depend on whether they have firewood for cooking and heating their homes. And although women and children spend 100 to 300 days a year collecting firewood, they cannot meet their minimum needs even through excessive cutting. Under these conditions, boiling water becomes an unaffordable luxury, and quickly boiled grains replace more nutritious ones. but foods that require more cooking time, such as beans.
In Kenya, national parks and reserves occupy 15% of the country's territory. They are home to elephants, rhinoceroses, zebras, buffalos, antelopes, giraffes, lions, leopards, and many species of birds. However, as a result of poaching, the elephant herd has decreased over the past 20 years from 65 to 20 thousand heads. The country now celebrates Elephant Day every year; On this day, the President of Kenya personally lights a bonfire of elephant tusks captured from poachers.
Gold mining in South Africa began in 1886 until the end of the 19th century. it was at the level of only 20-50 tons per year, but at the beginning of the twentieth century. increased to 200-300 tons, and in the middle of the twentieth century. - up to 600-800 tons (the record year was 1970 - 1 thousand tons). At the beginning of the 21st century. production decreased to 295 tons, but South Africa continues to rank first in the world in this indicator.
The production of uranium concentrates in South Africa reached its maximum (6 thousand tons) in the 50s, but has now decreased several times. A special feature of South Africa is the extremely low uranium content in the ore, averaging only 0.017%, which is significantly lower than in other countries. This is explained by the fact that uranium is obtained here as a by-product during the processing of gold ores.
Bookshelf
1. Africa. - M.: Mysl, 1979-1982. - (Series “Countries and Peoples”).
2. Africa: Encyclopedic reference book. - M.: Sov. encyclopedia, 1986-1987. - T. 1, 2.
3. Maksakovskiy V.P. Geographical picture of the world. - M.: Bustard, 2009. - Part 2. - Topic 3.
4. Economic and social geography of the world. Behind the pages of the textbook: Book. for 10th grade students. / Comp. A. P. Kuznetsov. - M.: Education, 2000.
5. Vasiliev A. M. Egypt and the Egyptians. - M.: Classic Plus, 2000.
Block of acquiring knowledge and skills
Exercise 1.
Using Table 1 in the Appendices, plot the African countries that gained political independence after World War II on an outline map. Indicate the dates of independence and compare the countries of Northern and Tropical Africa in this regard.
Additional task (for fun).
By using " business card“On the flyleaf of the textbook, select the corresponding “pairs” of countries in Africa and foreign Europe, approximately equal in size to the territory.
Task 2.
Using atlas maps and tables 3-5 of the “Appendices”, classify African countries according to the degree of their wealth in mineral resources. Make a table in the following form:
Draw conclusions about the provision of these countries with raw materials and fuel for the development of heavy industry
Additional task (difficult).
Using the same sources, determine the main territorial combinations of minerals. Oxapacterize the composition of the fossils in each of them; try to connect it with the tectonic structure of the territory. Plot the mineral combinations on a contour map.
Task 3.
Using Figures 7, 8 and 9, tables 6, 7 and 8 in the “Appendices” and atlas maps, specify and complement the characteristics of land, water and agroclimatic resources Africa contained in the text of the textbook.
Task 4.
Using Table 3, quantify the urban explosion in Africa. What conclusions can be drawn based on these calculations?
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BJIOK ACQUISITION OF KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS
Exercise 1. Using Table 1 in the Appendices, plot the African countries that gained political independence after World War II on an outline map. Indicate the dates of independence and compare the countries of Northern and Tropical Africa in this regard.
Additional Using the “business card” on the flyleaf of the textbook, select the appropriate
adjective warring “pairs” of countries in Africa and foreign Europe, approximately equal in
giving (for pleasure). according to the size of the territory.
Task 2. Using atlas maps and tables 3-5 of the “Appendices”, classify African countries according to the degree of their wealth in mineral resources. Make a table in the following form:
Draw conclusions about the provision of these countries with raw materials and fuel for the development of heavy industry.
Additional Using the same sources, determine the main territorial combinations
adjective mineral. Describe the composition of the fossils in each of them; giving (us- try to connect it with the tectonic structure of the territory. Apply false). combinations of minerals on a contour map.
Task 3. Using Figures 7, 8 and 9, tables 6, 7 and 8 in the “Appendices” and atlas maps, specify and supplement the characteristics of land, water and agroclimatic resources of Africa contained in the text of the textbook.
Task 4. Using Table 3, quantify the urban explosion in Africa. What conclusions can be drawn based on these calculations?
Additional Prepare a summary of the report on the topic: “Population of Africa.” Use
adjective text and pictures of topics 3 and 8 of the textbook, atlas maps, “Appendices” tables, giving (complicated). additional literature.
Task 5. Analyze Figure 77. Using the economic map of Africa in the atlas, indicate specifically which ore, non-metallic minerals, food products and types of agricultural raw materials determine the monocultural specialization of each of the countries indicated on the graph.
Task 6. Using the physical and economic maps of Africa in the atlas, determine: 1) the main areas of the mining industry in Africa and their specialization, 2) the main areas of commercial agriculture and their specialization, 3) trans-African transport routes. Also use the pictures from Topic 5 of the textbook.
Additional Using the atlas maps, make a table in your notebook “Zonal specialization”
adjective zation of export and consumer agricultural crops in
giving (creative!) Africa" in the following form:
Draw all possible conclusions from the analysis of this table.
Task 7. Using the text from the textbook and the map of Cairo in the atlas, prepare a message
(creative on the topic "Cairo - an Arab city in North Africa." Also use
some!).additional sources information.
Additional Imagine taking a trip down the Nile from Aswan to
adjective mouth. Describe your trip in a letter to a friend. Try to do giving (for so that a colorful image of this territory appears.
pleasure).
Task 8. What do you think needs to be done to prevent it in the future?
(creative!). repetition of the “Sahel tragedy”? Give a rationale for your “project.”
Additional In his novel Five Weeks in a Balloon, Jules Verne talked about
adjective traveling around Africa in a hot air balloon. "Repeat" the route of this giving (for trips. What countries are they in and what are they like? pleasure). the areas of Africa described by the writer today?
Final 1. (Work in a notebook.) Compare the countries of Northern, Tropical Africa and
task 9. South Africa according to some indicators characterizing its population and economy. Identify similarities and differences. Present the necessary data in the form of a table.
2. Compare the major extractive industries of North Africa and Southwest Asia. What conclusion can be drawn from this comparison?
3. Compare the main export crops of Tropical Africa and South Asia. What conclusion can be drawn from this comparison?
4. Prepare a small album entitled “Geography of Africa on Postage Stamps” for classroom demonstration.
Answer the questions:
1. Why is the population shift to the coasts of oceans and seas in Africa less pronounced than in foreign Asia?
2. Why is the Congo River not used to export industrial products from the Copper Belt region?
3. Why is Cairo called “the diamond button that fastens the delta”?
4. Why is Senegal called the “peanut republic”?
Are the following statements correct: Sh
1. Most African countries achieved independence in the second half of the 20th century.
2. Africa has the highest birth rate and highest death rate in the world.
3. African countries are characterized by high rates of urbanization.
4. Nigeria's main mineral resource is bauxite.
Choose the correct answer:
2. The most important types of mineral resources in North Africa are... (coal, iron ore, bauxite, oil, natural gas, phosphorites).
3. The least developed countries in Africa include... (Algeria, Ethiopia, Chad, Niger, Somalia, South Africa).
4. The main export agricultural crops of Tropical Africa are... (wheat, millet, cotton, citrus fruits, peanuts, coffee, cocoa, natural rubber, sisal).
Can you:
1. Place on a contour map of the world from memory the following countries mentioned in the text and on text maps: Libya, Algeria, Sudan, Ghana, Congo, Angola, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Mozambique, Madagascar?
2. Show on the map the following cities mentioned in the text and on the maps: Cairo, Kinshasa, Addis Ababa, Nairobi, Lagos, Dakar, Luanda, Johannesburg?
3. Explain the meaning of the following concepts and terms: monoculture, subsistence farming, apartheid?
4. Indicate which of the following countries are the main producers and exporters of cocoa: Ivory Coast, Ghana, Nigeria, Tanzania, Angola?
Identify the countries to which the following statements apply:
1. A country located on an island with an area of 1,600 thousand km 2.
2. Countries located “inside” the territory of South Africa.
3. A country lying along the middle reaches of the Niger River and without access to the seas.
4. A country whose capital is Nairobi.
5. A country where 98% of the population is concentrated in an area occupying less than 4% of its total area.
1. The copper belt stretches from Zambia to the southeastern part of ....
2. ... is Africa's largest oil producer and exporter, a member of OPEC.
3. South Africa produces... all of Africa's manufactured products.
METHODOLOGICAL KEYS TO TOPIC 8
What to remember
1. Political map and peoples of Africa. (Geography, 7th grade.) 2. Features of the physical-geographical position, relief, minerals, climate, waters, soils and vegetation of Africa, natural zones within its borders. (Geography, 7th grade.) 3. Ancient Egypt. (History, 5th grade.) 4. The main content of the national liberation struggle of the peoples of Africa in late XIX- early 20th century (History, 8th grade.) 5. Material from Part I of this textbook. 6. Concepts and terms: colony, bantustan, platform, desert, savannah, equatorial forest, kimberlite pipe, national park.
What you need to know
Leading ideas of topic 8.
Transforming the socio-economic structure of Africa requires great efforts on the part of both African peoples and the entire world community.
Main scientific knowledge Topics 8:
1. Characteristic features of the economic and geographical position, geography of natural conditions and resources, population, industry, agriculture, environmental problems of Africa. 2. The concept of monoculture. 3. Image of the territory of North Africa. 4. Image of the territory of Tropical Africa. 5. Brief overview of South Africa. 6. Keywords topics: 1) colonial type of sectoral structure of the economy, 2) monoculture, 3) Arab type of city.
What you need to know
1. Using a textbook and atlas, independently obtain the necessary knowledge for characterization. 2. Implement comparative characteristics industries, regions and cities. 3. Prepare a summary of a report on a given topic.
Topic 9. NORTH AMERICA
BLOCK OF ACQUISITION OF KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS
Exercise 1. Using the text of the textbook and atlas maps, characterize the US EGP. Is it really profitable? Why do you think so? Apply the standard plan EGP characteristics country (region) on p. 222.
Task 2 Using the textbook text and figures 83-86, characterize the largest
(creative largest urban agglomerations and megalopolises in the United States. Calculate the fraction of three
some!). megalopolises in area and population of the country, compare the population density indicators in megalopolises with the national average, draw conclusions. Select from the text and pictures of topic 3 those provisions and digital data that are appropriate to use when characterizing urbanization in the United States.
Additional Make a crossword puzzle “States and cities of the United States.”
task (for fun).
Task 3. Using the data from the tables and figures of Topic 5 and the tables in the “Appendices”, make the necessary calculations, draw up bar (bar) or pie charts in your notebook showing the US share in world industrial and agricultural production for individual types of products. Analyze them.
Task 4. Using textbook text and the atlas map of US mineral resources, argue that US mineral resources support the development of diversified industries. Illustrate the following phrase from the textbook: “The main wealth of the eastern part is fuel minerals, the western part is ore.” Apply a standard plan for characterizing the natural prerequisites for the development of industry in a country (region) on p. 222.
Additional Using data on reserves and production of coal, oil, natural gas, iron
adjective ore in the USA, calculate the supply of them (in years). Taking advantage giving (us- data in the text of the textbook and in table 1, calculate the share of the United States in world false). proven reserves of coal, oil, natural gas, iron ore. What conclusions can be drawn from this analysis?
Task 5. Using Figure 87, name the top five oil producing states in the United States. Determine which of them are producing oil on the continental shelf. Try to explain the configuration of the existing oil pipeline system, the reasons for the construction of the Trans-Alaska oil pipeline, which was built in the 70s. Using Figure 25, determine where the United States imports oil and petroleum products from. What explains this? Apply a standard plan for characterizing the industry sector of the country (region).
Task 6. Using Figure 88, make a summary table in your notebook “Main regions of the US iron and steel industry” in the following form:
Task 7. Using Figure 28, determine from which countries the United States imports iron ore. What causes this?
Use the economic map of the United States and the world mechanical engineering map in the atlas to specify the characteristics of mechanical engineering contained in the text of the textbook. Identify the largest centers of this industry based on them. Illustrate the textbook's point that the main engineering regions coincide with the megalopolises of the United States.
Additional Using the same cards, make a summary in your notebook
adjective table “Structure of mechanical engineering in the largest centers of this industry giving (complicated). in USA".
Task 8. Using the text, figure 89 and other figures in the textbook, as well as economic map USA in the atlas, compile a summary table “US Industrial Belts” in your notebook in the following form:
Formulate and write down your conclusions.
Task 9. Using Figure 90, describe the distribution of US crop production. Using the method of overlaying Figure 90 and the map of the administrative-territorial division of the United States in the atlas, determine: 1) the two main “wheat” states (one for spring, the other for winter wheat), 2) the main “corn” state.
Task 10. Using plans of the central parts of New York and Washington in the atlas and
(creative additional sources of information, prepare a report on cultural
some!).-historical and architectural sights of one of these cities. As a "guide", take a short "tour" of the city.
Task 11. Based on the text and pictures of the textbook and atlas maps, give a brief
(creative a written description of one of the US macroregions (according to his own
something!) choice).
Additional Imagine that you took a “travel” across the USA - along
adjective parallels 40° N. w. and along the meridian 100° W. d. Describe the routes.
giving (for pleasure). Use additional literature.
Task 12 Carefully review the text and pictures of Part I of the textbook and tables
(creative"Applications". Select from them all related to Canada. Use
some!). Atlas maps of Canada. Based on these materials, complete the brief socio-economic description of this country given in the textbook. Apply the standard outline for characterizing a single country on p. 329.
Task 13 1. (Work in a notebook.) Using materials from topic 9, name the main
(final). typological features of the population and economy of the USA and Canada. Present them in the form of the following table:
Work with this table and make a generalization.
2. (Work on contour map.) Place on the outline map of North America (optional): 1) the most big cities, 2) main sea ports, 3) transcontinental railways. You can expand this list at your own discretion.
3. Determine what types of thematic maps in the textbook and atlas you used when studying this topic. Which of them were new to you?
4. Based on the text of the textbook and figure 81, give a description of the Central Business District of an American city.
SELF-CONTROL AND MUTUAL CONTROL BLOCK
Explain why:
1. The Northeast of the United States has been called the “workshop of the nation.”
2. Much of the heavy industry in the United States and Canada is concentrated in the Great Lakes region.
3. US aluminum smelters are located in the valleys of the Tennessee and Columbia rivers.
4. The specialization of agriculture in the United States and Canada changes as we move from east to west.
5. Florida, California and Hawaii attract the most tourists.
6. In the USA and Canada, interest in the development of the Northern regions has increased in recent decades.
What problems arise:
1. Due to the accelerated industrialization of the South and West of the United States?
2. Due to the fact that the US economy is becoming increasingly dependent on imports of oil, iron ore and other types of raw materials and fuels?
Do you agree with the following statements:
1. Megalopolis "Boswash" - the largest urbanized area in the USA?
2. B Lately Has Alaska become an important oil production area for the US?
3. Is the farming type of agriculture dominant in the USA and Canada?
4. Is the US transport system of the same type as the transport system of foreign Europe?
5. Does the St. Lawrence River connect the Great Lakes to New York?
6. Is Atlanta home to the world's largest airport?
7. Is Canada's population 1/2 the size of the US?
Can you:
1. Find on the map the US cities mentioned in the main text of topic 9, and from memory arrange them from east to west?
2. Give examples of “dairy”, “corn”, “wheat”, “orange”, “pineapple”, “apple”, “cotton” states of the USA?
3. Contour map New England, the Far West, and California?
4. Say which of the following indicators characterizes the share of the West in the area of the entire country (in%): 20, 36, 49, 64?
5. List the types of minerals for which Canada is a world producer and exporter?
Use the textbook text and maps to answer the questions:
1. In which parts of the United States is it most likely to employment people in: 1) oil production, 2) the aerospace industry, 3) raising broiler chickens?
2. What transcontinental railways can be used to cross the USA and Canada in a latitudinal direction?
3. What natural, socio-economic and historical reasons contributed to the development of the Northeastern United States?
Imagine:
1. That you have visited one of the big cities in the USA or Canada. Describe it.
2. That you wanted to get to know US industry. Which cities do you need to visit to visit: 1) an aircraft plant, 2) a large enterprise for the production of electronic products, 3) an automobile plant, 4) a petrochemical plant, 5) a ferrous metallurgy plant?
3. That you have the opportunity to work at: 1) a cattle ranch, 2) a tobacco plantation, 3) a sawmill. Which US states or Canadian provinces should you go to for this?
Fill in the blanks in the following phrases:
1. The economic capital of the United States is considered..., but it is increasingly competing with....
2. Much of the Midwest faces ... and ..., the two main waterways of North America.
3. Among the important crops of the Southern United States is... .
4. In the Canadian province... the majority of residents speak French.
METHODOLOGICAL KEYS TO TOPIC 9
What to remember
1. Political map and peoples of North America. (Geography, grade 7.) 2. Features of the physical and geographical position, relief, minerals, climate, waters, soils and vegetation of North America. (Geography, grade 7.) 3. Features of the historical development of North America at the end of the 19th - first half of the 20th century. (History, grades 8, 9.) 4. Materials from Part I of this textbook. 5. Concepts and terms: reserve, farmer.
What you need to know
Leading ideas for topic 9:
1. As a result of the collapse of the world socialist system and the Soviet Union, the role of the United States in world politics and economics has increased. 2. New relations between Russia, other countries with economies in transition and the United States have become an important factor in international stability and have changed the entire world political situation for the better.
Main scientific knowledge of topic 9:
1. Characteristic features of the EGP, the geography of natural resources and the population of the United States. 2. general characteristics US economy. 3. The main features of the geography of industry, agriculture, transport, and environmental management of the United States, the main industrial and agricultural areas. 4. Macrozoning of the USA and the appearance of each of the four macroregions. 5. Brief economic and geographical characteristics of Canada. 6. Key words of the topic: 1) North American type of city, 2) “second economy”, 3) gross national product, 4) stage-by-stage specialization, 5) North American type of transport network, 6) industrial belt, 7) agricultural belt, 8) focal type of territory development.
What you need to know
1. Characterize urban agglomerations and megalopolises. 2. Characterize the country's industry. 3. Give a brief economic and geographical description of the country. 4. Compose a written economic-geographical description.
Instructions and plans for mastering independent study skills
1. Plan of characteristics of the industry sector of the country (region):
1. The importance of the industry and the size of its products. 2. Natural prerequisites for the development of the industry. 3. Industry structure. 4. The main factors influencing the location of the industry and the main features of its geography; sectoral industrial districts. 5. Industry dependence on exports and imports. 6. General conclusion; industry development prospects.
2. Plan of characteristics of an individual country:
1. Main features of the EGP. 2. Economic assessment of natural conditions and resources. 3. Main features of reproduction, structure and distribution of the population. 4. General characteristics of the farm. 5. Main features of industrial location. 6. Main features of agricultural location. 7. Main features of transport geography. 8. Main economic regions. 9. The role and geography of external economic relations. 10. General conclusion; development prospects.
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LESSON PLAN
Lesson topic: “Population of Africa”
Lesson name: “Dark Continent”
Kostroma, MBOU secondary school No. 24
Grade 11
The purpose of the lesson: identify distinctive features population of Africa.
Lesson Objectives
Educational:
Create conditions for the implementation of skills in working with cartographic material and textbook text.
To update students' knowledge acquired in 7th grade about the population of Africa.
Educational:
Provide conditions for cultivating positive interest in the subject being studied and the topic of the lesson.
Create conditions in the lesson that ensure the development of attentiveness when perceiving answers.
Promote the development of communication skills through the organization of group work.
Educational:
Provide conditions for improving skills and abilities in working with cartographic material, textbook text, and statistical data.
Provide conditions for students to master the algorithm for completing tasks and ways to record acquired knowledge.
Promote development strong-willed qualities students if difficulties arise while performing work.
Lesson type -
A lesson in updating knowledge through the practical application of skills to work with cartographic material and textbook text.
Forms of student work:
Individual (filling out the lesson worksheet)
Group
Completing assignments for a specific section of the lesson plan
Solving a crossword puzzle or taking a test together
Mutual verification of work results
Didactic material:
Educational atlases (preferably for each student)
Worksheets (per student)
Pack of tasks for 9 groups
Multimedia teacher presentation
Technical equipment:
Teacher's computer
PC for each group (ideal, dream)
Multimedia projector
A marker board for demonstrating a teacher's presentation with the ability to make the necessary inscriptions on it with a colored marker or stylus.
Planned learning outcomes:
Subject
Metasubject
Personal
Work with various sources of geographic information (maps, text, statistics)
Name the population of Africa, the year of Africa
Characterize the forms of state and administrative-territorial structure of countries.
Characterize the racial, national, gender, age, and religious composition of the population.
Explain the features of reproduction, distribution, urbanization of the population of Africa
Development of intellectual, creative, cognitive interests of students.
Development of the ability to manage one’s cognitive activity, the ability to formulate the results of one’s intellectual efforts, and present the results of one’s research.
Mastering the Complete System geographical knowledge and skills, skills of their application in various life situations.
Developing respect for history, national characteristics, traditions, lifestyles of other peoples, fostering tolerance.
Awareness of issues affecting African population, educational attainment and quality of life.
STRUCTURE AND PROGRESS OF THE LESSON
Main stages of organization educational activities
Purpose of the stage
Content of pedagogical interaction
Time
(per minute)
Teacher activities
Activity students
Cognitive
Communication - tive
Regulatory
I stage. Organizational moment
Target - activation of students.
Announces the topic of the lesson, introduces students to the epigraph of the lesson (1st and 2nd slides)
Get acquainted with an excerpt from a poem by N. Gumilyov
Distributing the missing teaching aids between themselves
Getting ready for the lesson
I I stage
Studying the characteristics of the modern population of Africa
1. Updating knowledge - PLANNING
Creating a problem situation: Let's remember what features of the region's population need to be analyzed in order to create a holistic picture of them? Will we be able to apply what we have learned?
Offers to formulate the purpose of the lesson, come up with a name for the lesson and fill out a cluster reflecting the expected course of the lesson (3 and 4 slides)
On the 4th slide, a marker or stylus is used to write down questions, which in turn will become a plan for studying the topic and assignments for groups. When recording, I recommend focusing on the planned questions on the 5th slide. To do this, you can prepare a “cheat sheet” for yourself.
Distributes tasks between groups
Formulate the main goal of the lesson.
They recall the basic characteristics of the population studied in the 10th grade and in the 11th when studying other regions. They call them.
They listen to each other.Discuss their possibilities for achieving the goal.
Accept and maintain the learning goallesson. Distributed into groups.
They assume how ready each individual is to cope with the task.
Write down the name of the lesson.
2. DISCOVERY OF NEW KNOWLEDGE
Finding a solution educational task(tasks for the group)
Leads students to the idea that in order to complete the task
You must complete all tasks on the instruction card.
It is necessary to think over the order of the speech, the text of the speech, and the text to be written on the worksheet.
They analyze the proposed fragments of cartographic material, textbook text, etc.
Discuss the possibilities of group achievement of lesson results, and, if necessary, distribute tasks among themselves.
Determine the speaker(s) from the group. Agree on the text of the entry in the worksheet on their topic of assignment
Training activities to implement the plan
Presentation of the results of the group's work
Shows presentation slides related to the topic of the presentation of a particular group (the transition is carried out using hyperlinks from slide No. 5)
Get acquainted with the results of the work of their classmates, make notes on worksheets
Jointly report the results of group work
Exercise self-control, adjust their skills to briefly but accurately formulate the main content of the speech of their classmates.
20 (1-3 minutes per group).Some groups need less time
Application of new knowledge.
Summing up the work.
Consolidation of the studied material.
Asks students questions: “Have we achieved the goal of the lesson? What conclusion can be drawn from all of the above?
Shows slide 26 with the conclusion of the lesson.
Shows slide 27 with generalizing questions.
Discuss the results of the work in class, formulate a conclusion, or get acquainted with the finished version.
Answer the questions proposed for consolidation on the studied topic.
Discuss answers to questions in groups
Correct their knowledge
III . Lesson summary. Reflection of activity
Control
Depending on the amount of time remaining, he offers to either solve the crossword puzzle or answer the test questions (transition from slide No. 27)
They complete the task, monitor and evaluate their results. Submit the results to the teacher for verification.
Group solving of a crossword puzzle or test is acceptable
Reflection on your actions
IV . Formulation homework
Activation of cognitive activity of students
Prompts you to select an option creative assignment: Prepare messages on the following topics:
Myths, legends and tales of the peoples of Africa.
Cultural heritage of African countries
And a mandatory task:Practical work in a contour map: outline the boundaries of the distribution of races and large nations of Africa
Write down homework
West Africa covers zones of tropical deserts, savannas, and moist equatorial forests located between the Sahara Desert and the Gulf of Guinea. It is one of the continent's largest subregions in terms of area and population, with an extraordinary diversity of natural conditions; The ethnic composition of its population is also the most complex. In the past it was a major slave trading area. The modern “face” of the subregion is determined both by agriculture, which is represented by the production of plantation cash and consumer crops, and by a fairly developed industry, primarily mining.
Central Africa, as its name itself shows, it occupies the central (equatorial) part of the continent. It is located in zones of humid equatorial forests and savannas, which largely predetermined its economic development. This is one of the richest areas in various mineral resources not only in Africa, but throughout the world. Unlike West Africa, it has a homogeneous ethnic composition of the population, 9/10 of which are related Bantu peoples.
East Africa located in subequatorial and tropical climate zones. It has access to the Indian Ocean and has long maintained trade relations with India and Arab countries. Its mineral wealth is less significant, but the overall diversity of natural resources is very large, which largely determines the variety of types of their economic use. The ethnic composition of the population is also very mosaic.
South Africa occupies the southern part of the continent, the farthest from Europe, America and Asia, but facing that important world sea route, which goes around the southern tip of Africa. It is located in the tropical and subtropical latitudes of the Southern Hemisphere and also has a wide range of natural resources, among which mineral ones are especially prominent. The main “core” of South Africa is formed by the Republic of South Africa - the only economically developed country on the continent with a significant population of European origin. The overwhelming majority of the population of the subregion are Bantu peoples.
Rice. 143. Subregions of Africa (according to Yu. D. Dmitrevsky)
Approximately this regionalization scheme was and is followed by the majority of domestic African geographers: M. S. Rozin, M. B. Gornung, Yu. D. Dmitrevsky, Yu. G. Lipets, A. S. Fetisov, etc. However, in drawing specific boundaries individual subregions there is by no means complete unity between them.
While exploring the mineral wealth of Africa, M. S. Rozin back in the early 1970s. traditionally considered North Africa as part of five countries, but included Zambia, closely related to Zaire in terms of mineral resources, in Central Africa, and Mozambique in Eastern Africa. In the mid-1970s. in his monograph on Africa, Yu. D. Dmitrevsky identified not even five, but six macroregions, distinguished by significant internal homogeneity (Fig. 143). It is easy to see that he identified the East African island region as the sixth macroregion. As for the macro-regions on the mainland, what is noteworthy is the strong “cutback” of the Central subregion, as well as the inclusion of Egypt in the North-East and Angola in South Africa. In the early 1980s. M. B. Gornung proposed a regionalization grid in which Sudan, Western Sahara and Mauritania - which can be justified primarily from an ethnographic point of view - were included in North Africa, which was thus turned into the largest subregion in terms of area. East Africa was greatly reduced in size, but included Zambia. In the mid-1980s. Moscow State University geographers proposed their own version of zoning, which differed from the previous one in such significant details as the inclusion of not only Zambia, but also Zimbabwe and Mozambique in East Africa, and Mauritania in West Africa. Some of these regionalization grids have found application in educational literature, primarily in textbooks for universities and pedagogical universities, as well as in popular science publications, for example, in the 20-volume geographical and ethnographic series “Countries and Peoples”.
Rice. 144. Subregions of Africa identified by the UN Economic Commission for Africa
Such discrepancies in the regionalization of Africa can be considered to some extent natural. Moreover, they are explained not so much by differences in the goals of individual scientists, but by the general insufficient development of scientific approaches to such regionalization. It also stems from a particularly complex combination of various natural resource, historical, ethnic, socio-economic, and geopolitical factors in Africa. It is also necessary to take into account that the process of forming integrated economic regions here is still in its early stages.
Table 49
SUBREGIONS OF AFRICA
* Including SADR.
Recently, domestic African geographers in their research are increasingly using the scheme of macroeconomic regionalization of Africa, which is now adopted by the UN, or more precisely, by its Economic Commission for Africa (ECA). This scheme is also five-membered and covers the same five regions (Fig. 144). For their development, ECA has created five regional centers in Africa: for North Africa in Morocco, for West Africa in Niger, for Central Africa in Cameroon, for East Africa in Zambia and Rwanda. As can be seen from Figure 144, the UN distribution of countries between the five subregions differs quite significantly from the schemes discussed above. It is on the basis of ECA macro zoning that Table 49 was compiled.
94. Africa – a continent of conflicts
In recent decades, Africa has firmly established its reputation as the most conflict-prone region on our planet. Therefore, it increasingly began to be called a continent of conflicts, or, more figuratively, a boiling continent. Indeed, in the half century since the collapse of the colonial system, Africa has seen 186 coups d'état, 26 large-scale wars and countless smaller-scale conflicts of various kinds. In these wars and conflicts, at least 7 million people died, and the total material damage from them amounted to $250 billion. For many years and even decades, Angola, Somalia, Sudan, Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo), and Rwanda remained pain points on the continent , Burundi, Liberia, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Mozambique, Western Sahara, Uganda, Chad, Mauritania, some other countries. At the same time, according to Secretary General UN Kofi Anana, Africa is the only region of the world where the number of conflicts not only does not decrease from year to year, but even increases.
The emergence of such a conflict-prone situation in Africa is explained by the whole complex of reasons ethnic, religious, political and geopolitical, socio-economic nature. At the same time, sometimes these reasons are divided into external and internal (interstate and intrastate), although it is probably not so easy to draw a clear line between them.
Yet it seems that most conflicts are based on ethnic reasons. This is explained by the fact that the ethnic composition of the African population is very complex. Ethnographers identify 300–500 peoples (ethnic groups) on this continent. As of the second half of the 1980s. the number of 11 of them exceeds 10 million people, and 111 - 1 million people (more than 4/5 of the total population), but the rest is represented mainly by small ethnic entities. As a rule, large multi-million peoples have already formed into nations, while some small ones still retain archaic forms of social relations.
Great influence on the history of formation ethnic composition the population of Africa was influenced by massive migration movements (primarily the resettlement of Arabs to North Africa in the 7th–11th centuries). The same can be said about the ancient and medieval states of Africa - such as Ghana, Mali, Benin, Songhai, Congo, Monomotapa, Imerina and others, in which the consolidation of related tribes into a nationality was already taking place. However this natural process was disrupted first by the slave trade, which led to the depopulation of vast territories, and then by the colonial division of Africa, which led to the discrepancy between political and ethnic borders becoming the rule rather than the exception. At the same time, tribal fragmentation, ethnic and religious contradictions were often artificially inflamed and maintained.
After African countries gained political independence, a new stage began in their ethnocultural development. The processes of ethnic unification have noticeably intensified - assimilation, consolidation, interethnic integration; there is a rapprochement of not only related peoples, but also peoples different in language, culture and level of socio-economic development. Despite the extreme ethnic diversity that persists in many countries, Africans are increasingly calling themselves not by this or that ethnic community, but by the name of their state - Nigerians, Congolese, Guineans, Ghanaians, Malians, Cameroonians, etc. Strong impact on the processes of ethnic unification is influenced by urbanization, since it is the urban environment that opens up the greatest scope for interethnic ties.
Along with this, the processes of ethnic division and tribal separatism continue. Particularly complicating interethnic relations in Africa is the discrepancy between political and ethnic boundaries inherited from the past, as a result of which many large ethnic groups were fragmented into small parts. V. A. Kolosov, in his book on political geography, provides data that currently various kinds of territorial disputes in Africa concern approximately 20% of the entire territory of the continent. In addition, 40% of the entire length of state borders here are not demarcated at all; 44% of them were drawn along parallels and meridians, 30% - along arched and curved lines, and only 26% - along natural boundaries, partly coinciding with ethnic ones. To some extent, the legacy of colonialism can be attributed to the fact that French is still considered the official language in 17 African countries, English in 11, and in many more countries they are combined with local languages.
As a result, the ethnic factor in Africa greatly influences its entire political and social life, is widely reflected in the clan system and in a phenomenon so characteristic of Black Africa as tribalism(from the English tribe - tribe). This is the name for intertribal contradictions and enmity, the origins of which go back to the era of tribal relations. Then tribalism developed during the era of Africa's transformation into a colonial continent. And now, in the conditions of an ethnic kaleidoscope and constant interethnic struggle for power, it retains its negative impact on social processes, contributing to the preservation of national-tribal isolation.
Of considerable importance are also religious reasons. Indeed, in Africa, two world religions - Islam (2/5 of all believers) and Christianity (1/5) - in many areas are intricately intertwined with a variety of local religions. All this, especially taking into account the recent increase in Islamic fundamentalism and extremism in the world, further aggravates emerging conflicts, turning some of them into ethno-confessional ones.
Finally, one cannot fail to take into account the fact that these conflicts occur against the backdrop of the extreme socio-economic backwardness of most countries in Tropical Africa, the predominance of poor and extremely poor populations, a shortage of financial and material resources, and a huge external debt. All this also exacerbates interethnic conflicts and struggles for power. Although most conflicts today are based on internal factors, we must remember that even in a relatively recent period they were combined with the factor of confrontation between two world systems.
Negative consequences Such explosive conflict situations are also quite diverse. It increases political instability in many African countries, provokes frequent military rebellions and coups d'etat, and strengthens separatist sentiments. One of the very specific manifestations of such increased conflict can be considered the increase in the number of refugees and displaced persons. In the mid-1990s. in Africa there were 7 million refugees and 20 million displaced people, and according to other sources, even more.
Let's now move directly to geography of conflicts in Africa.
In North Africa in general there are much fewer of them, since it is characterized by much greater ethnic unity. The peoples of this part of the continent speak Arabic, which has already served as the basis for the consolidation of such large nations as the Egyptians, Tunisians, Algerians, Moroccans, and Libyans. The same applies to the religious composition of the population of North Africa, where Islam was and remains virtually the only religion. But despite this, conflict situations take place here too.
Sudan can be cited as the main source of long-term armed conflicts, where there are two conflict areas that arose primarily on an ethno-confessional basis. The first of these is South Sudan, where the liberation army of the local black population has long been fighting for independence against the nationalistic Arab Islamic fundamentalists who are in power in this country. The second conflict area arose in 2003 in the Darfur region in the west of the country. This area is inhabited by various nationalities, but in principle they can be combined into two groups - black African farmers and Arab tribes engaged in cattle breeding. These two groups have long been fighting over land and water resources, to which they have recently added a fight over revenues from the large oil reserves discovered here. The central government in Khartoum, backed by armed Arab forces in Darfur, began carrying out ethnic cleansing, which led to considerable loss of life and forced more than 1 million local residents to seek refuge in neighboring Chad. All this has led to a serious humanitarian crisis. Despite the intervention of the UN Security Council, the European Union, and the African Union, the conflict in Darfur has not yet been overcome. An example of internal political conflicts is the terrorist activities of Islamic extremists in Algeria and Egypt against secular forms of statehood. An example of an acute foreign policy conflict is the situation around the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, which has already been mentioned.
But still, the epicenter of conflict situations is in Black Africa, i.e. Africa, located south of the Sahara.
Let's start with West Africa- a subregion that not only includes the largest number of independent states, but is also distinguished by the greatest ethnic diversity. Mostly peoples of the Niger-Kordofan family live here, including such large ones as the Yoruba, Fulbe, Mosi, Ashanti, Wolof, Bam-Bara, Malinke. But during the division of West Africa by European colonialists, virtually all of them were divided between separate possessions of France and Great Britain. After the collapse of the colonial system, these borders were inherited by the liberated countries.
For example, the Fulbe people, once widely spread across tropical Africa, now find themselves divided between about 16 countries. In the 19th century its territory was divided between the French colonies of Mauritania, Senegal, Guinea, Niger, Sudan (now Mali), Upper Volta (now Burkina Faso), Dahomey (now Benin), Cameroon, as well as Nigeria and some other English colonies. The ethnic territory of the Malinke people was divided between the former French colonies of Senegal, Sudan, Guinea, Coast Ivory(now Cote d'Ivoire) and the English colony of Gambia. As a result, that amazing ethnic stripe arose, which even today distinguishes this entire part of Tropical Africa. There is not a single ethnically homogeneous state here, they are all multi-ethnic (Fig. 145).
During the years of independent development, armed conflicts occurred and are occurring in many countries of West Africa - in Nigeria, Senegal, Liberia, Sierra Leone, etc. Thus, in Nigeria in the late 1960s. there was an internecine war waged by federal troops against the separatists who had proclaimed their “state of Biafra” in the eastern part of the country; it claimed more than 1 million human lives. In this country, where about 40 million people profess Christianity and about 45 million Islam, clashes on religious grounds constantly occur. In Liberia, tribal civil war lasted from 1989 to 1996, causing an exodus of nearly half a million refugees to neighboring countries.
The scene of many conflicts in recent decades has been and remains East Africa, where the peoples of the Afro-Asian, Niger-Kordofanian and Nilo-Saharan peoples live language families professing Islam, Christianity and local religions.
Here, the main centers of long-term military conflicts have long been the countries of the Horn of Africa - Ethiopia, Eritrea and Somalia. Former Italian and then English Eritrea 1952–1991 was part of Ethiopia, but as a result of a long war with it, achieved independence in 2003. But border disputes between the two countries have not yet been resolved. And in Ethiopia itself in the 80s. there was a civil war going on. As for Somalia, this country has more than once - under the slogan of creating a Great Somalia - waged an armed struggle with neighboring states, primarily Ethiopia, over the Ogaden region, and also made territorial claims to Djibouti and Kenya. However, in the 1990s. there was an actual collapse of Somalia itself with the emergence of two self-proclaimed states - Somaliland and Puntland. Despite the presence of a president and an interim government in Mogadishu, there is virtually no centralized power in the country even now. There is also no single army or single currency. Real power lies in the hands of self-proclaimed states and warlords.
And in the mid-1990s. The whole world was shocked by the bloodiest clash on ethnic grounds, which took place in the small but densely populated (more than 9 million inhabitants) state of Rwanda in the Great Lakes region. What happened in this country is often compared in literature with the Armenian genocide in Turkey in 1915, with the actions fascist Germany in many countries it occupied or the Khmer Rouge of Pol Pot in Cambodia. This genocide began against the backdrop of a civil war between the Tutsi and Hutu peoples, now in its fourth year, when the Tutsis, who make up only 15% of the country's population, carried out a bloody “ethnic cleansing”, exterminating half a million Hutus in two months.
The former Belgian colony of Rwanda gained independence in 1962. However, this did not lead to reconciliation between the two constantly warring ethnic groups that inhabited it - Hutu farmers and Tutsi herders, who settled in the local savannah at different times. The Tutsis came here later than the Hutu, but it was they who took a dominant position in the feudal Rwandan state of the 16th–19th centuries. They managed to maintain this position during the colonial period. The first bloody clashes between Tutsis and Hutus in independent Rwanda occurred back in 1963–1965. But especially tragic events on interethnic grounds took place here in 1994.
To this list we can add conflict situations that arise from time to time in Kenya, the Comoros Islands, and other countries. Some of them caused a mass exodus of refugees. More than 2 million people fled from Rwanda alone, and as a result, perhaps the largest refugee camps in the world arose in northwestern Tanzania. Approximately 400 thousand people left Burundi, and even earlier, over 1.5 million migrated from civil war-torn Mozambique.
Rice. 145. Ethnic stripes in West Africa
Central Africa ethnically relatively homogeneous. This is the area of distribution of the Bantu peoples belonging to the Niger-Kordofanian family and speaking related languages. It is also homogeneous in terms of confessions: here, local religions are usually combined with Islam and much less often (Gabon) with Christianity. Nevertheless, in this subregion over the past decades, armed conflicts have repeatedly flared up, which primarily reflected the struggle for power between parties, groups or clans, but for the most part also had a certain ethno-confessional basis. The most striking examples of this kind are Angola and the Democratic Republic of Congo, where the armed struggle between the military-political groups MPLA and UNITA continued from 1960 to 1992.
The neighboring D emocratic Republic of the Congo also faced severe trials. In the former Belgian Congo, which became the independent state of Zaire after achieving independence in the Year of Africa, a separatist movement soon began in the most mineral-rich province of Katanga, and this led to civil war and the deployment of UN troops into the country. Since the mid-1960s. An authoritarian, dictatorial regime of President Mobutu was established in Zaire. But in the second half of the 1990s. his policy of inciting ethnic conflicts near the borders of his country led to an armed uprising of the Tutsi tribes inhabiting the eastern part of Zaire. This uprising, which developed into a civil war, ultimately led to the overthrow of President Mobutu's regime in 1997 and the formation of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), whose president was the leader of the national movement, Laurent Kabila.
However, the second Congolese war soon began, which lasted from 1992 to 2002. Its origins go back to the genocide in Rwanda in 1994, when a huge number of Tutsi refugees ended up in Zaire. They actively participated in the civil war on the side of L. Kabila, but then, in response to a change in the president’s policy, they opposed him. In total, 20 armed groups took part in the second Congolese war, both local and representing 8 other states (Angola, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Sudan and Chad were on Kabila’s side, Rwanda, Burunda and Uganda were against). In 2001, Laurent Kabila was assassinated and his son Joseph became the new president. In this war, mainly from epidemics and famine, 4 million people died. Since 1999, a contingent of UN “blue helmets” has been stationed in the DRC. But a full settlement is still far from being achieved.
And in South Africa for many decades, the main focus of constant bloody racial-ethnic conflicts was South Africa, where the white minority (18% of the total population) carried out government policy apartheid, which in Afrikaans means “separation”, “separation”. The Parliament of South Africa adopted the laws “On Bantu Authorities” (1951), “On the Development of Bantu Self-Government” (1959), “On Homelands” (1971), etc., in accordance with which bantustans, or homelands (“national fatherlands”) were created in the country "). Some of them were declared completely independent, others were at various stages of self-government. But in fact, these were pseudo-state entities, although each had its own anthem and flag, but were deprived of the ability to resolve foreign policy, financial and other issues.
In total, by the beginning of the 1990s. There were ten Bantustans in South Africa. They occupied 14% of the country’s territory, and, as a rule, they were the driest and most fertile lands, moreover, divided into separate smaller sections; There used to be black reservations here. The population of the Bantustans was legally 15 million people, but in fact only 7–8 million lived in them, and the rest worked in the “white” part of the country, living there in special ghettos. Nevertheless, all black Africans in South Africa, regardless of their actual place of residence, were assigned to one of the Bantustans, each of which was declared the “national fatherland” of one or another nationality.
But in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The apartheid regime in South Africa was first softened and then virtually eliminated. After 342 years of white monopoly, the first free black elections in the country's history took place in May 1994. The black majority won, and the leader of the oldest liberation organization, the African National Congress (ANC), Nelson Mandela, became the new president of South Africa. At the same time, there was a complete change in other government structures - parliament, government. The country's provisional constitution, adopted in July 1994, abolished the bantustans. However, interethnic relations in South Africa continue to remain difficult. Moreover, to the contradictions between the white and “colored” populations were added acute contradictions between various nationalist groups of Africans themselves. For example, the province of KwaZulu-Natal, where clashes between the Zulu and Xhosa peoples continue to occur periodically, requires full autonomy.
There are young independent states in Africa that have managed to avoid acute interethnic conflicts. Guinea, Niger, and Tanzania are usually cited as examples of this kind. As for the most radical way to solve this complex problem, a proposal has already been put forward more than once to reshape what was inherited from the colonial era political map Africa, creating, if possible, single-ethnic (single-national) states on the continent. But in practice this is completely impossible. Ethnographers have calculated that in this case the total number of states on the continent would have to increase to 200–300! Therefore, back in 1964, at the First Session of the Heads of State and Government of the Organization of African Unity, it was stated that all member states of the OAU undertake to respect the borders that existed when they achieved national independence, since compliance with this principle is an indispensable condition for peace on the continent. The AC adheres to the same principle.
95. Economic development of African territory
Among all the major geographical regions of the world, it is Africa that stands out for its strong predominance of traditional types of environmental management. Greatest impact on general economic development Its territory, as before, is supported by agriculture, which is distinguished by significant diversity. Scientists identify at least three agricultural systems in Africa: 1) extensive pastoralism; 2) agricultural, based on the natural fertility of the soil (dividing it into slash-and-burn, fallow and fallow farming); 3) agricultural, based on the artificial maintenance of soil fertility (plantation farming and livestock farming).
According to FAO, at the turn of the 20th and 21st centuries. In Africa, 200 million hectares of land are cultivated (32% of the area suitable for arable land), and 900 million hectares are used as permanent pastures. But at the same time, in most subregions of the continent, the share of cultivated land in the structure of the land fund “does not reach” the world average (11%). In Northern and Central Africa it is only 4–5%, in Southern Africa it is about 6%, in Eastern Africa it is 8.5%, and only in Western Africa it is 11%. And the share of pastures in the structure of the land fund of most subregions, on the contrary, exceeds the world average, and in Southern and Eastern Africa it reaches 40–50%.
However, in recent decades, along with agriculture, the development of industry, especially mining, and the “urban explosion” have begun to have an increasing impact on the economic development of the continent.
As a result of the combined influence of these factors (and even against the backdrop of extreme economic backwardness of most countries in Tropical Africa), the economic and environmental situation on the continent has noticeably worsened.
The greatest deterioration was manifested in land degradation. At the end of the 1990s. The share of land degraded due to anthropogenic intervention has already amounted to 17% of the entire territory of Africa. Among the types of such degradation, the first place belongs to water and wind erosion, although chemical degradation is also beginning to take its toll. Among the factors of degradation, desertification stands out, which, according to FAO, has already affected 46% of the continent's territory, followed by deforestation, unsustainable agriculture, and overexploitation of land. As for the degree of such degradation, a little more than 1/3 of it is classified as mild, about 2/5 as moderate, and another 1/5 as high and very high.
The overall economic and environmental situation in Africa is also affected by recent climate changes. Droughts have become a chronic phenomenon here, affecting not only traditionally arid areas, but also somewhat better hydrated areas. One of the reasons for this phenomenon was the deforestation, the total area of which in 1990–2000. decreased by more than 50 million hectares. In terms of average annual rates of deforestation (0.7%), Africa takes first place in the world.
From a geographical perspective, it is even more interesting to get acquainted with zonal economic development territory of Africa. This aspect was studied in most detail by African geographers at the Institute of Geography of the Russian Academy of Sciences. One of the results of this work was a state map natural environment Africa (Fig. 146).
Figure 146 shows that in subtropical North Africa the natural environment has been greatly modified by long-standing agricultural development. Most of the forests here have already been cleared, and they have been replaced by agricultural land or bushland. In some places, centers of strong changes in the natural environment are associated with industrial-urban agglomerations.
In the vast zone of tropical deserts and semi-deserts, the natural environment is either unchanged or only slightly modified. But against this background, certain places stand out with a very strongly and strongly changed environment. For the most part, they coincide with large oil and gas fields within the Sahara, as well as with a strip of irrigated agriculture in the Nile Valley.
Rice. 146. State of the African Environment
In the zone of savannas and woodlands, the natural environment turned out to be changed greatly and very strongly. First of all, this applies to that part of it that stretches along the southern edge of the Sahara (Sahel). Here, overgrazing of livestock has a particularly strong effect on the quality of the natural environment. But the traditional slash-and-burn farming system also has a significant negative impact.
Slash-and-burn farming is one of the most extensive types of agriculture. With it, after cutting down or burning an area of savanna, it is usually used for sowing for one to three years in a row, and then abandoned for several years, and sometimes even for 20–30 years, so that the soil can restore its fertility. The plot is cultivated manually, and millet crops are most often cultivated on it.
In the tropical and equatorial forest zones, agriculture is much more diverse. Here they cultivate grain crops (corn, millet, sorghum), tubers (yams, cassava, sweet potatoes), and breed large and small livestock. Therefore, in some areas of this zone the natural environment has been greatly changed, and in places where plantations of tropical crops are concentrated - even very much. It is necessary to take into account the fact that in this zone some of the inhabitants are also engaged in slash-and-burn agriculture, and that tropical forests are being subjected to increasingly intensive deforestation, turning them into open forests.
Judging by Figure 146, the dry forest, woodland and savannah areas of Central and East Africa have so far experienced relatively modest environmental changes. But here, too, there are certain areas where it has undergone more dramatic changes. Basically, they coincide with the areas of mining development in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Zambia, and Botswana.
The deserts of South-West Africa resemble the Sahara in terms of the nature of changes in the natural environment, and the subtropics of South Africa resemble the strip along the Mediterranean coast in the Maghreb. In the subtropics, the main impacts on the natural environment are plantation agriculture, industry and large cities.
As a result of studying the state of the natural environment in Africa, geographers came to the conclusion that “sparsely populated and agricultural” Africa is in fact a very populated continent, and its natural landscapes, even in sparsely populated areas, have undergone active transformation and are already difficult to restore. In this light, it is especially important to mention that sub-Saharan African countries have recently developed a land conservation program. A number of plans to combat desertification have also been launched.
96. Population explosion in Africa and its consequences
During the whole history human civilization in Africa, the so-called traditional type of population reproduction dominated, characterized by high levels of fertility and mortality and, accordingly, low natural increase. Demographers believe that at the turn of our era there were 16–17 million people living in Africa (according to other sources, 30–40 million), and in 1600 – 55 million people. Over the next 300 years (1600–1900), the continent's population rose to 110 million, or doubled, the slowest growth of any major region in the world. As a result, Africa's share of the world population has decreased markedly. This slow type of growth was explained primarily by the slave trade, the losses from which amounted to tens of millions of people, hard forced labor on the plantations of the European colonies, hunger and disease. Only in the first half of the 20th century. Africa's population began to grow faster, and by 1950 it reached 220 million people.
But the real one demographic revolution occurred in Africa already in the second half of the 20th century. In 1960, its population was 275 million, in 1970 - 356 million, in 1980 - 475 million, in 1990 - 648 million, in 2000 - 784 million, and in 2007 - 965 million Human. This means that in 1950–2007. it increased almost 4.4 times! No other region in the world knows such growth rates. It is no coincidence that Africa's share of the world population is growing rapidly. In 2007, it was already 14.6%, which exceeds the total share of foreign Europe and the CIS or North and Latin America. And although in the second half of the 1990s. The demographic explosion in Africa has clearly passed its peak; the average annual population growth rate (2.1%) here is still almost twice the world level.
Such demographic situation in Africa is explained by the fact that its population continues to be in the second phase of the demographic transition, which is characterized by the persistence of high and very high birth rates with a rather sharp decrease in mortality. Hence, there are still high rates of natural growth, ensuring not just expanded reproduction, but a very rapid increase in population. By mid-2000, Africa came up with the following “formula” for population reproduction: 36% -15% = 21%. Next, we will consider each of its components.
Fertility rate in Africa 1985–1990 was almost 45%, in 1990–1995. – 42%, in 1995–2000. – 40%, and in 2000–2005. – 36%. It exceeds the world average of the last five years (20b) by 1.5 times. Tropical Africa contains most of the countries in the world with fertility rates that often approach the physiological maximum. As an example, we can cite countries in which in 2005 the birth rate reached 50% or even exceeded this level: Niger, Eritrea, DR Congo, Liberia. But in most other countries it was in the range from 40 to 50%.
Accordingly, the fertility level of women in Africa remains the highest in the world: the average number of children born to one woman there is still 4.8, and in Uganda, Mali, Niger, Chad, DR Congo, Burundi, Somalia reaches six to seven and more.
The high birth rate in African countries is due to a number of factors. Among them are the centuries-old traditions of early marriage and large families, associated primarily with extreme socio-economic backwardness. The desire of parents to have as many children as possible was a completely natural reaction to very high infant mortality and at the same time a means of providing for their own patriarchal economy big amount working hands. Religious views and the fairly widespread prevalence of polygamous marriages also had a strong impact. We must also take into account the general increase in the level of health care achieved in recent decades, which includes the protection of maternal and child health and the reduction of female infertility, one of the consequences of many diseases.
Indicators mortality rate in the second half of the 20th century, on the contrary, they decreased very significantly. On average for Africa in 2005, this coefficient was 15%, including 7% in Northern Africa, and 14–19% in Tropical Africa. Although the mortality rate is still noticeably higher than the world average (9%), it was its decline – while the birth rate remained high – that served, one might say, as the main “detonator” of the demographic explosion on the continent.
As a result, even with fairly high mortality rates, Africa has record rates for the entire world. natural increase population: on average it is 21% (or 21 people per 1000 inhabitants), which corresponds to an average annual increase of 2.1%. If we differentiate this indicator by subregion, it turns out that in Northern Africa it is 1.6%, in Western Africa - 2.4%, in Eastern Africa - 2.5%, in Central Africa - 2.2% and in Southern Africa - 0.3% .
Figure 147 can serve as a basis for continuing this analysis at the level of individual countries. When examining it, it is easy to notice that now in Africa more than half of the countries already have an average annual population growth rate of 1 to 2%. But in 13 countries it is still 2–3%, and in 12 countries it is 3–4%. Most of these countries are in Western Africa, but they are also found in Eastern and Central Africa. In addition, countries have recently appeared in Africa in which population decline, rather than growth, has occurred. This is due to the AIDS epidemic.
This differentiation is explained mainly by differences in the general level of socio-economic development, including the level of education, health care and other components of a comprehensive concept of the quality of the population. As for demographic policy, then it does not yet have a big impact on the processes of population reproduction. Almost all African countries have declared their commitment to such a policy, many have adopted national programs family planning, implement measures aimed at improving the situation of women, expanding access to contraceptives, regulating the intervals between the births of children, etc. However, funding for these programs is insufficient. In addition, they run counter to religious and everyday traditions and encounter resistance from a significant part of the population. Demographic policies have proven to be more effective in several more developed countries. As a result of the implementation of government programs aimed at reducing the rate of population growth, such a decrease in the 1960s. began in Tunisia, Egypt, Morocco, Kenya, Ghana, and later in Algeria, Zimbabwe, on the island. Mauritius.
The population explosion in Africa is significantly deepening many already intractable problems. economic and social problems countries of the continent.
Firstly, this the problem of increasing “pressure” of a rapidly growing population on the environment. Back in 1985, there was 0.4 hectares of land per rural resident, and at the beginning of the 21st century. this figure dropped to 0.3 hectares. At the same time, the threat of further desertification and deforestation, and an increase in the general environmental crisis, is increasing. It can be added that in terms of resource availability fresh water per capita (about 5000 m 3 in 2000), Africa is inferior to most other large regions of the world. At the same time, water resources in the region are distributed in such a way that their greatest quantity does not coincide with the most densely populated areas, and as a result, in many places, especially in large cities, there is a water shortage.
Secondly, this the problem of increasing “demographic burden”, i.e. the ratio of the number of children (and elderly people) to the number of people of working age. It is known that the main feature of the age structure of the African population has always been a very large proportion of people of childhood age, and recently, as a result of a slight reduction in infant and child mortality, it has even begun to increase. Thus, in 2000, the age group under 15 years old accounted for 43% of the entire population of the continent. In some countries of Tropical Africa, in particular in Uganda, Niger, Mali (Table 47 in Book I), the number of children is actually almost equal to the number of “workers”. In addition, due to the very large proportion of people of child age, the share of the economically active population in Africa is much smaller (38–39%) than in any other major region of the world.
Thirdly, this employment problem. In the context of a demographic explosion, the number of economically active population reached 300 million people in 2000. African countries are not able to employ such a number of people in social production. According to the International Labor Organization, on average in Africa, unemployment affects 35-40% of working people.
Fourthly, this food supply problem rapidly growing population. The current food situation in Africa is assessed by most experts as critical. Although 2/3 of the continent’s population is employed in agriculture, it is here, especially in Tropical Africa, that the food crisis has become most protracted and even fairly stable “hunger zones” have formed. In many countries, food production per capita not only does not increase, but even decreases, so that it becomes increasingly difficult for the peasant to provide his family with his own food throughout the year. Food imports are increasing. Far from being the only, but still one of the most important reasons for this situation is that the average annual increase in Africa's population significantly outpaces the average annual increase in food production.
Fifthly, this public health problem associated with degradation environment, and with the poverty of the majority of people. (In Africa, there are 11 countries where more than half of the total population lives below the poverty line. Including in Zambia, Sierra Leone, Madagascar this share exceeds 70%, and in Mali, Chad, Niger, Ghana, Rwanda - 60%. ) Both contribute to the spread of dangerous diseases such as malaria, cholera, leprosy, and sleeping sickness. Africa has already surpassed all other continents in terms of the number of AIDS cases (Fig. 158 in Book I). She is the most different high speed spread of HIV infection and the highest proportion of HIV-infected and AIDS patients (8.4% of the adult population). In 2006, more than 25 million people living with HIV and AIDS lived in sub-Saharan Africa, representing 70% of the global total. That same year, AIDS killed 2.3 million Africans, reducing life expectancy in many countries. It can be added that the top ten countries in terms of the number of AIDS cases include Zimbabwe, Botswana, Zambia, Malawi, Namibia, Swaziland and Congo, where there are an average of 350 to 450 cases of the disease per 100 thousand inhabitants. The second ten are also dominated by African countries.
Rice. 147. Average annual population growth in African countries
Sixthly, this education problem. In 2000, only 60% of African adults were literate. In sub-Saharan Africa, the total number of illiterate people over 15 years of age even increased from 125 million people in 1980 to 145 million in 2000. Even in 2006, more than 1/2 of men were illiterate in 5 African countries, in 7 – more than 2/3 are women. With the average share of children of children's age being, as already noted, 43%, it is not so easy to ensure school education growing generation.
Until relatively recently, demographic forecasts assumed that by 2025 the population of Africa will increase to 1650 million people. According to newer forecasts, it will be about 1,300 million people (including in North Africa - 250 million, in Western - 383 million, in Eastern - 426 million, in Central - 185 million and in South - 56 million people). This means that Africa will continue to face many of the socio-economic challenges created by the population explosion. Suffice it to say that, according to some estimates, in 2025 the continent’s labor force will reach almost 1 billion people, amounting to 1/5 of the world’s total labor force. In 1985, the number of young people joining the workforce was 36 million, in 2000 – 57 million, and in 2025 it will reach almost 100 million!
Recently, new information has appeared in the press about African population forecasts for 2050. Compared to previous ones, they reflect an upward trend and are based on the fact that in the middle of the 21st century. The continent's population will reach almost 2 billion people (21% of the world's population). Moreover, in countries such as Togo, Senegal, Uganda, Mali, Somalia, in the first half of the 21st century. the population should increase by 3.5–4 times, and in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Liberia, Eritrea, Mauritania, Sierra Leone, Madagascar - by 3 times. Accordingly, by 2050, the population of Nigeria is expected to reach 258 million people, DR Congo - 177, Ethiopia - 170, Uganda - 127, Egypt - 126 million people. Sudan, Niger, Kenya and Tanzania will have between 50 and 100 million inhabitants.
97. Africa – the region of “urban explosion”
For many centuries, even millennia, Africa remained predominantly a “rural continent”. True, cities appeared in North Africa a very long time ago. Suffice it to recall Carthage, the major urban centers of the Roman Empire. But in sub-Saharan Africa, cities began to emerge already in the era of the Great geographical discoveries, mainly as military strongholds and trade (including slave trading) bases. During the colonial division of Africa at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. new urban settlements arose mainly as local administrative centers. Nevertheless, the term “urbanization” itself in relation to Africa until the end of modern times can apparently only be applied conditionally. After all, back in 1900 there was only one city on the entire continent with a population of more than 100 thousand inhabitants.
In the first half of the 20th century. the situation has changed, but not so dramatically. Back in 1920, the urban population of Africa numbered only 7 million people, in 1940 it was already 20 million, and only by 1950 it increased to 51 million people.
But in the second half of the 20th century, especially after such an important milestone as the Year of Africa, a real “ urban explosion." This is illustrated primarily by data on urban population growth rates. Back in the 1960s. in many countries they have reached phenomenally high rates of 10–15, or even 20–25% per year! In 1970–1985 The urban population increased on average by 5–7% per year, which meant doubling it in 10–15 years. Yes, even in the 1980s. these rates remained at approximately 5% and only in the 1990s. began to decline. As a result, the number of urban residents and the number of cities in Africa began to rapidly increase. The share of the urban population reached 22% in 1970, 29% in 1980, 32% in 1990, 36% in 2000 and 38% in 2005. Accordingly, Africa's share of the world's urban population increased from 4.5% in 1950 to 11.2% in 2005.
As throughout the developing world, Africa's urban explosion is characterized by the predominant growth of large cities. Their number increased from 80 in 1960 to 170 in 1980 and subsequently more than doubled. The number of cities with a population of 500 thousand to 1 million inhabitants has also increased significantly.
But this distinctive feature of the African “urban explosion” can be especially clearly demonstrated by the example of the growth in the number of millionaire cities. The first such city back in the late 1920s. became Cairo. In 1950, there were only two millionaire cities, but already in 1980 there were 8, in 1990 - 27, and the number of inhabitants in them increased respectively from 3.5 million to 16 and 60 million people. According to the UN, in the late 1990s. in Africa there were already 33 agglomerations with a population of more than 1 million people, which concentrated 1/3 of the total urban population, and in 2001 there were already 40 million-dollar agglomerations. Two of these agglomerations (Lagos and Cairo) with a population of more than 10 million people already included in the category of supercities. In 14 agglomerations, the number of residents ranged from 2 million to 5 million people, in the rest - from 1 million to 2 million people (Fig. 148). However, in the next five years, some capitals, for example, Monrovia and Freetown, dropped out of the list of millionaire cities. This is due to the unstable political situation and military operations in Liberia and Sierra Leone.
When considering the process of “urban explosion” in Africa, one must take into account the fact that the industrial and cultural development of countries, the deepening of the processes of ethnic consolidation and other positive phenomena are associated with cities. However, along with this, the urban environment is accompanied by many negative phenomena. This is because Africa is not just urbanizing breadth(but not deep down as in developed countries), but the so-called false urbanization, characteristic of those countries and regions where there is virtually no or almost no economic growth. According to the World Bank, in the 1970s–1990s. Africa's urban population grew by an average of 4.7% per year, while their GDP per capita decreased by 0.7% annually. As a result, most African cities have failed to become engines of economic growth and structural transformation in the economy. On the contrary, in many cases they began to act as the main centers of the socio-economic crisis, becoming the focus of acute social contradictions and contrasts, such as unemployment, housing crisis, crime, etc. The situation is only aggravated by the fact that cities, especially large ones, continue to attract the poorest rural residents, who are constantly joining the stratum of the marginal population. Statistics show that the top ten cities in the world with the lowest quality of life include nine African cities: Brazzaville, Pont-Noire, Khartoum, Bangui, Luanda, Ouagadougou, Kinshasa, Bamako and Niamey.
The “urban explosion” in Africa is characterized by the exaggeratedly large role of capital cities in both population and economy. The following figures indicate the degree of such hypertrophy: in Guinea the capital concentrates 81% of the country’s total urban population, in Congo - 67, in Angola - 61, in Chad - 55, in Burkina Faso - 52, in several other countries - from 40 to 50 %. The following indicators are also impressive: by the early 1990s. in the production of industrial products, the capitals accounted for: in Senegal (Dakar) - 80%, in Sudan (Khartoum) - 75, in Angola (Luanda) - 70, in Tunisia (Tunisia) - 65, in Ethiopia (Addis Ababa) - 60%.
Despite many common features of the “urban explosion” in Africa, it is also characterized by quite significant regional differences, particularly between Northern, Tropical and Southern Africa.
IN North Africa A very high level of urbanization (51%) has already been achieved, exceeding the world average, and in Libya it reaches 85%. In Egypt, the number of urban residents already exceeds 32 million, and in Algeria - 22 million. Since North Africa has been an arena of urban life for a very long time, urban growth here has not been as explosive as in other subregions of the continent. If we keep in mind the material appearance of cities, then in North Africa the long-established type of Arab city prevails with its traditional medina, kasbah, covered bazaars, which in the 19th–20th centuries. were supplemented by blocks of European buildings.
Rice. 148. Millionaire metropolitan areas in Africa
IN South Africa the level of urbanization is 56%, and the decisive influence on this indicator, as you might guess, is exerted by the most economically developed and urbanized Republic of South Africa, where the number of urban residents exceeds 25 million people. Several millionaire agglomerations have also formed in this subregion, the largest of which is Johannesburg (5 million). The material appearance of South African cities reflects both African and European features, and the social contrasts in them - even after the elimination of the apartheid system in South Africa - remain very noticeable.
IN Tropical Africa the level of urbanization is lower than in North Africa: in West Africa it is 42%, in East Africa – 22%, in Central Africa – 40%. The average figures for individual countries are approximately the same. It is symptomatic that in continental Tropical Africa (without islands) there are only six countries where the share of the urban population exceeds 50%: Gabon, Congo, Liberia, Botswana, Cameroon and Angola. But here are the least urbanized countries such as Rwanda (19%), Burundi (10%), Uganda (13), Burkina Faso (18), Malawi and Niger (17% each). There are also countries in which the capital concentrates 100% of the total urban population: Bujumbura in Burundi, Praia in Cape Verde. And in terms of the total number of city residents (more than 65 million), Nigeria ranks uncompetitively first in all of Africa. Many of the cities of Tropical Africa are extremely crowded. The most striking example of this kind is Lagos, which in terms of this indicator (about 70 thousand people per 1 km 2) ranks one of the first places in the world. Yu. D. Dmitrevsky once noted that many cities in Tropical Africa are characterized by a division into “native”, “business” and “European” parts.
Demographic forecasts provide an opportunity to trace the progress of the “urban explosion” in Africa to 2010, 2015 and 2025. According to these forecasts, in 2010 the urban population should increase to 470 million people, and its share in the total population - up to 44%. It is estimated that if in 2000–2015. Urban population growth rates will average 3.5% per year, the share of urban residents in Africa will approach 50%, and the continent's share of the world's urban population will increase to 17%. Apparently, in 2015, the number of African agglomerations with millionaires will increase to 70. At the same time, Lagos and Cairo will remain in the group of super-cities, but the number of their residents will increase to 24.6 million and 14.4 million, respectively. Seven cities will have from 5 million to 10 million inhabitants (Kinshasa, Addis Ababa, Algiers, Alexandria, Maputo, Abidjan and Luanda). And in 2025, the urban population of Africa will exceed 800 million people, with its share of the total population being 54%. In Northern and Southern Africa this share will increase to 65 and even 70%, and in the currently least urbanized East Africa it will be 47%. By the same time, the number of millionaire agglomerations in Tropical Africa may increase to 110.
98. Mining areas of Africa
Over the past decades, Africa has become one of the most largest producers of mineral raw materials. Its share in the world mining industry is approximately 1/7, but in the production of diamonds, gold, cobalt, manganese ores, chromites, uranium concentrates, and phosphorites it is much larger. A lot of copper and iron ore, bauxite, oil and natural gas are also mined. Let us add that Africa dominates the market for such “20th century metals” as vanadium, lithium, beryllium, tantalum, niobium, and germanium. Almost all extracted raw materials and fuel are exported from Africa to economically developed countries, which makes its economy very dependent on the world market. This especially applies to countries such as Algeria, Libya, Guinea, Zambia, Botswana, where the mining industry provides more than 9/10 of all exports.
Africa has very favorable conditions for the development of the mining industry. natural prerequisites. Its mineral resources are genetically associated, firstly, with the outcrops of the folded basement of the African platform, secondly, with sedimentary deposits of the cover of this platform, thirdly, with areas of Paleozoic, Mesozoic and Cenozoic (Alpine) folding, fourthly, with sedimentary sediments of foothill and intermountain troughs, fifthly, with lateritic weathering crusts and, finally, sixthly, with intrusions of igneous rocks. In this case, for example, deposits of iron and copper ores can be found both in outcrops of the crystalline basement and in the cover of sedimentary deposits, and iron ore can also be found in the lateritic weathering crust.
It must also be borne in mind that the subsoil of Africa has not yet been sufficiently studied. In recent decades, prospecting and exploration have expanded and led to a significant increase in reserves of most minerals. But nevertheless, many, especially deep, horizons in this sense remain “terra incognita”, which opens up prospects for new great geological discoveries - just as happened in the 1950-1960s. with African oil.
In total in Africa we can distinguish seven main mining regions. Three of them are in North Africa and four are in sub-Saharan Africa (Fig. 149).
Two of North Africa's mining regions predate World War II and have undergone further development in recent decades. This is the region of the Atlas Mountains, where quite large deposits of iron, manganese, and polymetallic ores are associated with the mineralization processes that occurred during the Hercynian folding period. But the main wealth of this area is the world's largest phosphorite-bearing belt, stretching along the southern slopes of the Atlas through the territory of Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia. The thickness of the phosphorite suite here reaches 80-100 m, and the total reserves of phosphorites (in terms of P 2 0 5) amount to 22 billion tons, of which 21 billion are in Morocco. In terms of phosphorite production, this country is second only to the USA and China, and in terms of their exports it ranks first in the world.
The second mining region of North Africa is located in Egypt. Here, deposits of oil and natural gas, iron, titanium and other ores, phosphorites, rock salt and other fossil raw materials are associated with the sedimentary cover of the Nubian-Arabian massif and the rift basins of the Red Sea .
Rice. 149. Mining areas in Africa
But, of course, the main mining region of North Africa is the youngest of them, located within the Algerian and Libyan parts of the Sahara Desert. The territorial combination of mineral resources in it is much more limited and is represented in fact only by oil and natural gas, but in terms of the size of their reserves, production and the general role of the region in the world economy, it is far ahead.
The oil and gas basin, commonly called the Saharan or Algerian-Libyan basin, was discovered only in the 1950s. It stretches from west to east for about 2000 km. The thickness of sedimentary deposits in its western part reaches 7–8 km; to the east it decreases. Productive oil and gas horizons lie respectively at a depth of 2.5 to 3.5 thousand m. The productivity of wells here is very high and reaches an average of 350 tons in Libya, and 160 tons of oil per day in Algeria, which largely determines its relatively low cost . Another important factor in reducing costs is the location of oil and gas fields at a not so great distance (700–300 km) from the Mediterranean coast. This explains the high competitiveness of Saharan oil on the world market. Oil production in Libya reached its maximum (160 million tons) back in 1970, in Algeria (57 million tons) in 1979. But then it decreased noticeably, which is due both to the strict regulation of oil production quotas in the OPEC system, so is the policy of both countries aimed at preserving their oil resources.
Within the Sahara oil and gas basin, four more or less independent parts can be distinguished, each of which is tectonically associated with a large syneclise (Fig. 150).
In the west, the Hassi-R "Mel gas field is located separately, which has reserves of 1.5–2.3 trillion m 3 and, therefore, belongs to the category of giant fields. Gas has accumulated here under the arches of a dome measuring 55 by 75 km. This field provides the main production of natural gas not only in Algeria, but throughout the entire basin.Gas from here is supplied via gas pipelines to the Mediterranean ports of Arzew and Skikda, where it is liquefied for subsequent export on methane tankers to France and Spain. The trans-Mediterranean pipeline also originates here gas pipeline Algeria - Italy, the throughput of which by the end of the 20th century increased from 12 billion to 15–20 billion m 3 per year. In 1996, another Mediterranean gas pipeline with a length of 1370 km from the Hassi-R "Mel field through Morocco and the Strait of Gibraltar to Spain.
Rice. 150. Sahara oil and gas basin
To the east of Hassi-R'Mel there is a second group of oil and gas-oil fields, among which stands out the giant Hassi-Messaoud field, which also owes its origin to a dome-shaped uplift measuring 40 by 45 km. In the 1960-1970s it produced 20 million tons of oil per year. Oil from here is transferred via pipelines to the ports of Arzew, Bejaia and Skikda. Here, one part of it is processed, and the other is exported by tankers in crude form.
The third group of deposits has been explored near the Algerian-Libyan border; the largest among them are Zarzaitin and Ejele. Oil pipelines connect the area with the ports of Algeria, the Tunisian port of Sehira and the Libyan port of Tripoli.
The fourth, largest in terms of reserves and production, group of fields is located in Libya, and it is located much closer to the Mediterranean coast than the fields of Algeria. Foreign monopolies began exploring for oil here after the discovery of Algerian fields located at the westernmost border of Libya. The first success came in 1959, when the large Nasser (Selten) deposit was discovered. Then large fields were discovered: Amal, Intezar (Liberation), in which flowing wells produce 5000–7000 tons of oil per day and even more. But the only giant field here is the Serir field, whose reserves are estimated at 1.5–1.8 billion tons with very high oil saturation and high reservoir yield. The exploitation of this deposit began in 1967 with a production level of 20–30 million tons per year. Oil produced in this area is transported through oil pipelines to Marsa el-Bureika and other seaports on the coast of the Gulf of Sidra (Greater Sirte). Along with oil, associated petroleum gas is also produced.
One might add that in the late 1990s. In Algeria, a new major project was developed related to the development of rich gas fields discovered in the southern part of the Sahara. It is expected that already in 2003 gas will begin to flow from here to European markets.
Of the four major mining regions located south of the Sahara, two are on the coast of the Gulf of Guinea. One of them can be called Western Guinea, and the other - East Guinea. The Western Guinea region is characterized by a territorial combination of such minerals as gold, diamonds (mainly industrial), iron ores, and bauxite. Both iron ores and bauxite are associated with lateritic weathering crust, occur near the surface and are mined by a cheaper open-pit method. Especially great importance have bauxite, the main reserves of which are concentrated in Guinea, which ranks first in the world in terms of its size (more than 20 billion tons). The thickness of the bauxite-bearing covers here reaches 10–20 m with a high alumina content. In addition, the main bauxite deposits of Guinea (Boke, Kindia) are located at a distance of only 150–200 km from the Gulf of Guinea. The largest bauxite complex in Kindia was created with the help of the USSR, which received bauxite for its aluminum industry as compensation.
In the East Guinea region, deposits of ferrous and non-ferrous metal ores, uranium, and gold have been explored, but its main wealth is oil and natural gas. The oil and gas basin of the Gulf of Guinea, in the depths of which more than 300 fields have already been discovered, stretches in a narrow strip across the territory and waters of several countries, but its main part is located in the depression of the Niger Delta, i.e. in Nigeria (Fig. 151).
The search for oil here began before the Second World War, but the first commercial deposits were discovered on land in 1956, and on the shelf in 1964. The maximum level of production was reached in 1979 (115 million tons). It is necessary to take into account not only advantageous position deposits off the coast and high quality oil, but also that in conditions of inactivity of the Suez Canal in 1967–1975. Nigeria had a significant advantage in foreign markets compared to the countries of the Persian Gulf, since the distance from its main oil port of Port Harcourt (with Bonny outport) to Rotterdam is 6.9 thousand km, while when transporting oil around Africa - 18.2 thousand km In the 1980s The level of oil production in Nigeria was quite stable (70–80 million tons), and in the 2006s. rose to 125 million tons.
Along with oil, associated petroleum gas is also produced here, which for a long time burned in torches. In 1984, such burning was prohibited by a special government decree. At the end of the 1990s. Nigeria has begun exporting liquefied natural gas to the United States and Western Europe. The project of the intercontinental gas pipeline Nigeria - Algeria - Spain with a throughput capacity of 50 billion m 3 per year is under development.
In Central Africa, a large mining region has developed in the southern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo (Shaba region) and in Zambia. From northwest to southeast it extends in a rather narrow (50–60 km) strip for more than 500 km. Approximately 600–700 million years ago, the coastline of an ancient sea basin passed here, the sediments of which are associated with the formation of cuprous sandstones. Hence the well-known name - Copper (melliferous) belt, or Copper-belt. This is what the British called the southern part of the basin, located on the territory of their colony of Northern Rhodesia, present-day Zambia. But usually this name is also extended to its northern part, which was part of the Belgian Congo, and now the DR Congo.
Rice. 1S1. Oil and gas industry in Nigeria
Primitive methods of development in this basin were carried out by Africans long before the arrival of Europeans; this was noted by D. Livingston, who visited here during his travels. But real geological exploration was carried out already at the end of the 19th – beginning of the 20th centuries. It showed that local ores have a very high copper content: on average 5-10%, and sometimes 15%. This stimulated mining, which Belgian and English firms began before the First World War. It was growing all the time. Then the Shinkolobwe uranium-radium deposit was also discovered, which became one of the world's main suppliers of radium.
Today, more than 150 copper deposits are known in the Copper Belt, which are geologically usually associated with elongated narrow anticlinal folds. Although the richest deposits have already been worked out, the copper content in the ore still remains high (2.5–3.5%). In addition, in the southern wing of the basin it is mined by open-pit mining. Since pre-war times, large-scale smelting of blister copper has been carried out here, which by the 1990s. reached almost 1 million tons; but in the next decade it decreased significantly, especially in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where its level fell several times. The same applies to the smelting of refined copper. Therefore, now the countries of the Copper Belt are no longer in the top ten in the production of copper concentrates and blister copper, and Zambia closes this top ten in the production of refined copper (Table 107 in Part I). However, you need to keep in mind that the copper ores of the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia contain cobalt, zinc, lead, cadmium, germanium, gold, and silver. And these days, cobalt has become almost more important than copper, and the DR Congo ranks first in the world in terms of its reserves. And in terms of cobalt production (in terms of metal), these countries are second only to Canada and are on a par with Russia.
Figure 152 shows that the Copper Belt already has a fairly developed territorial structure with several large centers of the copper industry. However, its position in the very center of the continent has always complicated and continues to complicate the development of the basin, since copper concentrates and copper had and still have to be delivered to export ports at a distance of 2–2.5 thousand km. For this purpose, back in the first decades of the 20th century. Railways were built connecting the Copper Belt with the port of Beira on the Indian Ocean and the port of Lobito on the Atlantic Ocean. However, the capacity of these roads was insufficient. Therefore, in the 1970s. A new, more modern TANZAM highway (Tanzania - Zambia) was built, providing access to Zambian copper to the port of Dar es Salaam.
Rice. 152. Copper belt in DR Congo and Zambia
But the largest and most diversified mining region has developed in South Africa - within Zimbabwe, Botswana and South Africa. It is one of the richest and most diverse geographical combinations of mineral resources in the entire world. With the exception of oil, natural gas and bauxite, almost all types of fuel, ore and non-metallic minerals necessary for development are mined here modern economy(Fig. 149). Zimbabwe produces chromium, nickel, copper, and cobalt; Botswana is famous primarily for its diamonds. But the Republic of South Africa stands out especially in this regard, ranking first in the world in the production of platinum group metals (53% of the world), vanadium (51), chromites (37), second in zirconium (30) and titanium ores (20). ), gold (11%), third place in manganese ores (12%), fourth place in antimony and fluorspar, fifth place in coal and diamonds.
Within South Africa itself, several large mining subdistricts can be distinguished. In the north of the country, this is the so-called Bushveld complex, where, thanks to the intrusions of ancient igneous rocks, the world's largest deposits of platinum group metals, large deposits of chromite, iron-titanium-vanadium and other ores are located. To the south of the Bushveld in the latitudinal direction stretches the Witwatersrand ridge, where gold, uranium raw materials, coal, diamonds and many other minerals lie. To the east stretches the High Veldt with deposits of chromite, vanadium ores, and asbestos. To the southwest of the Witwatersrand is the Kimberley region with its famous kimberlite pipes.
Despite this diversity, South Africa's profile in the global mining industry is perhaps primarily defined by gold, uranium and diamonds.
99. Gold, uranium and diamonds of South Africa
1/2, and in 2007 – only 11%. The number of people employed in this industry also decreased: from 715 thousand in 1975 to 350 thousand in the mid-1990s. (of which 55% were citizens of the country, and the rest were migrant workers from Lesotho, Swaziland, Mozambique) and up to 240 thousand in the late 1990s.
Rice. 153. Gold mining in South Africa 1980–2007
There are several reasons for this decline in gold production in South Africa.
Firstly, we need to talk about reduction of inventories gold - both quantitatively and especially qualitatively. In general, this is quite natural, considering that in more than 120 years since the beginning of the development of deposits, more than 50 thousand tons have already been mined here - more than in any other gold-bearing area in the world. And today, South Africa continues to occupy the unrivaled first place in gold reserves: the total reserves of its deposits are estimated at almost 40 thousand tons, and confirmed reserves at 22 thousand tons, which is 45% of world reserves. However, the depletion of the richest deposits is also having an increasingly noticeable impact.
In South Africa, where bedrock gold deposits significantly predominate over alluvial deposits, the average gold content in gold-bearing rocks has always been much higher than in most other countries. But in recent decades it has decreased significantly: from 12 g/t in the mid-1960s to 4.8 g/t in the late 1990s. This means that to produce one ounce of gold (31.1 g), 6,000 tons of gold-bearing rock must be mined, brought to the surface, and then ground to dust! But many mines also produce poorer ore.
Secondly, it affects deterioration of mining and geological conditions production First of all, this is expressed in an increase in its depth, the average of which here reaches a record level for the whole world. In the deepest mines in South Africa, gold is mined at depths of up to 3800–3900 m - this is also a world record! One can imagine what kind of ventilation system is necessary in order to make it possible for miners to work at such depths, where temperatures usually exceed 60 ° C, and even at very high pressure and humidity levels. As a result of an increase in the depth of mining and the deterioration of other conditions (combined with a decrease in gold content in ore), its cost, or the direct costs of extracting 1 g of gold, in South Africa now exceeds the world average.
Thirdly, recently South Africa has felt increasingly competition from other gold-mining countries, where gold production does not decrease, but increases. These are Australia (in 2007 it came out on top), China, Indonesia, Ghana, Peru, Chile. South Africa's competitors in the world market also remain the largest gold producers such as the USA, Canada, and Russia.
Finally, fourthly, one cannot ignore changes in market conditions on the world gold market. Back in the 1980s. There was a significant decline in prices for this metal. Then they more or less stabilized, but in 1997–1998. due to the financial crisis that gripped half the world, they fell again. Changes in market conditions in South Africa itself, associated primarily with the change of power in the country in 1994–1995, also had an impact.
As a result of all these changes, the share of the gold mining industry in South Africa's GDP decreased from 17% in 1980 to 4% in the late 1990s, and in employment of the economically active population - to 2.5%. But if we take into account not only the direct, but also the indirect impact of this industry on the country’s economy, it will turn out to be more significant. We must not forget that gold accounts for more than 1/2 of the value of mineral exports from South Africa.
Geography of the gold mining industry In this country, it mainly developed at the end of the 19th – beginning of the 20th centuries. Since then, it has been concentrated in the area of the Witwatersrand ridge (translated as “Ridge of White Waters”).
Gold was found in the Transvaal in the first half and mid-19th century, but both reserves and production were small. Witwatersrand gold was discovered in the 1870s. It turned out that it lies here in a layer of conglomerates protruding to the surface in the form of long, low ridges, which, due to their external resemblance to sea reefs, were also called reefs. Soon the Main Reef, stretching for 45 km, was discovered in the central part of the Witwatersrand, where gold reserves exceeded everything known in the world until then. The “gold rush” began, surpassing the Californian (1848–1849) and Australian (1851–1852) in scale. The search for gold brought tens of thousands of people to the Witwatersrand. At first, these were single gold miners developing surface deposits. But with the growth of deeper developments, large corporations began to emerge.
Rice. 153. Plan of Johannesburg (with surrounding areas)
Nowadays this gold-bearing basin stretches in a relatively narrow arc through four (in the new administrative division) provinces of the country. Several dozen gold mines operate here; some of them produce 20–30 tons, and the two largest – 60–80 tons of gold per year. They are located in several mining towns. But the main center of gold mining in the Witwatersrand has been Johannesburg for more than a hundred years. This town was founded south of Pretoria in 1886 and for a long time was a collection of isolated, rough mining towns. During the Anglo-Boer War 1899–1902. it was captured by the British and in 1910 (along with the entire Transvaal and Orange Free State) included in the British Dominion of South Africa. Now Johannesburg is the largest (along with Cape Town) city in the country and at the same time administrative center province of Gauteng. But more importantly, it has long been transformed into the “economic capital” of South Africa, and primarily its financial capital. An urban agglomeration has developed around Johannesburg, the population of which is estimated by various sources at 3.5–5 million people.
The plan of Johannesburg is presented in Figure 154. It is easy to see that the railway running in the latitudinal direction divides the city into two parts. To the north of it are the Central Business District and the main residential areas; to the south are industrial buildings and numerous gold mines. Of course, the working conditions here today are not the same as they were at the end of the 19th century, when Kaffir workers were lowered down in wooden tubs and had to work almost in the dark. Nevertheless, they are still very heavy, especially at great depths. Under the apartheid regime, African workers, both local and recruited from neighboring countries, lived here in special settlements - locations. The largest of them is Soweto (short for South Western Townships). In the mid-1980s. Soweto's population was 1.8 million. Before the end of apartheid, it was one of the country's main centers of racial violence.
In connection with gold, one can say about uranium mining, because in South Africa they are closely interconnected.
In terms of the size of confirmed uranium reserves (150 thousand tons), South Africa ranks only sixth in the world (excluding Russia), far behind Australia, Kazakhstan and Canada and being approximately on a par with Brazil, Niger and Uzbekistan. Uranium mining and the production of uranium concentrates began here in 1952 and soon reached their maximum - 6000 tons per year. But then this level dropped to 3.5 thousand tons, and in the 1990s. - up to 1.5 thousand tons and in 2005 - up to 800 tons. Currently, South Africa ranks only 13th in the world in the production of uranium concentrates, far behind not only Canada and Australia, but also countries such as Niger , Namibia, USA, Russia, Uzbekistan.
A special feature of South Africa is the extremely low uranium content in the ore, ranging from 0.009 to 0.056%, and on average 0.017%, which is several times less than in other countries. This is explained by the fact that uranium in this country is obtained from the sludge of processing plants as a by-product during the processing of gold ores. This by-product extraction of uranium makes many old gold mines profitable.
South Africa has become famous throughout the world for no less than its gold mining. diamond mining. The entire history of this country is also virtually connected with the discovery and development of diamonds. And the diamond mining industry also had an impact on the formation of the geographical pattern of its economy.
After the British occupation of the Cape Colony in early XIX V. in the 1830s The famous “Great Trek” began - the resettlement of Dutch colonists (Boers) to the north, which led to the creation of two republics - the Transvaal and the Orange Free State. The main goal The Boer track was the development of new pastures, which served as the basis of their economy and well-being. But soon colonization led to the discovery of diamonds and gold.
Placer diamonds were first discovered in 1867 on the banks of the river. Orange. According to one version, the first diamond was found by a shepherd boy, according to another, by the children of local farmers Jacobs and Njekirk. Perhaps these names are known only to historians these days. But the name of another ordinary Boer farm is now widely known throughout the world, since it gave its name to the huge diamond empire - the De Beers corporation, founded at the end of the 19th century. a native of Germany, Ernst Oppenheimer. And today, this corporation controls the main part of the world diamond market - their mining and sales in South Africa, Botswana, DR Congo, Namibia, Tanzania, Angola, and partly also in Australia and China. Russian diamonds, whose production amounts to 12–15 million carats per year, also gain access to the world market mainly through the De Beers company. Her reign is located here in Kimberley, where in the late 60s. last century, diamonds were found in bedrock deposits called kimberlites. In total, about 30 kimberlite pipes, or explosion pipes, have been explored here, formed as a result of a short-term but very strong explosion-like breakthrough of ultrabasic rocks to the surface of the earth, which occurred under conditions of enormous pressure and very high temperature. But the history of this diamond mining area began with the “Big Pit” (“Big Hope”) in Kimberley, dug by miners who poured here (at the end of the 19th century, their number reached 50 thousand). It was here that such famous diamonds as the De Beers diamond (428.5 carats), the bluish-white Porter Rhodes (150 carats), and the orange-yellow Tiffany diamond (128.5 carats) were found.
Soon, new explosion tubes were found north of Kimberley, already in the Transvaal, in the area of the Witwatersrand ridge. Here, not far from Pretoria, the Premier kimberlite pipe, with a diameter of 500 x 880 m, long considered the world’s largest, was explored. In 1905, the world’s largest diamond, named “Cullinan” - after the name of the company’s president, was found at this mine. Premier." This diamond, weighing 3160 carats, or 621.2 grams, eclipsed the glory of even the famous “Koh-i-nora” (109 carats), found in India in the Middle Ages. In 1907, the Transvaal government bought the Cullinan for a fabulous sum at that time of $750 thousand and presented it to the British King Edward VII on his birthday. Recently, a diamond weighing twice as much as the Cullinan was found in South Africa.
Rice. 155. Kimberly's "Big Pit" cross-section
These days in foreign world In terms of total diamond reserves (155 million carats), South Africa is inferior to Botswana and Australia and is on a par with the Democratic Republic of Congo and Canada. In terms of annual production (9-10 million carats), South Africa is inferior to Australia, DR Congo, Russia and Botswana, with gem diamonds accounting for approximately 1/3 of production. Diamonds are still mined in Kimberley itself and in its environs at several mines. And the “Big Pit” with a diameter of half a kilometer and a depth of 400 m (Fig. 155), where mining was stopped back in 1914, remains a kind of main museum exhibit of the South African diamond mining industry.
100. The largest reservoirs and hydroelectric power stations in Africa
Until the middle of the 20th century. Africa did not stand out in any way either in terms of the number of reservoirs or their volume. In 1950, there were only 16 of them on the entire continent with a total volume of 14.5 million m 3. But in the following decades, large-scale hydraulic engineering construction began in many African countries. As a result, by the end of the 1990s. the number of reservoirs (with a volume of more than 100 million m3) increased to 176, and their total volume increased to 1 billion m3 (or up to 1000 km3). According to these indicators, Africa has overtaken some others large regions peace. And against the pan-African background, the most developed Northern (primarily Morocco and Algeria) and Southern (South Africa) Africa stand out. But reservoirs, large ones at that, have already appeared in its other subregions.
According to the main indicator - volume - all African reservoirs, not counting the smallest ones, can be divided into several groups (Fig. 156). This figure shows that in Africa there are quite a lot of not very large and medium-sized reservoirs, and there are also large ones. But one of its main features is the presence of several reservoirs classified as the largest, with a volume of more than 50 km 3 . Suffice it to say that out of 15 such reservoirs around the world, 5 are located in Africa (Table 50).
As Table 50 shows, a somewhat special place in this list is occupied by Victoria Reservoir, which would be more correctly called a lake-reservoir. After all, in fact it is a natural lake. Victoria, and besides, it is also the second largest in the world after the lake. Upper in North America. But after in 1954 on the river flowing from this lake. Victoria Nile was built by the Owen Falls Dam, which raised the water level in the lake by 3 m, it actually turned into a reservoir 320 km long. Victoria is a rather rare example of a reservoir, the creation of which did not cause significant changes in the nature and economy of the surrounding area. This is largely explained by the fact that it was designed as a single-purpose facility - to ensure the operation of the Owen Falls hydroelectric station (300 thousand kW) built near the dam, which supplies electricity to Uganda.
Kariba Reservoir, created in 1958–1963 on the river Zambezi is located on the border of two countries - Zambia and Zimbabwe. It stretches for 300 km with an average width of 20 km, virtually along the entire middle course of the river. Zambezi. Initially, it was created for navigation, and most importantly, to meet the needs of the Kariba hydroelectric station (it is located on both the right and left banks of the river). Indeed, this large hydroelectric power station with a capacity of 1.2 million kW, producing 7 billion kWh of electricity per year, almost completely meets the electricity needs of Zimbabwe and, to a large extent, Zambia. But then the waters of the reservoir (by the way, very warm, with temperatures from 17 to 32 °C) began to be used for irrigation of lands on which both grain (rice, corn) and industrial crops (sugar cane, tobacco) are grown. Fishing has also become an important industry here. This is especially important because there is virtually no livestock farming in this area due to the abundance of tsetse flies.
Rice. 156. Large and largest reservoirs in Africa (according to A. B. Avakyan)
Table 50
AFRICA'S LARGEST RESERVOIRS
Volta Reservoir in Ghana was created in 1964–1967. with the help of the Akosombo dam, built on the river. Volta in the place where its bed cuts through solid rocks and has a large level difference. As a result, a reservoir 400 km long was formed. But the point here is not the length or even the volume, although it is also very large, but the size of the surface. With an area of almost 8.5 thousand km 2, the Volta Reservoir is now the largest (not counting Lake Victoria) reservoir in the world. It occupies 3.6% of Ghana's territory. It was built mainly to ensure the operation of the Akosombo hydroelectric station, which has a capacity of about 900 thousand kW. From the very beginning, the electricity from this hydroelectric station was intended primarily to supply an aluminum smelter in the new port city of Tema, which formed a single agglomeration with the capital of the country, Accra. But it also satisfies many other needs of the country. Over time, the use of the Volta Reservoir became more complex (irrigation, water supply, navigation, fishing, tourism). On the other hand, one cannot ignore the fact that when it was filled, more than 70 thousand people had to be resettled.
Nasser Reservoir in Egypt and Sudan on the river. The Nile (Fig. 157) was named after the President of Egypt G. A. Nasser, under whom it was created. Design work The selection of parameters for the Nasser reservoir and its operating mode were carried out by Egyptian and Western firms. But since the Soviet project of the hydroelectric complex was noted as the best at the competition announced by the Egyptian government, its construction was carried out with the technical and economic assistance of the Soviet Union.
The Nasser Reservoir was filled between 1970 and 1975, after which it reached its design length (500 km), width (9 to 40 km) and depth (average 30 m). This reservoir is multi-purpose and serves to regulate the flow of the Nile and prevent floods, for irrigation, electricity generation, navigation and fishing. Electricity from here is sent via power lines to many parts of the country, which made it possible not only to complete the electrification of populated areas, but also to create large power-intensive industries. Thanks to the flow of water to the fields, many areas of Upper Egypt switched from basin (seasonal) irrigation to year-round irrigation, which made it possible to harvest two or three crops per year. And the total increase in the area of irrigated land amounted to 800 thousand hectares. The reservoir changed navigation conditions on the river for the better. It also became an important fishing reservoir; Shallow-water estuaries are mainly used for this purpose. The influx of tourists has also increased significantly.
All this became possible thanks to the construction of the main facility - a dam on the Nile near the city of Aswan. The first dam here, at the first Nile threshold, was built back in 1898–1902. It had a height of 22 m, formed a small reservoir, and the hydroelectric power station built at the dam had a capacity of 350 thousand kW. Unlike the old one, the new dam was called the High-Rise Dam, because it rises 110 m. In Egypt, it is usually called Sadd el-Ali, i.e. the Great Dam. The Aswan hydroelectric power station with 12 turbines has a capacity of 2.1 million kW and produces 10 billion kWh of electricity per year.
Cabora Bassa Reservoir in Mozambique is located on the river. Zambezi, but downstream from the Kariba reservoir. The dam and hydroelectric power station Cabora Bassa (3.6 million kW) were built by an international consortium, and the electricity produced here is mainly intended for South Africa.
Rice. 157. Nasser Reservoir
The reservoir significantly improved navigation conditions and made it possible to irrigate about 1 million hectares of land. But there is also a complex problem - residents of the surrounding areas often develop schistomatosis. It turned out that the carriers of the disease are oysters that live in low-flow, shallow bays overgrown with dense aquatic vegetation. After the creation of the reservoir, they multiplied greatly.
Among other large reservoirs in Africa, mention can be made of the Kainji Reservoir in Nigeria. This is the first large “man-made sea” on the river. Niger has an area of 1300 km 2, and the capacity of the hydroelectric power station of the same name is 800 thousand kW. You can also name the reservoirs of Manantali in Mali, Kosu in Côte d'Ivoire, Kafue in Zambia. But a special position in this list is occupied by the lower reaches of the Congo River, where in a section 26 km long its drop is 96 m. Hydroelectric development of this section of the river received the name “Inga project.” As its first stage, we can consider the hydroelectric power station already built here with a capacity of 1.4 million kW, which supplies electricity to the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kinshasa, and along one of the longest power lines in the world (almost 1,700 km) to the Shaba mining region , part of the Copper Belt. But the promising project is based on the fact that in this section the hydroelectric power capacity can be increased to 30 million kW! This construction was designed for 25 years, but the political situation in the country prevented its implementation. After the formation of the African Union in In 2001, interest in this project was revived.
101. Monoculture countries in Africa
During the colonial period of development of the African continent, the agricultural specialization of many countries acquired a narrow, monoculture form. Its assessment cannot be clearly negative or positive. On the one hand, monoculture made the economies of these countries dependent on world price conditions. It deprived many of them of the opportunity to use fertile lands to grow food crops for their own daily needs. Usually cultivated in the same area from year to year, the monoculture led to severe depletion of the soil, which in this case was used as an ore vein for wear and tear. On the other hand, monoculture provided, as a rule, significantly higher incomes, and in hard currency. It connected producing countries with the world market.
After winning political independence, the countries of Africa that were monocultural in the past, for the most part, set themselves the task of transitioning to diversified, multi-structural agriculture. In some more developed countries this transition has actually already taken place. But nevertheless, even today, monoculture remains a very typical phenomenon for Africa. This is largely due to the fact that even after the Year of Africa (1960), its geographical distribution foreign trade no fundamental changes occurred. The share of economically developed Western countries in its exports still remains at the level of 3/4. This means that the world market remains interested in traditional monocultural specialization. And today Africa remains a supplier of many tropical crop products, providing about 2/3 of the world's exports of cocoa beans, 1/2 of sisal and coconut kernels, 1/3 of coffee and palm oil, 1/10 of tea, and a significant proportion of peanuts and peanut butter, dates, spices. However, levels of monocultural specialization now vary quite widely in different subregions of Africa.
For countries North Africa, Having reached a relatively high level of development, monocultural specialization of agriculture is generally no longer typical these days. Until relatively recently, Egypt and Sudan were cited as examples of countries with monoculture cotton Indeed, Egypt continues to rank first in the world in the harvest of long-staple cotton, with the bulk of it being exported. Cotton still plays a significant role in the value of the country's agricultural exports big role, however, in its total exports (namely, it serves as the main criterion for determining monoculture), its share does not exceed 1/10, being inferior to the share of oil and petroleum products by six to seven times. With good reason we can talk about the preservation of the cotton monoculture in Sudan, where cotton, especially high quality cotton, still makes up a significant part of all exports. And unlike the Nile Delta in Egypt, where rice, citrus fruits and other crops are grown along with cotton, in the Sudanese Gezira, located between the White and Blue Nile, cotton remains a typical monoculture (Fig. 158).
IN Western And Central Africa There are much more monoculture countries. These can obviously include states located directly at the southern “edge” of the Sahara, such as Burkina Faso, Mali and Chad, where the main export crop was and remains cotton. Many countries bordering directly on the Gulf of Guinea also have a pronounced international specialization in the production of cocoa beans, coffee, peanuts, and palm oil.
First of all, this relates to culture. cocoa tree, which was brought here from tropical America back in the 16th century. and found its second home here - primarily due to the extremely favorable agroclimatic conditions for it (average annual temperature 23–26 °C, precipitation at least 1000 mm per year). Among the countries of the Gulf of Guinea, Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, Nigeria, and Cameroon specialize in the production of cocoa beans, occupying first, second, fourth and sixth places in the world, respectively (Table 129 in Book I).
However, it would be wrong to assume that for most of these countries such specialization is monocultural. Thus, cocoa and its products account for only 16% of Cameroon’s exports, while oil ranks first. For Ghana, the corresponding figure is 26%, but the first place here is for gold. In Nigeria, oil accounts for more than 95% of the value of exports. Only in Cote d'Ivoire, cocoa and cocoa products play a major role in exports (about 40%). Such specialization remains monocultural for two other small countries of the subregion - Sao Tome and Principe and Equatorial Guinea (80–90% of exports).
Rice. 158. Gezira region in Sudan
Usually cultivated on plantations, the cocoa tree is 6-8 m in height; 1 hectare of plantation accommodates approximately 1000 trees. Fruit harvesting begins 5–7 years after planting and continues for 50–60 years, and the cocoa tree blooms and bears fruit all year round. The cocoa fruit itself is a yellow, orange or red-brown berry of an elongated oval shape, 25–30 cm long, it weighs 300–600 g and contains 30–50 cocoa beans. It is characteristic that these fruits - following the flowers - are formed directly on tree trunks. When the harvest of fruits begins, men use knives to separate them from the trunk and then crush them, removing the cocoa beans themselves. The women and children then lay them out on banana leaves to dry. After a few days, the beans turn brown and acquire a chocolate aroma. Then they are further dried in the sun, and then put into bags to be sent for sale.
Specialization in production coffee Among the countries of the Gulf of Guinea are Cote d'Ivoire and Cameroon, of which coffee accounts for approximately 1/10 of their exports. The coffee tree is grown both on peasant farms and on plantations.
Peanut was brought to West Africa by the Portuguese from South America. For at least two countries - Senegal and Gambia - it remains a typical monoculture: peanuts, peanut flour and peanut butter provide more than 70% of Senegal's export earnings and more than 80% of Gambia's. Nigeria is also the largest producer of peanuts.
Oil palm (Guinea) palm is a typical culture of West Africa, which is both its homeland and the main area of distribution. The fruits of this palm contain 65–70% oil, which is of high edible quality. They are collected both in groves of wild trees and on plantations. This applies to most countries in the Gulf of Guinea. But only in Benin does oil palm remain a typical monoculture, providing 2/3 of the value of exports. In this small country, more than 30 million oil palm trees occupy 400 thousand hectares. The oil palm is also very typical for Nigeria, where it, like peanuts, is not a monoculture, but has a clearly defined area of distribution (Fig. 159).
Main export crops East Africa– coffee, tea, tobacco, sisal. The top ten world coffee producers include Ethiopia and Uganda, and for both of these countries coffee is a typical monoculture that provides the bulk of foreign exchange earnings. The peculiarity of Ethiopia is that up to 70% of all coffee production comes from wild trees, and only 30% comes from coffee plantations, where, however, higher quality varieties of coffee are grown. In Uganda, coffee trees are grown primarily on peasant farms. Coffee monoculture also persists in Rwanda and Burundi. Mostly Arabica coffee is produced here. Kenya stands out for the production of tea, Malawi for tobacco (70% of exports), and Tanzania for sisal.
Rice. 159. Crop production in Nigeria
Some bright examples monocultural specialization of agriculture is given by countries South Africa, especially island ones. Thus, monoculture of sugar cane is typical for Mauritius and Reunion. In Mauritius, sugarcane plantations occupy 90–95% of all cultivated land, sugar and its products provide a significant portion of the value of exports. Sugar production per capita here reaches 5,000 (!) kg per year (for comparison: in Russia - 9-10 kg, in Ukraine - 40, in the USA - 25 kg).
The island states of South Africa are also the largest producers of specific crops such as essential oils and spices. Essential oil plants are the main specialty of the Comoros. Ylang-ylang is grown here, a tree “born” in the Philippines, from whose flowers essential oil for perfumery is obtained, as well as lemon balm, basil, jasmine, and rose palm. The most common spices are vanilla and cloves. The homeland of vanilla is Mexico, but now Madagascar has become its main producer; Comoros is in second place. The homeland of the clove tree is Southeast Asia, but the main producer of cloves and clove oil has been since the Portuguese conquest in the 16th–17th centuries. became o. Zanzibar, now part of Tanzania. The clove tree is also grown in Madagascar and Comoros.
It is curious that some of the cultivated plants typical of Africa are reflected on the coats of arms of states. For example, the image of a palm tree adorns the coats of arms of Ivory Coast, Mauritania, Gambia, Senegal, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Mauritius, Seychelles. On the coats of arms of Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya, Angola you can see an image of a coffee tree, on the coats of arms of Angola, Benin, Zambia, Zimbabwe - corn, on the coats of arms of Algeria, Zimbabwe - wheat, on the coats of arms of Mauritius, Mozambique, Cape Verde - sugar cane, on the coats of arms of Tanzania, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Angola - cotton.
102. Transcontinental highways in Africa
Regional transport system Africa ranks last among all regional transport systems in the world by most indicators. It accounts for only 3–4% of global cargo and passenger turnover. In the structure of domestic freight turnover, railways continue to lead, although in passenger turnover they are already far ahead of road transport. But at the same time, it is necessary to take into account both the technical backwardness of these types of transport (multi-gauge and locomotive traction on railways oh, the predominance of unpaved roads, etc.), and the fact that in a dozen African countries there are still no railways at all. The density of the railway network on the continent is three to four times less than the world average. It is not surprising that transport mobility in Africa is also the lowest in the world.
Of course, there are significant differences between individual subregions in this regard. The first place in terms of the overall level of transport development is occupied by South Africa, which accounts for up to 40% of the entire railway network, the second is North Africa, especially the Maghreb. And the most lagging behind, as one might expect, is Tropical Africa, where the transport role of rivers is still quite large. Here are also those countries where there are still no railways - Niger, Chad, Central African Republic, Somalia, Rwanda, Burundi and some others.
The geographical pattern of Africa's transport network, largely established during the colonial era, is also, in many cases, extremely disproportionate. For example, railways often have a distinct “line of entry” character, that is, they link mining or plantation farming areas with export ports for their products. The same applies to pipelines that have appeared in some countries on the continent in recent decades. That's why one of the most characteristic features Africa's regional transport system remains disunity its individual parts.
In the 1980-1990s. The governments of many African countries began to pay more attention to the development of transport and invest large amounts of capital in this industry. At the same time, attention is paid to the creation transcontinental highways, which could help unite disparate sections of the transport network into a single whole, thereby ensuring a deepening of the geographical division of labor between individual countries and subregions.
This primarily applies to road transport. Until recently, there was actually only one trans-African highway - Maghreb, which connects all the countries of North Africa from Morocco to Egypt (Rabat - Cairo) and runs along the Mediterranean coast. But in the 1980s. with the assistance of international organizations, projects for five more trans-African highways were developed (Fig. 160).
This Trans-Saharan Highway Algiers (Algeria) - Lagos (Nigeria), passing along the route of ancient caravan routes across the Sahara through the territory of four countries - Algeria, Mali, Niger and Nigeria. This Trans-Sahelian highway Dakar (Senegal) - N'Djamena (Chad) with a length of 4600 km, which crosses the territories of seven countries (with a possible extension to the east). This is in in every sense words Trans-African Highway Lagos - Mombasa (Kenya), or the West-East highway, 6300 km long, passing through the territory of six countries. This West African Highway Lagos - Nouakchott (Mauritania) is 4,750 km long, passing through the territories of most countries in this subregion. Finally, this is another one Trans-African Highway 9200 km long, but already in the North-South direction, passing from Cairo (Egypt) to Gaborone (Botswana) through the territories of eight countries.
All these projects involved not so much the construction of completely new roads as the reconstruction of existing roads. Their implementation began back in the 1980s, which were declared by the UN as the Decade for the Development of Transport and Communications in Africa. However, due to certain political and financial-economic circumstances, it was not possible to implement these projects on time.
There are significantly fewer transcontinental railway projects in Africa. Perhaps because some of them have been implemented for quite some time. Geography textbooks usually name two such roads that cross the continent from west to east in its widest southern part. This is the road that connects the Angolan port of Lobito with the Mozambican port of Beira. It passes through the territories of Angola, DR Congo, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Mozambique. Another road, more southerly, connects the port of Lüderitz in Namibia with the port of Durban in South Africa. After the construction of the already mentioned TANZAM highway, the Trans-African Highway, starting in Lobito, actually received another exit to the Indian Ocean in Dar es Salaam.
In connection with transcontinental highways, we can also mention pipeline transport, although gas pipelines from Algeria to Europe are rather intercontinental in nature. There is also a project for the construction of a trans-Saharan gas pipeline from Nigeria to Algeria and further to Europe with a length of 4,130 km and a throughput capacity of 30 billion m 3. Construction costs are estimated at $10–13 billion and completion is scheduled for 2013.
Rice. 160. Trans-African Highways
103. Sahel: disruption of ecological balance
The Sahel is the name given to the vast natural area in Africa located immediately south of the Sahara. Translated from Arabic, this word means “shore” - in this case, the southern “shore” (edge) of the greatest desert in the world. It stretches in a narrow (approximately 400 km) strip from the Atlantic coast to Ethiopia, including parts of Mauritania, Senegal, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger and Chad. Often the Sahel also includes the Gambia, Cape Verde and certain territories of Sudan, Ethiopia, Somalia, thereby extending this strip to Indian Ocean(Fig. 161). Depending on the accepted boundaries, the area of the Sahel is estimated differently: from 2.1 to 5.3 million km 2. Note that the second of these figures exceeds the entire area of foreign Europe.
Rice. 161. Sahel zone
Geographers dealing with the problems of the Sahel emphasize that the basis for identifying the Sahel zone is the climate criterion. Its northern boundary is usually considered to be an isoline of annual precipitation of 100–200 mm, and its southern boundary is 600 mm. In this interpretation, the Sahel is a zone of semi-deserts and deserted savannas, turning into typical savannas in the south. The average annual temperature here is 27–29 °C and hardly varies from month to month, and the seasons and agricultural seasons vary in rainfall. At the same time, the wet (summer) season usually does not last long, and 80–90% of the precipitation, having reached the surface of the earth, then evaporates. The dry season lasts from 8 to 10 months. It is especially noticeable in the northern part of the Sahel, where surface flow is represented only by temporary watercourses (wadis). In the rest of the region, the main sources of water are large rivers - Senegal, Niger, Shari, as well as lake. Chad. Recently, groundwater has become more widely used.
Rice. 162. Nomadic pastoralism in Chad
In such natural and climatic conditions, over the centuries, a traditional type of economic activity has developed, the basis of which is formed by nomadic and semi-nomadic cattle breeding. The livestock population in the Sahel numbers tens of millions of heads. In its northern semi-desert part these are mainly camels and sheep, in the southern part – cattle, sheep, and goats. During the short wet season, cattle graze in the northern part of the Sahel; during the dry season they are driven south (Fig. 162). In the south of the Sahel, rain-fed agriculture, combined with cattle breeding, is also common.
With this use of land, until recently it was possible to maintain a relative ecological balance. But in the second half of the 20th century. it turned out to be broken. Some scientists associate this with the onset of another dry climate era in the Sahel. But most people think that it is disturbance of ecological balance due to purely anthropogenic reasons. The analysis shows that among them three main ones can be distinguished.
As the first reason we will name population explosion, clearly manifested itself in the Sahel back in the 1960-1970s, when in all countries of this zone the average annual population growth increased to 2.5–3% per year or even more. It is known that at this rate of growth the population doubles every 23–28 years. And it is not surprising that in the early 1990s. The population of the ten Sahel countries reached 120 million, and by the end of the century exceeded 160 million people. This circumstance alone explains the sharp increase in “pressure” on land and other natural resources. Today, none of the countries in the Sahel zone provides food for its inhabitants.
The second reason can be called rapid increase in arable land and especially - number of livestock. This phenomenon is common in Africa, where livestock numbers increased from 270 million head in 1950 to 650 million head in the late 1990s. Because there is a shortage of feed grains, almost all cattle, as well as 230 million sheep and 200 million goats, are left almost entirely to transhumance. But this is most characteristic of the Sahel.
Local pastoralists are usually the ones most blamed for disturbing the ecological balance in the Sahel zone. There is even an expression: “A nomad is not so much a son as the father of the desert.” Indeed, back in the early 1980s. The total number of livestock, which in the Sahel serves as the main measure of wealth, was approximately three times higher than the norm allowed by the carrying capacity of pastures. Overgrazing began to lead to their rapid trampling, and loose sandy soils often turned into easily blown sand. But a significant part of the “blame” also lies with farmers, who not only began to plow the lands in the southern part of the Sahel, which previously served as winter pastures for nomads, but also began to move into the northern, drier part, where their summer pastures are located. As a result, a real struggle developed between nomads and farmers for water sources.
The third reason that needs to be mentioned is deforestation. Perhaps, in relation to the Sahel, where there are practically no forests, and usually only isolated groups of trees and shrubs grow, this term itself is somewhat arbitrary. But the greater the ecological danger posed by the removal of this sparse vegetation. It is used to feed livestock during the dry season. It is being destroyed due to the still widespread slash-and-burn farming system, when after several years of continuous use the area must be left fallow for 15–20 years.
An idea of such a field is given by a vivid description made by Yu. Nagibin in the book “My Africa”: “It smells of burnt, and here the fires are blazing. The savannah is burning, deliberately set on fire by peasants - here is slash-and-burn agriculture - or ignited itself. At night it all looks stunningly beautiful and alarming. Sometimes, when there is too much buzzing, crackling, breaking, groaning all around, and the flames, caught by the wind, live independently in the black space, horror rushes to the heart.”
But perhaps the main reason for deforestation in the Sahel is the use of wood and charcoal as fuel. The entire life of nine out of every ten residents of this zone depends on the availability of firewood for heating their homes and cooking. That is why women and children are forced to collect firewood every day, and at ever greater distances from villages. And around Bamako, Ouagadougou, Niamey and other cities, all tree and shrub vegetation has practically been eliminated. All this, naturally, caused a sharp increase in water and wind erosion.
The disruption of the ecological balance in the Sahel manifested itself primarily in an increase in the rate of desertification and more frequent droughts. The Sahara Desert is a natural desert, the origin of which is primarily due to certain climatic factors. But its movement to the south, into the Sahel zone, is primarily associated with human activity described above. It happened before. Let us recall the poem “Sahara” by N. Gumilyov, where there are the following lines:
'Cause the desert winds are proud
And they do not know the barriers of self-will,
Walls are being demolished, gardens and ponds are falling asleep
Poisoned with whitening salt.
As for the data on the speed of movement of the Sahara sands in a southern direction, they differ in different sources. More often they talk about progress of 1-10 km per year, but sometimes this figure is increased to 50 km. In any case, scientists believe that recently the border of the Sahara has moved south by 100–150 km. And sometimes we're talking about even about 300–350 km.
The main consequence of all these negative processes was drought. Over the past 400 years, they have occurred 22 times in the Sahel. Including in the first half of the 20th century. There were three significant droughts. But it seems that never before have they reached such strength as in 1968–1974 and 1984–1985. Both of these periods entered the history of Africa under the name "Sahel tragedy". Moreover, having started in the Sahel, they have spread to other areas of the continent.
During the drought of 1968–1974 Not a single rain fell in the Sahel. In its northern part, surface runoff disappeared completely, and in large rivers it was halved. The groundwater level has dropped and most wells have dried up. Lake surface Chad decreased by 2 / 3 . As a result, the productivity of pastures sharply decreased and food shortages occurred. The removal of trees and shrubs, whose leaves were used as feed for livestock, took on a wide scale, but this further worsened the environmental situation. The traditional migrations of pastoralists, who migrated to the southern regions of the Sahel, were disrupted. The loss of livestock began, the total number of which decreased by 30–40%, but in some areas by 80%; In total, about 20 million heads died. Harvests of consumer food crops have sharply decreased. As a result, famine began in the Sahel, claiming 250–300 thousand lives (according to other sources, about 2 million people died). The ruined nomads, and some farmers, poured into large cities, the population of which in a short time grew two to three times, exacerbating to the extreme many economic, social and ecological problems. Some nomads with their herds, fleeing the drought, even migrated to other countries: for example, from Burkina Faso and Mali to Cote d'Ivoire.
Drought 1984–1985 covered 24 African countries. In the spring of 1985, when it reached its peak, 30–35 million people were hungry on the continent, and the total number of hungry and malnourished people reached 150 million. This drought claimed more than 1 million lives and turned 10 million people into environmental refugees, some of whom were forced to seek refuge in neighboring countries - Ghana, Cote d'Ivoire, and Nigeria.
Naturally, African countries, and the entire world community, decided to accept measures to prevent similar tragedies in the future.
After the drought of 1968–1974 an international project was developed to restore the ecological (and economic) balance in the Sahel, presented at the Conference
UN on Desertification in Nairobi in 1977. He outlined the protection, restoration and more efficient use of natural food resources, improvement of livestock breeding methods, as well as agriculture in the Sahel. This plan also included the creation of an extensive green belt in the northern part of the Sahel zone. However, due to financial and other difficulties, it was far from being completed completely.
After the drought of 1984–1985 The UN has developed the UN Program of Action for economic development and African Recovery 1986-1990." A similar plan was prepared by the Organization African states. However, they were also not fully implemented. One of the main reasons was the lack of funds: of the $128 billion that the UN program was counting on, only 1/3 was obtained. But perhaps an even more important reason for failure should be considered the general economic backwardness of Tropical Africa, underdeveloped infrastructure, low level of development of the productive forces, poverty and misery of the bulk of the population, and financial debt to Western countries. By the beginning of the 1990s. The socio-economic situation of Tropical Africa, including the Sahel, has even worsened.
And in 1992, the whole world was shocked by the Somali disaster, caused not only by natural, but also by political reasons - a bloody feud between warring factions in the virtual absence of a central government. In Somalia, an entire people was on the verge of starvation, which forced the UN to undertake armed intervention in order to guarantee food supplies. It must also be borne in mind that, to escape famine, hundreds of thousands of Somalis fled to Eastern Ethiopia (Ogaden) and the border areas of Kenya.
This indicates that the deep crisis in the Sahel and throughout Tropical Africa is far from being overcome. The Permanent Interstate Committee for Drought Management in the Sahel recently prepared a new subregional environmental plan, but its implementation is hampered by a lack of funds.
104. Specially protected natural areas in Africa
The first protected areas in Africa appeared in the 1920s. XX century These were Albert National Park in the then Belgian Congo, Kruger National Park in South Africa. During the colonial period, parks also arose: Virunga on the border of the Belgian Congo and Rwanda-Urundi, Serengeti in Tanganyika, Tsavo in Kenya, Rwenzori in Uganda. After most African countries won independence, 25 more national parks immediately appeared on the mainland.
In 2001, according to UNEP data, which significantly refines the Rio-92 data, there were a total of 1,254 protected areas in Africa with a total area of 211 million hectares (7.1% of the continent’s territory). In terms of the number of protected areas, South Africa ranks first (673), followed by East Africa (208), West Africa (126), Western Indian Ocean Islands (121), Central Africa (70) and North Africa (56). Based on the area of protected areas, the subregions are arranged in a slightly different order: South Africa (98 million hectares), East Africa (42), Central Africa (33), West Africa (29.4), North Africa (7.3) and the islands of the western part Indian Ocean (1.3 million hectares). In terms of the share of protected areas in the total area, South Africa is also ahead (more than 14%).
Protected areas play important role in the conservation of the fauna and flora of Africa, which are under great threat, contribute to the development of recreation and tourism. As a rule, these are large unfenced areas where it is prohibited or at least severely limited economic activity people, including settlement and hunting. The most important national parks and reserves in Africa (as of the early 1990s) are shown in Figure 163.
Among the countries Eastern(and everyone) Africa Kenya takes first place in the number of national parks and reserves (Fig. 164), where they occupy 15% of the total territory.
Tsavo National Park, the largest in area, is located in the southern part of Kenya (over 2 million hectares). Lions, rhinoceroses (the image of a rhinoceros serves as the emblem of this park), giraffes, Kaf buffaloes, antelopes, various predators, and 450 species of birds are protected here. But this park is especially famous for its herd of elephants. In the south of Kenya there are also the Masai Mara Nature Reserve, which is a continuation of the Tanzanian Serengeti Park, and Nairobi National Park, where lions, buffaloes, hippos, giraffes, antelopes, gazelles, and zebras are found. And in the vicinity of Malindi, on the shores of the Indian Ocean, an underwater reserve was created in which marine fauna and coral reefs are protected.
Rice. 163. Reserves and national parks in Africa (according to T. V. Kucher)
In the middle part of Kenya, the most famous national park is on a shallow lake. Nakuru, located near the equator. It is distinguished primarily by the exceptional richness of its avifauna (more than 400 species of birds). “From a bird's eye view, Lake Nakuru is a fantastic sight: a yellowish mirror of water, framed by a dense green frame of coastal forest, covered with huge bright pink spots. Their shapes are constantly changing: the spots stretch, then shrink, and along the edges of the lake they thicken, forming a solid pink stripe, like the foam of a fabulous surf. If you look closely, you will notice that both the spots on the water surface and the wide strip of “foam” are made up of countless small pink dots. These are graceful, long-legged flamingos, of which there are more than a million.”
Rice. 164. National parks and reserves of Kenya
Annual income from tourism in Kenya exceeds $700 million. In addition, this country is widely known as a supplier of flowers to the world market. In terms of their exports, it ranks fourth in the world and first in Africa.
Among other countries in East Africa, Tanzania is especially famous for its protected areas. Here is the Serengeti National Park, covering an area of 1.3 million hectares, which is called the pearl in the necklace of African national parks.
In fact, you probably won’t see such huge concentrations of wild animals anywhere else - not only in Africa, but in the world. Here, on the vast expanses of the African savannah, more than a million large ungulates graze, and thousands of predators find food among their herds. Among the ungulates, the most numerous are wildebeest and zebras, and among predators are lions, leopards and hyenas. Elephants, buffalos, giraffes, hippos, rhinoceroses, and cheetahs also find refuge in the Serengeti Park. In 1959, the Ngoro-Ngoro reserve was separated from the Serengeti National Park, located in the crater of the same name at an altitude of about 2000 m. Its fauna resembles the fauna of the Serengeti. There is also a well-known national park on the lake nearby. Manyara.
IN South Africa The most famous are the national parks, reserves and reserves of South Africa, Namibia and Botswana. This is primarily the Kruger National Park in South Africa with an area of 1.8 million hectares with park savanna and valuable South African fauna. This is also the Kalahari-Gemsbok Park in Namibia (900 thousand hectares) and the giant Central Kalahari Reserve in Botswana, occupying 5.3 million hectares. To this list we must add the specially protected areas of Madagascar, where moist mountain forests and tropical rain forests (with the famous “travelers tree” and endemic fauna) are protected.
IN West Africa There are 30 national parks and 75 nature reserves, where the most characteristic forest landscapes (wet evergreen, deciduous, dry and savanna forests) and savanna landscapes with remarkable fauna are preserved. IN Central Africa The main protected areas are in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Zambia, and Angola. Among them, the Kafue National Park in Zambia, with an area of 2.2 million hectares, starting from the famous Victoria Falls, stands out in size. The Okapi faunal reserve in the DR Congo is widely known, where endangered species of primates and birds are found and another 5 thousand okapi out of 30 thousand currently existing in the world have been preserved. Several dozen national parks and reserves exist in North Africa. An example is the small Tazzeka Park in Morocco, where areas of Atlas cedar, evergreen oaks (including cork), juniper and endemic fauna are preserved.
Colorful descriptions of national parks and other protected areas in Africa can be found in the works of both domestic (A. G. Bannikov, N. N. Drozdov, S. F. Kulik) and foreign (B. Grzimek, R. Adamson) scientists. But they always draw attention to the fact that, despite the creation of a network of protected areas, the extermination of the richest animal and flora Africa continues.
This extermination began at the end of the 19th century, when big game hunters flocked from Europe to Africa, especially East Africa, creating special hunting expeditions - safaris. At that time, lion hunting became especially widespread. In the 20s XX century Americans laid the foundation for car safaris. As protected areas expanded, so did poaching. Both hunting and poaching have become especially widespread recently. Suffice it to say that only in 1980–1990. The number of African elephants exterminated for the purpose of obtaining tusks has decreased from 1.2 million to 75 thousand. In the national parks of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Cote d'Ivoire, and some other countries, there are almost no of them left. In the 1980s, in the world " "Poultry market" demand for birds from Africa, especially rare ones, has sharply increased. About 1.5 million of them come to European markets alone every year. Black rhinoceros also remains the object of illegal hunting.
Along with hunting and poaching, with the use of biological resources as food, the state of African fauna and flora is also negatively affected by such phenomena as destruction and loss of habitats as a result of desertification, deforestation, grass burning, overgrazing, water pollution, alienation of land under cultivation. different needs of people. As a result, by the beginning of the 20th century. In Africa, almost 300 species of mammals, 220 species of birds, 50 species of reptiles, and 150 species of fish were threatened with extinction. On the other hand, in some countries protective measures are already beginning to have a certain effect. For example, in Botswana, Namibia, and Zimbabwe, there has recently been a significant increase in the number of elephants.
105. World Heritage Sites in Africa
Africa had 115 World Heritage sites in 2008, or 12.8% of the world's total. According to this indicator, it was inferior not only to foreign Europe and foreign Asia, but also Latin America, however, in terms of the number of countries in which they are identified (33), it ranks second. In terms of the number of World Heritage sites on the continent, Tunisia and Morocco (8 each), Algeria, Egypt, Ethiopia and South Africa (7 each), and Tanzania (6) stand out.
Africa is also dominated by objects cultural heritage, of which there are 75. It is most expedient to distribute them into the following four eras: 1) ancient, 2) Ancient Egypt, 3) antiquity in North Africa and 4) the Middle Ages and modern times.
Ancient era is represented here by four archaeological sites located on the territory of Ethiopia and Libya.
Heritage civilizations of ancient egypt on the UNESCO List is reflected in three world-famous historical and architectural monuments. Firstly, this is the area of the city of Memphis, which was the capital of the country during the era of the Old Kingdom, with the necropolises surrounding it. Its core is the three “Great Pyramids” on the Cairo outskirts of Giza. Secondly, these are the remains of the second capital of Egypt - the city of Thebes, which was the capital during the eras of the Middle and New Kingdoms. This complex includes the temples of Karnak and Luxor and the Valley of the Kings, where the pharaohs were buried. Thirdly, these are the monuments of Nubia from Abu Simbel to Philae, dating back to the era of the New Kingdom. Most of them had to be moved to another location during the construction of the Aswan High Dam. Actually, this is where the compilation of the List of World Heritage Sites began.
Ancient Heritage of North Africa represented by objects located in all countries of this subregion. They can be divided into Phoenician (Carthage and Kerkuan in Tunisia), ancient Greek (Cyrene in Libya) and ancient Roman, which include the ruins of cities in Algeria (Tipasa, Timgad, Dzhemila), in Tunisia (Dugga), in Libya (Sabratha, Leptis- Magna), in Morocco (Volubilis).
Cultural heritage sites Middle Ages And new times most numerous. Among them, one can highlight objects of Arab-Muslim culture in North Africa (Fig. 165). The most famous are the numerous Muslim monuments of Cairo in Egypt, Tunis and Kairouan in Tunisia, Algeria and the oasis of Mzab (Ghardaya) in Algeria, Marrakesh and Fez in Morocco. Another group is formed by the Christian monuments of Ethiopia - Axum, Gondar, Lalibela. And in sub-Saharan Africa, two more groups of objects stand out. One of them relates to West Africa and reflects the cultural heritage of the medieval civilizations of this part of the continent (for example, Timbuktu and Djenné in Mali) or the legacy of the colonial era with its slave trade (More Island in Senegal, Elmina in Ghana). Another group of objects belongs to Southeast Africa (Zimbabwe, Tanzania and Mozambique). The most famous of them is Great Zimbabwe.
Rice. 165. Objects of Arab-Muslim culture in North Africa
Objects natural heritage in Africa 36. These are mainly national parks and reserves, including such famous ones as the Serengeti, Ngoro-Ngoro and Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, Rwenzori in Uganda, Mount Kenya in Kenya, Virunga, Garamba and Okapi in the DR Congo, Nikolo-Koba in Senegal, Drakensberg Mountains in South Africa.
There are also facilities in Algeria, Mali and South Africa cultural and natural heritage. The most famous of them is the Algerian Tassilien-Ajjer with rock paintings of the ancient inhabitants of the Sahara.
