AFRICA : THE EMERGING CONTINENT

BACKGROUND :

AREA : 30,370,000 KM SQUARE

POPULATION : 1, 275, 920,972 Billion

COUNTRIES : 54

RELIGION : CHRISTIANITY (49%)

                    ISLAM (42%)

                    TRADITIONAL FAITHS (6%)

                    UNAFFILIATED (2%)

                    OTHERS (<1%)

Africa is the world’s second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia  in both cases. 

At about 30.3 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth’s  total surface area and 20% of its land area.Its population is about  1.3 billion people as of 2018, it accounts for about 16% of the world’s human population. 

Africa’s population is the youngest amongst all the continents; the median  age in 2012 was 19.7, when the worldwide median age was 30.4.

Despite a wide range of natural resources, Africa is the least wealthy continent per capita, in part due to geographic impediments, legacies of European colonisation in Africa, corruption  among the political class,Civil War and political instability.

In spite of the low concentration of wealth, recent economic expansion and the large and young population make Africa an important economic market in the broader global context.

Africa is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, the Isthmus of Suez  and the Red Sea to the northeast, the Indian Ocean  to the southeast and the Atlantic Ocean to the west.  It contains 54 fully recognised countries , 8 territories and 2 de facto independent state with limited or no recognition . 

  Algeria is the largest country by area while Nigeria is the largest by population.African nations cooperate through the establishment of the African Union formerly known as Organisation of Africa Unity, which is headquartered in Addis Ababa,Ethiopia. 

 With the world’s largest free trade area and a 1.3 billion-person market, the continent is creating an entirely new development path, harnessing the potential of its resources and people.

The region is composed of low, lower-middle, upper-middle, and high-income countries, 18 of which are fragile or conflict-affected. Africa also has 13 small states, characterised by a small population, limited human capital, and a confined land area.

Africa is home to some of the world’s great civilizations including Ancient Egypt which ruled for over 3000 years and built the Great Pyramids. 

The Mali Empire, the Songhai Empire, and the Kingdom of Ghana are other good example of civilisation from the continent. Africa is also home to some of the oldest discoveries of human tools and possibly the oldest people group in the world in the San people of Southern Africa. Today, some of the world’s fastest growing 

economies (2019 GDP) come from Africa with the two largest economies in Africa being Nigeria and South Africa.

FUN FACTS :

• Africa is the world’s second largest and second most populous continent.

• Africa has population of 1.3 billion people according to the World Bank report in 2018.

• Africa account for about  16% of the world’s human population.

• In some African states, more than half the population is under 25 years of age.

• Its average age is the youngest amongst all the continents.

• Area is 30,370,000 km square.

• There are about 54 countries in Africa.

• Africa’s longest river is the Nile; it is with 6,695 km, also the longest river in the world.

• Lake Victoria is the largest of the African Great Lakes and the second-largest freshwater lake in the world. The source of the Nile River has a surface area of 68,800 km².

• Africa’s highest mountain is located is Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania.Its height is 19,340 feets. The mountain has 3 volcanic cones Kibo, Mawenzi and Shira. Uhuru Peak on Kibo is the mountain’s highest point. 

• The Batian peak of Mount Kenya at 3,825 m (12,549 ft)  is Africa’s second-highest mountain.The richest man from Africa is Alhaji  Aliko Dangote from Nigeria with estimated net worth of over $12 Billion .

• Algeria is the Africa’s largest country by area while Nigeria remain the most populous country in the entire Africa.
• Africa has over a thousand five hundred different languages across the countries.
• Africa Union has its Headquarters in  Addis Ababa

MAJOR CITIES :

•   Cairo : Egypt

•   Lagos : Nigeria

•     Cape Town : South Africa

•     Kinshasa : Democratic Republic of Congo

•     Johannesbourg : South Africa

•     Khartoun :  Sudan

•     Durban :South Africa

•     Alexandria : Egypt

•     Abidjan :Cote d’Ivoire

•     Casablanca : Morocco

•     Abuja : Nigeria

MAJOR RIVERS, LAKES  AND THIER BASIN COUNTRIES

• Nile River :  Egypt

• Niger River : Nigeria

• Congo River : DRC

• Zambezi River :  Zambia, Angola,Namibia, Botwana, Zimbabwe and Mozambique

• Lake Victoria :  Tanzania,Uganda and Kenya

• Lake Tanganyika :  Tanzania,DRC,Burundi and Zamibia

• Lake Nyasa :  Malawi

DIFFERENT  GEOGRAPHICAL ZONES IN AFRICA

NORTH AFRICA :

This refer to the areas of Africa along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea except for Sudan.

There are 6 countries in Northern  Africa and one disputed territory,Western Sahara.According to United Nations population division, its population is estimated to be 242 million as at 2019. 

 North Africa countries are  Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco,Sudan, Tunisia and Western Sahara. 

WEST AFRICA :

This areas  is mostly refer to the  countries that  are on the North of the Gulf of Guinea in the north-western part of the continent.

These countries  are located  in the southern part of  what is popularly called the “Hump of Africa”.It is bounded in the north by the Sahara desert and Sahel zone.

There are 16 countries in West Africa and one British overseas territory, Saint Helena, its population as at 2019 by United Nations stood at 392 million. 

The countries are. Burkina Faso,Cape Verde,Cote d’Ivoire, Gambia,Ghana, Guinea,Guinea-Bissau,Liberia,Mali,Mauritania,Niger,Nigeria,Saint Helena, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Togo.

CENTRAL AFRICA :

This zone is also known to be Middle Africa as used by the UN. It’s the zone that has tropical  central portion of the African continent.There are 9 countries in this zones including one island.

The countries are  Angola,Cameroon,Central Africa Republic,Chad,,Congo,DRC, Equatorial Guinea,Gabon and Sao Tome & Principe. Population is estimated  to be 174 million as at 2019 according to the UN population division.

EAST AFRICA :

This is refers as the eastern zone of the Africa continent, There are 19 countries in this zone which includes Madagascar other, smaller  islands.It population is estimated to be 445 million people.

The countries present are  Burundi,Comoros,Djibouti,Eritrea,Ethiopia, Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Reunion, Rwanda, Seychelles, Somalia ,South Sudan , Tanzania,Uganda,Zambia and Zimbabwe.

SOUTH AFRICA :

 This is the southern zone  of the African continent, bordered by the South Atlantic Ocean in the west and the Indian Ocean in the east.There are 5 countries

 In this zones and its population is estimated to be about 67 million people.The countries are Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, South Africa and Swaziland.

THE GOOD :

• Africa is rich in natural resources ranging from arable land, water, oil, natural gas, minerals, forests and wildlife. The continent holds a huge proportion of the world’s natural resources, both renewables and non-renewables.

• Its home to some 30 per cent of the world’s mineral reserves.

• Africa posses 8% of the world’s natural gas.

• It has 12% of the world’s oil reserves.

• The continent has 40 per cent of the world’s gold and up to 90 per cent of its chromium and platinum. 

• The largest reserves of cobalt, diamonds, platinum and uranium in the world are sitting in Africa.

• Africa holds 65 per cent of the world’s arable land.

• It posses 10 per cent of internal renewable fresh water source.

Africa’s entertainment industry has caught the attention of the world with its rich culture, original stories, unique music, and fierce women. Many entertainers from the continent have rose to stardom with global audience   in recent years, showcasing Africa culture the continent and collaborating  with the world best.

There are so many talented young Africans in the creative and entertainment  Industry.We simply can’t name them all, some of them include, Tuface Idibia, DBANJ, Don Jazzy, Burna Boy, Whizkid, Davidi, Tiwa Salvage ,Simi, Adekunle Gold,Prof. Wole Soyinka, Chimamanda Adichie all from Nigeria, Dianmond  Platnumz from Tanzania, Mwila Musonda from Zambia Angelique Kidjo from Benin, Trevor Noah from South Africa,Lola Monroe from Ethiopia,Terry Pheto from South Africa.etc.

Some other influential Africans are Tony Elumelu from Nigeria, Abubacarr Tambadou from  from Gambia, Jean-Jacques Muyembe Tamfum from DRC,Dr Tunji Funsho. They are among the world’s most influential people of Africa origin  according to the TIME magazine’s world most influential people 2020.

THE BAD : 

 Slavery had long been practiced in Africa.Between the 15th and the 19th centuries, the Atlantic slave trade took an estimated 7–12 million slaves to the New World.

In addition, more than 1 million Europeans were captured by Barbary Pirates and sold as slaves in North Africa between the 16th and 19th centuries.

Africa has  about 15.2 percent of the world’s population, some 35 million people are HIV/AIDS  infected, of whom 15 million have already died of the disease.