Africa: The Parts of The Whole!

To simplify our discussions on Africa, let’s break her down into various regions

Northern Africa
Going through Africa from the North to the South, you will first encounter six arab-berber countries: Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt and Mauritania. Unlike the diversity of their eastern neighbors, the countries of Northwest Africa share certain geographical and cultural patterns. Nearly all of them have a rich fertile strip of land on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea or Atlantic Ocean ( on which the bulk of their populations live), behind which there are rugged mountains and, further inland, endless stretches of the Sahara Desert. The vast majority of people are Sunni (Orthodox) Muslims and the official language of every country is Arabic. Most remarkable destinations are Cairo with its pyramids, Luxor with its valley of Kings, the medieval cities of Morocco such as Marrakesh and Fez and the cities of Tangier, Rabat and Casablanca. Below, you will find the Sahel region. The countries are predominantly Muslim, but African heritage with its influence dominates.

Northwest Africa (also called the Maghreb) is rich in historical traditions. There is ample evidence to prove that the region has been inhabited since remote antiquity, and in nearly every country, prehistoric cave paintings have been discovered in the desert. It was from this region that the famous Carthaginian general, Hannibal , launched his nearly successful invasion of ancient Rome (218-203 B.C.). In fact many fine examples of Roman architecture and art are preserved in this part of Africa. Under the Roman Empire, Christianity took root in the region and several of the Church Fathers, including St. Augustine of Hippo, were native Africans.

In the seventh century A.D., Muslim armies from Arabia dislodged the forces of the Romans' successors, the Byzantines, from northwestern Africa. The region became linked culturally to the Islamic lands to the east, as well as to Muslim Spain. Yet the indigenous population, though converted to Islam, did not abandon its own language and culture. Trade with western sub-Saharan Africa and with western Sudan brought wealth to the Islamic dynasties of northern Africa and introduced Islam and its art and architecture to these areas. Much of the trade was conducted by Saharan nomads - the Arabic-speaking "Moors" of the western Sahara and the Tuareg of the central and southern Sahara - using camels, which had become a means of transport at the end of the Roman period. While early objects have been preserved in urban centers, the rural arts of the nomads living in mountain and desert regions were documented by ethnographers only in the late-nineteenth and twentieth centuries.

The Sahel is the strip of land that separates savanna from the desert. Sahel comes from the Arabic word for "edge" or "border" because it is the edge of the desert. The Sahel is shrinking at an alarming rate. Animals have been allowed to graze on its fragile land, which has destroyed the vegetation. The people who live along the Sahel have caused it to shrink by cutting trees and bushes for fuel. Without the trees and bushes to hold it in place, the thin topsoil is of the Sahel blown away, leaving stony land where neither grass nor crops can grow. The Sahara and the Kalahari Desert creep one hundred miles closer to one another every year as desertification and erosion spread.

Western Africa
Over three thousand years ago there were two important developments in West Africa: long distance trade, and the ability to manipulate stone, clay and metals to sophisticated degree. The peoples of the Atlantic coast of western Africa, from Cameroon to Senegal and as far inland as the Savanna, have developed sophisticated art traditions. Many languages are spoken in western Africa. The Bantu language probably spread from the Nigeria-Cameroon border over much of Africa south of the Sahara. Ironworking technology probably dispersed from the same area, although its origin may have been farth er north or east.

Some countries in West Africa have relatively few tourists which in most cases are due to political turmoil, but Senegal (including the famous Dakar), Ghana, The Gambia and the country of Mali with places like Timbuktu, Segou and Mopti, are among the most visited countries in this region. Mali offers the best "Rock Climbing" sites in the world and Guinea/Conakry is a hidden pearl of Africa with the Fouta Djalon and Guinee Forestiere. Senegal, Sierra Leone, Ivory Coast, Liberia and Ghana have suprising beautiful beaches. Togo is a gem under the West African countries and so is Benin and the Ivory coast. Nigeria has many sights but travelling there can be a "pain in the ...". Togo is among the top ten world producers of chemical furtilizers. Ivory Coast and Ghana are considered to be the biggest cocoa producers in the world. Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea have huge deposits of quality diamonds and Liberia is the biggest rubber producer in the world, and Guinea 2nd biggest bauxite producer.

West Africa, with an area of over 2.5 million square miles and estimated population of 250 million, is comparable in size and people to the continental USA. It is the most densely populated region of Africa despite the fact that millions of people were forcibly taken from her shores during the tragic period of the Slave Trade. People of African descent in the Caribbean, Central, South and North America have all have roots deeply planted in West Africa. The geography of the region is consistent. The Atlantic coastal area, thickly vegetated and tropical, gives rise to low mountains in the interior. Beyond these lies a great flat grasslands (savannah) similar to those of East Africa, but settled by millions of people who cleared the land of vast animal herds long ago. The savannah gradually gives way to semi-desert (sahel) and then the Sahara itself. There are many rivers and waterways in West Africa, the largest being the Niger, Senegal, Volta, and Benue Rivers. After the rainy season, a huge floodplain is formed on the western Niger River that is the size of Portugal. Agriculture and trade have been widespread in this very wide region for centuries. Horses, donkeys and camels were used in grassland and sahel regions.

West Africa has seen the rise and fall of many empires and states, and has over 100 historic urban centers. Several of these empires­, Takur (ca.600-800 A.D.), Ghana (700-1200 A.D.), Mali (1237-1450 A.D.), Songhai (1460-1591 A.D.), and Kanem-Bornu (1348-1890) encouraged the spread of trade and Islam over a long period of time. Over half of the people of West Africa are muslims. Traditional African religions are strong and historic in West Africa. The Asante Empire (ca.1690-1900 A.D.) , Yoruba Kingdoms (ca.1400-1830), Mossi (1200-1900 A.D.) were powerful states in the forested regions and the high grasslands.

Central Africa
The most conspicuous geographical characteristic of central Africa is the huge saucerlike area drained by the Zaire River (formerly called the Congo) and its tributaries. To the north are great forests. The south is more sparsely forested, with open and wooded savannas. The population includes many agriculturists, who keep some animals as well, although, in distinction to eastern and southern Africa, cattle are not herded here. Some peoples of the region practice fishing and trapping; a few are nomadic hunters and gatherers. A vast region stretches across the middle of Africa that we call Equatorial and East Africa. This area straddles the Equator and features several distinct types of land. Most of equatorial Africa, or land near the equator, is a lush, tropical rainforest. The Congo (Zaire) River Basin, is the second largest tropical rainforest in the world after that of the Amazon. The riches of its unparalleled biodiversity remain largely unexplored. The forest is a vital resource for the people who live in and around it; exploited rationally, it can be a real vector for development. But it is also an ensemble whose stability depends on the multitude of inter—relationships between plants and animals. Loss of the latter impoverishes the forest and impairs its capacity to regenerate. The rainforest is hot and wet; an average of more than 70 inches of rain falls annually. The rainforest is home to some of the world's most important vegetation because it provides oxygen to the entire planet, and keeps the earth's temperature from rising. If the earth's temperature rises, even by a few degrees, the ice near the north and south poles will melt and the oceans will rise.

Central Africa has seen the rise of many kingdoms, mostly in the period before European contact. Some, such as the Chokwe and Kongo kingdoms, seem not to have lasted long after the arrival of Europeans. Others, such as the Luba, Kuba, and Lunda, also precolonial in origin, have lasted well into this century. All developed royal arts related to the political and religious sources of leadership.

Central Africa is a fertile area, rich in mineral deposits. Here a number of states emerged with sophisticated metal working techniques after 1000 AD in what is referred to as the 'late iron age.' To the East, between the rivers Zambezi and Limpopo, the grassland zone was rich in cattle, and gold. A distinctive and elaborate form of pottery was made. By the 13th century an empire known as Great Zimbabwe emerged, which left stone ruins of what must have been a spectacular fortified palace.

Central Africa also, has had its trouble in recent years, which is the reason why many travellers ignore countries such as the Central African Republic, Rwanda and DR Congo (formerly known as Zaire). Central African Republic is famous for its unique butterfly-wing-art.

Eastern Africa
East Africa is a real treat. Ethiopia with its ancient civilization and spectacular mountain scenery and Kenya and Tanzania with their great game wildlife parks are a topper for travellers. East Africa is characterized by large elevated savannah-type grasslands. The Atlantic coast area is a leading producer of crude oil in Africa. The staple food of East Africa is Ugali: a traditional dish which is made by mixing maize or cassava flour (or a mixture of both) in hot water until it becomes stiff. It is then eaten with a meat, fish or vegetable sauce, using the fingers to dip lumps of Ugali in the relish. The Great Rift Valley of East Africa is an enormous split torn in the Earth's crust that runs from the forests of Tanzania to the deserts of Ethiopia. In some places, the rift is thousands of feet deep. The result is a stunning landscape. There are places along the rift where the walls of the valley are more than a mile high.

Eastern Africa is geographically complex, ranging from the mountains of central Ethiopia to coastal plains and offshore islands. Farther inland are the great lakes of Africa, forests, and the Rift Valley, the cradle of humankind. Tools and fossil remains of the earliest humans have been found in an area that extends from the Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania and northward into Ethiopia. Much more recently, eastern Africa has, like much of the continent, witnessed migrations and population displacements, which have created an area that is culturally and linguistically complex. The incursion of Bantu peoples from the west displaced earlier hunter-gatherers.

The Swahili is the name given to the coastal people who historically could be found as far North as Mogadishu (Somalia) and as far south as the Rovuma River (Mozambique). They share a common language, widely spoken by non-Swahilis, called Ki-Swahili, and enjoy a city-based fusion of African and Arab culture.

Southern Africa
Most of Southern Africa is situated on a high, rugged plateau. The average elevation is 3,000 feet above sea level. In addition there are great deserts, the Namib of Namibia and the Kalahari of Botswana. In coastal regions on both the Atlantic Ocean and Indian Ocean sides, there are fertile farmlands. But the mountains predominate and, like so many other parts of Africa, this area is rich in minerals. Most of the gold and diamonds mined in the world come from this region of Africa.

The south is getting more popular. South Africa is a marvellous country and definitely deserves a visit. A trip there can be combined with Botswana, Zimbabwe and Namibia which are equally fascinating destinations. The best-known arts of southern Africa are the rock paintings and engravings that were produced by the San peoples and are found mostly in the eastern mountainous regions. With the exception of rock painting and engraving, the arts of southern Africa have tended to be underrated and underreported outside the area. The region's impressive stone ruins, especially those of Great Zimbabwe, were long attributed to outsiders on the assumption that Africans were incapable of producing such imposing architecture. Recently, however, it has been clearly established that these sites are African in origin and concept. The inland trading empires that produced them, such as that of the Shona, the builders of Great Zimbabwe, were supported by the Indian Ocean gold trade. In the early part of the 19th century the history of southern Africa is marked by the massive expansion of the Nguni empire under the military leadership of Shaka.

Yours Truly,
Ferdinand Che