East Africa

Overall physical geography

•East Africa, though on the same degree of latitude is cooler and drier than West Africa.•Deserts are common in East Africa and droughts are frequent.•The Great Rift Valley runs through East Africa and is its dominant landform.

East Africa Political Geography

Farming and fishing are common occupations, with very little industry or manufacturing

Islam is the dominant religion along the coastProbably the most unstable region in Africa with civil wars, poor governments, terrorist cells and

piracy in the Gulf of Aden

Three countries to focus on

✗Sudan✗Ethiopia✗Somalia

Sudan

Physical GeographyThird largest country in Africa, and 12th largest in

the world.Sudan is mostly flat plains

Desert dominates the North while the South is mostly rainforest and swamps

The White Nile and Blue Nile have their confluence in Sudan at Khartoum, the capital.

Sudan

Political GeographyOh my, is Sudan a mess!

Nearly 600 ethnicities in Sudan who speak over 400 languages and dialects in the country of about 40 million (best guess due to the last

census being in 1993)70 percent of the population is Muslim, 5 percent

Christian

Sudan Political Geography continued

Sudan is becoming a major oil exporter, with much of it going to China in exchange for small arms.

80% of Sudanese workers are in agriculture, most along the Nile.

Various civil wars and regional disputes have devastated Sudan since the early 1980's.

Sudan is one of only FOUR countries in the world that the US government calls “State Sponsors of Terrorism.”

State Sponsor of Terrorism explanation

"defined in this report as ungoverned, under-governed, or ill-governed areas of a country and non-physical areas where terrorists that constitute a threat to U.S. national security interests are able to

organize, plan, raise funds, communicate, recruit, train, and operate in relative security because of inadequate governance capacity, political

will, or both. Physical safe havens provide security for terrorist leaders, allowing them to plan acts of terrorism around the world."

Sudan Political Geography continued

Current leader of Sudan came to power in 1989 through an overthrow of the former prime

minister and has done everything possible since then to make himself a supreme autocratic

dictator in complete power for life.Many of Sudan's neighbors have poor relations

with them

Sudan Political Geography continued

Genocide in Darfur region. This song by Mattafix was dedicated to the Darfur refugees (click to

black box and click again)July 9th of last year, South Sudan became an

independent country, breaking away from Sudan.

Ethiopia

Physical GeographyEthiopia is mountainous in West, semi-desert

lowlands in the East.Lake Tana is the source of the Blue Nile.

Because of its high elevations, Ethiopia is cooler than most parts of the world at a similar line of

latitude.Deforestation is a major concern in Ethiopia.

Political GeographyCoffee was first grown in Ethiopia and is its

largest export today.10th largest producer of livestock in the world.

Ethiopia is making efforts to become one of the world's largest flower and plant exporters in the

world.Ethiopia's water resources are described as its

“white oil” and its coffee production as its “black gold.”

Ethiopia Political Geography continued

Ethiopia's population has more than doubled in the last 25 years or so, going from about 33

million in the mid 80's to over 75 million today.Ethiopia was one of the first countries in the

world to officially adopt Christianity, doing so in the 4th century. It remains the majority religion

today, but Islam is fast growing there.

Ethiopia Political Geography Continued

Life expectancy is only about 45 in Ethiopia.High infant mortality rate due to few trained

doctors.

There are more Ethiopian doctors in Chicago, Illinois than there are in ALL of Ethiopia, a country of over 75 million!

•Somalia

Did I say Sudan was a mess?? Somalia makes Sudan look like

Disneyland!

•Somalia Physical Geography

• Somalia has the longest coastline of any African country.

• Somalia is plains, plateaus, highlands and semi-desert.

• Like some parts of West Africa, it has rainy and dry seasons, but is much hotter on average.

•Somalia Political Geography● Somalia is one of the poorest and most violent

countries in the world.

● Somalia has not had a truly functioning government since 1991.

● Crippling poverty and lack of governmental intervention has led to widespread criminal activity making Mogadishu one of the most dangerous places on Earth.

Somali PiratesWhen the government broke down in the early 1990’s, there was no authority to protect the waters in the Indian Ocean

belonging to Somalia.The first pirates may have been attempting to stop illegal fishing and dumping off the

coast of their country.Now, there are powerful groups that are heavily armed taking advantage of the

situation to enrich themselves.

•Key things to know about East Africa

Cooler and wetter than the WestIslam still dominant, but not as much in NorthNile River is the major water sourceGreat Rift Valley is the major landformMost unstable of the five regionsDarfur region of Sudan is experiencing genocideSouth Sudan will gained independence last July.Somali pirates are a result of no government

The End!