1. Chapter 23
Central Africa

2. Section 1
Physical Geography

3. Physical Features
 Borders Atlantic Ocean
 Borders Western Rift Valley
 High Mts.
 Biggest rivers in Africa

4. Landforms
– The Congo Basin
 Basin; flat region surrounded by higher land such as
mountains and plateaus
– Western Rift Valley
 Highest mountain is 16,700 feet
– Lake Tanganyika, Lake Malawi

5. Rivers
– The Congo River
 Fed by thousands of smaller rivers
– Waterfalls & rapids make it impossible
for ships to travel from Central Africa
to Atlantic Ocean
– The Zambezi River
 Zambezi is famous for Victoria Falls

6. Climates, Vegetation, and
Animals
 Humid tropical climate in the Congo Basin and on the
Atlantic coast
– Warm temps & lots of rain
– dense, tropical rain forest
– Animal like: antelopes, hyenas, elephants, okapis, insects, birds,
monkeys, bats, and snakes are found here
– Trees form a canopy, preventing much life on the rain forest floor
 Tropical savanna climate found north and south of the
basin
– Distinct dry & wet seasons
– grasslands, scattered trees, & shrubs
 Highland climate found in the high eastern mountains
 Dry steppe and deserts in the far south

7. Resources
 Tropical Environment good for growing crops
– Most are subsistence farmers
– Moving towards growing crops for sale
 Tropical Forests
– Provides timber
– Rivers provide way to travel & trade & hydroelectricity
 Oil, natural gas, and coal
 Minerals: copper, uranium, tin, zinc, diamonds, gold, and
cobalt
 Subsistence farmers
– Some beginning to grow more crops for sale
 Crops: coffee, bananas, & corn
– Sold in periodic markets: open air markets set up at
crossroads or in a town

8. Section 2
History & Culture

9. History
 Early humans lived in central Africa thousands of
years ago
 2,000 years ago new peoples migrated & formed several
kingdoms
– Kongo Kingdom most important
 Est. trade routes
 Europeans
– Came in 1400s for forest products & other resources like
ivory
– Also traded for slaves
 Kingdoms were weakened and destroyed by
Europeans
– region was divided into colonies in the late 1800s by the
France, Portugal, Britain, Spain, Belgium, & Germany
– Borders created ignored homelands of Africa’s ethnic groups
 Each had different languages, ways of life, & resulted in conflicts

10. Modern Central Africa
 Independence came after WWII
– Some fought bloody wars to gain
independence
 Many ethnic groups continued to fight even
after independence
 Became battleground of the Cold War
between U.S. & Soviet Union
– Many people died and great damage was
caused

11. Culture
 100 million people in Central Africa
 Many different ethnic groups w/ different
customs

12. People & Languages
 Hundreds of different languages & dialects
– Due to number of ethnic groups
 Official languages are European
– French, English, Spanish, Portuguese
 Religion
– Influenced by colonial history
– Roman Catholic, Protestant Christianity, traditional African
religions, Christian, Muslim, & Hindu are the practiced religions of
Central Africa
 The Arts
– Influenced by traditional cultures
– Famous for sculpture, carved wooden masks, & cotton gowns dyed
in bright colors
– Popular styles of music & dance

13. Section 3
Central Africa Today

14. Countries of Central Africa
 Most are very poor
 Years of colonial rule & civil war
– Struggling to build stable gov’ts & strong
economies

15. Democratic Republic of the
Congo
 Former Belgian colony
Former Belgian colony
– Many Belgians left after independence (few doctors,
teachers, & other professionals remained)
 Ethnic conflicts after independence
– Caused country to remain poor
 Joseph Mobutu
– a dictator, came to power in 1965
– Changed the country’s name to Zaire in 1971 & his name to
Mobutu Sese Seko
– Country suffered from economic problems & political
corruption during his rule
 Mobutu became very wealthy & used violence against those who
challenged him
 After a civil war in 1997 a new government took over
– Name changed to the Democratic Republic of the Congo
 Fighting between ethnic groups has continued

16.  Treasure chest of minerals & tropical resources
 South is part of central Africa’s rich copper belt
 Gold, diamonds, & cobalt
 Tropical rain forests supply wood, food, rubber, &
other products
 Civil war, bad government, & crime have scared
many foreign businesses away
 Countries rich resources have helped few people

17. The People
 Most are poor
 Live in rural areas & farm and trade for food
 Many people live in Kinshasa, the capital &
largest city
– Along Congo River; crowded; consists of poor
slum areas mainly

18. Central African Republic &
Cameroon
 Central African Republic
– Struggled w/ military coups, corrupt leaders, & improper
elections
– Weak economy
– Most people are farmers
– Diamonds & gold present, but no railroads or ports to
transport resources for export
– Receives some aid from foreign countries
 Cameroon
– Fairly stable Republic (president is elected & holds most
power)
– Economy is growing
– Oil reserves & farming support economy
– Good roads & railways people w/ transportation needs
–

19. Equatorial Guinea & Sao Tome
and Principe
 Equatorial Guinea
– Divided between mainly & 5 islands
– Republic w/ elections (possibly flawed though,
same president for 25 years)
– Recent oil discovery, but living conditions for
most are still poor
 Sao Tome & Principe
– Struggled w/ political stability
– Poor country w/ few resources
– Produces cacao, but has to import food

20. Gabon & Republic of the Congo
 Gabon
– 1 president since 1967
– Economy provides highest standard of living in
region
– ½ of country’s income comes from oil
 Republic of the Congo
– Much of income comes from oil
– Income from forest products
– Civil war in last 1990s hurt economy
– Mostly urban

21. Angola
 Civil war following independence from
Portugal
– Ended in 2002
 Now republic w/ elected president
 Economy is struggling
 85% rely of subsistence farming for income
– Land mines from civil war makes farming
dangerous
 High rate of inflation has also hurt economy

22. Zambia & Malawi
 Zambia
– 85% of workers are farmers
– Rich copper mines
– Economy growing slowly
– High levels of debt & inflation
 Malawi
– Most farm for a living
– 75% live in villages in rural areas
– Aid from foreign countries & religious groups
help economy

23. Issues & Challenges
 Unstable governments & poor economies
– Have been either cause or effect of other issues
& challenges in the region
 Ethnic & Regional Conflict
– Mixing of ethnic groups & competing for power
has resulted in civil wars
 Thousands killed, contributed to poor economies,
land destroyed, & other resources destroyed

24.  Health
– Malaria: kills many people (1 child every 30
seconds)
– International health organizations trying to
control malaria
 Use nets & medicine, but both are expensive
– HIV
 Causes AIDS
 Hundreds of thousands die each year
 No cure & medicines are expensive

25. Resources & Environment
 To help economy & people
– Develop natural resources more effectively
 Food production has declined in some areas (does
not support growing population) resulting in food
shortages & malnutrition
– Manage the environment
 Industries are destroying the environment
– Cutting down forests and mining diamonds & copper
 National parks have been set up to protect
the environment