Central Africa has diverse physical geography including borders with the Atlantic Ocean and Western Rift Valley, mountains, and major rivers like the Congo River and Zambezi River. The region has a variety of climates from tropical rainforests to savannas. Central Africa struggles with political instability, poverty, and ethnic conflicts since independence despite having natural resources like minerals, oil, and forests. Major issues include unstable governments, regional conflicts, health challenges like malaria and HIV/AIDS, and sustainable development of resources while protecting the environment.

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