93. Division of Africa into subregions

As already mentioned, Africa forms the largest geographical region on the planet. Therefore, it is quite natural to strive to subdivide it into separate large parts. In its most general form, this usually leads to the isolation Northern And Tropical Africa(or sub-Saharan Africa). Between these two parts there are quite sharp natural, historical, ethnic, and even socio-economic differences. Especially when you consider that Tropical Africa is the most backward region of the entire developing world, in which even today the share agriculture in education, GDP exceeds the share of industrial production. Of the world's 47 least developed countries, 28 are in sub-Saharan Africa. Here - greatest number landlocked countries (15). A kind of modification of this two-member division is the three-member division of Africa into Northern, Tropical And Southern, which, apparently, should be considered more correct.

As for the actual regionalization, i.e., the division of Africa into separate fairly large subregions (macroregions), then in fact its five-member division is generally accepted - into Northern, Western, Central, Eastern and Southern. Moreover, each of the five subregions has specific features of nature, population and economy.

North Africa goes to the Atlantic Ocean, the Mediterranean and the Red Seas, and this contributed to its long-standing connections with Europe and Western Asia. It is located mostly in subtropical latitudes, which determines the specialization of its agriculture in the production of cotton, olives, citrus fruits, and grapes. Industry is associated with both the extraction of mineral raw materials and their processing. North Africa is inhabited predominantly by Arabic-speaking peoples who have rich traditions in crafts, irrigated agriculture, nomadic livestock farming, and a unique culture. Sometimes North Africa is also called the Maghreb, but this is not entirely accurate.

West Africa covers zones of tropical deserts, savannas, and moist equatorial forests located between the Sahara Desert and the Gulf of Guinea. It is one of the continent's largest subregions in terms of area and population, with an extraordinary diversity of natural conditions; The ethnic composition of its population is also the most complex. In the past it was a major slave trading area. The modern “face” of the subregion is determined both by agriculture, which is represented by the production of plantation cash and consumer crops, and by a fairly developed industry, primarily mining.

Central Africa, as its name itself shows, it occupies the central (equatorial) part of the continent. It is located in zones of humid equatorial forests and savannas, which largely predetermined its economic development. This is one of the richest areas in various mineral resources not only in Africa, but throughout the world. Unlike West Africa, it has a homogeneous ethnic composition of the population, 9/10 of which are related Bantu peoples.

East Africa located in subequatorial and tropical climate zones. It has access to the Indian Ocean and has long supported trade relations with India and Arab countries. Its mineral wealth is less significant, but the overall diversity of natural resources is very large, which largely determines the variety of types of their economic use. The ethnic composition of the population is also very mosaic.

South Africa occupies the southern part of the continent, the farthest from Europe, America and Asia, but facing that important world sea ​​route, which goes around the southern tip of Africa. It is located in tropical and subtropical latitudes Southern Hemisphere and also has a wide range of natural resources, among which mineral ones stand out. The main “core” of South Africa is formed by the Republic of South Africa - the only economically developed country on the continent with a significant population of European origin. The overwhelming majority of the population of the subregion are Bantu peoples.

Rice. 143. Subregions of Africa (according to Yu. D. Dmitrevsky)

Approximately this regionalization scheme was and is followed by the majority of domestic African geographers: M. S. Rozin, M. B. Gornung, Yu. D. Dmitrevsky, Yu. G. Lipets, A. S. Fetisov, etc. However, in drawing specific boundaries individual subregions there is by no means complete unity between them.

While exploring the mineral wealth of Africa, M. S. Rozin back in the early 1970s. traditionally considered North Africa as part of five countries, but included Zambia, closely related to Zaire in terms of mineral resources, in Central Africa, and Mozambique in Eastern Africa. In the mid-1970s. in his monograph on Africa, Yu. D. Dmitrevsky identified not even five, but six macroregions, distinguished by significant internal homogeneity (Fig. 143). It is easy to see that he identified the East African island region as the sixth macroregion. As for the macro-regions on the mainland, noteworthy is the strong “cutback” of the Central subregion, as well as the inclusion of Egypt in the North-East and Angola in South Africa. In the early 1980s. M. B. Gornung proposed a regionalization grid in which Sudan, Western Sahara and Mauritania - which can be justified primarily from an ethnographic point of view - were included in North Africa, which thus became the largest subregion by area. East Africa was greatly reduced in size, but included Zambia. In the mid-1980s. Moscow State University geographers proposed their own version of zoning, which differed from the previous one in such significant details as the inclusion of not only Zambia, but also Zimbabwe and Mozambique in East Africa, and Mauritania in West Africa. Some of these regionalization grids have found application in educational literature, primarily in textbooks for universities and pedagogical universities, as well as in popular science publications, for example, in the 20-volume geographical and ethnographic series “Countries and Peoples.”

Rice. 144. Subregions of Africa identified by the UN Economic Commission for Africa

Such discrepancies in the regionalization of Africa can be considered to some extent natural. Moreover, they are explained not so much by differences in the goals of individual scientists, but by the general insufficient development of scientific approaches to such regionalization. It also stems from a particularly complex combination of various natural resource, historical, ethnic, socio-economic, and geopolitical factors in Africa. It is also necessary to take into account that the process of forming integrated economic regions here is still in its early stages.

Table 49

SUBREGIONS OF AFRICA

* Including SADR.

Recently, domestic African geographers in their research are increasingly using the scheme of macroeconomic regionalization of Africa, which is now adopted by the UN, or more precisely, by its Economic Commission for Africa (ECA). This scheme is also five-membered and covers the same five regions (Fig. 144). For their development, ECA has created five regional centers in Africa: for North Africa in Morocco, for West Africa in Niger, for Central Africa in Cameroon, for East Africa in Zambia and Rwanda. As can be seen from Figure 144, the UN distribution of countries between the five subregions differs quite significantly from the schemes discussed above. It is on the basis of ECA macro zoning that Table 49 was compiled.

The second largest continent in the world (after Eurasia) is Africa. Its subregions (their economy, population, nature and states) will be discussed in this article.

Options for dividing the continent's territory

The territory of Africa is the largest geographical region of our planet. Therefore, the desire to divide it into parts is quite natural. The following two large areas are distinguished: Tropical and North Africa (or Africa north of the Sahara). There are quite large natural, ethnic, historical and socio-economic differences between these parts.

Tropical Africa is the most backward region of the developing world. And in our time, the share of agriculture in its GDP is higher than the share of industrial production. 28 of the 47 least developed countries in the world are located in Tropical Africa. Also here is maximum quantity countries that are landlocked (there are 15 such states in this region).

There is another option for dividing Africa into regions. According to him, its parts are Southern, Tropical and Northern Africa.

We now turn to consideration of regionalization itself, that is, the identification of large macroregions (subregions) of the continent of interest to us. It is currently believed that there are only five of them. Africa has the following subregions: Southern, Eastern, Central, Western and Northern Africa (on the map above). At the same time, each of them has specific features of the economy, population and nature.

North Africa

North Africa opens to the Red and Mediterranean Seas, as well as the Atlantic Ocean. Thanks to this, its connections with Western Asia and Europe have been established since ancient times. Its total area is approximately 10 million km2, where about 170 million people live. The Mediterranean "façade" defines the position of this subregion. Thanks to him, North Africa neighbors South-West Asia and has access to the main sea route that runs from Europe to Asia.

Cradle of Civilization, Arab Colonization

The sparsely populated areas of the Sahara Desert form the “rear” of the region. North Africa is the cradle of civilization Ancient Egypt who made a great contribution to culture. The Mediterranean part of the continent in ancient times was considered the granary of Rome. To this day, among the lifeless sea of ​​stone and sand, you can find the remains of underground drainage galleries, as well as other ancient structures. Many cities located on the coast trace their origins to Carthaginian and Roman settlements.

Arab colonization, which took place in the 7th-12th centuries, had a huge impact on the culture of the population, its ethnic composition and way of life. And in our time, the northern part of Africa is considered Arab: almost the entire local population professes Islam and speaks Arabic.

Economic life and population of North Africa

The economic life of this subregion is concentrated in the coastal strip. The main manufacturing enterprises are located here, as well as the main agricultural areas. Naturally, this is where almost the entire population of this subregion lives. Mud houses, with earthen floors and flat roofs, predominate in rural areas. The cities also have a very distinctive appearance. Therefore, ethnographers and geographers distinguish the Arab type of city as a separate type. It is characterized by a division into old and new part. North Africa is sometimes called the Maghreb, but this is not entirely accurate.

Economy

There are currently 15 independent states in this subregion. 13 of them are republics. Most states North America are underdeveloped. In Libya and Algeria, the economy is somewhat better developed. These countries have significant reserves of natural gas and oil, which are hot commodities on the world market these days. Morocco is engaged in the extraction of phosphorites used in the production of fertilizers. Niger is a major uranium producer, but remains one of the poorest countries in North Africa.

The southern part of this subregion is very poorly populated. The agricultural population lives in oases in which the main commercial and consumer crop is the date palm. Only nomadic camel breeders can be found in the rest of the area, and even then not everywhere. There are gas and oil fields in the Libyan and Algerian parts of the Sahara.

A narrow “strip of life” only along the Nile Valley wedges itself into the desert far to the south. For the development of Upper Egypt, the construction of the Aswan hydroelectric complex on the Nile with the technical and economic assistance of the USSR was very important.

West Africa

The subregions of the continent we are interested in are a rather extensive topic, so we will limit ourselves to them brief description. Let's move on to the next subregion - West Africa.

There are zones of savannas, tropical deserts and moist equatorial forests, which are located between the Sahara Desert. It is the continent's largest subregion by population and one of the largest by area. Natural conditions it is very diverse, and the ethnic composition of the local population is the most complex - various peoples of Africa are represented. This subregion was a major slave trading area in the past. Currently, agriculture is developed here, represented by the production of various plantation consumer and cash crops. There is also industry in the subregion. Its most developed industry is mining.

Population of West Africa

According to 2006 data, the population of West Africa is 280 million people. It is multi-ethnic in composition. The largest ethnic groups are the Wolof, Mande, Serer, Mossi, Songhai, Fulani and Hausa. Indigenous people According to language, it is divided into 3 metagroups - Nilo-Saharan, Niger-Congo and Afro-Asian. From European languages English and French are spoken in this subregion. The main religious groups of the population are Muslims, Christians and animists.

Economy of West Africa

All the states located here are developing countries. As we have already said, the subregions of Africa differ significantly economically. The table presented above characterizes such an important economic indicator countries of the continent we are interested in, like gold reserves (2015 data). West African states in this table include Nigeria, Ghana, Mauritania and Cameroon.

Agriculture, as well as the mining industry, plays a leading role in creating GDP in this subregion. The minerals available in West Africa are petroleum, iron gold, manganese, phosphates and diamonds.

Central Africa

From the very name of this subregion it is clear that it occupies the central part of the continent (equatorial). The total area of ​​the region is 6613 thousand km 2. A total of 9 countries are located in Central Africa: Gabon, Angola, Cameroon, Congo and Democratic (these are two different states), Sao Tome and Principe, Chad, Central African Republic and also the island of St. Helena, which is a British overseas territory.

They are located in savannah and humid equatorial forest zones, which greatly influenced their economic development. This subregion is one of the richest areas, not only in Africa, but in the world. The ethnic composition of the local population, unlike the previous region, is homogeneous. Nine-tenths of it are the Bantu peoples of Africa, who are related to each other.

Economy of the subregion

All states in this subregion, according to the UN classification, are developing. Agriculture and the mining industry play a major role in creating GDP. In this respect, West and Central Africa are similar. The minerals mined here are cobalt, manganese, copper, diamonds, gold, natural gas, oil. The subregion has good hydropower potential. In addition, significant reserves of forest resources are located here.

These are the main Central ones.

East Africa

It is located in tropical and subequatorial climate zones. East Africa faces the Indian Ocean, so it has maintained trade relations with Arab countries and India since ancient times. The mineral wealth of this subregion is less significant, but the diversity of natural resources in general is very high. This is what largely determines the various options for their economic use.

Population of East Africa

East Africa is a highly ethnically mosaic subregion. The borders of many countries were set arbitrarily by former colonial powers. At the same time, the cultural and ethnic differences that the population of East Africa has were not taken into account. Due to significant social and cultural differences, there is significant potential for conflict in this subregion. Wars often broke out here, including civil ones.

South Africa

It is located in the southern part of the continent, which is farthest from Asia, America and Europe, but it opens up to the sea route that goes around the southern tip of Africa. This subregion is located in the subtropical and tropical latitudes of the Southern Hemisphere. There is a significant amount of natural resources, of which mineral resources are especially prominent. The Republic of South Africa (RSA) is the main “core” of this subregion. It is the only economically developed state on the continent.

Population and economy of South Africa

A significant number are of European origin. Bantu peoples make up the vast majority of the inhabitants of this subregion. The local population as a whole is poor, but South Africa has a well-established road network, efficient air traffic, and good tourism infrastructure. Mining, as well as deposits of gold, platinum, diamonds and other minerals, form the basis of the economy. In addition, southern Africa is increasingly developing technology, tourism and manufacturing industries.

In conclusion

As you can see, in general the mainland is not very developed economically. Its population is unevenly distributed. Currently, about a billion people live on the continent of Africa. Its subregions were briefly characterized by us. In conclusion, I would like to note that this continent is considered the ancestral home of humanity: the oldest remains of early hominids, as well as their probable ancestors, were found here. There is a special science of African studies, which studies cultural, political, economic and social problems Africa.

This piece of land is often called the “new breath of Islamic civilization,” or the main springboard of the modern. Indeed, these two subregions have a lot in common: Southwest Asia and North Africa. EGP, composition, socio-economic and cultural features of the two regions will be discussed in our article.

and South-West Asia - what do they have in common?

Although they are located on different continents, they are perceived by many researchers as one large region. By and large, they are geographically separated only by the rather narrow and very salty Red Sea.

Why are North Africa and South-West Asia so often classified as one region? There are at least four very good reasons for this. Let's list them:

• the predominance in all countries of one group of people - the Arabs;
• common faith (Islam) and language (Arabic);
• The EGPs of North Africa and South-West Asia have many similarities;
• predominantly resource-based economies (not typical for all states).

The region we are considering at the junction of two continents is often also called the Arab or Arab-Muslim world. It covers the territories of more than two dozen countries with a total population of 350 million people.

Key cultural features of the subregions

At the very beginning, it is worth mentioning that these two regions became the cradle for many of the famous ancient civilizations of our planet (Minoan, Sumerian, Egyptian and others). It was here that centers were formed that for a long time produced ideas that radically changed our world. It is also worth remembering that within the boundaries of South-West Asia and North Africa, the three most important religions of the Earth arose: Islam, Christianity and Judaism.

It is worth mentioning separately about the Muslim religion. She was miraculously able to spread her influence over vast territories, from Southeast Asia. At the same time, Islam brought confusion and division into once intact nations, dividing them into warring camps.

Natural resources of subregions and their use

What else do North Africa and Southwest Asia have in common? Nature has blessed many countries in these regions with rich gas and oil deposits. Alas, not all states have learned to use these resources rationally.

Many countries simply pump out “black gold”, receiving super-profits and not thinking at all about their development prospects in the near future. But not everyone does this. A striking example successful and progressive country is the United Arab Emirates (abbreviated as UAE).

North Africa and South-West Asia on the modern political map of the world are 26 independent states. However, it would be a gross mistake to say that the boundaries of the macroregion we are considering coincide with the boundaries of these 26 countries. Moreover, its boundaries are very blurred and unstable.

What makes North Africa special and unique? EGP of the subregion, its natural resources And economic structure will be discussed further. Which North African countries are the richest?

North Africa: EGP (briefly) and natural resources

The total area of ​​this subregion is about 10 million square meters. km. True, most of this territory is occupied by the hot and lifeless Sahara Desert. North Africa consists of seven countries (six of them are sovereign, and one is partially recognized). This:

1. Morocco.
2. Libya.
3. Sudan.
4. Tunisia.
5. Algeria.
6. Egypt.
7. (SADR).

North African EGP can generally be described as beneficial. The subregion has wide access to the Mediterranean and Red Seas, as well as the Atlantic Ocean, which makes it possible to build constructive trade relations with the leading countries of the planet.

The subsoil of North Africa is extremely rich in various types mineral raw materials. Thus, deposits of oil, gas, iron and manganese ore, uranium, gold and phosphorites are most actively developed here.

Characteristics of North African EGP: pros and cons

Any country or region has both its advantages and disadvantages. Sometimes there are more pros, and sometimes there are more cons.

The EGP of North Africa is distinguished by several advantageous aspects. Firstly, the region has wide access to the Mediterranean Sea. Through it they border with the European Union, which gives them an excellent opportunity to build close trade, economic and other relations with the most developed countries of our planet. In addition, the European Union is the world's largest market for the sale of products.

The second advantageous aspect of the region's EGP is the presence of powerful mineral resource bases both within North Africa and in its immediate vicinity.

The economic and geographical position of the region also has its disadvantages. First of all, it is worth noting that the population of North Africa is distributed extremely unevenly (due to natural and climatic conditions). The region does not experience a shortage in its “hot spots.” Military mutinies, revolutions and terrorist attacks have already become quite common in many North African countries.

Conclusion

The EGP of North Africa and South-West Asia is quite profitable and promising. Richest mineral resource base, favorable transport position and the presence of wide access to two oceans at once - all this lays good preconditions for intensive economic development of this macroregion.

It was here, at the junction of Africa and Eurasia, that many of the ancient civilizations planets. It is also where two of the three world religions originated. Finally, it was in this region that important discoveries who changed our world.

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West African countries

West Africa is the part of the African continent that is located south of the central Sahara and is washed from the west and south Atlantic Ocean. To the east, the natural border is the Cameroon Mountains.

Country	Population, million people	Capital
Benin	10,32	Porto-Novo
Burkina Faso	16,93	Ouagadougou
Islamic Republic of Gambia	1,849	Banjul
Ghana	25,9	Accra
Guinea	11,75	Conakry
Guinea-Bissau	1,704	Bissau
Cape Verde	0,499	Praia
Cote d'Ivoire	20,32	Yamoussoukro
Liberia	4,294	Monrovia
Mauritania	3,89	Nouakchott
Mali	15,3	Bamako
Niger	17,83	Niamey
Nigeria	173,6	Abuja
Saint Helena, Ascension Island, Tristan da Cunha	0,005	Jamestown
Senegal	14,13	Dakar
Sierra Leone	6,092	Freetown
Togo	6,817	Lome

History of West Africa

The culture of this region has its roots in the ancient West African empires of Ghana, Mali and Sopgai, which flourished between the 6th and 16th centuries. These empires fell into decline, and small independent kingdoms appeared in their place. In the 15th century, Portuguese merchants arrived here, followed by the British, French and Dutch.

Over the next 400 years, Europeans continually invaded and founded colonies. The conquerors exploited the people and the land, building gold mines, establishing plantations to grow coffee, coconuts, sugar cane and cotton, and forcing Africans to work for them as slaves. Europeans took the indigenous people on ships to America, where they sold them to local planters as slaves. Many died along the way, and those who survived faced a painful life as slaves.

Britain abolished slavery in 1807, but independence was still a long way off for these countries. Colonial authorities remained in West Africa until the mid-20th century. After this, military and dictatorial regimes were established in some countries. Today many countries have become democracies.

West African EGP

West African EGP is characterized by more high level development compared to its eastern neighbor, but more low level development compared to North Africa. This region is one of the richest mineral reserves in the world. Quite large reserves of manganese, tin, gold, diamonds, iron ore. Oil and gas reserves are significant. The largest oil supplier in the region is Nigeria.

Mangrove forests and mudflats stretch along the coast of West Africa. They are washed by warm rains brought from the ocean. Further from the coast, lagoons and coastal swamps give way to tropical rainforests that stretch for hundreds of kilometers.

Winding rivers are often the only means of communication as roads, already washed out during the rainy season, are swallowed up by the jungle. Evaporative forests cover the cooler central elevations. Rivers, falling from great heights into narrow gorges, form picturesque waterfalls. During rains, rivers flood the surrounding lands, releasing fertile silt, periodically washing away entire villages. And finally the landscape turns into endless savannahs, shimmering under the hot sun.

Agriculture in West Africa

Despite the recent intensifying process of industrialization in the most developed countries of West Africa, agriculture in this region continues to be the basis of the economy. The main branches of agricultural production: nomadic and semi-nomadic cattle breeding, which is especially common in the Sahel zone.

In West Africa, cattle breeding is harmoniously combined with agriculture. Complementary sectors increase overall agricultural productivity. Main crops grown: corn, sorghum, peanuts, palm oil, cotton.

West African Industry

Industrial production is generally quite poorly developed. There is a preponderance towards extractive industries. The main development was in the mining industry and oil and gas production. Manufacturing industries are at the stage of initial development and are represented by the processing of mineral resources, textile production, cotton processing, and furniture manufacturing.

Some of the West African population works for modern cars on rubber plantations owned by foreign companies. Scarce land and an arid climate make farming difficult, but the land itself contains priceless treasures. Nigeria is one of the world's largest oil producers. Deposits of phosphorites, diamonds, bauxites and iron ore are the key to further prosperity.

Population of West Africa

The population of this region is about 300 million people. There is rapid population growth, the birth rate exceeds 50 babies per 1 thousand inhabitants. Consequently, West Africa is still in the second stage of the demographic transition.

Most of the population belongs to the Negroid race. In the northern part of Mali live the Berber-speaking Tuaregs, who belong to the Mediterranean type of the large Caucasian race. Negroid peoples are: Fulbe, Diola, Wolof, Kisi, Serer, Senufo, etc.

In the cities of West Africa, people live in modern multi-storey houses or in wooden, tin-roofed houses. Many city women go to the countryside every day to work in the fields or livestock farms and poultry houses. Around the coastal lagoons, village houses with thatched roofs are built on stilts above the water. Fishermen and traders living in these places travel by boats. Most West Africans live in rural areas and are fairly poor farmers and herders. They grow millet, cassava and rice for themselves. And cotton, peanuts and palm oil are sold.