Eastern Africa

Class Objective

• Students will investigate the transition from colonial Eastern Africa to modern Eastern Africa.

European Influence

• In the 1500s the Portuguese built the first European forts on the coast of East Africa

• Disease and rough terrain made travel inland difficult – so most European contact with East Africans took place on the coast.

European Influence

• In the mid 1800s, European & American explorers, missionaries, and traders began to move inland

• They started moving all over Africa in search of precious minerals and ivory.

European Influence

• Also, during the late 1800s European powers scrambled to claim territory in Africa.

• They started drawing colonial boundaries without giving thought to the African peoples of those areas.

Euro. Influence

• Some colonial boundaries divided ethnic groups or grouped traditional enemies. Some limited access to water.

Euro. Influ.

• Europeans were interested in Africa’s cash crops – coffee, cotton, tea, and sisal.

• Sisal is a strong durable plant fiber used to make rope and twine.

Euro Influence

• The Europeans built cities, hospitals, ports, roads, and schools next to areas with useful natural resources.

• European settlers began to farm the fertile highlands. Most of East Africa’s modern capital cities sprang up during this time.

Euro Influence

• The colonizers also provided a small # of Africans with a European education.

• Many of these Africans later led independence movements.

• Most countries of East Africa gained their independence during the 1950s and 1960s. Djibouti became the last colony to win independence in 1977.

Culture

• There are several hundred ethnic groups in East Africa.

• They can be organized into 3 categories according to language.– The Nilotic speakers– The Cushitic speakers– Bantu speakers

Culture

• The Nilotic peoples live in the Nile River area on the plains of Sudan.

• Most are herders.

• Several groups moved south into the highlands. Among these were:– The Masai– The Tutsi

Culture

• The Cushitic-speakers have lands that run from the Red Sea coast through the Horn of Africa.

• This group includes the Amhara of the highlands and the Somali of the coast.

Culture

• The Bantu-speakers live farther south.• They include the Kikuya of Kenya and the Hutu

of Rwanda.

Culture

• Religions vary both within and among ethnic groups.

• Christianity and Islam are the 2 main religions in East Africa, but traditional beliefs still exist.

Culture

• Traditional religions are animist. This means that they believe the natural world contains spirits– in animals, mountains, trees, and waters.

Culture

• Boiled sorghum was a main food in much of East Africa. They would mix this with roasted beef or lamb.

• Other basic foods were sour milk and animal blood.

• Now (through colonialism) they eat a lot of the same things as we do – cornmeal, potatoes, rice and wheat.

Sorghum Plants

Economic Development

• Farming, trade, and industry all contribute to East Africa’s economies.

• Manufacturing and global trade play minor roles.

Agriculture

• Women are often the primary farmers, while men take care of the livestock.

• There are a few large plantations which have modern machinery

Economy

• Tourism has great potential for economic growth in the region.– Fascinating animals– Cool highlands– Snowcapped mountains– Clean beaches– Cultural events

Economy

• Political violence has hurt the tourist industry in some countries.

Urban Environments

• Addis Ababa, (Ethiopia’s capital) is the region’s largest city.

• Nairobi, Kenya, is the most important commercial center in East Africa.

Addis Ababa

Nairobi

Urban

• The # of people moving to the cities from the countryside is larger than the # of available jobs.

• Many newcomers have high hopes but possess only farming skills and little education. The unemployed live in the slums surrounding the city. Crime is high.

Issues and Challenges

• East Africa has experienced rapid population growth over the last 30 yrs.

• Overpopulation contributes to widespread poverty.

Issues

• There isn’t enough food to go around in many areas.

• Health services and educational opportunities are also spread thin.

Challenges

• Ethnic conflicts, between countries and between groups within countries, have also presented problems.

• Distribution of land and government aid are often at the center of these conflicts.

Challenges

• In Sudan, the Islamic government has tried to force Islam and Arabic ways of life on the Christian peoples of the south. This has caused a lot of fighting.

Challenges

• Ethnic hatreds have even led to genocide.

• Genocide is the intentional destruction of a people. The worst case happened in Rwanda in 1994.

• In Rwanda, the more numerous Hutu tried to wipe out the Tutsi – killing hundreds of thousands of people.

Memorial

Republic of Southern Sudan

• The Sudan has been a place of conflict since the 1800’s because of the access to the Nile river.

• The French and British have both sought to control the area.

• During the time of British control Britain would not allow Muslims to spread their religion to the southern portion of the country but Christian missionaries were allowed. This created a religious divide between the ethnic groups to the North and South.

Conflict

• Conflict has been occurring between the North and South since the 70’s. In 2002 there was a cease fire negotiated by the U.S.

• The Northern portion of the Sudan used oil money to fight and persecute the people of the South.

• Ethiopia provided a safe haven for rebels in the South.

Independence

• Jan 11 2011, the people of South Sudan voted to become independent with 98.83% of the population.

• One of the benefits that South Sudan has is oil. The majority of Sudan’s remaining oil is located in the South.

• Not everything is peachy for South Sudan. Civil war rages in many territories of the country. Citizens claim that the government is trying to stay in power permanently instead of having elections.