Sub-Saharan Africa and North Africa

Question 1

Arab Spring was a sequence of pre-democracy rebellions that involved mainly Muslim
countries in the North of Africa and the Middle East, including Syria, Bahrain, Morocco, Libya,
Tunisia, and Egypt. The uprising in these countries started in the spring of 2011, hence the name.
The following reasons led to the uprising in these Muslim countries: political and religious
oppressions resulted in riots against the political leaderships (StudyCorgi, 2022). There were
uncountable deeds of harsh and unjust treatment of people in these countries. Yet, according to
the Universal Declaration of Human rights, every individual is entitled to all rights and freedoms
regardless of race, language, sex, religion, or national origin. There were several instances of
social hostilities that involved religion as the restrictions on religion imposed by the government
increased, especially in Egypt and Pakistan, that experienced the maximum restrictions on
religion in 2011. The government forces in these countries restricted Islam and Christianity,
which made people protest against religious oppression (StudyCorgi, 2022). Besides, leaders in
the Muslim countries were severe dictators who were against any form of opinion that would
spoil their reputation. As a result, the freedom of speech was revoked, and anyone who stepped
out of the eyes of the leaders would face severe punishment or jailed.
Social Media also hugely contributed to the uprisings in the Muslim countries. It gave
people the power and voice to bring forth a revolution. People were able to get the power of
freedom of speech against their oppressive governments, and they were able to email, Facebook,
and tweet from wherever they were to reach out to the rest of the world about what oppressions
were taking place in their countries.

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Furthermore, there was economic distress in these countries. This was evident through
inflation, unemployment, and low living standards (StudyCorgi, 2022). The prices of basic
commodities suddenly increased, making people pay much more to get these commodities. This
resulted in hate against the government, hence leading to demonstrations.

Fig 1.0: Syrian protestors

Question 2

The Atlantic slave trade negatively impacted African societies and brought prolonged
impoverishment to West Africa. The slave trade weakened the potential of Africa to grow
economically and sustain its social and political stability. The Europeans arrived on the West
African coast and built slave ports in different parts of Africa. This resulted in the exploitation of
Africa’s resources and raw materials to feed their industrial revolution in Europe.

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Fig 2.0: Atlantic Slave trade in West Africa
The introduction of firearms by the Europeans in West Africa which were exchanged for
captives. This resulted in competition among African rulers, which increased their urge to
capture more slaves to sell for guns. Consequently, this transformed the conduct of warfare in
Africa and entirely interfered with the power balance among African kingdoms since rulers
could easily attack their neighbors since they were equipped with guns. Since more than twelve
million Africans were captured from the continent, there was depopulation and destruction of
societies. The majority of Africans were also killed during capture and collection. The European
demand for slaves increased for their plantations in the United States; hence, more slaves were
acquired using warfare and raids. This resulted in many parts of Africa being shattered and the

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collapse of African societies. Europeans came to Africa and brought deadly diseases, including
viral diseases that indirectly led to the depopulation of Africa.
Question 3

Berlin Conference discussed the partitioning of Africa and created policies to agreeably
share its resources among the fourteen European powers at the expense of the people of Africa.
Africans lost their lands to the European powers (Rosenberg, 2019). The Europeans controlled
approximately ninety-five percent of Africa.

Fig 3.0: Division of Africa by European powers
Africans lost their independence to the European powers, who unfairly treated them as
inferiors and forced them to work as slaves. Africa was rich in resources. As a result, the

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Europeans continuously exploited these resources at the expense of Africans, especially the
mineral resources such as gold, diamonds, and copper. Africa has exported a lot of its wealth to
Europe, yet they still lag in industrialization as Europeans are benefiting from this wealth from
Africa. The Europeans introduced the growing of cash crops only, such as cocoa, coffee, and
peanuts making Africans languish in famine since they could not grow their indigenous food
crops.
Europeans came to Africa and brought deadly diseases that killed many Africans. The
Europeans blemished and eroded traditional African values and customs by providing Africans
with western education that civilized Africans, making Africans forget their traditions and
values. The European missionaries came to Africa to spread Christianity, which also impacted
African society. The Europeans divided the land of Africa at the expense of Africans’ cultural
and tribal boundaries. This resulted in prolonged tribal conflicts in Africa that are still evident
today. Today, it is still difficult to embrace the concept of nationalism when the borders of the
African countries do not reflect the tribal and cultural boundaries. It is often easier to identify
with a particular culture, language, or tribe than with a country established by the Europeans,
who were not even aware of the culture of Africans.
Question 4

Sub-Saharan Africa faces serious environmental problems, including Deforestation,
which has resulted in millions of hectares of sub-Saharan land being lost. Countries in the sub-
Saharan region top the list of the world’s countries with the maximum rate of Deforestation.
Developing countries in sub-Saharan Africa largely depend on wood fuel to produce energy for
cooking food and heating. Another major cause of Deforestation in sub-Saharan Africa is illegal
logging. Besides, the population of sub-Saharan Africa keeps growing. Hence, there is need to

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clear more forests for agricultural uses to produce food to support the population. Deforestation
is associated with adverse consequences of climate change because of global warming. As a
result, sub-saharan Africa is likely to face natural disasters, including floods and droughts.

Fig 4.0: Deforestation in sub-Saharan Africa
The following are the proposed solutions to curb Deforestation in sub-Saharan Africa:
Putting regulations on the logging industry by prohibiting the cutting down of specific types of
trees and reducing trees by a particular percentage. There is a need to reduce the population
growth rate by adopting family planning policies. Besides, the government should promote
alternative technologies and fuels such as biogas to reduce Deforestation.
Sub-Saharan Africa also faces the environmental challenge of Soil erosion and Soil
degradation, which are caused by natural factors such as topography and vegetation (Ussiri &
Lal, 2019). Besides, soil erosion and degradation are caused by anthropogenic factors, including
rampant poor agricultural systems. Furthermore, overgrazing reduces the protective cover of
soils, exposing them to water and wind erosion. Soil erosion and soil degradation can be reduced

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by: curbing industrial farming by responsibly regulating land and agricultural activities. Besides,
there is a need to put more effort into planting more trees to cover the soil, reducing soil erosion.

Fig 4.1: Soil degradation

Question 5

Clean and safe water was declared by the United Nations a fundamental human right in
2010 because it is a vital basic need that human beings need for their daily survival (Gachanja,
2020). Although the African continent has several natural sources of water, including ocean
water, river, and lakes, access to clean and safe water is still a serious problem. According to
World Health Organization (WHO), more than forty percent of the population of sub-Saharan
Africa cannot access clean and safe water. Water scarcity in Africa has sidelined the fight against
poverty in Africa, leading to poor economic prosperity since huge funds are used to address the

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scarcity of water in Africa which would otherwise be used for other economic-related challenges
(Gachanja, 2020). Water scarcity has resulted in many challenges in the African population,
including hunger, starvation, and water-related diseases due to poor sewage systems, which leads
to unhygienic conditions.

Fig 5.0: Water scarcity in Africa
The water crisis in Africa can be solved by the following sustainable solutions:
Desalination, which encompasses making seawater safe and clean for human consumption by
removing salty water from it. Besides, there is a need to install Rain Catchment Tanks as most
parts of Africa experience regular rains. These tanks will ensure continuous availability of water
in areas with scarce safe and clean water. Furthermore, the construction of Wells will provide a
lifetime supply of water.

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References

Gachanja. N. (2020). The Challenge: Clean and Safe Water. The Challenge: Clean and Safe Water

• Africa.com (www.africa.com)
  Rosenberg. M. (2019). The Berlin Conference to Divide Africa. The Berlin Conference to Divide
  Africa (thoughtco.com)
  StudyCorgi. (2022). The Arab Spring and Its Main Causes. https://studycorgi.com/the-arab-spring-
  and-its-main-causes/
  Ussiri. D. A. N. & Lal. R. (2019). Soil Degradation in Sub-Saharan Africa. Soil Degradation in
  Sub-Saharan Africa | Challenges and Opportunities (taylorfrancis.com)