Out Of Africa

With all her wondrous beauty there is something else coming out of Africa that isn't so beautiful at all. Africa is still a very primitive continent.  It's a place where the strong survive--Live and Let Die. Anything goes.  And when they come to the USA, their ethnic heritage doesn't change here either. In fact, this is a much better hunting ground that ever the savanna was. There are so many easy pickings in our suburbs--especially with the elderly. And most other third world countries see the USA the very same way.

I get almost NO e-mail. Not even spam! When I do, this is the kind of solicitation I get.  I have a lot of them too. When we bring these people to the US to do service work for the elderly, and disabled we have just a bit of a problem. We are the weak and according to their cultural norm--to be exploited. 

This is true for most coming in from third world countries. The morals and ethics in the USA just don't apply. They don't get it. The think is: Americans are stupid. Whose to see if I take? Whose to tell if I intimidate. Do it. Why not?

 So we get this kind of stuff.

Dear Sir,

Re: Proposal for a Beneficial Business.

After careful deliberations with my partners, I have been directed to search for a reliable foreign

collaborator who will assist us. I am Mr. John Lebechi, Director Project Implementation with the

Federal Ministry of Works & Housing (FMWH) and a member of the Contract Tenders Board (CTB) of the above named ministry. Your esteemed address was reliably introduced to me at the Nigerian Chamber of Commerce and Industry in my search for a reliable individual / company who can handle a strictly confidential transaction which involves the transfer of a reasonable sum of money to a foreign account.

This money amount to a total sum of US$10,500,000.00 (Ten Million Five Hundred Thousand United States Dollars Only). The money was extracted from various contracts awarded by the Contracts Tenders Board (CTB) as a result of over-invoicing masterminded by the concerned officials, who were drafted to represent final payment for a contract that has been executed

for the Federal Ministry of Works & Housing (FMWH) some years back. The money is now floating in the Apex Bank awaiting claim by a foreign partner which status we now want you to assume.

Now is the optimum period to consummate this transaction following the Presidential Directive to

all corporations to pay off all foreign debts. I therefore seek for your assistance to remit this money into your personal / company's account. In my last meeting with other officials involved, it was unanimously agreed that 25% of the total sum will be given to you, 70% will be for me and my colleagues, while 5% will be used to offset the expenses that may be incurred in the processing of the transfer.

I assure you that the transaction is 100% risk free as we have concluded every arrangement to protect the interest of every one involved. Likewise, all modalities for the successful transfer of this money have been worked out with the Federal Ministry of Finance and the Apex Bank to facilitate the remittance of this money to your designated account.

However, I would want to believe that you are honest and trustworthy enough and will not raise any misgiving attitude in any aspect of this transaction. More importantly, you will keep this transaction very confidential so as not to tarnish the confidence reposed on these officials by the Federal Government of Nigeria. We as civil servants are not allowed to run a foreign account, which is against the Federal Government Civil Service Act of 1970.

If this business proposal interest you, kindly email me your banking information/details through my above email address for the immediate commencement of the remittance and to enable me send you further information on the transaction.

We have set aside some funds to bring this transaction to fruition, and we are a 100% certain that this transaction will be completed within 10 working days from the date we commence this project in full.

May the Almighty God Bless you as we await your response. Meanwhile, your immediate response will be highly appreciated.

Best regards,

Mr. John Lebechi

__________________________________________________________

Charle con sus amigos online usando CHAT 123 http://www.123.com/sp/chat/section.php? 

HERE IS ANOTHER PIECE OF HACKER CRAP
Giff File for viewing only. So why is this possible?

They are all pretty much the same. Someone is looking to get me to transfer a huge amount of money into my account here in the US. Some are the sons of important people in countries they claim have been taken over by others. Other are like this one.

Here is a guy claiming to have over $10 million. "The money was extracted from various contracts awarded by the Contracts Tenders Board (CTB) as a result of over-invoicing masterminded" which is obviously some sort of illegal operation. So why contact me about it and tell me this? Then after explaining the deal he goes onto say he wants you to be "honest and trustworthy" and to keep this all "very confidential so as not to tarnish the confidence reposed on these officials by the Federal Government of Nigeria."

Now here is the really funny part. "Kindly email me your banking information/details" so he can do this thing... Would anyone be so stupid to do this? They want you to help out people who committed a crime, be an honest person, capable of keeping secrets, and yet stupid enough to give them your banking information. More likely, they are trying to get a stupid person to give them banking information so they can clean out your bank account.

Like I said. I don't get much e-mail. Sometimes I don't get anything for days. Then I get these kinds of proposals. I've gotten lots of them. They really stick out because this is about all I'm getting. They all seem to start with the "Urgent Business Proposal" or something similar. Now I've repeatedly contacted the FBI about this. I've e-mailed them to the FBI in the past. AND yet I've never heard a thing back. It would seem to me that the government in this country should be trying to track this kind of scheme.

I usually save them. I'm not sure... but I think I'm being hit on because I did a web site for an African Missionary. She was a pretty decent women. Her mother was doing some work for me through the State of Washington. As it turned out, her mother was not as honest as her daughter. Even though this women was 81 years old, she was nothing but a rogue. Seem she had a very shady past, with lots of criminal issues. So I guess even when they get old, they just can't stop trying to do a deal, put on a scam or extort money. Her bit was to use her daughter's missionary work and then extort money inside the US from Christians under the guise of doing Gods work.

So this would all seem pretty amazing. But the missionary scam isn't the only scam. This same agency called COPES here in King Co. Washington has also sent me a few other nut cases. One women was named Monica, clamed also to be Christian and was from Nigeria where this e-mail came from. She was from a wealthy background, and would show up to do house work with her $300 braided hair, elaborate long brocade dresses and then lay on my couch and take a nap. She claimed that she paid $5,000 to get her visa to come here. I'm assuming that she paid the state contractor. Then she thought her job was to come and give me companionship when I didn't want anything but to have my clothes washed, etc.

I've reported this kind of scam to the FBI also. Do these people investigate anything? This COPES agency here in Seattle-King Co. is little better than a scam also. To be physically disabled and have this going on over and over again is really. The FBI won't investigate this? Well, it's been my observation that in this community there are no honest cops, judges or federal agents. This is a place were the money has flown like water for so long that all of them seem to have something to hide from looking the other way when criminal activities have gone on. Those criminal activities include everything from illegal immigration, selling immigrants into servitude, trafficking in women, drugs, and with Microsoft here, money laundering and God only knows who know what... This charity thing is pretty weird too. Seems a good way to move money into terrorist or criminal businesses.

What we need here is an outsider to come in and do a REAL investigation. But it is like I suggested, just like the Untouchables. However, I do know that some of the people in the media have tracked some of the big and powerful people here and noted how they have these multimillion dollar yachts and many homes, yet seem not to be selling stock, etc. On $500,000 a year even the dollars and cents don't add up at all. Maybe if the FBI won't do anything, the IRS and Dept of Treasury can. Some Secret Service people would do nicely. How about it boys. These turkeys are ripping American's off with money scam or they may even be trying to move money into the US this way. We need to find a way to make this stuff stop.

Pamela with one of her babies.

Other Facts
 

Africans were communicating in codes like our binary computer codes since the beginning of communication! So if it's that in their genes why aren't they programming for WHITES! Perhaps their codes are a bit more complex--after all what is RAP but this kind of coding. Perhaps there is something about this kind of communication that we could learn in AFRICA that meets the needs of the whole world? Just a thought... These drum codes are like the beat in my head from digital communication! That is what I hear from this computer when I program or read one...

S.O.S. to the world. Has someone found my message in the bottle?

ET PHONE HOME
What is an angel? ET?

This site is about an incredible women named Pamela Bryan and her spiritual mission to Southern Africa. Her mission is a very brave and harrowing vision for she travels as a lone white American women with her adopted African son to teach the word of Christ to these poor and very desperate peoples.   Pamela need your help to continue this mission. 

She needs money and some way to get an Internet connection.  At present Pamela can only use her computer's internet connection when she travels a long way into town and visit a local cafe. I don't know if there is a way... but this is one women who could really use a wireless link to the Internet. These people need to be exposed to the world.  They need to have hope and they need to find faith. They need Gods help and they need your help too.

Pam has traveled for seven years throughout the southern part of Africa and know not just the mission but the economics and culture. Her insight is amazing. She is after all a women. Here is more on the conditions in Africa.

African Arts Foundation

Some African Artistic Inspiration

Botswana

Republic of Botswana  

COUNTRY STATISTICS  

Area:  218,800 sq.miles (566,700 sq.km)
Population:  1,487,000
Currency:  1 pula = 100 thebe
Exchange Rate:  P 2.111 = US$ 1
Capital:  Gaborone
Main Cities:  Francistown, Lobatse, Selebi-Phikwe
Languages:  English, Setswana
Religions:  Indigenous beliefs, Christian
Total GDP:  US$ 4,300,000,000
Imports:  US$ 1,800,000,000
Population Growth:  3.06%
Death Rate:  6.6/1000 people
Life Expectancy:  64.9 years
Number of Goats:  2,475,000
Per Capita PPP:  US$ 3,130
Exports:  US$ 1,800,000,000
Population Density:  3 people/sq.km
Birth Rate:  37.1/1000 people
Infant Mortality:  43/1000 live births
Number of Pigs:  17,000   Botswana
Republic of Botswana

INTRODUCTION & HISTORY  

The discovery of diamonds in Botswana in the 1970s transformed this small cattle-exporting country into a prosperous financial center. Now diamonds make up 80 percent of Botswana's export earnings, but the government is promoting tourism to back up the uncertain diamond market future. Botswana's plains, game reserves, and national parks are home to herds of antelopes, elephants, giraffes, and buffalo, as well as lions, hippopotamuses, and crocodiles. Most of Botswana's population belong to eight Tswana tribes, which occupy their own territories with traditional chiefs. These people raise cattle or work in the mines. Botswana's original inhabitants are the nomadic Khoikhoi-San "Bushmen." In the mid-17th century hundreds of thousands of them roamed over a third of the African continent. In 1989, genetic researchers at the University of California-Berkeley used DNA "fingerprinting" to determine that the few remaining Bushmen are the oldest surviving indigenous people on Earth.

SPECIAL FACT  

The Pitso, a mass tribal meeting where everyone gets their say, has survived for centuries in Botswana.  

Botswana
Republic of Botswana
 

GEOGRAPHY & TOURISM  

This landlocked country in southern Africa is roughly half the size of neighboring South Africa. A large plateau divides the country from north to south. To the east of the plateau are grasslands. To the west are swamps and desert, though only the southwest is completely barren. Botswana's climate is mainly subtropical, but in the south and southwest it ranges from dry to very dry. Only slightly more than 2 percent of the land is used for agriculture-one of the lowest percentages in Africa. Only about a quarter of the country's population lives in cities. Botswana is one of the world's most uncrowded countries, with only about five people for every square mile of land.

SPECIAL FACT  

More than 2,750 ancient rock paintings have been found in the Tsodilo Hills that rise out of the desert in Botswana.  

Botswana
Republic of Botswana

CULTURE & THE ARTS  

The Bantu-speaking Tswanas are the largest ethnic group in Botswana. Comprising eight tribes, they are traditionally cattle herders. The !Kung San, or Bushmen as they are more commonly known, are the indigenous people of Botswana. (The “!” in their name is pronounced as a tongue click.) According to genetic research, they are the world’s oldest living race. The !Kung San are nomadic hunters and gatherers in the remote areas of the Kalahari Desert. With the arrival of white settlers and the Tswana tribes in the 18th and 19th centuries, the !Kung San were both hunted and driven from their lands. Today, the !Kung San are nearly extinct. In Botswana, basket weaving is an important craft. Made from maize leaves, thatching grass, tlatla reeds, creepers, twigs, and split palm leaves, the baskets often follow traditional patterns and commemorate events. The famous “Flight of the Swallows” pattern honors the new rains, while the “Ribs of the Giraffe” celebrates the hunt.
SPECIAL FACT   In the Tsodilo Hills, 4,000-year-old !Kung San paintings cover the granite cliffs, representing animals, geometric designs, and people.  

Botswana
Republic of Botswana

ECONOMICS  

Diamond exports have formed the foundation of Botswana's healthy economy for more than two decades. Mines in Orapa and Jwaneng are among the world's most productive. A declining global demand for these precious stones has slowed the nation's economic growth in recent years. Copper-nickel matte is also an important mineral export. Botswana's economy remains exceptionally stable for its region of the world. Because of its high-growth economy, enduring democracy, and advanced social services, the nation has become a model for the rest of southern Africa, yet domestic unemployment is high and many of Botswana's citizens continue to work in South Africa. Financial experts worry that Botswana's glittering diamond-based economy may dim in future years. Alternative industries, particularly tourism and financial services, are being explored. Tourists are drawn to Botswana's wildlife sanctuaries, where they can camp among zebras, hyenas, elephants, baboons, and lions.

SPECIAL FACT  

Novelist Bessie Emery Head (1937-1986), a South African of mixed parentage, lived much of her life in exile in a small village in Botswana. Her writing combines regional folklore and history with modern issues of race, identity, and exile.  

Mozambique

Republic of Mozambique

COUNTRY STATISTICS  

Area:  302,700 sq.miles (784,100 sq.km)
Population:  16,000,000
Currency:  1 metical = 100 centavos
Exchange Rate:  MT 2,433 = US$ 1
Capital:  Maputo
Main Cities:  Nampula, Beira, Nacala
Languages:  Portuguese, Bantu languages
Religions:  Roman Catholic, Muslim, Animist
Total GDP:  US$ 13,370,000,000
Imports:  US$ 1,295,000,000
Population Growth:  2.41%
Death Rate:  18.5/1000 people
Life Expectancy:  46.4 years
Number of Goats:  389,000
Per Capita PPP:  US$ 711
Exports:  US$ 150,000,000
Population Density:  20 people/sq.km
Birth Rate:  45.2/1000 people
Infant Mortality:  148/1000 live births
Number of Pigs:  174,000   Mozambique
Republic of Mozambique

INTRODUCTION & HISTORY  

When the Portuguese arrived in this area 500 years ago, they found Arab city-states dating from the eighth century A.D. The interior was dominated by the Maravi Kingdom of Mwene Matapa. Portuguese traders soon tried to establish a monopoly in the slave, gold, and ivory markets, but they underestimated their opponent, and King Matapa's warriors forced them to retreat. Not until 1752 could the Portuguese conquer the whole region. FRELIMO, the Front for the Liberation of Mozambique, arose in 1962 from the fragments of three nationalist groups. Their struggle benefited from Portugal's own April Revolution in 1974, and the following year Mozambique became an independent nation, led by President Samora Machel. Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) and South Africa founded RENAMO, Mozambique National Resistance, a ruthless terrorist organization that plunged Mozambique into famine and chaos. President Machel's successor, President Joaquim Alberto Chissano, has worked hard for peace to end his people's suffering.

SPECIAL FACT  

In the 16th century, Mozambique's ferocious Zimba tribe fought their way to Kenya, where they vanished.  

Mozambique
Republic of Mozambique

GEOGRAPHY & TOURISM  

The Zambezi River runs northwest to southeast across the middle of the country from the border with Zambia. South of the river lies mainly dry lowland savanna, with mangrove swamps and sandy beaches along the coast. North is the relatively fertile land of the Zambezi delta and a rugged inland plateau. The highest mountains are south of the Zambezi, along the border with Zimbabwe, reaching 7,990 ft (2,429 m) at Mount Binga. The capital, Maputo, is situated in the far south of the country. Beira is the main port and railroad connection for landlocked neighbor Zambia's copper belt. The climate is tropical, with a wet season from December to March; the north gets more rain than the south.

SPECIAL FACT  

In 1975, the year Mozambique became independent, the American singer and songwriter Bob Dylan wrote a song about the country, referring to its blue skies and beautiful beaches.  

Mozambique
Republic of Mozambique

CULTURE & THE ARTS  

Many tribes call Mozambique home, although in numerous languages. Approximately 20 separate Bantu-based languages and 30 dialects are spoken in Mozambique. The Zambezi River splits Mozambique into the north, occupied by matrilineal-based tribes, and the south, occcupied by patrilineal-based tribes. The northern Macua-Lomue (Makwa-Lombe) peoples make up the largest ethnic group of Mozambique. For the last century, southern men have traveled to South Africa to work in the mines. With the migration of men, women’s already arduous lives became even harder, as women took responsibility for clearing the land and plowing, once traditional men’s work. The predominant religion is animist. Animist beliefs are apparent not only in the holding of certain forests and trees as sacred, but also in the writing of Mia Couto. In his stories and novels, Couto often blends the supernatural with reality. The arts have flourished since the end in 1992 of Mozambique’s 15-year civil war.

SPECIAL FACT  

The Mozambique flag, which bears an AK-47, is the only one in the world to depict a gun.  

Mozambique
Republic of Mozambique

ECONOMICS  

Mozambique’s prolonged and violent civil war destroyed much of the nation’s economic infrastructure. Today, it is one of the world’s poorest nations. Mozambique’s continuing chaos has prevented the nation from living up to the economic potential of its sizable natural resources. One of Mozambique’s few healthy industries is commercial fishing. Shrimp has become an important catch. Shrimp, prawns, and lobster make up almost 43 percent of total exports. Cashews, grown on plantations, are also a primary export product. Electricity is exported to South Africa. However, civil-war sabotage has hurt the Cabora Bassa Dam, one of the largest hydroelectric complexes in Africa, and the facility seldom operates to capacity. Foreign aid continues to account for almost 80 percent of the nation's gross national product (GNP). In 1995, the United Nations refugee agency helped to repatriate more than 1 million Mozambicans who had been displaced by the civil war.

SPECIAL FACT  

After Mozambique gained independence in 1975, 200,000 Portuguese workers left the country. This exodus resulted in a lack of skilled workers. Today, fewer than 20 percent of the people above the age of 25 have had any formal schooling.  

Malawi

Republic of Malawi  

COUNTRY STATISTICS  

Area:  36,320 sq.miles (94,080 sq.km)
Population:  11,130,000
Currency:  1 Malawi Kwacha = 100 tambala
Exchange Rate:  K 3.603 = US$ 1
Capital:  Lilongwe
Main Cities:  Blantyre
Languages:  English, Chichewa
Religions:  Animist, Christian, Muslim
Total GDP:  US$ 6,090,000,000
Imports:  US$ 583,400,000
Population Growth:  3.45%
Death Rate:  20/1000 people
Life Expectancy:  45.6 years
Number of Goats:  890,000
Per Capita PPP:  US$ 496
Exports:  US$ 336,600,000
Population Density:  94 people/sq.km
Birth Rate:  50.5/1000 people
Infant Mortality:  143/1000 live births
Number of Pigs:  245,000

INTRODUCTION & HISTORY

This African nation has recently become a multiparty democracy struggling for economic success. When Malawi gained its independence from Britain in 1964, the popular choice for leader was Dr. Hastings Kumuzu Banda. Overcoming his rural peasant background, Dr. Banda studied medicine in Edinburgh and America, and worked for decades as a family doctor in a poor British neighborhood before returning to Africa. After years of struggle, Banda led the Malawi people to freedom and was appointed president-for-life in 1971. One of Africa’s more erratic dictators, he so admired the English aristocracy that he copied their every eccentricity. He spent much of the nation’s limited budget on top-class education for a tiny elite while the vast majority of the people remained illiterate. Eventually Banda was pressured into holding elections in 1994. To his utter disbelief, he lost. He later issued a public apology for any harm perceived by his people.  

GEOGRAPHY & TOURISM  

Formerly known as Nyasaland, Malawi lies landlocked in southeast Africa. The Great Rift Valley runs from north to south through the country. In the valley lies Lake Nyasa, Africa’s third largest lake, which covers about one-fifth of Malawi’s surface area. To the west of the valley is a central plateau that rises to over 8,500 ft (2,584 m) in the north. In the south, the most cultivated and populated region, the Shire Highlands reach 9,845 ft (2,993 m) at Mount Sapitwa. The climate is hot, with a wet season from November to April. The capital, Lilongwe, lies near the geographic center of the country.   SPECIAL FACT   In early 1996, disgruntled Lilongwe minibus and taxi operators decided to repair local pothole-ridden roads themselves. Operators of commercial passenger vehicles were told to bring bricks to help carry out repairs.  

Education

In the early 1990s about 1.4 million pupils attended some 2900 primary schools and about 31,500 students attended secondary schools. However, in 1995, after the government made primary education in Malawi free, enrollment in primary schools shot up to 3 million. In an effort to reduce overcrowding, the government recruited more than 20,000 new teachers. In the late 1980s almost 3700 students attended public vocational and teacher-training schools. The University of Malawi at Zomba (founded in 1964) and its affiliated institutions had nearly 2700 students in the late 1980s.

CULTURE & THE ARTS  

Africans make up 99.5 percent of Malawi’s population, which includes numerous ethnic groups. In the north, the largest tribes include the Ngonde, Tumbuka, and Tonga, while the Chewa, Yao, and Lomwe dominate central and southern Malawi. The Ngoni live throughout the land. Malawi has not been troubled by ethnic hostilities. Among Malawi’s tribes, dance is among the most important forms of expression. The Ngoni are especially famous for their ingoma dance, a traditional war dance, in which dancers wear animal skins and headpieces made of feathers. Carrying shields, spears, and clubs, the dancers move in unison to the singing and clapping of the women. The vinyao, an important dance of the Chewa, evolved from many dances, including those for funerals, initiations for boys, and the enthroning of kings. Dancers are first covered with mud, then they don fantastic masks and elaborate costumes of bark, skins, and feathers. Singing, drumming, and clapping accompany the dancers.

SPECIAL FACT   In northern and central Malawi, rock paintings depicting abstract designs in red and white shades are similar to the Bushman art found in Zambia.

ECONOMICS  

Landlocked Malawi is among the world's most economically disadvantaged countries. About 60 percent of Malawi’s 10 million people are severely poor. One of the highest population densities in Africa-about 33 people per square mi (85 people per square km)-contributes to poor living conditions. Labor economists estimate that 4.5 million people are unemployed, most living by subsistence agriculture. In the country's sluggish economy, the creation of more jobs soon is unlikely. Malawi’s economy is predominantly agricultural, with about 90 percent of the population living in rural areas. Crops grown for export include tobacco, tea, sugar, coffee, and peanuts. Tobacco alone accounts for 70 percent of Malawi’s export earnings. More than 35,000 tons of tobacco leaves are cured annually. Deforestation is rapidly occurring because curing each ton of tobacco takes about 12 cubic meters of wood. Wood is also the main fuel source for both rural and urban households. Malawi’s most formidable economic challenges include confronting the poor educational and health facilities and the environmental problems of deforestation and erosion.

SPECIAL FACT   High unemployment is contributing to Malawi's rise in crime. In response to the crime explosion and dissatisfaction with the police, citizens are forming bloodthirsty vigilante groups to apprehend and punish criminal suspects.  

The Religious Factor
within the Body of Political Symbolism in Malawi
1964-1994 -- download this book

News about Malawi floods, AIDS, Hemp, etc.

Malawi country profile
Employment and other areas of interest

 Zambia

Republic of Zambia

COUNTRY STATISTICS  

Area:  287,000 sq.miles (743,400 sq.km)
Population:  9,456,000
Currency:  1 Zambian kwacha = 100 ngwee
Exchange Rate:  K 178.9 = US$ 1
Capital:  Lusaka
Main Cities:  Kitwe, Ndola
Languages:  English, Bantu dialects
Religions:  Christian, Animist
Total GDP:  US$ 7,900,000,000
Imports:  US$ 1,539,000,000
Population Growth:  2.97%
Death Rate:  15.1/1000 people
Life Expectancy:  48.9 years
Number of Goats:  620,000
Per Capita PPP:  US$ 860
Exports:  US$ 1,064,000,000
Population Density:  13 people/sq.km
Birth Rate:  44.6/1000 people
Infant Mortality:  104/1000 live births
Number of Pigs:  295,000  

Zambia
Republic of Zambia

INTRODUCTION & HISTORY  

Two million years ago Zambia was roamed by early humans, and evidence of habitation by Stone Age and Early Iron Age peoples has been found. The Portuguese set up trade in the area in the late 18th century. African groups (Bantu-speaking Ngoni, and Kololo) immigrated in the 19th century. Scottish missionary David Livingstone in 1855 was the first European to see Victoria Falls. Cecil Rhodes and the British South Africa Company, under 1890s treaties with Zambian chiefs, governed until 1924, when the British government took over what had become Northern Rhodesia. The copper industry was developed in the 1920s, and the British company owned the mineral rights until 1960. After a 10-year federation with Nyasaland (Malawi) and Southern Rhodesia, the Republic of Zambia became independent in 1964. Zambia supported United Nations sanctions against Southern Rhodesia, which then cut off trade routes for Zambian copper. President Kaunda nationalized industry in the 1970s.
SPECIAL FACT   By 1911, 1,500 British settlers had migrated to what was then Northern Rhodesia. By 1953, there were 43,000.  

Zambia
Republic of Zambia

GEOGRAPHY & TOURISM

The south-central African country of Zambia is an upland plain dotted with hills and forested highlands. Changes in altitude moderate the subtropical climate that is in dry season most of the year. The Zambezi River forms the border with Zimbabwe. Its rapids and waterfalls are not generally navigable but provide excitement and beauty for tourists, especially the spectacular Victoria Falls. The river's main contribution to the economy is hydroelectric power. The rich lowlands of the Zambesi River are cultivated by subsistence farmers who raise sugarcane, maize, cassava, sorghum, and peanuts, and who practice slash-and-burn agriculture. Farmers raise cattle in areas free of tsetse flies. Elephants, hyenas, leopards, zebras, giraffes, antelope, baboons, and monkeys are abundant. Copper, coal, cobalt, and zinc are major mineral resources. Because the price of copper in world markets can change rapidly, the country is developing agriculture as an industry.

SPECIAL FACT  

The Bangweulu Swamps in northeastern Zambia are the largest inland wetlands in the world.  

Zambia
Republic of Zambia

CULTURE & THE ARTS  

Within Zambia’s borders are 72 ethnic groups. The largest of the tribes are the Bemba, the Tonga, the Cewa (Njanja), and the Lozi. Thirty distinct languages are spoken, but English is used as the official language. Zambia’s tribes are extremely diverse, and most have their own traditions and beliefs that are strikingly different from those of neighboring tribes. Among the Bemba tribe, matrilineal inheritance is practiced, with men following their wives to their home villages after marriage. The Bemba believe that the ability to have children is extremely important, and young girls go through elaborate initiation rites (cisungu) when they reach puberty. Boys have no similar rites.

The Cewa (Njanja), who also reside in Malawi, are known for their complex masked dances and rituals. Only men belong to the masked associations (nyau), and women and children are told that the maskers are actually spirits raised from the dead, or animal spirits. The extremely elaborate masks are of three different types: a wooden face mask, a feather net mask, and a body mask in the shape of an animal. Maskers perform at funerals, and each mask has its own name, song, style of dance, and costume. Women cannot know the identity of the maskers, and maskers cannot reveal their identity to their wives.

SPECIAL FACT  

Stone hand axes found in Zambia’s Kalomo and Zambezi River Valleys are estimated to be 200,000 years old.  

Zambia
Republic of Zambia

ECONOMICS  

In the mid-1990s, Zambia’s economic picture was bleak. Decades of political and economic mismanagement forced the government to institute painful economic reforms. Zambia’s workers now suffer the brunt of these reforms in the form of low wages, high prices, and job cuts. The government is privatizing most of Zambia’s state-owned enterprises, including the copper company-the source of more than 80 percent of the nation’s export earnings-which was placed on the auction block. Zambia’s recent economic difficulties have been exacerbated by chronically depressed copper production and weak copper prices. The copper industry is in dire straits because Zambia's commercially recoverable copper reserves are expected to be nearly exhausted by the year 2000. The nation desperately needs an infusion of foreign investment capital in order to develop the proposed Konkola Deep mine. Paying interest on Zambia’s enormous external debt-topping $7 billion (U.S.) in the early 1990s-remains a serious economic problem.

SPECIAL FACT  

Landlocked Zambia relies primarily on railroads to transport its export products to foreign seaports. Chinese aid was used in 1976 to link Zambia’s copper belt with Tanzania’s ports.

South Africa

Republic of South Africa

COUNTRY STATISTICS  

Area:  471,400 sq.miles (1,221,000 sq.km)
Population:  41,470,000
Currency:  1 rand = 100 cents
Exchange Rate:  R 2.852 = US$ 1
Capital:  Pretoria
Main Cities:  Cape Town, Johannesburg, Durban
Languages:  Afrikaans, English, Xhosa, Zulu
Religions:  Black Christian churches, Dutch Reform, Roman Catholic
Total GDP:  US$ 150,600,000,000
Imports:  US$ 26,590,000,000
Population Growth:  2.24%
Death Rate:  8.8/1000 people
Life Expectancy:  62.9 years
Number of Goats:  6,402,000
Per Capita PPP:  US$ 3,068
Exports:  US$ 28,290,000,000
Population Density:  34 people/sq.km
Birth Rate:  31.2/1000 people
Infant Mortality:  53/1000 live births
Number of Pigs:  1,511,000   South Africa
Republic of South Africa

INTRODUCTION & HISTORY  

In the 17th century the Dutch founded the Cape of Good Hope, and settlers moved inland. Known as Boers, they dispossessed original peoples, establishing farms using forced labor. When Britain gained the Cape in 1814, the Boers formed separate states. The defeated Boers began a guerrilla war, called the Boer War (1899-1902). As Britain pulled out, Boer Law gained dominance. In 1948 the Afrikaner National Party instituted apartheid, depriving blacks of civil rights and enforcing segregation. Opposition was crushed, as demonstrated by the 1960 massacres in Sharpeville. The African National Congress (ANC), a black protest movement founded in 1912, was banned. Struggle by the black majority gained momentum after the Soweto uprisings in 1976. Trade sanctions were only part of the increasing international siege against the white government. In 1990 it was forced to legalize the ANC, release ANC leader Nelson Mandela, and promise democratic elections. Mandela was elected president in 1994.

SPECIAL FACT  

During the Boer War (1899Ð1902), concentration camps were founded by the British for Boer women and children.  

South Africa
Republic of South Africa

GEOGRAPHY & TOURISM

 Away from the coastal plains is a central plateau that rises to over 6,500 ft (1,976 m). In the east, the Great Escarpment reaches 11,243 ft (3,482 m) at Thabana Ntlenyana, in the Drakensburg range. The main river is the Orange. Major cities are Cape Town, Johannesburg, Durban, and Pretoria. Cape Town, in the southwest, is overlooked by the flat-topped Table Mountain. It is the legislative capital and, because of its beauty and climate, has become popular with tourists from Europe and elsewhere. A number of well-known foreigners have bought homes there, and increasing numbers of wealthy white South Africans have been moving there (at least part-time) for the same reasons, as well as to escape rising crime in other cities, notably Johannesburg. The climate is generally hot, with little rain, but is most comfortable in the southwest.

SPECIAL FACT  

The largest diamond in the world was found in the Premier Mine in Pretoria, South Africa, on January 25, 1905. It weighed 3,106 carats and was named the Cullinan, after the mine’s discoverer, Sir Thomas Cullinan.   South Africa
Republic of South Africa

CULTURE & THE ARTS  

Many different cultures call South Africa home, sometimes with unhappy results. While 76 percent of the population is black, many different tribes form that percentage, including Zulu, Xhosa, Swazi, Tswana, Sotho, Venda, and Ndebele. Of the white population that accounts for 13 percent of the population, 65 percent are of Afrikaner descent, and 35 percent are of British background. Persons of mixed ancestry make up 9 percent of the population, while Indians make up 3 percent. Apartheid, which has dominated South Africa for nearly half a century, has had a profound effect on the arts and culture of the land. The literature that has emerged from South Africa often opposes apartheid and depicts its injustices. The novel “Cry, the Beloved Country” by Alan Paton was one of the first such works to receive world attention. The writings of Nadine Gordimer, perhaps South Africa’s most famous writer, are also prime examples. Her novel, “The Conservationist,” won a Booker Prize, and in 1991 she was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature. South African music has gained worldwide fame, especially the a cappella group Ladysmith Black Mambazo. The beauty and lyricism of their unaccompanied singing is widely recognized.

SPECIAL FACT  

Zulus make beautiful beadwork, which adorns dolls, neckpieces, headdresses, and cloths. Beadwork is worn only on special occasions.  

South Africa
Republic of South Africa

ECONOMICS  

Centuries of economic inequality have left 80 percent of South Africa’s population desperately poor, while a small number of whites enjoy incomes and material comforts similar to those of Western Europe. To make a successful transition from apartheid to a more egalitarian society, South Africa must educate and employ a large segment of its population. In the mid-1990s, more than a third of the workforce remained jobless. Frustrated by the lack of opportunity, many young people have turned to crime. As a result, South Africa’s violent crime rate is now far higher than that in North America or Europe. To achieve the goal of employing the majority of South Africa’s workforce, the nation’s economy must expand. Financial analysts estimate that 3 to 5 percent annual growth for the next decade will be essential to create more jobs. In recent years, South Africa’s economy has absorbed less than 5 percent of the more than 300,000 workers entering the workforce annually. A brighter economic future will depend on the management of South Africa’s rich natural resources. Gold, platinum, diamonds, chromium, and other metals and minerals are South Africa’s most significant exports.

SPECIAL FACT  

Foreign investors poured a record $1.84 billion into South African stocks and bonds during 1995, according to the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. The 1996 weakness of the nation’s currency prompted foreign firms to invest more.  

Namibia

Republic of Namibia

COUNTRY STATISTICS  

Area:  317,900 sq.miles (823,300 sq.km)
Population:  1,540,000
Currency:  1 Namibian dollar = 100 cents
Exchange Rate:  N$ 2.852 = US$ 1
Capital:  Windhoek
Main Cities:  Walvis Bay
Languages:  Afrikaans, English, German
Religions:  Protestant
Total GDP:  US$ 4,600,000,000
Imports:  US$ 1,100,000,000
Population Growth:  2.65%
Death Rate:  10.5/1000 people
Life Expectancy:  58.8 years
Number of Goats:  1,639,000
Per Capita PPP:  US$ 2,774
Exports:  US$ 1,300,000,000
Population Density:  2 people/sq.km
Birth Rate:  37/1000 people
Infant Mortality:  60/1000 live births
Number of Pigs:  18,000   Namibia
Republic of Namibia

INTRODUCTION & HISTORY of genocide  

This was one of the refuges of the Khoikhoi-San people, who once covered much of Africa, living as peaceful hunter-gatherers and creating rock paintings. By A.D. 500 they were forced southward by Bantu peoples from the Congo area. The Germans occupied this area, then called South West Africa, in the 1840s. They took both land and cattle from the settled tribes, forcing them to work on settlers' farms.

When the people rebelled in 1904, retaliation was ruthless: the Germans poisoned or sealed all the wells. The genocide reduced the Herero people from 80,000 to 16,000. (There was no outrage against this genocide like the holocost agaisnt the Jews I guess it was OK because they were BLACK? What their population would be now is a stat we will never know...)

From 1964, Sam Nujoma and the South West African People's Organization (SWAPO) struggled against South African domination and apartheid. SWAPO won Namibia's first democratic elections in 1989, forming a legitimate multiracial government the following year.

SPECIAL FACT  

The world's first portable painting was done on a rock by the San people of Namibia. It dates to 25,000 B.C.  

Namibia
Republic of Namibia

GEOGRAPHY & TOURISM  

The coastal Namib Desert stretches about 60 mi (97 km) inland and includes Namibia's highest peak, Brandberg (8,500 ft/2,584 m). A central plateau slopes south and east down to the Kalahari Desert. The main river is the Orange, which flows along the southern border with South Africa. The capital, Windhoek, is situated roughly in the center of the country. The climate is dry and hot, with very high temperatures in the coastal desert. At Cape Cross, located on Namibia’s Skeleton Coast along the Atlantic, is the world’s largest population of Cape fur seals. Namibia is one of the very few countries left in the world to allow commercial seal hunting, though world demand for seal skin and fur has reached an all-time low. Proponents of the industry believe, however, that seal hunting provides a sizable income for a country with little economic development.

SPECIAL FACT  

Probably the world's largest underground lake is in the Drachenhauchloch cave in Namibia, discovered in 1986. It lies 200 ft (61 m) underground and is 300 ft (91 m) deep.  

Namibia
Republic of Namibia

CULTURE & THE ARTS  

A variety of cultures intersect in Nambia, including the majority Bantu tribes, the indigenous Khoikhoi-San people, and a small number of Europeans, primarily of Afrikaner and German descent. The Ovambo tribe is the largest of Namibia, making up 50 percent of the total population. Christianity has made deep inroads into Namibian culture: 90 percent of Namibians profess Christianity. In fact, on the streets of Windhoek, Herero women can be seen wearing Victorian-style dresses patterned after those once worn by missionary women of an earlier century. Namibia is known for its rich tradition of arts and crafts. Jewelry is made from the shells of ostrich eggs, and rugs are woven from the wool of karakul sheep. Elaborately carved buttons called akipas were signs of wealth among the Ovambo. Made from bone and ivory, akipas were soaked in urine to impart a rich golden hue. Ovambo women wore akipas on belts as decoration and to display the wealth of their husbands.

SPECIAL FACT  

The Herero annual festival, Ochicerrandu, commemorates the Herero- German war, in which numerous Herero were killed along with 60,000 of their cattle. A cow is also honored each year.  

Namibia
Republic of Namibia

ECONOMICS  

By African standards, Namibia’s economy is relatively healthy. It exports more than it imports, it possesses abundant natural resources, and its foreign debt is below average. The Namibian Stock Exchange was one of Africa's top performers in 1995. The mining industry accounts for nearly 25 percent of Namibia’s gross domestic product (GDP). Namibia exports non-fuel minerals such as copper, gold, zinc, and lead. In addition, a substantial amount of uranium is exported. Namibia is famous for the high-quality alluvial diamonds that are mined from its rich deposits. The nation’s mines offer about $300 million (U.S.) worth of diamonds each year. In 1994, the DeBeers corporation forged an exclusive 25-year mining and marketing agreement with the Namibian government. In exchange for allowing DeBeers a monopoly, the government will receive 50 percent of the mining operations and will participate in their management. Despite the economic importance of mining, this sector employs only 5 percent of the labor force. Critics of the nation’s mining industry say that few of its profits have trickled down to the Namibian populace.

SPECIAL FACT  

Namibia draws game hunters from many nations. Large, beautiful antelopes are one of the region’s prized kills. The elephant, rhinoceros, zebra, giraffe, hippopotamus, and impala are protected animals and may not be hunted.

Angola

Republic of Angola

COUNTRY STATISTICS  

Area:  481,300 sq.miles (1,247,000 sq.km)
Population:  11,070,000
Currency:  1 New kwanza = 100 lwei
Exchange Rate:  not available
Capital:  Luanda
Main Cities:  Huambo
Languages:  Portuguese, Bantu
Religions:  Roman Catholic, Animist
Total GDP:  US$ 6,100,000,000
Imports:  US$ 1,600,000,000
Population Growth:  3.72%
Death Rate:  19.2/1000 people
Life Expectancy:  46.5 years
Number of Goats:  1,570,000
Per Capita PPP:  US$ 620
Exports:  US$ 3,000,000,000
Population Density:  9 people/sq.km
Birth Rate:  51.3/1000 people
Infant Mortality:  124/1000 live births
Number of Pigs:  820,000   Angola
Republic of Angola

INTRODUCTION & HISTORY  

Original Angolans were hunter-gatherers who used stone tools. After A.D. 1300, Bantu-speaking tribes brought agriculture and iron tools to the region and established kingdoms. The strongest of these, the Kongo, was the first to come in contact with Europeans when the Portuguese arrived in 1483. Although welcomed, the foreigners took advantage of the Kongo kings by promising technical help in exchange for increasing numbers of slaves. After much civil strife, the colony of Angola was founded south of Kongo country in 1576. The move toward liberation from Portugal began in the early 20th century and grew into political groups by the 1950s. In 1961, uprisings and the murder of Portuguese settlers focused world attention on Angola. But it wasn't until 1975 that Angola won independence. Peace remains fragile, as the country recovers from bloody civil wars brought on by competing groups fighting over Angola's rich oil and diamond resources.

SPECIAL FACT  

Angola boasts more than 90 different ethnic groups, thanks to its location on a prominent migration route.  

Angola
Republic of Angola

GEOGRAPHY & TOURISM  

Angola lies on the western Atlantic coast of the African continent. The small Cabinda region in the north is separated from the rest of the country by part of Zaire and the estuary of the River Congo. A large plateau occupies approximately two-thirds of the country, rising from the south to reach over 7,000 ft (2,135 m) in the center. Along the coast are strips of plain, such as around Luanda, the capital city. The climate is tropical, with a wet season from October to March, followed by a long dry season. However, the southwest region gets very little rain throughout the year. A long period of civil war that broke out after independence in 1975 ruined the economy as well as any hopes for developing the tourism industry. However, Luanda still has many fine old Portuguese buildings dating back to the days of colonization. There are also some lovely beaches.

SPECIAL FACT  

Illegal diamond miners in Angola make more money than their legal (and state-run) counterparts.  

Angola
Republic of Angola

CULTURE & THE ARTS  

Most Angolans belong to the Bantu linguistic family and are divided among six main ethnic groups: the Ovimbundu, the Mbundu, the Bakongo, the Lunda-Chokwe, the Nganguela, and the Kuanyama-Humbi-Vanheca. There is also a significant population of Mestiços, descendants of Portuguese and native Angolans.Though the Portuguese population reached an all-time high of 333,000 right before Angola’s independence in 1975, many people have since left. Currently, Portuguese people account for less than 2 percent of the entire Angolan population. Angola has a strong literary tradition, and some of Angola’s most famous authors have been intimately involved in shaping the country’s destiny. Mario Pinto de Andrade (1928-1990) was a writer and Nationalist leader. Antonio Jacinto (1924-1991), a white Angolan poet, held a cabinet post in the country’s first independent government. His writings denounced Portuguese rule, and some were even turned into songs.

SPECIAL FACT  

The !Kung bushmen, who live in the south of Angola, speak a Click tongue, named after clicking sounds used in their language.  

Tanzania

United Republic of Tanzania

COUNTRY STATISTICS   Area:  341,200 sq.miles (883,600 sq.km)
Population:  29,690,000
Currency:  1 Tanzanian shilling = 100 cents
Exchange Rate:  TSh 297.7 = US$ 1
Capital:  Dar es Salaam
Main Cities:  Dar es Salaam, Zanzibar, Tanga, Mwanza
Languages:  Swahili, English, local dialects
Religions:  Animist, Christian, Muslim
Total GDP:  US$ 21,000,000,000
Imports:  US$ 2,028,000,000
Population Growth:  2.96%
Death Rate:  13.6/1000 people
Life Expectancy:  52.1 years
Number of Goats:  9,682,000
Per Capita PPP:  US$ 750
Exports:  US$ 617,200,000
Population Density:  31 people/sq.km
Birth Rate:  43.1/1000 people
Infant Mortality:  85/1000 live births
Number of Pigs:  335,000  

Tanzania
United Republic of Tanzania

INTRODUCTION & HISTORY  

Forged from the union of Tanganyika and the islands of Zanzibar and Pemba in 1964, the United Republic of Tanzania has a colorful history. Some of the earliest human remains ever found were unearthed in Olduvai Gorge. Thousands of years ago, hunting and gathering people populated the land, followed by iron-using cultures from Zaire, Ethiopia, and elsewhere. Chiefs used religious rituals to ensure the well-being of their small tribes. Farming and pottery making provided food and trade goods. After Vasco da Gama's arrival in 1498, Portugal controlled Indian Ocean trade. The Portuguese brought cassava, handkerchiefs, and screws to Tanganyika, but their only real impact was to stir up tribal revolt. Arabs helped drive out the Portuguese in the mid-1600s and later established plantations on the islands. Using locals as slaves, the Arabs based a dynasty in Zanzibar and became the world's leading supplier of clove. Mainland traders delivered ivory, gold, timber, and leopard skins to the coast. Today Tanzania is one of the poorest countries in the world.

SPECIAL FACT  

The world's largest known population of wild chimpanzees - fewer than 1,000 - resides in Tanzania's isolated Mahale National Park.  

Tanzania
United Republic of Tanzania

GEOGRAPHY & TOURISM  

The diverse terrain of Tanzania includes a narrow coastal zone, lake plains and plateaus, and mountains. Its climates are equally varied, ranging from hot and humid on the coast to cool and subtropical in the highlands. Rainfall ranges from less than 19.7 in (50 cm) in the arid, tsetse flyÐinfested central areas to more than 50 in (127 cm) in the higher elevations. Herders make use of the grasslands, while coffee and tea plantations dot the highland areas. Adventurous tourists can go on safari in Tanzania's game parks and wildlife preserves. In 1871 journalist Henry Stanley met David Livingstone near Lake Tanganyika. Throughout this century the Leakey family has conducted their renowned anthropological studies in the north. Jane Goodall observes chimpanzees at Gombe Stream National Park, in the longest continuous field study of primates. Tanzania produces some fine native art, notably Makonde carvings, traditionally made of ebony.

SPECIAL FACT  

Tanzania includes half of Lake Tanganyika, the world's longest freshwater lake, and Mount Kilimanjaro, Africa's highest mountain.  

Tanzania
United Republic of Tanzania

CULTURE & THE ARTS  

With 120 ethnic and linguistic groups residing within its borders, Tanzania is a highly diverse society. No one group dominates the country, and the Sukuma, the largest ethnic group, make up only 13 percent of the entire population. Other groups include the Nyamnezi, Makonde, Wasya, Chagga, Gogo, Haya, and Masai. They often live in specific locations in the country, rather than dispersed among one another. Most people on the island of Zanzibar are descendants of slaves brought over by Arab traders, who once controlled the island. Although most Arabs have left Zanzibar, much of their architecture still stands. Along the shores, swift Arab sailboats called dhows are used as transportation. In spite of the numerous peoples, almost everyone can communicate in Swahili, the official language. Traditional music and dance are important, with each ethnic group having their own styles and forms. Some tribes are also famous for handicrafts: the Makonde for their carved masks, the Zaramo for their carved animals, and the Masai for their leather shields.

SPECIAL FACT  

The Chagga ethnic group of Tanzania believes that the body crosses over to a spiritual realm after death. The journey over harsh, sun-baked land takes nine days.  

Tanzania
United Republic of Tanzania

ECONOMICS

  Agriculture is the base of Tanzania’s economy. This sector accounts for nearly 60 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP), provides 85 percent of exports, and employs 90 percent of the workforce. Plantations produce coffee, tea, cotton, tobacco, cashew nuts, cloves, and sisal for export. Cassava, corn, wheat, bananas, fruits, and vegetables are the primary subsistence crops, but production is not sufficient to meet domestic needs. The agricultural sector is hindered by inadequate rainfall and increasing soil erosion over much of the country. Agricultural processing is the main industrial sector, producing refined sugar, cigarettes, sisal twine, and pyrethrum (an insecticide made from chrysanthemums). Some light consumer goods are manufactured for domestic use. Socialist ideology prevalent from the 1960s through the 1980s influenced nationalization of most industries. Inefficient operation and corruption in state-owned businesses caused manufacturing to decline from 10 percent to 4 percent of the GDP during the 1980s. In the mid-1990s, privatization programs were testament to a newfound acceptance of capitalism. Industrial production has increased as a result of private ownership. Gold and diamond mining are also on the rise.

SPECIAL FACT  

In the 1990s, Tanzania’s privatization program included selling the state-owned Tanzanian Breweries. After purchasing a 50-percent stake in the nation’s beer-production facilities, a South African firm turned a profit by improving output.

Kenya

Republic of Kenya

COUNTRY STATISTICS  

Area:  219,700 sq.miles (569,100 sq.km)
Population:  28,260,000
Currency:  1 Kenya shilling = 100 cents
Exchange Rate:  KSh 32.22 = US$ 1
Capital:  Nairobi
Main Cities:  Mombasa, Kisumu
Languages:  Swahili, English
Religions:  Protestant , Roman Catholic, Muslim, Others
Total GDP:  US$ 29,020,000,000
Imports:  US$ 1,850,000,000
Population Growth:  3.59%
Death Rate:  11.7/1000 people
Life Expectancy:  55.7 years
Number of Goats:  7,438,000
Per Capita PPP:  US$ 914
Exports:  US$ 1,450,000,000
Population Density:  49 people/sq.km
Birth Rate:  44.5/1000 people
Infant Mortality:  69/1000 live births
Number of Pigs:  107,000   Kenya
Republic of Kenya

INTRODUCTION & HISTORY  

From the first apes of 20 million years ago, each step in the evolution of humankind originated in this part of Africa. Hunter-gatherers lived here more than 120,000 years ago. Cattle and sheep were domesticated 8,500 years ago. Agriculture soon followed. Iron has been smelted in Kenya for 2,500 years. Arabs traders arrived on the coast around A.D. 100. The British came in the late 19th century, to settle as well as to rule. The fight for Kenyan independence was bloody. A Mau-Mau secret society killed many British planters in the early 1950s. Retaliation against the Kenyans was vicious, until Jomo Kenyatta led his people to independence in 1963. Though many Masai people still lead a traditional nomadic life, parts of Kenya are highly urbanized. With over 100 different tribes, ethnic conflicts are part of the modern Kenyan state.

SPECIAL FACT  

Mt. Kilimanjaro used to be in Kenya. In the late 19th century, England's Queen Victoria shifted the border by giving the mountain to her nephew Emperor William I of Germany, the ruler of Tanganyika (Tanzania).  

Kenya
Republic of Kenya

GEOGRAPHY & TOURISM  

The steep-sided Rift Valley divides the highlands that run from north to south across the country, reaching to over 17,000 ft (5,168 m) at Mount Kenya, the highest point. On the southwestern border is Lake Victoria, Africa’s largest lake. The capital and largest city is Nairobi, in the south. Some of the finest game parks in Africa, as well as long, sandy beaches, have long attracted tourists to Kenya, though rising crime is now discouraging some potential visitors. The coast is hot and humid, with rainy seasons from April to May and from October to November; the highlands are cooler. Kenya lies across the equator.

SPECIAL FACT  

The remains of the earliest hominid (the primate from which humans descended) were found near Lake Baringo in Kenya in February 1984. The jawbone and teeth were estimated to be 4 million years old.  

Kenya
Republic of Kenya

CULTURE & THE ARTS  

Kenya is home to more than 30 ethnic groups, who together constitute 99 percent of the population. Arabs and Europeans, along with Asians of East Indian and Pakistani origin, make up the remaining 1 percent. The tribes are usually divided into three ethnolinguistic categories: the Bantu, the Nilotic, and the Nilo-Hamitic. The largest of the tribes are the Bantu-speaking Kikuyu tribe, a major political force in shaping the country’s destiny. The nomadic Masai, traditional enemies of the Kikuyu, are another large tribe. Masai are known as great warriors. As a rite of passage into manhood, a Masai teen must hunt and kill a lion without any help. The Masai live off cattle, subsisting mainly on a diet of milk and blood. Cattle herding, however, has led to extensive overgrazing. Camels, who do not strip the land and can survive up to two weeks without food or water, are beginning to replace the cattle.

SPECIAL FACT  

Among the Luo tribe, when a man dies, his wife is inherited by his brother. Once the inheritance has been consummated, the widow is allowed to leave the family.  

Kenya
Republic of Kenya

ECONOMICS  

Agriculture is the base of Kenya’s economy. Although little more than 3 percent of the land is arable, farming provides valuable export commodities. Tea and coffee are the most important cash crops. World price swings for these two crops can cause significant economic trouble. Nearly 80 percent of the workforce labors on large farms or on small subsistence plots. Stock raising is the chief activity in the large percentage of Kenya that is too dry for crop cultivation. Skyrocketing population growth, drought, deforestation, water pollution, and soil erosion have contributed to Kenya’s failure to remain self-sufficient in food production. Once able to sell surplus to its neighbors, Kenya now imports large quantities of wheat and other commodities. In the mid-1990s, Kenyan unemployment was high, inflation staggering, and foreign debt astronomical. The Kenyan oil industry was deregulated in 1994. That year, the oil refinery at Mombasa processed some 2 million tons of crude, about 10 percent less than the Kenyan market required.

SPECIAL FACT  

Kenya has more than 50 national parks and reserves. Nairobi National Park, a noted game reserve established in 1946, is a sanctuary for the rhino, buffalo, lion, leopard, crocodile, hippo, cheetah, and more than 400 bird species.

Somalia

Somali Democratic Republic

COUNTRY STATISTICS  

Area:  242,200 sq.miles (627,300 sq.km)
Population:  9,250,000
Currency:  1 Somali shilling = 100 cents
Exchange Rate:  not available
Capital:  Mogadishu
Main Cities:  Hargeisa, Boroma, Kismayu
Languages:  Somali
Religions:  Muslim
Total GDP:  US$ 3,300,000,000
Imports:  US$ 249,000,000
Population Growth:  1.28%
Death Rate:  18.5/1000 people
Life Expectancy:  47 years
Number of Goats:  12,000,000
Per Capita PPP:  US$ 500
Exports:  US$ 58,000,000
Population Density:  15 people/sq.km
Birth Rate:  50.2/1000 people
Infant Mortality:  122/1000 live births
Number of Pigs:  9,000   Somalia
Somali Democratic Republic

INTRODUCTION & HISTORY  

During the Middle Ages, Arab traders established towns along the eastern coast. After their 14th-century conversion to Islam, Somalis spread south and east, establishing communities in Kenya, Djibouti, and Ogaden. Omani rule dominated by the 16th century, without imposing control over the nomadic peoples. An Egyptian excursion into northern Somalia in 1875 was abandoned 10 years later. Britain declared the area a protectorate in 1884. Ready to follow suit, Italy extended a protectorate over eastern Somalia. From 1899 until his death in 1920, Nationalist Muhammad Hassan controlled the northern interior. The British and Italian regions were joined in 1960, forming the independent republic of Somalia. Sadly, unity has yet to be realized. War between rival clans broke out in 1991. The violence is compounded by droughts and famines. Effective government remains impossible, and the carnage continues.

SPECIAL FACT  

Nomadic herders continue to inhabit Somalia for only part of the year, moving their animals back and forth across the Ethiopian border with the seasons.  

Somali Democratic Republic

GEOGRAPHY & TOURISM  

On the outer edge of the Horn of Africa, bordering the Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Aden, lies Somalia. The north is mountainous, reaching to nearly 8,000 ft (2,432 m) on the border with Ethiopia. In the south, behind the long coastal plain, the land rises to more than 3,000 ft (916 m). Between the Jubba and Shebele Rivers, in the south, the land is fertile, and it is along those two valleys that most of the non-nomadic population lives. Mogadishu, the capital and largest city, is in the south of the country. Somalia’s second city, Hargeysa, is in the mountains in the north. The climate is hot and dry, with more rain in the north. Droughts are frequent.

SPECIAL FACT  

Somalia has some of the longest beaches in the world, littered with rare shells. However, it can be dangerous to swim in the sea because of sharks.  

Somalia
Somali Democratic Republic

CULTURE & THE ARTS  

Somalis share many cultural traits, such as the same language, the same religion, the same complex oral tradition, and a love of the game called shax. Despite these common traits, Somalia remains a sharply divided society. Most Somalis belong to one of six clans (reer) found throughout the land. The biggest of the clans are the Ishaaq, the Darood, and the Hawiye. Clans are divided into smaller clans, which are distinguished by high and low castes. Fighting among the clans has torn Somali culture apart, and some of the famines the country has endured are a direct result of farmers’ being prevented from working their land. Until 1973, Somalia had no written language. As a result, a rich oral tradition of songs, stories, and poetry has been carried down through the ages. Poetry is highly valued in Somali culture, and rules governing poetry are very complex.

SPECIAL FACT  

Men often publicly play the game of shax, a board game requiring careful attention to strategy. Asked why no women played shax, one man replied that the women were too busy working.  

Somalia
Somali Democratic Republic

ECONOMICS  

In the late 1990s, the people of Somalia are no longer on the verge of starvation, but the nation’s economic outlook remains bleak. Somalia has few characteristics of a modern economy. The small industrial sector shut down in the early 1990s due to civil strife, and many businesses have not reopened. Most of Somalia’s people live without the modern infrastructure of electricity, schools, or hospitals. Clans, mosques, and militia organizations dominate local economies, engaging in trade and black market transactions. About 70 percent of Somalis are still pastoral nomads, raising camels, cattle, sheep, and goats. During the mid-1990s, rampant livestock banditry hurt the pastoral people. About 20 percent of Somalia’s workforce is agricultural. The main export crop is bananas. Sugar, sorghum, mangoes, sesame seeds, and corn are grown for the domestic market. One result of the political turmoil of the 1990s was a substantial drop in agricultural output between 1991 and 1993, leading to widespread famine. The remaining 10 percent of the population engages in trading, fishing, or handicrafts production. Mogadishu, Somalia's leading port city, is the country’s commercial center. The city’s main industries are food processing, leather tanning, and shoe manufacturing.

SPECIAL FACT  

Camels, once the measure of social and financial standing in Somalia, are still one of the nation’s main exports. Each animal is worth $300 to $700 (U.S).

Uganda

Republic of Uganda

COUNTRY STATISTICS  

Area:  77,080 sq.miles (199,700 sq.km)
Population:  21,300,000
Currency:  1 Uganda shilling = 100 cents
Exchange Rate:  Sch 1,134 = US$ 1
Capital:  Kampala
Main Cities:  Jinja, Mbale, Masaka
Languages:  English, Swahili
Religions:  Roman Catholic, Protestant, Animist, Muslim
Total GDP:  US$ 11,500,000,000
Imports:  US$ 851,000,000
Population Growth:  3.42%
Death Rate:  19.2/1000 people
Life Expectancy:  44.9 years
Number of Goats:  3,350,000
Per Capita PPP:  US$ 547
Exports:  US$ 249,000,000
Population Density:  90 people/sq.km
Birth Rate:  51.8/1000 people
Infant Mortality:  115/1000 live births
Number of Pigs:  880,000   Uganda
Republic of Uganda

INTRODUCTION & HISTORY  

Uganda's boundaries, created in the 19th century, joined two separate societies: the Bantu kingdom of the south and the Nilotic and Sudanic tribes of the north. The southern part became a British protectorate in 1893; the north joined in 1903, though the British continued to favor the south by developing it more. Ugandan independence came in 1962. A series of military coups and civil wars occurred in the 1970s under Milton Obote and, starting in 1971, Idi Amin. Amin's brutal expulsion of Asian and British immigrants in 1972 deprived the country of prosperous businesses and useful expertise. This repressive regime was overthrown in 1979 with the help of neighboring Tanzania. Other coups brought more violence in the 1980s. In the mid-1990s, Uganda moved toward a democratic political system and Asians began returning. In 1996 Yoweri Museveni, who had seized power 10 years before, became the first elected president.

SPECIAL FACT  

In the second century A.D., Ptolemy placed the source of the Nile in the Mountains of the Moon (Uganda’s Ruwenzori Range). He was only about 200 miles off, though this was not discovered for another 1700 years.  

Uganda
Republic of Uganda

GEOGRAPHY & TOURISM

  The landlocked country of Uganda straddles the equator, but it is warm, not hot like other tropical countries. Uganda is mainly high plateau, but its western border is formed by the Ruwenzori Range, the Virunga Mountains, and the Western Rift Valley. The Victoria Nile flows out of Lake Victoria, one of the world's largest inland freshwater lakes, which is split between Tanzania, Kenya, and Uganda. Soils are more fertile and rainfall more plentiful in the south, where most of the population lives. The grasslands of the northeast are more arid. Most people work in agriculture, raising crops like coffee, tea, cotton, sweet potatoes, maize, cassava, and sugarcane. Uganda's wealth of natural resources furnishes raw materials to Europe, the United States, Kenya, and South Africa, but industry is limited to processing of these materials. Years of civil war have kept Uganda from making the most of its natural resources and tourists from enjoying its beautiful national parks.

SPECIAL FACT  

Uganda's lush vegetation and rich soil inspired Winston Churchill to call it the "pearl of Africa."  

Uganda
Republic of Uganda

CULTURE & THE ARTS  

With at least 40 ethnic groups residing in Uganda and 20 speaking their own language, Uganda is an extremely fractured society. The tribes fall into four major groups: Bantu, Eastern Nilotic, Western Nilotic, and Central Sudanics. The largest of these groups are the Bantu Ganda, or Baganda, who make up 15 percent of Uganda’s entire population. The Ganda kingdom was once very powerful. Until 1967, it had its own king. The culture and art of the tribes are also diverse. The Teso are known for their wood carving and animal sculptures, while the Ganda are thought of as the best drum carvers. The drum played an important part in Ganda culture, and the royal drum, made from a hollowed-out tree trunk and decorated with cowry shells, was used only on special occasions, such as war, the birth of a royal child, or the death of a king. Jewelry is important to many tribes, including the Jie, the Dodoth, and the Karamojong. The Jie wear beaded necklaces and earrings, while the Dodoth wear neckrings, and necklaces made to cover the entire chest. The Karamojong also wear neck coils, coils around their arms and ankles, earrings made from iron, and lip plugs made from alabaster, bone, and ivory.

SPECIAL FACT  

Among the Karomojong tribe, only men wear elaborate hairstyles. One hairstyle is created by matting the hair with mud, painting it, and adorning it with ostrich plumes. After the death of a father, sons inherit shares of their father’s hair.  

Uganda
Republic of Uganda  

Economics

By the mid-1990s, the economy’s annual growth rate was 8 percent, and foreign investment money was steadily flowing into Uganda’s businesses. International aid has also been instrumental in Uganda's economic recovery. In 1994, the International Development Association granted Uganda a $75-million (U.S.) credit to rehabilitate the nation’s railways and roads. The World Bank has helped to downsize the country’s standing army by offering each soldier a parcel of land and a cash payment. More than 80 percent of Ugandans still practice subsistence agriculture. The main food crops are cassava, sweet potatoes, bananas, corn, millet, sorghum, peanuts, and beans. Cows and goats are raised for meat and milk. Uganda not only provides its own food, but also exports corn and beans to neighboring countries via the food aid arm of the United Nations. Many families sell their excess produce in local markets.

SPECIAL FACT  

The Departed Asians Custodian Board has returned more than 4,000 properties to their exiled Indian-Ugandan owners. While few have returned more than two decades after Idi Amin expelled them, many claim their properties to sell them.

Congo-Kinshasa

Democratic Republic of Congo (Zaïre)
COUNTRY STATISTICS  

Area:  875,300 sq.miles (2,267,000 sq.km)
Population:  43,900,000
Currency:  1 zaïre = 100 makuta
Exchange Rate:  Z 645,500 = US$ 1
Capital:  Kinshasa
Main Cities:  Kananga, Kisangani, Lubumbashi
Languages:  French, Swahili and Sudanic tribal languages
Religions:  Roman Catholic, Animist, Protestant
Total GDP:  US$ 18,800,000,000
Imports:  US$ 356,000,000
Population Growth:  3.19%
Death Rate:  14.5/1000 people
Life Expectancy:  52 years
Number of Goats:  4,317,000
Per Capita PPP:  US$ 440
Exports:  US$ 362,000,000
Population Density:  19 people/sq.km
Birth Rate:  47.5/1000 people
Infant Mortality:  93/1000 live births
Number of Pigs:  1,185,000  

Congo-Kinshasa
Democratic Republic of Congo (Zaïre)

INTRODUCTION & HISTORY  

The first residents were probably ancient Negrito peoples (Pygmies), followed by Bantu and Nilotic invaders. The Luba, Kongo, Lunda, Lele, and Kuba kingdoms formed a centralized state in the 16th century. In the 19th century, Henry Stanley made treaties with tribal chiefs that claimed the Congo for King Leopold II of Belgium. Under Leopold II, the exploitation of Africans was horrific and caused an international scandal, prompting the Belgian government to take over the colony. In 1960, the independent Republic of Congo was formed. The mineral-rich Katanga (now Shaba) province soon separated; five years of civil war followed. United Nations peacekeeping troops stayed for four years, as the premier, Patrice Lumumba, was deposed, then murdered. Mobutu Sese Seko took over in a military coup in 1965, establishing the one-party Republic of Zaire in 1971. In 1997 a rebellion led by Laurent Kabila started a civil war that eventually took over the country, successfully toppling the 32-year regime of Mobutu Sese Seko. On May 29, 1997, Kabila was sworn in as president of the newly named Democratic Republic of the Congo.

SPECIAL FACT  

During his three decades in power, Mobutu Sese Seko supposedly siphoned more than US $4 billion from the national coffers into his own pocket.  

Congo-Kinshasa
Democratic Republic of Congo (Zaïre)

CULTURE & THE ARTS  

Split among more than 250 language groups, Congo is an extremely divided society. French is the official language, but there are four main African languages spoken in the country. They include Kikongo, Lingala, Swahili, and Tshiliba. Lingala, the most widely spoken, is used by the government and the media and in many a pop song. The largest of the ethnic groups are the Bakongo, Mongo, Baluba, Lunda, Bashi, and Azande. Ninety-five percent of the population is Christian. The remainder continue to practice traditional African religions. Of the Christian population, 17 percent follow the Kimbanguist church, founded in 1921 by Simon Kimbangu. Kimbanguism mixes Protestantism with traditional African religious beliefs. In colonial times, Kimbanguism was seen as a nationalist and anti-European religion, and Kimbangu himself was thrown in jail. In spite of its rich mineral deposits and wealth of natural resources, Congo remains an impoverished nation. Most of the population lives in rural villages, in mud brick houses with thatched roofs. A typical meal consists of a corn, rice, or cassava porridge, which does not supply all the necessary nutrients. The population of Kinshasa, the capital, is growing, as villagers move to the city in search of work.

SPECIAL FACT  

Jazz music is extremely popular in the newly renamed Congo. Many musicians have combined jazz with traditional music, songs, and themes to produce their own brand of jazz.  

Congo-Kinshasa
Democratic Republic of Congo (Zaïre)

ECONOMICS  

In spite of its rich natural resources, Congo’s economy is in shambles. The economy has contracted by nearly 40 percent since 1988. By the late 1990s, the nation’s political core became so feeble that the country could barely be called a nation-state. The state structures established after independence arrived in 1960 are inadequate to meet the nation’s needs. Faced with meager resources and a flimsy infrastructure, the government is unable to cope with the ever-increasing demands of housing and feeding a burgeoning population. Famine and malaria pose serious health problems. Citizens are losing faith in the state's ability to meet their basic needs. In response, many people are returning to more traditional, kinship-based economic systems. However, this return to indigenous social systems is resulting in ethnic-based competition and conflict for control of the nation's scarce resources. Without political stability, Congo will be unable to live up to the potential of its vast wealth of mineral and agricultural resources.  

SPECIAL FACT

In 1974, Muhammad Ali and George Foreman went to (then) Zaire for a heavyweight championship fight. President Mobutu Sese Seko offered the $10 million (U.S.) purse.

Congo-Brazzaville

Republic of the Congo

COUNTRY STATISTICS  

Area:  131,900 sq.miles (341,500 sq.km)
Population:  2,590,000
Currency:  1 CFA franc = 100 centimes
Exchange Rate:  CFA 264.7 = US$ 1
Capital:  Brazzaville
Main Cities:  Pointe Noire
Languages:  French, Bantu dialects
Religions:  Animist, Roman Catholic, Protestant
Total GDP:  US$ 6,010,000,000
Imports:  US$ 1,598,000,000
Population Growth:  2.98%
Death Rate:  14.9/1000 people
Life Expectancy:  51.3 years
Number of Goats:  305,000
Per Capita PPP:  US$ 2,240
Exports:  US$ 1,191,000,000
Population Density:  8 people/sq.km
Birth Rate:  44.7/1000 people
Infant Mortality:  84/1000 live births
Number of Pigs:  56,000  

Congo-Brazzaville
Republic of the Congo

INTRODUCTION & HISTORY

The Congo's early history was dominated by three African kingdoms, the Bakongo, Loango, and Teke. The descendants of these kingdoms continue to be important in the country, whose varied population includes 15 ethnic groups. When the Portuguese arrived in the 1480s they developed a close relationship with the Bakongo king. Lured by the slave trade, the French established trading companies and settlements in the region in the 18th and 19th centuries. The Congo gained independence in 1960, after more than 50 years as part of the French colonial empire. The Congo people today are mostly farmers who grow manioc, corn, yams, bananas, and peanuts. There is some mining of iron, diamonds, zinc, and copper, as well as petroleum and natural gas production. The main industries include timber cutting, brewing, flour milling, and food processing.

SPECIAL FACT  

Congolese believed that the first people inhabited Paradise with God. But because women nagged, he threw them out.  

Congo-Brazzaville
Republic of the Congo

GEOGRAPHY & TOURISM  

More than half of the Congo is covered by thick tropical rainforest. No point in the country reaches much more than 3,000 ft (912 m). Bordered by four countries and the small separate region of Cabinda that belongs to Angola, Congo also has an Atlantic coastline that stretches for about 100 mi/161 km, behind which lies a narrow coastal plain. The climate is hot and humid. The dry season is from June to September for most of the country but from May to October in the southwest uplands. Less than half the population lives in cities. Only 2 percent of the land is used for agriculture, though nearly two-thirds of the workforce earns its living (or merely survives) from farming.

SPECIAL FACT  

Africa was called the Dark Continent because so little was known about its interior. Sequences of short waterfalls, like those on the Congo River below Brazzaville, prevented exploration via riverways.  

Congo-Brazzaville
Republic of the Congo

CULTURE & THE ARTS  

Congo’s population comprises four main ethnic groups, including the Kongo, the Teke, the Sanga, and the Mboshi. The Kongo are made up of numerous smaller tribes, most of whom live in southern Congo. The Teke, the Sanga, and the Mboshi reside in the north. Less than 1 percent of the population are Binga Pygmies, who once made a living by hunting and gathering in the forest. The Pygmies, with their wide knowledge of medicinal herbs, are formidable healers. Traditionally, art in the Congo was created not for purely aesthetic reasons but for religious or social purposes. The Kongo are famous for their wooden religious sculptures, amulets, and masks. When worn, a mask was thought to transform its wearer into a spirit.

SPECIAL FACT  

Among the Kongo, whose society is matriarchal, chiefs were under the authority of the oldest living woman in the clan.  

Congo-Brazzaville
Republic of the Congo

ECONOMICS  

Due to its ample petroleum reserves, Congo is now one of sub-Saharan Africa's most industrialized nations. The Point-Noire refinery opened in the mid-1970s, kicking off an era of oil-rich prosperity. The petroleum industry received another boost when Congo's N'Kossa oil field went into production in the mid-1990s. Crude oil now accounts for more than 70 percent of exports. The nation's economic health in the future will rest on the success of petroleum extraction. Fluctuation of world oil prices will also directly affect export earnings. Revenue from the petroleum industry is used to develop infrastructure, rehabilitate less developed sections of the economy, and provide social services. Mining for zinc, gold, and lead is also important to the nation's economy. In the past, forestry was the economic mainstay, and lumber and plywood are still important export products. Despite a relatively high level of industrialization, most Congolese workers continue to participate in agriculture. Farmers grow cassava, plantains, and other local crops, but the nation imports most of its food. Cash crops include tobacco, sugarcane, coffee, and cocoa.

SPECIAL FACT  

The Congo River holds hydroelectric potential that has not yet been fully exploited. In the future, Congo may be able to export electrical power to its neighbors.

Love to all the children

Redmond Rose~