NET, IAS, State-SET (KSET, WBSET, MPSET, etc.), GATE, CUET, Olympiads etc.: World Regions of Africa

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Natural Vegetation & Wildlife

Wheat

  • It is of little importance except in the extreme south, in parts of Cape Province and in northern Africa (Egypt, Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia) .
  • Elsewhere in Africa, maize is much more important than wheat.

Rice

  • Egypt (Nile Delta and valley) Though Basin irrigation is still used, huge dams like Aswan have helped in the development of perennial irrigation system.
  • Minor producers Congo, C. A R, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Mali and Madagascar.

Maize

  • S Africa is the major producer.
  • Production is often small in African countries but the crop is relied on as a staple food and therefore has an importance in the economy greater than mere production figures would indicate.
  • Oat and Barley in Africa these are grown in eastern, southeastern and southern pockets.
  • Millet and sorghum -Millet is an important subsistence crop. It is often called Durra or Guinea

Corn

  • Main producers Nigeria, Sudan, Niger, Chad, Mali and Egypt. Vegetables

Starchy Tubers

  • Manioc or Cassava (Zaire and Nigeria)
  • Yams (common food crops in Africa , S. E. Asia and the Pacific islands and are grown by shifting cultivators and subsistence farmers) . Major producers Nigeria, Togo, Benin, Ivory Coast.

Fruits

1) Tropical fruits

  1. Dates (Desert areas of Sudan and Algeria)
  2. Bananas (W. Africa)
  3. Pineapples (Zaire and Ivory Coast)

2) Sub tropical and warm temperate fruits Citrus fruits like Grapes in S. Africa.

Spices

  • Clove Pemba and Zanzibar
  • Vanilla Malagasy (Elsewhere Vanilla is grown in Mexico and Indonesia)

Tea

  • Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique and Uganda
  • Kenyan tea is of high quality and is grown on highlands around Nairobi. Java coffee (Indonesia) , Mocha (Yemen)
  • Ivory Coast, Zaire and Cameroon are chief producers.
  • Kenya, Uganda and Angola also grow coffee. Cocoa
  • Ghana, Nigeria, Ivory Coast and Cameroon -Mainly on small holdings.
  • Brazil and Ivory Coast (new producers) have higher yields than Ghana and Nigeria.
  • The greatest concentration is in the cocoa triangle (including Accra, Kumasi and Takoradi) Forests
  • Nigeria, Ethiopia and Sudan are major timber producers.
  • Many countries have turned to commercial extraction Nigeria, Cameroon, Gabon and Zaire
  • Forests are less extensive and often less luxuriant than in Latin America or South East Asia.
  • Though largest forest area is in Zaire Basin, transportation is difficult.