GEOG 2400 Lecture Notes - Lecture 8: Central African Republic, Sub-Saharan Africa, Carbon Footprint
14 Jun 2018
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Department
Course
Professor
GEOG 2400
Africa
Defining Africa
• Diverse continent of more than 50 nations
• Each have variety of urban and rural cultures, lifestyles, and socioeconomic realities
• Least urbanized region
• Highest urban growth rate
North Africa
• Higher proportion of urban population (47.8%) relative to Sub Saharan Africa (32.8%)
• SSA has lowest proportion of urban population but highest proportion of slum dwellers (65%)
Libya
• Most urbanized country, 88%
• Economy almost entirely dependent on oil and gas exports
• 1/3 of population below poverty line
• GDP per capita $10,000
Gabon
• Most urbanized country in sub Saharan Africa - 87%
• Economy almost entirely dependent on oil, 80% of its exports
• 35% of population below poverty line
• GDP per capita $19,000
Burundi
• Least urbanized country, 11% urban
• Poor resources, 90% of people dependent on agriculture
• Land locked, reliant on growing things foreigners want (coffee and tea), susceptible to changed in
the market
• GDP per capita $800
• 65% of population below poverty line
Slums
• Region of highest concentration of urban population in slums
• Vast majority of urbanites are slum-dwellers
• Sub-Saharan Africa: 72% of city dwellers living in slums
• Exbet el-Haggana, Cairo; Alexandra, Johannesburg; Nima, Accra
• 10 poorest countries in the world
o Afghanistan ($1072)
o Madagascar ($972)
o Malawi ($893)
o Niger ($853)
o Central African Republic ($827)
o Ertitrea ($792)
o Liberia ($716)
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o Burundi ($648)
o Zimbabwe ($589)
o Democratic Republic of Congo ($395)
Wealth
• Number of millionaires in Africa more than doubled since 2000
• Fastest growing countries: Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana
• Richest countries per capita in Africa: Morocco, Algeria, Egypt, Ghana, Gabon, Angola, Namibia,
South Africa, Botswana, Mauritius, Kenya
• Diamond, gold, coffee, oil
• Fastest growing wealthy class in the world
• Concentration of wealth is spatially uneven, concentrated in cities
• Rural areas remain much poorer than urban areas in Africa
Inequality
• Gini index: a measurement of income inequality in a country or region, 0 represent perfect
equality and 100 implies perfect inequality
• Africa home to more than 160,000 people with fortunes of more than $1M
• Twofold increase in number of wealthy individuals sine 2000
• Number of poor, living less than $1.25 a day, increased from 411.2 million to 501 million in 2013
• Most unequal countries in Africa: Central African Republic, Namibia, Zambia, Botswana, South
Africa
• Most unequal countries in the world: Haiti, Central Africa Republic, Namibia, Botswana, South
Africa
Overpopulation
• Thomas Malthus, English scholar/demographer
o Malthusian theory: population will grow faster than the amount of resources available to
sustain it
o Population growth will always create stress on the means of subsistence
o Saw population growth as primary cause of poverty
• Overpopulation narrative
o "earth is full'
o Unavailable land
o Too few resources, too much waste
• Human population: estimate 10 billion between 2050 and 2100
• Will peak this century
• "peak everything (food, water, oil)
• Rapidly changing climate
• Criticism
o Malthus wrote his theory before agricultural technological revolution
o Complexities with how people are organized
o Globalization complicated the ability for a nation-state to grow for itself
• Blame on Africa
o Highest fertility rates in the world
o More than 50% of global population growth between now and 2050 expected to occur in
Africa
o Region of least urbanized population and highest urban growth rates
o Derogatory language used to discuss African fertility rates used in media
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Root Causes of Urban Social and Environmental Problems in African Cities
1. Consumption, high consumption by wealthy nations
o Places of high population growth are where carbon dioxide emissions growing most slowly
(Africa and Asia)
o In their life, a child born today in the US will produce a carbon footprint seven times that of
an extra child in China, 55 times that of an Indian child, or 86 times that a Nigerian child
o 1980-2005: Sub-Saharan Africa produced 18.5% of world's population growth and just 2.4%
of growth in CO2
o NA responsible for 4% of world population growth but 14% of the emissions
o 1/6th of global population is so poor that is produces no significant emissions at all
o Lowest footprints: East Timor, Eritrea, Gaza Strip and West Bank, Haiti, Afghanistan
o Highest footprints: Kuwait, Qatar, UAE, Belgium, Trinidad and Tobago
• First African Country is #32 (Mauritius)
• Canada is #11
o "even if zero population growth were achieved, that would barley touch the climate
problem"
• Ex. Super yachts, uses 1ltr/sec, owner of one yacht does more damage to the
biosphere in 10 min than most Africans in a lifetime
2. Resource extraction, especially the siphoning of wealth from Africa's natural resources for external
profit
o Top 3 African exports: Palm oil, diamonds, oil
o Diamonds: DR Congo
o Palm oil and oil: Nigeria
o Siphoning of profits off of these commodities by offshore companies
o Leaves Africa both reduced of natural resources, and without income generation
o Siphoning of wealth, most profit going to headquarters located in different countries
History of Urbanization
Pre-Colonial Cities
• Major centers of Urbanism all under 50,000 residents
Colonialism
• 15th century, started with Portugal
• By 1930s, 15 thousand slaves per year kidnapped from Kongo
• Developed port-cities
History of Urbanization in Africa
Pre-Colonial Cities
• All centers of urbanism had populations under 50,000
• Ex. Kingdom of Mali
• Diverse economies
Colonialism
• Began in 15th century, Portugal
• First developed were coastal cities
• 1530 - 15 thousand slaves per year kidnapped from Kongo alone
• Created massive demographic change, depopulation of Africa, transport of slaves to Latin America
for labour (sugarcane)
Scramble for Africa
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Document Summary
Defining africa: diverse continent of more than 50 nations, each have variety of urban and rural cultures, lifestyles, and socioeconomic realities, highest urban growth rate. North africa: higher proportion of urban population (47. 8%) relative to sub saharan africa (32. 8%) Ssa has lowest proportion of urban population but highest proportion of slum dwellers (65%) Libya: most urbanized country, 88, economy almost entirely dependent on oil and gas exports, 1/3 of population below poverty line, gdp per capita ,000. Gabon: most urbanized country in sub saharan africa - 87, economy almost entirely dependent on oil, 80% of its exports, 35% of population below poverty line, gdp per capita ,000. Least urbanized country, 11% urban: poor resources, 90% of people dependent on agriculture. Land locked, reliant on growing things foreigners want (coffee and tea), susceptible to changed in the market: gdp per capita , 65% of population below poverty line.
