Yearbook 2008 Niger. The armed conflict in the north between the state and Tuaregic guerrillas, which flared up again in 2007, continued throughout the year. Milis from the Nigerian Justice Movement (MNJ) attacked smaller cities and military bases and carried away dozens of people. Excess permits existed throughout the region throughout the year. The French…
Category: Africa
But what climates can Africa be divided into?
A special feature of this continent, which only Africa can show, is the overlap of the two tropics of the earth. Accordingly, Africa can also mainly be described as a tropical continent, although the subtropics can be found both in the north and in the south. In general, however, the tropical climates follow one another almost symmetrically. Since the so-called “Congo Basin” and the Upper Berguine Coast core areas are known for their tropical, humid climate, only temperatures above 18 degrees Celsius and high amounts of precipitation can be recorded here. In the north, south and east of the continent, however, a hot and humid savanna climate can be found, which is characterized by both rainy and dry seasons. Furthermore, areas near the equator also belong to the hot savannah climate in East Africa.
The exclusively arid regions of Africa are the central regions of Namibia and Kalahari and the Sahara, which have high temperatures every day. Areas on the Red Sea, on the other hand, can undoubtedly be called the hottest places on earth. Because temperatures of up to 50 degrees can be reached here in the summer months of July and August. The north of Sudan is also strongly influenced by this climate, but has lower temperatures. A dry summer and partly Mediterranean climate can only be found in the Cape Country.
In terms of topography, the continent of Africa can be divided into 53 states. It is also worth mentioning that the state of Mauritania has been excluded and Morocco has replaced it. Furthermore, the so-called “Arab Sahara Republic” is not officially to be found, but is recognized as a full member by many other countries on the continent. The Somaliland Republic has not yet been formally recognized either. But regardless of any political point of view, the number of 53 African states remains.
Africa’s languages
There is no continent in which more languages with their different dialects are spoken than in Africa. However, the African languages should by no means be seen as a common language family. The Arabic spoken in North Africa has absolutely nothing to do with the Afrikaans spoken in South Africa. An important subdivision of languages is those that originated in Africa and are only spoken there, and languages that were introduced from outside, such as English and Arabic. The former colonial languages, English, French and Portuguese, are still widely spoken in the former colonies and are usually also the official language of the countries concerned or at least serve as the lingua franca. For more information about the continent of Africa, please check physicscat.com.
Namibia 2008
Yearbook 2008 Namibia. In June, Namibia issued a license to the French nuclear energy company AREVA to extract uranium at Trekkopje, about 30 km west of the capital Windhoek. AREVA plans to invest US $ 750 million in the mine, which is expected to become the world’s largest when it comes into operation at the…
Mozambique 2008
Yearbook 2008 Mozambique. Like many poor developing countries, Mozambique was severely affected by sharply increased world market prices for food and fuel. In February, price increases led to, among other things, diesel for extensive protests. At least four people were killed and about a hundred were seriously injured in clashes between protesters and police. The…
Morocco 2008
Yearbook 2008 Morocco. The government’s hunt for militant Islamists continued. In February, security forces were reported to have split a terrorist group and arrested its leaders and 31 other members. According to the government, the group had links to both the militant Islamist group al-Qaeda in Afghanistan and the Shiite Hizbullah guerrilla in Lebanon. In…
Mauritius 2008
Yearbook 2008 Mauritius. The mountain Le Morne in southwestern Mauritius was listed on the UN agency UNESCO World Heritage List in July. Le Morne’s caves and cliffs were used as hiding places by escaped slaves during the 18th and 19th centuries, and the mountain is therefore an important symbol of the slaves’ freedom struggle. In…
Mauritania 2008
Yearbook 2008 Mauritania. The annual Dakarrally, which is partly run in Mauritania, was canceled in January 2008 for safety reasons at short notice. The reason was that four French tourists had been killed in the vicinity of Aleg in southwestern Mauritania December 24, 2007. The French government recommended organizers to stop rallying and advised everyone…
Mali 2008
Yearbook 2008 Mali. Tuaregic rebels in northern Mali returned to arms in March, despite several previous peace agreements with the government. Several civilians were killed in rebel attacks and dozens of soldiers were taken hostage. Through mediation of Libya, a ceasefire agreement was concluded in April and the army promised to reduce its troop presence…
Malawi 2008
Yearbook 2008 Malawi. A long run-up to the 2009 presidential election marked political life throughout the year in Malawi. Former President Bakili Muluzi, who was forced to resign in 2004 after a maximum of two terms of office, was named in April by his party the UDF (United Democratic Front) presidential candidate. The government claimed…
Madagascar 2008
Yearbook 2008 Land area 587,041 km² Total population 26,955,737 Population density (per km²) 45.9 Capital Antananarivo Official language Malagassi, French Income per capita 1,600 USD Currency Ariary ISO 3166 code MG Internet TLD .mg License plate RM Telephone code +261 Time zone UTC + 3 Geographic coordinates 20 00 S, 47 00 O Madagascar. Although…
Libya 2008
Yearbook 2008 Libya. The country’s proximity to the outside world continued. Libya was reported in January to have ratified an agreement with the British oil company BP on oil and gas extraction worth $ 900 million. The ratification was said to have been made only after Britain proposed that Abdel Basset al-Megrahi, a former intelligence…