Eastern and Southeastern Africa

Geography

The region spanning Eastern and Southeastern Africa is home to the highest peak on the continent, the southernmost extent of the Great Rift Valley, some of the deepest and largest freshwater lakes in the world, a large diversity of habitat types, and a multitude of endemic floral and faunal species. Although this area is perhaps best known for its savanna ecosystems and concentrations of large mammals, it also contains montane rainforests, dryland forests and woodlands, mangrove swamps, freshwater ecosystems, and highly saline crater lakes. The majority of these ecoregions span two or more of the nations comprising Eastern/Southeastern Africa, which includes Kenya, Ugansa, the eastern portion of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania, Mozambique, and Zambia.

East Africa's Albertine Rift is part of the the southern extension of the Great Rift, which originates in northern Syria and stretches approximately 6,000 km from north to south. The Albertine Rift comprises the southwestern arm of this system, stretching from the northern end of Lake Albert to the southern end of Lake Tanganyika and running through five countries: Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, DRC, and Tanzania. Over geologic time, portions of the rift have filled in with freshwater, creating a chain of lakes that includes Lakes Albert and Tanganyika, Lake Victoria, Lake Malawi, Lake Edwards, and the "killer" Lake Kivu. The rift varies in width from thirty to one hundred kilometers and ranges in depth from a few hundred to several thousand meters. The Albertine Rift is situated in the center of a large plateau that rises out of the Congo Basin to the west; this plateau is cut sharply by the rift systems before sloping gently eastward in the coastal regions of East Africa.

The same tectonic forces that formed the Albertine Rift concurrently created a hotbed of volcanic activity in Eastern Africa that exists even today. Surrounding the Rift to the east and west and punctuating the plateau surface are chains of mountains formed by upwelling magma and volcanism that accompanied the spreading of continental crust. Mt. Kilimanjaro, the highest peak in Africa, is an extinct volcano that was formed coevally with rifting; the Virunga volcanic chain, the Rwenzori Range, and the Mitumba mountain range are all comprised of extinct or active volcanoes, or both.

Environment

The wide range of ecosystems and vegetation types in eastern Africa reflects the diversity of the underlying geography and geology. Although the region is located within the tropics, its climate is largely modified by its extensive highland areas. At the western extent of the Albertine region in the DRC, lowland rainforests are found abutting the Congo Basin. As the elevation climbs eastward towards the plateau surface, the vegetation shifts from moist tropical forests to submontane forest systems, wiht montane rainforests and cloud forests present on the slopes of the region's many volcanic mountain ranges. Montane forests are commonly interspersed with grasslands, shrublands, and woodlands, creating a rich mosaic of vegetation and habitat types. The coastal zones of Tanzania and Mozambique retain some remnants of their original coastal forest vegetatoin, and mangrove swamps may still be found in isolated patches.

The Albertine Rift region in eastern Agrican is particularly well known for its high incidence of faunal diversity and endemism. Here are found some of the last remaining assemblages of large mammals including elephants, mountain gorillas, chimpanzees, and large cats; additionally, thousands of sepcies of small mammals, amphibians, birds, and fish are endemic to Albertine ecosystems. For a more detailed description of the biodiversity of this region, please visit the website of the Wildlife Conservation Society's Albertine Rfit Programme at www.wcs.org/international/Africa/Albertinerift.

The forests and woodlands and the animals species they contain comprise a valuable national resource for local populations in East Africa. In addition, the land in some areas is rich with metals and ores, including copper and cobalt, that represent valuable export commodities. Hydropower is readily available due to the prevalence of large water bodies within the rift valley, providing electricity to population centers within the region.

Land Use and Environmental Threats

East Africa is home to some of the oldest known human populations in the world. Historically, the presence of fertile volcanic soil, relatively cool temperatures, and a relatively low malaria risk attracted people to settle in the Albertine Rift region. Small-scale, subsistence agriculture has been the dominant land use here for thousands of years. As populations expanded, competition for the most fertile land exploded, resulting in widespread clearing of montane forest and woodlands to make way for additional agriculture. In some areas, permanent plantations have been created to generate cash crops including tea, coffee, cotton, and tobacco. The establishment of plantations usually entails a much more thorough and complete stripping of forest and vegetative cover than does subsistence farming, leading to environmental problems such as loss of soil nutrients and widespread erosion. Although deforestation is largely driven by the expansion of agriculture, selective logging for valuable timber species does occur, resulting in degradation and devaluation of the forest resource.

Growing populations trying to support themselves on increasingly marginal farmland often turn to bushmeat to supply much needed sustenance. Additionally, in the last several decades, political and social unrest and violence in many East African countires has resulted in large portions of the urban population fleeing into the relative safety of the forests. Hundreds of thousands of refugees have found themselves landless and hungry in remote forest areas; these people frequently turn to the hunting of bushmeat in order to survive. These pressure and others, including illegal markets for rare-animals, have decimated East Africa's populations of hippopotamus, elephants, mountain gorillas, chimpazees, duikers, and other large mammals. In many areas, these animals are no longer found in forestss outside of desigated national parks or wildlife refuges.

Mining of copper, cobalt, gold, silver, and ores occurs in pockets throughout the East African region. Considerable environmental degradation may occur locally where mining and excavation activities are couple wiht metal and ore processing; acid runoff into bodies of surface water, air pollution, and contamination of soils and vegetation may be common in the vicinity of mining operations.

People and Culture

Although there are currently hundreds of ethnic groups living in Eastern and Southeastern Agrica, the majority of these groups can trace their heritage to one of three language groups--the Bantu, Nilotic, or Pygmy group. The modern populations of East African countries are augemented by ethnic and language groups from surrounding regions, as well as small European populations remaining from the colonial era. The official languages of these nations reflect the variety of colonial influences in this region and include French, Portuguese, and English; Swahili/Kinswahili is also widely spoken, as well as Kinyarwanda, a univeral Bantu dialect, Arabic, and myriad local and regional dialects.

The population densities of Eastern and Southeastern African countries are among the highest on the continent; Rwanda is the most densely peopled country in Africa. Large concentrations of people are found surrounding the region's many freshwater lakes and in highland areas that have climates and soils favorable to agriculture; densely forested and lowland or swampy areas support much lower populations. Population growth rates in East African countries range from 1.83% in Tanzania to 3.7% in Burundi.

In the 1990s, Rwanda experienced an explosive civil war and genocide that altered not only the political, social, and economic landscapes of all East African countries, but also deeply affected the forests and other natural ecosystems of the entire region. Populations displaced by violence and destruction have placed tremendous strain of the governements, economies, and natural resources of their host nations. This increased pressure may result not only in the spread of political and social tensions, but also the degradation of forest resources, increased poaching of animals for meat, and conflict over limited clean water and land. Ethnically and politically motivated violence continues to impede conservation efforts in the area, especially in eastern DRC and Burundi.

Economy

In general, very little economic stability is affoded by relatively new national governments in the face of region-wide violence and political turnover. The populations of East African nations are predominantly rural; subsistence agriculture is the mainstay of economic activity in this region. Agricultural exports of cash crops ar the primary foreign exchange earners in Rwanda, Uganda, and Burundi, were soils are relatively fertile and the climate in conducive to larger-scale agricultural operations. In Tanzania, agriculture provides 85% of the country's exports and employs 80% of the work force; however, only 4% of the land area is able to support crop cultivation. This results in strong competition for the limited land resources and degration of marginal agricultural lands.

Extractive industires also play a role in the economics of East African nations. In Tanzania, Zambia, Uganda, and DRC, mining and processing of minerals including gold, copper, and cobalt contributes to national economies. Despite the richness of natural resources in much of this region, the lack of capital, high inflation rates, and absence of financial infrastructure requires that governkments remain dependant on foreign aid to sustain their economies.

Human Health

The risk to human health from infectious diseases in all fo East Africa is very high. Food and waterborne diseases affecting large portions of the population include bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, typhoid fever, and schistosomiasis; these illnesses are compounded bin many areas by lack of adequare freshwater supplies and malnutrition. Outbreask of vectorborne diseases, including malaria, plague, and African trypanasaomiasis are more localized, but still comprise a considerable risk. The prevalence of adult HIV/AIDS in East Africa is, on average, lower than in other regions of Africa; however, the occurrence of HIV/AIDS in adults exceeds 6% in Uganda and Tanzania.

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Looking westward towards the Rwenzori (?) Mtns from Bwindi Impenetrable National Park in Uganda.

 

Shrubland? Grassland? Find out what/where this is

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Terraces cut into the hillside allow crops to be grown in areas not typically suitable for agriculture production.