Desertification• deforestation

• overgrazing

• over farming

Desertification is the expansion of

the desert…

The Sahel and Rainforest get smaller,

the desert gets bigger

Sahara Desert

Sahel

Tropical

Rainforest

Thanks to

deforestation,

overgrazing,

and over

farming . . .

the fertile soil is eroded since there is

no vegetation to hold the soil in place.

As wind blow away the good soil, new

vegetation cannot grow there anymore.

Desertification leads to

poor harvest (less food), …

hunger, ….

and hardship.

Deforestation

• farms

• grazing animals

• houses

• logging

People cut down trees for . . .

Deforestation involves removing

vegetation such as trees and shrubs

It is mainly due to slash & burn agriculture

People cut down trees so they

have more space for farms…

settlement and building

materials…

and grazing land.

But deforestation eventually leads to

poor soil…

. . . and then desertification

Poor soil leads to poor harvests, …

poverty and starvation, and . . .

Poor Soil means

that the nutrients

have been taken

from the soil due

to over use

desertification.

Water Pollution• Sewage

• Garbage

• Parasites & bacteria

Water pollution is caused by

poor sanitation.

Too many people crowded in an

area with no waste treatment plants

means sewage and garbage ends

up in the streets & streams.

Water pollution in Africa is mainly from

human and animal waste,

but also from natural phenomena

like parasites & bacteria

Whip

Worm

Guinea Worm

Guinea Worm

because 47% of Africans use

unclean drinking water

Water Pollution causes…

1) waterborne diseases

2) lower life expectancy

3) slow economic development

Unequal Distribution

of Water

• drinking

• farming (irrigation)

• transportation

The unequal distribution of water

means that . . .

Some people have water….

Ex. Cairo, Egypt

Nile River

Niger River

Congo River

While some people don’t have rivers…

like the Sahara, Sahel, and Kalahari

What places have

water? What places don’t?

Nile

River

Zambezi

River

L. Victoria

Lake

Tanganyika

->

A Satellite View

Can you see who

has water

and who doesn’t?

NO

WATER

WATER

This means some countries have

better transportation routes for trade

and some countries don’t have water

to help with transportation & trade

Countries with rivers can build

dams along rivers & create lakes

Ariel view of Aswan Dam on

Egypt’s Nile River

Thanks to lakes, these countries

have water for year-round irrigation

Irrigation involves taking water to areas

without water, usually to water crops

Lack of water to irrigate slows economic

development

Don’t take your faucet for

granted….

47% of Africans lack of drinking water

What if you don’t have it?