Synopses & Reviews
Survey of Subsaharan Africa: A Regional Geography provides empirical, analytical, and thought-provoking coverage of the different countries, populations, economies, and climates of Subsaharan Africa, a geographic realm that has changed dramatically over the last twenty years. It retains the successful structure of de Blij and Best's classic work,
African Survey.
Designed to stimulate discussion and debate, Survey of Subsaharan Africa consists of nine systematic chapters that look at central and southern Africa as a whole and twenty-one regional chapters that cover individual countries. The systematic chapters explore broad themes including the geography of human origin, lingual patterns, historical and political geography, urbanization and development, health, the diffusion of AIDS, and agriculture. Both the systematic chapters and the regional chapters weave themes of democracy, human rights, and private enterprise throughout. In addition, Survey of Subsaharan Africa offers rich visual content, with more than 190 illustrations and 160 maps.
Featuring a lively writing style that embraces all the diverse theoretical interpretations of geography, Survey of Subsaharan Africa is ideal for advanced undergraduate courses in African Geography or African Studies.
Synopsis
Survey of Sub-Saharan Africa is the most comprehensive and up-to-date text available on African geography. It features both "systematic" chapters (looking thematically at Sub-Saharan Africa as a whole) followed by regional chapters (usually covering individual countries). The systematic
chapters are organized to cover the geography of human origins, changing language patterns, historical/political geography, urbanization/development, the diffusion of AIDS, and agriculture. Throughout the text, the authors embrace the diversity of theoretical interpretations of African geography,
helping students interpret data and join the debates.
Table of Contents
Preface 1. The Physiography of Africa
2. Climate, Vegetation and Soils of Africa
3. African Cultural and Political Hearths: An Historical Geography
4. The Colonial Interlude
5. The Contemporary Map of Africa
6. The Population of Africa
7. The Geography of Health and Disease
8. Land Use in Africa
9. African Development, Manufacturing, and Industry
West Africa
10. Ghana: An African Epitome
11. Experiment in Federation in Nigeria
12. Liberia and Sierra Leone: The End of Anarchy?
13. A French Legacy: Ivory Coast, Guinea, Togo, and Benin
14. The Desert Tier: Problems in the Interior, Climate Change, Population Growth, and Desertification
Central Africa
15. Spatial and Cultural Influences in the Growth of the Democratic Republic of the Congo
16. Development Contrasts in Central Lowland Africa
East Africa, the Horn, and Sudan.
17. False Start in Tanzania
18. Kenya: The Problem of Land and Governance
19. Uganda: East African Emerging Economy?
20. Rwanda and Burundi: Reaping the Whirlwind
21. Ethiopia: A Legacy of Feudalism, Imperialism, and Great Power Geopolitics
22. Somalia: Irredentism and Fragmentation
23. Sudan: Bridge Between African and Arab?
Southern Africa
24. South Africa: Challenges of Racism, Rebellion and Reconciliation
25. Development Contrasts in Three Landlocked Southern African States: Botswana, Lesotho, and Swaziland
26. Zimbabwe: A Failure in Partnership
27. Unfinished Business: Addressing Inequality in Land Ownership in Namibia
28. Zambia and Malawi: On the Tightrope
29. Mozambique and Angola: A Legacy of Lusotropicalism and Marx
30. Madagascar: Ecological Diversity and Sustainable Development
Index