Agriculture thrives in the tropical wet climates of Northern Africa. Closest to the Equator, gardens were filled with long rooted crops, especially yams, as they still are today. Further north in the Africa, larger cultivation of fields took place. Africa is an agricultural continent, however most of the north is covered by the Saharan Desert, causing the cultivation of crops to be impossible. During the 1950s and 1960s, cereal crops dominated much of the suitable land. These include, rice, maize, millet, sorghum, and wheat.
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This map clearly shows how the climate and agro-ecological zones of Africa are almost exact images. Due to the large Sahara Desert, most of the northern half of Africa is sand and rocks. There is less than 1 person per square mile in the Sahara desert, which leads to very densely populated cities and towns that have access to water and can have vegetation and animals to survive. From the 1950-1980s, northern African looked much like it did today. The only main difference between then and now are country boundaries. This time period was filled with independence, therefore much of the politics were in periods of change. The land, not so much.
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Northern Africa is very rich in diamonds, among many types of minerals and metals. Diamonds are the most frequently used form capital by the rebels in Angola, Sierra Leone, and the Democratic Republic of Congo use to purchase weapons. Specifically, in Sierra Leone, quickly after independence from Britain in 1961, diamond smuggling became a political and economic problem. Northern Africa is also home to the largest cobalt, diamonds, platinum, and uranium reserves in the world. However, the issue with most of Africa, is that not all of the resources are being used due to lack of modern technology and electricity. The continent is very poor, and compared to other continents cannot afford exploration.
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Claiming independence in 1960 from France, Mali was once a surviving and thriving country. Shortly after in 1974, a new constitution ruled a one-state party with the military leaders still in control. This rule lasted until 1991 before a student-led anti-government rioting broke out and it was supported also by government workers and others. After 4 intense days, the president was arrested and the constitution was suspended. It did not take long before the Committee for the Salvation of the People appointed a civilian led government. Before the conflict, the economy was booming, but the conflict not only destroyed the flow of agriculture, as well as the mining of the land's large quantities of metals and minerals. Only since the late 2010s, has Mali started mining at high competitive levels, and this is due to large companies mining their land. Behind Ghana, Mali is the second largest gold producing country in Africa. During and prior to the 1960s, Mali was dominate in the mining industry. Their success even dates back to Mansa Musa, the world's richest man, from the 1330s.
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Mine d'Or de MORILA by Romski is in the public domain.
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