Sep 18, 2008 the foundations environmental program targets civilsociety and statesponsored actors, whose environmental consciousness is strengthened and promoted. Environmental and resource economics in south africa. Pdf an overview of environmental issues in southern africa. Africas environment, economy, lifestyles and livelihoods. Below the enviromental issues will be provided the same order above after some other items below. Full text full text is available as a scanned copy of the original print version. This file is a resource pack about the major environmental issues in africa. I will then pro pose a range of initiatives for respond ing to these problems, present esti mates of their costs, and suggest ways. Environmental issues across africa ss7g2 the student will discuss environmental issues across the continent of africa.
Regardless of the overarching focus on the intrusive colonial and capitalist systems in african environmental history, forces that also imparted foreign conservationist ideas. Environmental pollution problems in africa sciencedirect. South africa is home to more than nine million hectares of protected areas network, which includes national parks, nature reserves and world heritage sites, equating to about 8% of the countrys land. However, the people there suffer from serious environmental problems as well as chronic food shortages. Lesotho is surrounded by south africa it is in the middle of south africa. The following terms and abbreviations are used throughout the entry. The department of environmental affairs, its entities and programmes produce and contribute to a variety of publications, with a view to keep the public informed and engaged on environmental issues. East africa horn of africa environment heinrich boll.
Subsaharan africa suffers from some serious environmental problems, including deforestation, soil erosion, desertification, wetland degradation, and insect. Other sources of environmental issues in south africa include agricultural practices and a lack of inland water. South africa aims to expand the conservation areas under formal protection to the international standard of 10% of the total area of the country. In society, the population of the world is affected by social economic issues.
Section 5 discusses the empirical results while section 6 concludes. Encyclopedia of life support systems eolss the spiritual realm. Some problems are lack of water, poor soil quality, and. Political instability in africa where the problem lies and. Environmental issues of africa ss7g2 by brain wrinkles tpt. This paper provides an overview of some of the significant environmental problems in the southern african region.
The publication aims to keep stakeholders including the public, researchers and policy makers in the environment sector up to date with the programmes, events and legislation driven by the department of environmental affairs. Some of the major issues are desertification, deforestation, water pollution, and unequal water distribution. Welcome to african environmental issues in which i will tell you about africas enviromental issues. Subsaharan africa suffers from some serious environmental problems, including deforestation, soil erosion, desertification, wetland degradation, and insect infestation. Of the country land mass, 92% is identified as hyperarid, arid or semiarid. In this semiarid climate with regular droughts, the degradation of natural resources is endangering sufficient food supplies to the population.
World environmental history environmental history of africa vimbai c. Some key environmental issues in south africa this essay identifies some key environmental issues in south africa. How africas vast challenges are intricately intertwined, and how they are to a greater extent connected to the intermittent denial of agency, humanity and input of especially africas women, rural peasants and urban poor by the ruling elites both african and non africans, has also remained largely unexplored. African environmental issues are caused by anthropogenic effects on the african natural.
In the face of major environmental issues in central africa abernethy et al. We also share information about your use of our site with social media and analytics partners. The key problems highlighted are global warming and climate variability, loss of biodiversity, deforestation, desertificationland degradation, waste and littering, population growth, urbanization, pollution, poverty and health hazards. Namibia environmental and climate change policy brief 4 june, 2008 this policy brief was carried out as a desk study in april to may 2008. These are the main environmental issues faced by africa there is a huge list of environmental issues in africa, which is turning out to be a threat to the global environmental condition. South africas currency has taken a beating amid the latest bout of emerging market turmoil, but the countrys president jacob zuma told cnbc the rands volatility was all down to the u. Environmental issues, policies and clean technology.
Standard ss7g2 the student will discuss environmental issues across the continent of africa. Africas environmental problems are large, but african countries are working hard with world organizations to try to find solutions. African environmental issues are caused by anthropogenic effects on the african natural environment and have major impacts on humans and nearly all forms of endemic life. With respect to africa, environmental issues have been a perennial concern for historical and physical geographers, anthropologists, archaeologists and. The key problems highlighted are global warming and climate variability, loss of. Southern africa is the southern region of the continent africa.
The environmental challenges in sub saharan africa. The entire east africa horn of africa region is characterised by a particularly large diversity of species and ecosystems. As africas environmental health issues become more complex and the continents riskscape under goes significant change, environmental health policy and action must adopt more comprehensive, holistic, and populationspecific approaches for identifying, recognizing, and managing environmental health hazards. The united nations, the world bank, and the united childrens fund are clean water programs at work in africa. We also have a subregional office for west africa in cote divoire, a liaison office in ethiopia and an office in south africa. Efforts to deal with these problems, however, have been handicapped by a real failure to understand their nature and possible remedies. Well i am a simple person who got involved in fighting environmental issues some 17 years ago.
These issues are ultimately linked to overpopulation in africa, as well as on a global scale. The national context of change, which includes a new focus on development, a redefined role for local government and an accelerated effort to address the imbalances and legacy of apartheid, is outlined. Political instability in africa where the problem lies and alternative perspectives by antony otieno ongayo the african diaspora policy centre, amsterdam1. Zackie achmat of the treatment action campaign is likely to consider aids more important than biodiversity loss. To a great extent, in the african context, development becomes essentially a cure for the major environmental problems of poverty and inadequate infrastruc ture. Although development is desirable, it can result in health problems in humans. Migration is a complex process, made more so by the role it played in the creation of the apartheid state. Explain how water pollution and the unequal distribution of water impacts irrigation, trade, industry and drinking water. Ss7g2 african environmental issues flashcards quizlet. Issues include desertification, problems with access to safe water supply, population explosion and fauna depletion. Environmental issues of africa linkedin slideshare. Acidification the lowering of soil and water ph due to acid precipitation and deposition usually through precipitation.
Such strategies must pay greater attention to broader issues and recognize intersectoral links and. Many environmental issues affect southern africa due to urbanization and the acts needed in order to survive. The people of africa face many different enviromental issues. The emerging concepts of environmental issues in africa. Moving with the times it evolved into a blog and still one of the most highly regarded and influential sources of environmental news serving both south africa, africa and the world. It has 54 states and a wide variety of natural diversity. Water issuesrivers of africa a major issue facing the nile river is that it is being contaminated with human and industrial waste. Namibia is the driest country in subsaharan africa. Aug 18, 2018 well i am a simple person who got involved in fighting environmental issues some 17 years ago. Africa is the second largest and the second most populated continent in the world. But most of the environmental problems in africa are the result of climate and poverty being poor, not businesses and factories. Get a printable copy pdf file of the complete article 6. Environmental issues of south africa south africa has mined its countryside for more than a century, and that long legacy of mining has taken a major toll on the countrys environment.
Kesegofetse mazongo are postgraduate students at the university of nairobi. Ibrahim farah is a nairobibased academic whose areas of interest include foreign policy analysis, conflict studies and environmental diplomacy while ms. In the past years, this continent has faced many political and war issues, which made the countries poor and underdeveloped. This research analysis will focus mainly on south africa, showing a list of the different issues found in south africa, as well as listing the ways in which they affect the country in both the business and environmental sectors. We work closely with the african ministerial conference on the environment amcen, which was established in 1985 following a conference of african. The foundation also supports specific partner organisations in their project activities in the areas of resource protection, environmental education, and environmental lobbying, thus striving for enhanced consciousness on environmental. Environment quarterly is the stakeholder publication of the department of environmental affairs. Mabogunje subsaharan africa suffers from some serious environmental problems, including deforestation, soil erosion, desertification, wetland degradation, and insect infestation. Welcome to african environmental issues in which i will tell you about africa s enviromental issues. Africas environmental issues when americans think about environmental problems, they generally focus on global warming and climate change, smog from cars, or pollution from factories. Drought periods are endemic due to disturbance and.
It is unlikely to be comprehensive because the importance of various issues depends on the individuals perspective e. Namibia environmental and climate change policy brief. Environmental pollution is increasingly a problem in africa, where the environmental consequences of development cannot be ignored. Some of the aspects of these issues are discussed in the article below, along with some measures which need to be taken. The impact of an unhealthy environment on human health in. The most critical of these problems is the one that concerns her natural environment. Some of them are lack of water, poor soil, and expanding deserts. It therefore becomes evident that we face a challenge in. Pollution occurs when humanmade products or waste negatively alters the natural environment.
I will begin by providing an overview of the current problems of natural resource scarcity and environmental pollution in the region and of some of their quantifiable costs. The age of extinction a manatee is worth more alive. Saharan africa is most likely to try and focus on malaria. African countries vulnerable to the long decline of commodity prices that began in the late 1970s. Environmental issues of africass7g2 students will discussenvironmental issues across the continent of africa. Instead, the study explores the role and impact of the. These are the main environmental issues faced by africa. Major challenges facing africa in the 21st century. Drought in south africa continues despite good rainy season. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools.
Environmental issues in africa like other parts of the world, africa must deal with environmental problems such as bad water deforestation desertification one major problem facing africa is pollution. I started this site as a forum which became very popular very fast. The environmental challenges in sub saharan africa mit. In truth, africa has inherited a hazardousliving environment. Nearly all of africa s environmental problems are geographically variable and human induced, though not necessarily by africans. Submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the. The aim of this paper is to provide an overview of environmental health challenges facing south africa, a country in transition. Once branded rogue animals, the elusive creatures were on the brink of extinction, but. Sep 20, 2016 1918 influenza pandemic survivor interview. Rainfall is not only low but also highly variable and unpredictable over time and space. Angola, botswana, lesotho, malawi, mozambique, namibia, south africa, swaziland, zambia, and zimbabwe. Climate change is a global environmental problem and while a. Places journal uses cookies we use cookies to personalize your experience and analyze our traffic.