Geography

• Africa's average crude population density during mid-2019 was about 44 people/km2
• Most densely populated areas in Africa

  • Nile Valley of Egypt
  • Mauritius
  • Rwanda
  • Burundi
• Physical factors affecting population distribution in Africa

  • Climate
  • Relief
  • Availability of water
  • Fertility of the soil
  • Distribution of minerals
• African urban growth presents major challenges for development due to migration flows from rural areas
• Human factors affecting population distribution in Africa

  • Economic conditions
  • Political situations
  • Other social factors
• Bottom countries in urbanization in Africa

  • Kenya
  • Eritrea
  • Chad
  • Niger
  • Swaziland
  • Ethiopia
  • Uganda
  • South Sudan
  • Malawi
  • Burundi
• Most populous countries in Africa

  • Nigeria
  • Ethiopia
  • Egypt
  • Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)
  • Republic of South Africa (RSA)
• Regional variation in population density in Africa

  • Eastern Africa
  • Western Africa
  • Sub Saharan Africa
  • Southern Africa
  • Central Africa
  • Northern Africa
• Africa’s population distribution is uneven with areas of high and low population density
• Most densely populated countries in Africa

  • Mauritius
  • Rwanda
  • Burundi
  • Comoros
  • Seychelles
• Top countries in urbanization in Africa

  • Gabon
  • Western Sahara
  • Libya
  • Djibouti
  • Algeria
  • Tunisia
  • Sao Tome and Principe
  • Cape Verde
  • Congo
  • South Africa
  • Angola
  • Morocco
  • Gambia
  • Mauritania
  • Botswana
  • Seychelles
  • Cameroon
  • Cote D’Ivoire
  • Ghana
  • Liberia
• Population in urban areas in Africa is currently estimated to be 41% of the total and is projected to increase further
• Population distribution refers to the way people inhabit and occupy the earth’s surface
• Secondary sector involves changing raw materials into new products (finished products)
• Primary sector involves extracting raw materials, rearing animals, and growing crops
• Eastern Africa seems to be the least urbanized region while the most urbanized region is Southern Africa
• Tertiary sector involves activities in the service sector such as education, health, tourism, and banking
• Quaternary sector is based on knowledge and includes activities such as information and communication technology (ICT), research & development, education, financial planning, etc.
• The employment structure of a country shows how the labor force is divided between primary, secondary, and tertiary economic activities
• Developed countries have more people working in the tertiary sector, while developing countries have more people engaged in the primary sector, particularly in agriculture
• Africa largely depends on the primary sector or the extraction of basic materials from the natural environment. This reliance on the extraction of basic natural resources through mining, fishing, agriculture, and forestry poses several challenges
• Africa is home to about 1.3 billion people, offering human and natural resources with the potential to yield inclusive growth and eradicate poverty in the region. Africa has good opportunities for economic growth and development
• Africa is composed of low, lower-middle, upper-middle, and high-income countries. However, it faces economic hurdles created by its historical past, conflicts, and bad economic policies pursued by inexperienced leaders. Economic growth should focus on enabling Africans to live healthier and prosperous lives by harnessing the potential of its resources and people
• Primary sector

  Activities such as agriculture, mining, and forestry that extract basic materials from the natural environment
• Middle-income countries are home to 75% of the world’s population and 62% of the world’s poor in 2020. They are further divided into lower middle-income and upper middle-income economies based on their gross national income (GNI)
• Many DVCs such as China, Malaysia, and Thailand have achieved high annual growth rates in their GDPs in recent decades and have moved out of low-income to lower middle-income. Meanwhile, previous DVCs, such as South Korea, and Singapore have achieved impressive success and became high-income countries
• Classification of middle-income economies

  • Lower middle-income economies - GNI per capita between $1,036 and $4,045 in 2021
  • Upper middle-income economies - GNI per capita between $4,046 and $12,535 in 2021
• Low-income countries are countries with a GNI per capita of $1,025 or less in 2018. Dominating this group in 2020 are Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and the sub-Saharan African nations
• Developed countries have more people engaged in the tertiary sector, whereas developing countries have more people engaged in the primary sector, particularly in agriculture
• Groups of developing countries

  • Middle-income countries
  • Low-income countries
• Developing countries (DVCs) are the world’s least industrialized nations heavily committed to agriculture. They have low levels of literacy, high unemployment, rapid population growth, and their exports are largely agricultural or raw materials. Capital equipment is scarce, production technologies are primitive, and productivity is low. More than 60% of the world’s population lives in these nations
• Forests and woodlands


  Support many African national economies by supplying a variety of products and services to rural and urban communities
• Mining


  One of the major economic activities in Africa due to its huge mineral resources
• Manufacturing industries in Africa

  • Textiles, clothing, footwear, basic woods, and metals
• Secondary sector


  Activities that process basic materials obtained by the primary sector and turn them into new goods and products
• The secondary sector in Africa is growing rapidly, but Africa is not keeping up with worldwide improvements in the manufacturing industry
• Tertiary sector


  Range of service activities involving the selling of services and skills, including services related to transport, storage, communication, and real estate
• Services related to transport, storage, communication, and real estate have shown significant improvement in Africa in recent decades. The growth in the hospitality industry, represented by hotels and restaurants, indicates the growing importance of tourism in many African countries
• Tourism in Africa depends directly on the continent’s natural resources and biodiversity base