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Eastern Africa
Lesson 45:
Natural Resources and Economy
of Eastern Africa
Wars, famine, droughts and dry conditions, and rapidly growing
populations have had a destructive effect on the economies of the
countries in Eastern Africa. Since 1961, civil wars, border disputes,
and political conflicts have drained the economic resources of
Ethiopia and Eritrea.The small, desert-like country of Djibouti is also
very poor andunstable.Fewnatural resources, little industry, and lack
of water have limited agriculture and economic development.The dry,
desert-like country of Somalia has suffered for many years with civil
war, droughts, and widespread starvation. Civil unrest forcedmillions
of people from their homes and into refugee camps.Many industries
that did exist are no longer operating.
Kenya remains one of Africa’s strongest economies. A rapidly
growing population, disputes and violence between ethnic groups,
and droughts have increased poverty and unemployment.Tanzania is
a very rural country. Nearly 75 percent of the people live in rural
villages and transportation systems are poor.
ACTIVITY 1:
Use the paragraphs above and the chart of Eastern Africa Products and Industries to answer the
questionson thenext page.Look for
boldfaced
words in your chart as cluesof a country’smajor cash
crops, exports, and industries.
EasternAfrica Products and Industries
IndustryTypes
Country
Primary
Secondary
Tertiary
Eritrea
subsistence farming, nomadic
poorly developed
herding, some fishing
small industry
Djibouti
nomadic herding, fishing
none
shipping
Ethiopia
coffee
, sugar cane, livestock;
coffee-food process.,
deposits of copper, limestone, gold
textiles, animal skins
Somalia
nomadic herding, bananas, sugar
animal skins; very
cane; deposits of copper, gold, coal,
limited industry-
ores, crude petroleum
sugar and cotton
Kenya
coffee, tea
, sisal, sugar cane,
petroleumproducts,
tourism
rice, small farming and livestock
cement, light machinery,
household utensils,
motor vehicles, paper
Tanzania
coffee, cotton,
tea, tobacco,
cloves,
food processing
tourism,
sisal,
cashews, coconuts, sugar cane
government
Seychelles
tobacco, cinnamon, vanilla, copra
food process./tuna
tourism
Internet
or school
library as
resources, learnmore
about
sisal
, a product
grown inmany parts of
East Africa. Ask your
teacher for a
Research
Organizer
to document
your findings, or youmay
write a one page report.
Using
the
