Benin is a small country on the west coast of Africa. In pre-colonial times, Benin was home to one of the great medieval African kingdoms called Dahomey. Even after independence from French rule, Benin still has strong French influence, French being the population’s official language. This small country is a tropical and sub-saharan nation and is home to many unique cultural traditions. Despite all of the struggles of the past and current challenges facing Benin, the small country is thriving with
Republic of Togo on the West and the Federal Republic of Nigeria on the East. Burkina Faso and the Republic of Niger border Benin on the North. Including both land area and water area, the country is 112,622 square kilometers, which is slightly larger than Tennessee but slightly smaller than Pennsylvania (CIA). The official capital is Porto Novo. However, the nation’s de facto administrative capital and chief commercial center takes place in Cotonou, which is located 20 miles to the West of Porto Novo. Most
on the southern edge of West Africa and north of the Gulf of Guinea, it was given the name “Ivory Coast” due to the ability to trade large quantities of ivory. It’s a beautiful land that’s tropical along the coast and semi-arid farther inland. The Ivory Coast still suffers from relative instability and civil wars and has experienced both economic and social growth and atrophy. While the inhospitable coastline prevented many European expeditions from taking hold, French expeditionary forces eventually
strike of 1947-48 in French West Africa. It contains conflicts of political, emotional and moral nature. Ultimately, Sembene’s novel is one of empowerment. It brings to light the tension between colonial officials and the African community among the railway men as well as the struggle of the African community to free itself from being subjected to colonial power. Frederick Cooper’s article, “Our Strike: Equality, Anticolonial politics and the 1947-48 Railway Strike in French West Africa,” helps reveal
Modern day Benin is located along the Western coast of Africa. Benin is only 112,622 square kilometers, making it one of Africa’s smallest countries. Benin today however, differs significantly from the kingdom that it was during the pre-colonial and colonial periods. The people, culture, and government have all changed due to colonization. (The World Fact Book, 2014) The great kingdom of Dahomey once resided where Benin is today. Dahomey’s origins can be traced back to the 1600s, during which two
Petrocelli May 19, 2014 West African Colonialism In the novels God’s Bits of Wood by Ousmane Sembène and No Longer at Ease by Chinua Achebe both authors illustrate a colonial lifestyle, one from a rural French point of view and the other from an English-educated perspective; respectively. West Africa was primarily colonized by the French, however there was still territory owned by the British such as Nigeria, Gold Coast, and Sierra Leone. Colonization in Africa –– specifically West Africa –– aimed to dominate
Samori Ture was one of the most influential leaders in Africa, especially in his revolutionary work against European colonization. He lived in the Malinke lands of West Africa, an area that includes modern-day countries of Mali, Ghana, and Guinea. Throughout his youth, he worked in the trading industry alongside his parents. When he was 20 years old, his mother was captured in a slave raid, and he offered to serve in the army of her captor in exchange for the release of his mother. Samori joined
Mali is a country located in Africa, specifically in the inlands of West Africa. It is a landlocked country meaning completely surrounded by land and only a few sources of water available by its neighboring countries. Some of its important neighboring countries are Algeria which is to the north of Mali, Senegal which is to the west of Mali and Niger which is to the east of Mali. The reason why Algeria is one of its important countries is because Algeria contains the largest and hottest desert which
problems for West African slave traders who had witnessed a period of vast growth in the industry towards the end of the eighteenth century. They now had to focus on more lawful, legitimate means of trading. The types of industry that often replaced the slave trade were produce based, agricultural goods such as palm oil. The potential problems faced by traders were ‘exacerbated by the fact that it coincided with other problems for West Africa’s external trade.’ This refers to the Anglo-French wars which
The scramble for Africa is a significant moment in world history that demonstrated the beginning of a great transformation for the Africans. The increase of European claims of African territories during the New Imperialism period and reflected Europe’s economic, social, and military evolution. The start of the 1880s provided for European rule a small part of Africa with areas largely restricted to the coast and small inland areas along major rivers such as the Niger and the Congo. Learning the
With Niger's open plains, free space, and rich natural minerals, it is unsurprising that the French chose Niger to assimilate at the start of the twentieth century. Niger is a dry, arid country in West Africa's Sahara region with a population of 17,466,172 people, 63rd in population size worldwide (Central Intelligence Agency). It is about 1.267 square kilometers, close to the size of Texas. The large country has a vast, sprawling landscape, filled mainly with desert plains and dusty sand dunes.
African Log, was about Martha wall. She was a medical missionary to Africa in the 1930’s. She was a single female missionary in a time when the cultural norm was that a woman 's place was in the home not on the mission field. While attending Tabor College to get her nursing degree Martha felt God tugging at her heart about the need for medical missionaries in French West Africa. Leprosy was a rampant wild fire in the country of Africa and the need for nurses on the leper colonies was expedient. Martha
One of West Africa largest empires is the Empire of Mali that was founded by Sundiata Keita. The empire is located in Sahel,which was on the border of Sahara Desert. The Empire of Mali became rich by controlling the Saharan trade. The Mali consisted of oral traditions that distributed great power and wealth. Mali empire was known for unity and prosperity. The empire of Mali affected West Africa by economy, culture, and architecture. Mali Empire economy was based off trade,gold,and salt. Mali Empire
Cultural Presentation, Togo. Togo is a West African civilization, also known as the Republic of Togo, or Togoland. The capital of Togo is Lome (CIA, 2015), and the people are known as Togolese. Togo is 365 miles and consists of six geographic regions and numerous tribes. Ghana, Benin, and Burkina Faso border Togo. (Everyculture, n.d.) Communication. French is the official language of Togo, it is taught, spoken and used for government and official documentation. (CIA, 2015) Togolese also speak some
Bamako northeast past Timbuktu and east and south toward Gao. The second main river is the Senegal River, located in southwestern Mali. Mali’s neighboring countries are Algeria to the north. Mauritania, Senegal, and Guinea border the country to the west. Ivory Coast, Burkina and Niger border the southeastern borders of Mali. The population of Mali is approximately 17 million and the capital city where most of the population lives is
exports” (CIA 2014). Gabon’s GDP per capita is four times that of the average West African country and it is classified by the World Bank as an upper-middle income nation (CIA 2014) (World Bank 2103). The key factor that allowed the transformation of the tribal Gabon of the fifteenth century into the modern nation of today is French post-colonial involvement in the country’s economic and political spheres. Specifically, French military involvement has been the
The explanations for Europe’s colonization of Africa, then, are as diverse and manifold as the conjectures of history will allow. It is likely that each supposition contains some elements of reality and holds some explanatory power. However, it is probably the combination of several suppositions that is best suited to capture the motivating factors. It becomes us to bear in mind that the conquest of Africa was not carried out by a monolithic entity with a single set of objectives. Consequently, the
II- The characteristics of the West African business environment and the influence it could have on McDonalds A key point that must be understood is that developing countries form the West African region. For this reason, the business environment is affected by elements that are not common in the most developed countries such as where McDonalds has started and grown its business. This part of the report focuses on those elements that shapes the West African business environment and is supported
African Cultures Africa has more than 800 languages native to its continent. African cultures are so diverse that they are different from any other culture of the world. African cultures contain many different languages. African languages range from common French to languages unheard of to most people such as Swahili. African arts are much different than American arts. Their art involves much more creative pottery, masks, and paintings. Africa has a very interesting culture. Reasons being the people
1.1 Statement of the Problem The problems of formal health services and the challenges in sub-Saharan Africa have been widely documented. Findings from other current studies reveal a myriad of failures in the supply and demand side of health services. Access to formal services is also impinged by distance and financial factors; service quality is extremely very poor and is highly characterized by drug and staff shortages, lack of political commitment, poor infrastructure and negligence among health