The region of West Africa, also known as Western Africa, includes the southern portion of the bulge of the continent, which extends westward to the Atlantic Ocean. This region is bisected by the African Transition Zone, which borders the southern edge of the Sahara Desert. The term West Africa is also often used to refer to this part of the continent. In the United Nations scheme of African regions, the region of Western Africa includes 16 states and the United Kingdom Overseas Territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha.
Map of West Africa
West Africa occupies an area of approximately 8 million km², about one-fifth of Africa. Close to 400 million people live in the region.
Physical Features and Climate
The main physical features include the Sahara Desert and the Niger River. The Cameroon Highlands are located on the eastern border between Nigeria and Cameroon. West Africa's landscape is mainly flat with coastal plains in the west and south, especially in Senegal, the southern Ivory Coast, the Niger Delta and the lower valleys of the Volta and Niger rivers. Guinea Highlands; the highest mountain in the region is Mount Bintumani in Sierra Leone, at 1,945 m.
West Africa has five different climate and vegetation zones, which extend like belts from west to east. These bioclimatic zones are known as the Saharan, Sahelian, Sudanian, Guinean, and Guineo-Congolian Regions.
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- The Sahara with its flat plateaus and isolated mountains is a vast hot desert that covers much of North Africa to the south of the Mediterranean coastal regions.
- The Sahel is a broad belt of semi-arid tropical savanna about 350 km wide with a short and irregular summer rainy season.
- The Guinean Region, also known as the Guinean forest-savanna mosaic, a belt of interlaced forests, savannas, and grassland.
- The wet Guineo-Congolian Region is a forest zone with two rainy seasons; it extends from the Atlantic Ocean along the coast of the Gulf of Guinea through the Congo Basin as far as Rwanda and Burundi.
The African Transition Zone cuts across the region of West Africa, indicating a division between Islam and Christianity and between the Sahara Desert and the tropics. This diversity in religion and climate is usually exhibited with a north/south division. Islam is the dominant religion on the north side of the African Transition Zone; Christianity is more dominant to the south. The two religions often clash in the areas where they meet.
Historical Context
Historically, West Africa was home to several powerful states and empires that controlled regional trade routes, including the Mali and Gao Empires. Positioned at a crossroads of trade between North Africa and sub-Saharan Africa, the region supplied goods such as gold, ivory, and advanced iron-working. During European exploration, local economies were incorporated into the Atlantic slave trade, which expanded existing systems of slavery. Even after the end of the slave trade in the early 19th century, colonial powers - especially France and Britain - continued to exploit the region through colonial relationships. For example, they continued exporting extractive goods like cocoa, coffee, tropical timber, and mineral resources.
The development of the region's economy allowed more centralized states and civilizations to form, beginning with Dhar Tichitt that began in 1600 B.C. followed by Djenné-Djenno beginning in 300 B.C. This was then succeeded by the Ghana Empire that first flourished roughly between the 2nd and 12th centuries C.E., which later gave way to the Mali Empire.
Britain controlled the Gambia, Sierra Leone, Ghana, and Nigeria throughout the colonial era, while France unified Senegal, Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso, Benin, Ivory Coast, and Niger into French West Africa. Portugal founded the colony of Guinea-Bissau, while Germany claimed Togoland, but was forced to divide it between France and Britain following First World War due to the Treaty of Versailles.
Countries of West Africa
The region of West Africa includes several countries, each with its unique characteristics and challenges.
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Niger is a landlocked country, with the Sahara Desert making up its largest portion. Niger is a land of subsistence farmers, and most of the population lives in the southern regions. The country is less than 20 percent urban. Other economic activities include uranium mining, which is the country’s main export. The Sahara Desert is moving southward, and the agrarian culture at the base of Niger’s society is often plagued by drought and famine. Niger has the highest fertility rate (7.6) in the world, and half the population is under the age of fifteen, causing a population explosion that taxes the sparse natural resources and brings even more poverty to a country at the bottom end of the index of economic development.
Mali, another landlocked Muslim country dominated by the Sahara Desert, was home to various ancient empires. Wealth was historically gained from the mining of gold, salt, and copper. The Niger River flows through the entire southern region, providing a means of transportation and fishing as well as fresh water. The capital city of Mali is not Timbuktu but Bamako, which is located in the southwest.
Mauritania is also dominated by Islam and the Sahara Desert. Mauritania’s access to the Atlantic coast provided a shipping connection to the rest of the world. Large amounts of iron ore make up about 40 percent of the country’s exports. Fishing off the coast has great potential but has been exploited by international fishing vessels.
The Gambia is totally surrounded by the country of Senegal. Senegal was a French colony, while the Gambia was a British colony. The Gambia is an enclave of Senegal and extends on both sides of the Gambia River for about 186 miles. It is the smallest country on the mainland of Africa and is about the size of the US state of Connecticut.
Senegal on the Atlantic coast totally surrounds the independent country of the Gambia. The capital of Senegal, Dakar, is located on the Cap Vert Peninsula, which is most extreme western extension of the African continent. Dakar was a main colonial port for French West Africa during colonial times.
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Guinea-Bissau became independent in 1974. The political upheaval that followed up to the present has resulted in various coups, military rule, changes in leadership, and the assassination of their president in 2009. Without political stability, it is difficult to develop a growing economy. Graft, corruption, and civil war have devastated the country’s infrastructure and hindered its economic development, making it among the poorest nations in the world.
Guinea holds more promise due to its generous natural resource base, but Guinea has suffered the same types of political and economic disasters as its smaller neighbor. Guinea has a large amount of bauxite and other minerals, including diamonds and gold.
Sierra Leone has been devastated in the past decades due to brutal civil war and political turmoil. The diamond trade still dominates and political factions still vie for control. The civil war destroyed the infrastructure of the country, and most of the resources were looted by forces on one side or another.
Liberia was not a European colony and was not included in the Berlin Conference of 1884 as a country up for grabs in the scramble for African territory. In 1847, Liberia became an independent country patterned after the US government, even naming its capital Monrovia after President James Monroe, the fifth US president. By 1989, civil war had commenced.
Other countries in West Africa include Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Nigeria, and Togo.
Major Cities in West Africa
Here are some of the major cities in the West Africa region:
- Nigeria: Lagos, Kano, Abuja (capital), Ibadan, Kaduna, Port Harcourt, Aba, Ogbomosho, Maiduguri, Benin City, Zaria, and Jos.
- Senegal: Dakar (capital), Touba, Thiès, Rufisque, Kaolack, M'Bour, and Ziguinchor.
- Ghana: Kumasi, Accra (capital), Sekondi-Takoradi, Tamale, Sunyani and Cape Coast.
- Côte d'Ivoire: Abidjan, Bouaké, Daloa, San-Pédro, Yamoussoukro (capital), Korhogo, Man and Divo.
- Niger: Niamey (capital), Zinder, Maradi, Agadez, Tahoua, Arlit, Birni Nkonni, and Dosso.
- Mali: Bamako (capital), Sikasso, Koutiala, Ségou, Kayes, and Mopti.
- Sierra Leone: Freetown (capital), Bo, Kenema, and Makeni.
- Guinea: Conakry, Nzérékoré, Kankan, Kindia, Labe, Guéckédou, and Boke.
- Burkina Faso: Ouagadougou (capital), and Bobo-Dioulasso.
- Liberia: Monrovia (capital), Gbarnga, Kakata, Bensonville, and Harper.
- Mauritania: Nouakchott (capital), Nouadhibou, Rosso.
- Gambia: Serekunda, Banjul (capital).
- Guinea-Bissau: Bissau (capital).
- Cape Verde: Praia (capital).
- Sao Tome and Principe: São Tomé (capital).
Environmental Challenges
West Africa is greatly affected by deforestation and has one of the worst deforestation rates. Huge swaths of forest are being razed to clear space for palm oil and cocoa plantations. Mangroves are being killed off by pollution. Even wispy acacias are hacked away for use in cooking fires to feed growing families.
Overfishing is a major issue in West Africa. Besides reducing fish stocks in the region, it also threatens food security and the livelihoods of many coastal communities that largely depend on artisanal fishing.
The northern section of West Africa is composed of semi-arid terrain known as Sahel, a transitional zone between the Sahara and the West Sudanian savanna. During the dry period, the Sahel experienced a number of particularly severe drought events, with devastating effects. Since 1985, 54 percent of the population has been affected by five or more floods in the 17 Sahel region countries.
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Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS)
On May 28 1975, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) was founded. The federation of 15 West African nations was formed with the intent to provide self-sufficiency for its member states and as a trading union meant to create a single, large trading bloc through economic cooperation. Member states of ECOWAS are Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Cote d’ Ivoire, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Senegal and Togo.
| Country | Capital |
|---|---|
| Benin | Porto-Novo |
| Burkina Faso | Ouagadougou |
| Cape Verde | Praia |
| Côte d'Ivoire | Yamoussoukro |
| The Gambia | Banjul |
| Ghana | Accra |
| Guinea | Conakry |
| Guinea-Bissau | Bissau |
| Liberia | Monrovia |
| Mali | Bamako |
| Niger | Niamey |
| Nigeria | Abuja |
| Senegal | Dakar |
| Sierra Leone | Freetown |
| Togo | Lomé |
