Fun Facts About Africa

• There are 54 countries and one “non-self governing territory”, the Western Sahara, in Africa.
• All of Africa was colonized by foreign powers during the “scramble for Africa”, except Ethiopia and Liberia.
• Before colonial rule Africa comprised up to 10,000 different states and autonomous groups with distinct languages and customs
• The Pharaonic civilization of ancient Egypt is one of the world’s oldest and longest-lasting civilizations
• African continent is the world’s oldest populated area.
• Africa is the second most populous continent with about 1.1 billion people or 16% of the world’s population.
• Over 50% of Africans are under the age of 25
• Africa is the world’s second largest continent covering about over 30 million square kilometers.
• Africa has approximately 30% of the earth’s remaining mineral resources
• Africa has the largest reserves of precious metals (over 40% of the gold, 60% of the cobalt, and 90% of the platinum).
• The Sahara is the largest desert in the world and is bigger than the continental USA.
• Over 1,270 large dams have been built along the continent’s many rivers
• Lake Victoria is the largest lake in Africa and the second-largest freshwater lake in the world
• Africa has 8 of the 11 major biomes and the largest-remaining populations of elephant, rhinoceros, and hundreds of other species
• Lake Malawi has more ash species than any other fresh water system on earth
• The Nile River is the longest river in the world with a total length of 6,650 kilometers
• Africa has over 85% of the world’s elephants and over 99% of the remaining ions are on the African continent

 

Fun Facts About Zambia

• Zambia takes its name from the Zambezi River
• Population: Approximately 18.4 million
• Area: 752,614 sq. km (290,586 sq. miles) (About the size of France, the Netherlands, Belgium and Switzerland combined)
• It is land locked with 8 neighboring countries
• About 90% of the population fall into 9 major ethno-linguistic groups
• Zambia is Africa’s biggest copper producer. It is mined on the 90 mile long corridor known as the Copperbelt (mining towns)
• Zambia is home to 1 of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World, the Victoria Falls (locally known as ‘Mosi-o-Tunya’ or The Smoke that Thunders)
• There are two main seasons, the rainy season or summer (late November to April), and the dry season or winter (May to early November)
• Approximately half of the population is under the age of 16
• The staple food is Nshima (ground cornmea)
• The monetary unit is the Kwacha and Ngwee