MSCE

HUMAN AND ECONOMIC GEOGRAPHY

Contents
TERM 3 FORM 3
World agriculture 2-26

TERM 1 FORM 4
Fishing 27-31
Climate change 31-32
Aquatic life and Wetlands 32-33
Natural resources 33-38
Minerals 38-46

TERM 2 FORM 4
Settlement 46-49
Urban land use 49-53
Population 54-60
Industry 60-66
Tourism 66-68

TERM 3 FORM 4
Transport and Trade 69-76
Statistics 76-77
UNIT 1
WORLD AGRICULTURE
Agriculture is man’s oldest occupation. It marked the beginning of social and economic geography.
Four main economic stages can be traced.
These are :
 Collecting economy:
This is a system whereby man depended on food that is already growing. In this economy his main activities
are food gathering, hunting and fishing
 Pastoral economy:
This is the rearing and protection of animals which provide food to supplement the collecting economy

 Arable economy :
This is the cultivation of food crops which forces man to remain in one place thus practicing settled
agriculture
 Industrial economy:
This is the use of machinery in the production of food and other
essential products.

FARMING AS A SYSTEM
Farming as a system consists of:
a. INPUTS:
These are materials required for the production of farm products.
These are of two types namely
 Physical inputs:
e.g. land. pasture sunlight and rainfall.
 Human inputs:
e.g. labour, veterinary services. money animals tools and seeds

b. PROCESSES:
These are the activities that a farmer takes when growing and
rearing animals For example grazing animals, dipping
animals, growing crops ,land preparation harvesting etc

c. OUTPUTS:
These are crops and animal products that a farmer gets as a result of the work . For example milk, meat,
wool, manure hides and money
NB: The inputs, the processes and the outputs are linked
together forming a farming system.

FACTORS INFLUENCING AGRICULTURE

These are
a. PHYSICAL FACTORS: These include:
i. CLIMATE: The main aspect of climate are:
 Rainfall:
During sowing, growing and harvesting amount of moisture
distribution during the year, relative humidity is important.
No crop can grow and survive without moisture.

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 Temperature
Crop maturity and ripening depend on how much warmth,
intensity and duration of sunshine is.
 Winds:
They accelerate the rate of evaporation. Areas with strong winds
may damage the crops

ii. RELIEF:
 Refers to the contours of the earth such as whether the topography is lowland, a terrace or a hill slope
 .Flatland enables the farmer to use machinery such as tractors on the land.
 Where the farmer wants to undertake irrigation works relief is taken into account.
 Other crops such as coffee and tea do well in hilly areas where soils are easily drained.

SOILS:
For meaningful agriculture, soils rich in humus are essential.
Poorly aerated and infertile soils hinder crop production.

b. BIOLOGICAL FACTORS:
Crops cannot grow well where fungi, diseases, weeds, insect-pests are common

c. ECONOMIC FACTORS (HUMAN FACTORS)

 These are day to day concern to the farmers as the prices of all products are always changing.
 Lesser developed countries choose to grow cheaper cereals and root crops while developed countries do
emphasize on the production of expensive products because they are technologically advanced

d. POLITICAL FACTORS
 Government can make agreements with farmers on who should produce what and how much should be
produced.
 It could also guaranteed prices on farmers’ produce in order to encourage production.
 Government can sign international agreements on what crops to supply to which countries and how much
should be produced.

e. RELIGION AND CULTURE:

 This determines what form of agriculture should be practiced in an area.
 For example: Some religions discourage the rearing of pigs while others do not.

f. SOCIAL FACTORS:
 The culture of the farmer has a great influence on farming practices undertaken.
 For example the Masai and Fulani despised settled agriculture and do not practice it.
 In West Africa farm work is done by women so the size of land cleared and crops grown depend on how
much work they can do.
g. TECHNOLOGICAL FACTORS:
They include
 Mechanization:
This is the use of modern equipments for farming
e.g. tractors, combined harvesters

 Use of chemical fertilizers:

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 For high productivity of yields per hectare fertilizers such like
23:21:0, 20:20:0, CAN etc are applied
TYPES OF AGRICULTURE
For simplicity world agriculture can be divided into
 Subsistence farming:
Here farmers grow food crops for themselves and their families.
If they rear livestock, the animals are prestige, or are regarded as status symbols
 Commercial farming:
This is a type of farming where farmers grow crops and rear animals
for sale.

INTENSIVE FARMING
 This is the type of farming where labour or capital is applied to relatively small sized farms and yields per
unit area are usually high.
 It is practiced in areas where land resources are scarce and population very high

CHARACTERISTICS OF INTENSIVE FARMING

 Much land labour is used
 The land holdings are very small
 Animal farming is little developed
 Animal and plant manures are used generously
 In times of drought or dry weather irrigation is often used.
 Since farming is very intensive, double or treble cropping is practiced during the year.

PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED WITH INTENSIVE FARMING

 Labour input is very high, and rheumatism of the wrists and ankles is a serious occupational hazard
 For fear of losing plots of land, Farmers are reluctant to integrated the land holdings into large farms which
could be economically feasible
 Under-utilization of animals
 Land holdings are fragmented and scattered which makes it difficult to manage them efficiently.

ADVANTAGES OF INTENSIVE FARMING

 High yields per hectare of crop may be achieved and several harvests a year are possible
 Provided soil acidity, due to irrigation, can be avoided, land can be used continuously without losing
fertility

CROPS GROWN
These are : wheat rice sorghum millet barley

CASE STUDY I
DAIRY FARMING IN DENMARK AS AN EXAMPLE
OF INTENSIVE LIVESTOCK FARMING DAIRY FARMING:
This involves the rearing of livestock with the aim of producing milk

LOCATION:
It is located on 560 North latitude and 100 E longitude.
For example in Netherlands (particularly the western region called Holland), Denmark, Switzerland,
New Zealand, France and South Africa.

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FACTORS FAVOURING DAIRY FARMING
 Over farmed land to restore soil fertility
 Should be accessible to the markets particularly in urban centres
 Availability of green and highly grade pasture is essential
 Mild and wet conditions for the growth of folder crops and natural pasture
 Efficient transport is needed since milk is a highly perishable
product

FACTORS OF SUITABILITY OF DENMARK FOR DAIRY FARMING

 Topography: There is low undulating land good for use of machinery
 Soils: soils are very infertile because of sand dunes and marshes e.g
West of Jutland Peninsula

CHARACTERISTICS OF DAIRY FARMING

 The farms are small
 Intensive farming methods are used
 The main source of income is milk

BREEDS OF DAIRY CATTLE KEPT

 Milking short horn
 Guernsey
 Friesian
 Brown Swiss
 Jersey
 Alderney

For the dairy cattle to produce more milk they have to be fed
a combination of pasture such as:
 Hay clover(alfalfa)
 Silage
 mixture of grains
 seed by products

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 PROCESSING MILK TO CHEESE

When whey is squeezed out cheese is left behind. The cheese is stored in brine overnight for seasoning.
 Then it is stored for 2-5 weeks to mature after which it is packed ready for local sale or export.

DENMARK
 Denmark is made up of four main islands and the mainland.
 These islands are Zealand, Fyn, Falster and Lolland and the
mainland is a peninsula called Jutland.
 The soils in western Jutland are sandy and infertile.
 To be of use these soils are reclaimed by various methods. But the
soils of easternJutland and all the islands are fertile.
 There are many dairy farms in Denmark.
 One of these is Asserhoigaard farm on Zealand island
 Asserhoigaard farm is a small farm.
 The relief of the area on which it is sited is very flat.
 This flatness enables the use of machinery.
 The fairly fertile soils enable the farmer to grow grain and
 grass successfully.
ANNUAL ACTIVITIES ON ASSERHOIGAARD FARM
MONTH FARM ACTIVITIES
Nov- Jan Poor weather, animals stall fed
Mar- Apr Ploughing and sowing seed
May- Jul Weeding and manning the fields
Aug Harvesting cereals
Sept Harvesting root crops
Oct Ploughing and sowing seeds

THE COOPERATIVES
 These are a collection of farms in common ownership
 The Dairy farms are organized through these cooperatives.

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 There are 10000 cooperatives and for this reason the country
is sometimes described as land of cooperatives.
 Farmers support each other in various ways

A cooperative society is responsible for:

 Marketing: collects, grades and stores farm produce and sells
these later
 Purchasing: buys farm inputs in large quantities at lower
rates. This reduces farm’s production costs
 Finance: gives loans to farmers when need arises
 Processing: facilities which enable farmers to get profits they
could not on thei own
 Advice and research: farmers enjoy expert advice on problems in their farms. This enables them to
improve the efficiency of their farms

IMPORTANCE OF DAIRY INDUSTRY TO DENMARK

 Employment of many people
 Foreign exchange earnings. The country gets most of her income from milk, cheese butter eggs and
bacon. It exports 24%of world butter and 3% of cheese mostly to Germany and United Kingdom

CASE STUDY II
LAND RECLAMATION AND POLDER CULTIVATION

LAND RECLAMATION:
This is the turning of water logged land or areas of shallow sea or lake into a dry land

POLDER:
This is a reclaimed land
Land can be reclaimed from swamps, lakes and shallow seas

NETHERLANDS
 This is the most densely populated country in Europe.
 This huge population has to be fed but the available land cannot produce enough food.
 The eastern and southern regions of the country are made up of sandy and infertile soils.
 The west, otherwise known as Holland, is quite fertile
 Holland which lies below the sea level is made up of loamy clay soils and 60% of the Dutch live there.
 Thus to supplement the fertile soils, the Dutch reclaim land from the sea.
 To reclaim land from the sea, part of the sea is drained and used for cultivation
 See the map that follows

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PROCESS OF LAND RECLAMATION
 The area to be reclaimed is encircled with a dyke or a dam
wall often called the ring dyke. The dyke divides the sea.
The walls are made up of clay re-enforced with steel pilling
and mats of reeds and brushwood.
 Water is then pumped from one side of the sea or the
enclosed side to the open sea using diesel pumps, wind
mills, steam or electric pumps
 Then the drainage ditches are dug within the area to drain
the remaining water.
The main drainage ditches known as the central channels
direct water to pumping stations
 After draining the water, the soils are at first too salty for cultivation and reclamation is not really
complete until special grass (reeds) are planted and allowed to grow for a few years.
 While the roots help to bind the soil together and the dead leaves rot and form humus, and the rain
washes away the salts.
 Drainage does not stop with the formation of a polder; because polders are low-lying they are liable to
flooding.
 Constant work has to be carried out on the dykes to ensure
they are in good order

NATURE OF THE POLDER LANDSCAPE

 Dykes are common
 The ground is flat
 The polders are below sea level
 The land is geometrical planned to maximize land use

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PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED WITH LAND RECLAMATION
 Salination as land dries out
 Maintaining the dykes, pumps, drainage canals and reservoir collectors is very costly
 Risks of flooding when a dyke breaks
 Land subsidence as it dries out

ADVANTAGES OF LAND RECLAMATION IN NETHERLANDS

 Reduction of the Dutch coastline
 Land availability for farming practices
 Creation of freshwater lake, Ijsselmeer, in the Zuiderzee
project

THE MAIN RECLAMATION PROJECTS

 Zuiderzee: Started as early as 1920 by a marine engineer named C.Lily.The aim was to dam
Zuiderzee from north Holland to Fries land, a distance of 29Km, and drain five polders.
 Delta: The group of islands which form the province of Zeeland at the mouths of rivers Lek, Waal and
Maas

TYPES OF FARMING PRACTISED IN THE POLDERS

 Dairy farming: Concerned with the production of milk which may be sold in liquid form or made into
butter and cheese, or condensed and powdered he dairy farms are small, intensively managed and
highly mechanized
 Arable farming: Crops grown are wheat ,rye oats and barley. On some polders mixed farming is
practiced. Animals and crops succeed one another in various forms of rotation
 Horticulture: Flower and vegetable growing

POTENTIAL RECLAMATION AREAS IN MALAWI

 Shallow areas e.g. Chirwa, Chiuta, Kazuni.
 Wetlands: Elephant, Vwaza and Lake Chirwa marshes

REVISION EXERCISE
Figure 3 is a Map of Netherlands. Use it to answer questions that follow.

Figure 3
a. On the map itself, shade and name the following polders.
1. North West polder.
2. North East polder
3. South polder.
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 b. Describe the process of land reclaimation in the Netherlands.
c. Explain any two advantages of land reclaimation in the Netherlands.

EXTENSIVE FARMING
 It is a type of farming which is done on a very large land holdings practiced in an area with sparse
population
 Both crops and livestock can be raised

CHARACTERISTICS OF EXTENSIVE FARMING

a. Farms are large, extending up to 160sq.km
b. Cultivation is highly mechanized
c. Monocultural cropping is common
d. Low yields per hectare but high yields per person
e. Generally the farms are farmer owned

PLACES WHERE PRACTISED

a. In the Prairies of Canada: wheat is grown and cattle are kept for beef
b. In the Steppes: sheep are kept for wool
c. In the Pampas of Argentina: cattle are mainly kept for beef
d. In the Veldt of South Africa: sheep and cattle are kept
e. In the Down of Australia : sheep are kept for meat and wool

PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED WITH EXTENSIVE FARMING

a. Being a monoculture system any international price depression can have devastating effects
b. Droughts have a devastating effects on the crop being cultivated because irrigation is not usually used
c. Growing of the same crop on the same land year after year leads to pest multiplication and loss of soil
fertility
d. It requires sparsely populated areas and flatland for mechanization

SOLUTIONS TO PROBLEMS
a. Crop diversification
b. Use of manure and fertilizers
c. Practice crop rotation
d. Use of pesticides to control pests

EXTENSIVE WHEAT FARMING

FACTORS WHICH FAVOUR WHEAT CULTIVATION
These are
a. Rainfall should be between 305mm and 1015mm
b. Frost free period of about 100 days
c. Temperature of about 160 C
d. Soils should be light clay or heavy loam soils such as chernozem of the Steppes
e. Topography should provide adequate drainage and enables the use of machinery

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 USES OF WHEAT
a. For making semolina from which spaghetti ,macaroni and
vermicelli are made
b. For making bread cakes breakfast cereals biscuits ,pie crust
and ice cream Cones

CASE STUDY
EXTENSIVE WHEAT FARMING IN THE PRAIRIES OF
CANADA

LOCATION:
 Lies between the Rockies mountains and the Barren
Canadian shield
 It is gently undulating, almost flat, generally treeless grassy plain ,covering the southern regions of
Albert, Saskatchewan and Manitoba in Canada and the Central USA

MAIN WHAET GROWING AREAS IN THE PRAIRIES

These are
a. Saskatchewan
b. Albert
c. Manitoba

See the map below

FAVOURABLE CONDITIONS FOR GROWING

WHEAT
 Availability of extensive cheap land with low population
density
 Well drained flat topography which allow mechanization
 Easy accessibility to and from the growing areas
 Rainfall between 300mm and 1000mm annually

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REASONS FOR WHEAT CULTIVATION ON THE CANADIAN PRAIRIES
 Suitable climate
 Access to internal, continental and world markets
 Fertile soils, dark-brown prairie earths
 Well drained flat topography
 Extension of railways into the prairies
 Extensive cheap land which was originally available

VARIETIES OF WHEAT
a. Spring wheat:
grown in the northern latitudes of the Prairies
Seed sown in the mid spring (mid April to May)
Harvested in summer (late September and early October)

b. Winter wheat:
sown in winter or late autumn that has mild winter.
Harvesting is done in the following summer.
Hard and palatable with gluten content
More nutritious
Grown mainly in Australia, Argentina and Central Chile

ANNUAL ACTIVITIES ASSOCIATED WITH EXTENSIVE WHEAT FARMING

a. In spring (Apr. -May):
Land is ploughed again. sowing wheat seed ,
growing potatoes
b. In the early summer(Jun- Jul):
Weeding and chemical spraying
c. In the late summer(Aug):
Harvesting wheat by combined harvesters and transporting it to
elevators or storage depots at the nearest railway station
d. In autumn (Sept- Oct):
Land is ploughed and left out throughout winter. Harvesting
potatoes
e. In winter: (Nov-Mar):
Repairs and general maintenance of farming structures and
equipment. Snow impedes work on the land.

PROBLEMS
a. Drought ,wind ,frost and hail
b. Pests e.g. mice, grasshoppers
c. Diseases e.g. rust attack
d. Export market for wheat fluctuates widely because of unregulated wheat production

FROM THE PRAIRIES TO GLOBAL MARKETS

 Canada exports slightly over 5% of the wheat it produces
 Half of the exported wheat is handled by the route through Winnipeg (largest of prairie cities. Wheat
market and industrial city), Port Arthur and Fort William on Lake Superior, and the Great Lakes.
Europeans get wheat through this route.

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 About 10% of the wheat is transported and exported to Europe through the ports of St.John and
Halifax
 Nearly 30% moves westwards to Pacific ports of Vancouver and Seattle to the Far East (Japan,
Indonesia ,Korea)

IMPORTANCE
Wheat is one of the greatest items of export for Canada
competing with newsprint for first place in its foreign trade

EXTENSIVE ANIMAL GRAZING

The large farms on which animals are reared for commercial purposes are known as ranches
The process of rearing livestock on ranches is called ranching
Ranching differs from nomadic pastoralism. For example see table that follows

LIVESTOCK PASTORAL
RANCHING NOMADISM

Vegetative cover is continuous Vegetative cover is seasonal

Little or no migration Continuous migration

Scientifically managed No scientific management

Animals raised for sale Animals are for subsistence or

prestige

Low stocking ratio Very high stocking ratio

Development oriented No development is possible

CHARACTERISTICS OF RANCHES
 Areas have low population densities
 Little or low rainfall
 Soils are generally poor
 Ranches are extremely large

TYPES OF RANCHING SYSTEM

There are two types namely
a. OPEN GRAZING SYSTEM:
Herds of livestock are continually watched by herdsmen

b. FIELD OR PADDOCK SYSTEM

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 The work of guarding the animals is replaced by investment in fencing and
construction of water places

PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED WITH RANCHING

a. Long term commitment to particular type of production and world price fluctuation
b. High fixed costs and very high investment
c. High risk of production because of the ever present threat
of drought
d. High costs of personnel in relation to the return from the
ranch

AREAS WHERE RANCHING IS PRACTISED

a. On the Pampas- Argentina
b. High Veldt- Natal and Botswana
c. Downs- Australia and News Zealand
d. Steppes-C.I.S
e. Denmark and Netherlands

LIVESTOCK RAISED ON RANCHES

These are:
a. Cattle
b. Sheep
c. Horses
d. Reindeer in Siberia

CASE STUDY
RANCHING IN ARGENTINA
LOCATION:
o It is found in the South West of South America.
o Ranching is done on the Pampas (temperate grassland of South America)
o The Pampas is located between Panama and Uruguay rivers to the West the limit is Atacama
Desert
o See the map below

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CONDITIONS FAVOURING RANCHING IN ARGENTINA (PAMPAS)
These are:
a. Plenty of grass for the animals to graze
b. Well distributed rainfall-for keeping grass to grow all the
year round
c. Flat topography-for easy construction of railways and
roads to ease transportation
d. Nearness to the coast for easy exporting
e. Accessibility to both internal and external markets

AN ESTANCIA
 It is a cattle ranch in Argentina(a Spanish word meaning
American cattle estate)
 The Estancia may be as big as 100sq..km each and are
manned by cowboys
 One of the example of an Estancia is Blanca Manca
 The smaller cattle estate is called Chacras

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 ANNUAL ACTIVITIES ON THE CAABO ESTANCIA

MONTHS ESTANCIA ACTIVITIES

Jan - Feb Ranch fences are repaired

Mar - May Cattle dipping

May - Jun Sheep dipping and branding

Jul – Aug Lambing and lamb making

Sept - Oct Sheep shearing

Oct - Dec Hay making and fence repairing

CATTLE BREEDS ON THE ESTANCIA

These are
a. Short horn
b. Aberdeen
c. Angus
d. Hereford
 Meat is exported through Buenos Aires
 Cattle are also sent to the Saladero (a butchery where canned)

THE FRIGORIFICOS
 These are meat packing companies of Argentina

They
 Clean, weigh and slaughter cattle
 Remove heads and hides of cattle
 Freeze the meat or carcass ready for export
 Turns bones into fertilizers or animal feeds together with hooves
 Hide are dried after fats are removed ready for export
 Meat from Estancia is exported to Canada, USA ,Germany, Spain, Italy and France

IMPORTANCE OF RANCHING INDUSTRY IN ARGENTINA

a. It provide employment to many people
b. It is one of the major foreign earners in Argentina
c. It proves food for the people

PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED WITH RANCHING ON

THE PAMPAS
a. Unreliable rainfall-hot spells in summer and drought
threat in winter
b. Very cold winds- the pamperos which can kill cattle
c. Pests and diseases- the most serious disease is foot rot
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 and the most serious pest is the blowfly

INVENTIONS THAT WERE IMPORTANT IN THE

HELPING THE PAMPAS DEVELOP INTO CATTLE
RANCHING AREAS
These were
a. Tin plating- thin coating of metal used for sealing tins for
food preservation
b. Refrigeration-preservation of food by cooling or freezing
The two inventions have helped to cane and freeze meat
and thus ship it to different parts of the world without
meat going bad.

RANCHING IN MALAWI
Ranching in Malawi is practiced in the Dzalanyama cattle ranch in the west of Lilongwe and part of
the lower shire.

PROBLEMS FACING CATTLE RACHING IN

MALAWI
a. Wide spread of diseases- sleeping sickness spread by tsetse flies and other diseases are spread by
ticks
b. Remoteness of savanna land-Malawi is a land locked country for instance Dzalanyama cattle ranch
is far away from the coastal parts, roads as well as railway communication. Therefore accessibility to
the world markets is difficult
c. Climatic problem- hot wet summers and dry winters ; During dry season, grass dries up and pasture
becomes scarce causing death to many cattle

POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS
a. Cross breeding the Zebu cattle with other cattle from temperate regions which are more disease
resistant
b. Improve communication system especially roads in rural areas so that they become more accessible
Giving soft loans to local cattle farmers

REVISION EXERCISE
a. Figure 1 shows map of an Estancia in the Pampas of Argentina. Use it to answer the questions that
follow.

i. What type of ranch is this?

ii. Define the term Estancia.
iii. Mention the two sources of water on the estancia.
iv. State the evidence that shows the estancia is on a
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 watershed.
v. Give one reason why the roads are fenced.
vi. Describe the annual activities on the estancia.
b. i. Mention any two factors that have influenced
ranching in the Pampas.
ii. Explain the following terms as they relate to
ranching in the Pampas.
1. Frigorifico
2. Chacras
c. Mention any three problems which are associated with
ranching,.
d. Explain any three factors that influence cattle farming in
Malawi.

IRRIGATION
It is the supplying of water on to the land to enable crops or vegetation to grow.
IRRIGATTION IS CARRIED ON
a. Dry areas
b. Regions with low or variable rainfall
IRRIGATION IS OF GREAT IMPORTANCE IN
i. Nile valley
ii. Murray Basin
iii. Central Valley of California
iv. Indus Valley
v.Israel
vi.Gezira in Sudan
vii.Nchalo in Malawi

CROPS GROWN UNDER IRRIGATION

i. Rice: In India, China, Japan, Sri-Lanka
ii. Cotton: In Gezira in Sudan
iii. Sugarcane: In Malawi and Cuba
iv. Apples: In Central Valley of California
iv. Tomatoes, melons, citrus fruits, sunflower: In Israel

FACTORS NECESSARY FOR IRRIGATION

i.Dry climate or prolonged drought
ii.More reliable water supplies
iii.Flatness of the land not to permit water to flow away

IRRIGATION METHODS
These are:
i.PERENIAL IRRIGATION.
This is the supply of water to cultivated areas all the year round.
It involves the construction of huge dams to store water .
Water flows from the reservoir into canals to the channels then to the fields .The methods is very
expensive.

ii.BASIN IRRIGATION.
Depends entirely on annual flooding of a river during a period of heavy rainfall.
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 Before rain starts farmers, level the flood plain and dig irrigation ditches. During the rainy season flood
water moves down the valley and enters the irrigation ditches and spread out over the flood plain.
ADV. Silt suspended fertilizes the soil.
DISD; Crops can only be grown in rainy season

iii.TANK IRRIGATION:
Involves the construction of tanks, which catch and store water directly from rainfall.
Practiced in India and Sri-Lanka.

iv.TRADITIONAL IRRIGATION
: Involves the methods of: shaduf, sakia and Archimedes shrew

v. SPRINKLER IRRIGATION(OVERHEAD):
Used mainly to supply water to small areas such as
flowers and vegetable gardens.

vi. TRICKLE (DRIP) IRRIGATION:

It is applied very slowly to the surface of soil through small holes or valves in a plastic pipe. Mostly used
in orchards and vine yards e.g. in Israel

vii. FURROW IRRIGATION:

Involves the use of canals to supply water to plants

CHARACTERISTIC FEATURES THAT MAKE IRRIGATION INTENSIVE

These are
a. Yield fluctuation from year to year is reduced.
b. Continuous cultivation becomes possible.
c. In most cases the land holdings are small
d. Double or treble cropping may be achieved
e. High yields per hectare of a given crop are possible.

PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED WITH IRRIGATION

These are:
a. Loss of soil fertility caused by leaching
b. Spread of water borne diseases.
c. High cost of pumping water
d. Dam silting
e. Salinity which encourages formation of hard pans

IRRIGATION IN ISRAEL
Israel covers 20440sq.km, half of this is a desert, and 440 sq.km is water
There are three main regions, which are
a. MEDITERRANEAN COASTAL PLAIN:
It is flat and fertile

b. HILLY COUNTRY:
Bounded by Galilee in the North, Judea hill in the centre and
Jordan River valley to the east.
The region is badly eroded

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c. NEGEV DESERT IN THE SOUTH:
It is hot and dry with no rainfall from May to October.
It is here where irrigation is a necessity

See the map below

SOURCES OF WATER
 The main sources of water for irrigation are Yarkon river and Lake Kineret(also
known as Lake Tiberius or Sea of Galilee)
 Canals and pipelines lead water from these southwards to the Negev desert
 Pipelines are very common in the Negev region because without them water can easily be lost through
evaporation
 Though wasteful, sprinkler irrigation system is used sometimes
 Trickle or drip irrigation saves water and is widely used

MAIN CROPS GROWN

These are:
Tomatoes, sunflower, sugar beat, citrus, apples, cotton, pears, and spring potatoes

WATER DESALINATION WORK

 Since water is scarce in Israel, the nation has turned to the sea for it
 There are water desalination plants at Haifa and Eilat
 At Haifa, they use a desalination process called Vacuum freezing. It is cheaper than the other process
 Sea water is cooled and then introduced into a freezing chamber where water forms a thin mixture of
liquid water and ice particles
 The mixture is separated and the ice crystals are finally washed to remove the brine
 Finally, the ice particles are melted down to give fresh water.

PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED WITH IRRIGATION IN ISRAEL

These are:
a. Insufficient sources of water
b. Hostile Arabs who would not like to see Israel use Jordan
river
c. It is very costly to pump water from Lake Tiberius
d. Evaporation rates in the Negev region are very high

Series 2012 Page 20 of 79

REVISION EXERCISE
Explain how Israel has overcome each of the following problems that would have discouraged irrigation
i. Relief
ii. Soil
iii. Climate
iv Soil salinity

NCHALO SUGAR IRRIGATION

SCHEME
LOCATION:
It is located 160 10’S of the Equator and 340 53’ E of the
Greenwich meridian.
It is in Chikwawa district.It is near Shire rive to the west bank
of it.

GENERAL CONDITIONS FOR THE GROWTH OF

SUGARCANE
 Temperature:
Should be between 210 C and 270 C throughout the year. Sunny, dry season close to harvesting time
promotes sugar concentration in the canes
 Rainfall:
Should be of about 1270 mm if not under irrigation. Too
much rain dilutes the sugar and leads to poor yields.
 Soils:
Should be water retentive deep fertile soils
 Topography:
Flat, to facilitate harvesting.
Mechanization and irrigation also to be possible.
 Labour:
A large supply of cheap labour needed at harvesting time.

CONDITIONS AT NCHALO
 Temperature:
The area is hot with temperatures ranging from 200 C to 320 C.
 Rainfall:
Is below 800 mm per annum.
The low rainfall is supplemented by the use of canal and
sprinkler irrigation methods using Shire river as a source
of water.

 Soils:
Are of two types.
a) Calcimorphic-gray to dark brown alluvial soils.
b) Hydromorphic-clays with a strongly developed, coarse blocky structure. They are seasonally
water logged when water table is high in the rainy season but falls to the lower horizous in
the dry season
 Labour is abundantly available
 Topography is very flat.

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HARVESTING SUGARCANE
Fire is applied first before harvesting for the following reasons:
 To burn off the leaves and trash
 To scare away harmful animals
 To increase concentration of sucrose before cane is harvested
Cane are cut using long knives and loaded on tractors to
factory.

PROCESSING FROM SUGARCANE TO SUGAR

 At the factory the canes are cut into shorter lengths and crushed(rolled) to extract the juice and bagasse
remains
 The juice then enters a clarifier where soluble-non sugars are sucked out .Lime is added to prevent
fermentation
 Then it enters an evaporator where it is boiled under low pressure to syrup(a thick liquid)
 From there it enters a vacuum pan in which molasses and sugar crystals are formed and goes into a
centrifuge where sugar crystals are separated from molasses
 The first raw sugar formed is brown sugar, to produce white sugar, brown sugar is refined(syrup) is
filtered to remove solid impurities and then run into cylinders parked with CHAR which absorb the
brown colour
 The white sugar is now evaporated and condensed and the residues are made into golden syrup.

FLOW DIAGRM SHOWING SUGAR PROCESSING

PROBLEMS FACED AND CREATED BY THE SCHEME

 Rising costs of production materials
 Thefts of irrigation aluminum pipes
 The disposal of effluent has polluted Shire river

Series 2012 Page 22 of 79

PLANTATION AGRICULTURE
It is a specialized commercial cultivation of perennial crops on a large area of land. Below is a table
showing plantation crops and their distribution

CROP WHERE GROWN

West Africa, Latin America

Bananas
Cocoa Brazil ,Nigeria, Ivory Coast
Ghana, Gabon
Malaysia, India, Indonesia,
Coconut Philippines
Coffee El Salvador, Angola, Brazil,
Uganda
Liberia, Sri Lanka, Indonesia,
Rubber Malaysia
Sisal Tanzania, Uganda, Madagascar,
Kenya

Sugarcane All tropical Regions

Tea India , Sri Lanka, Kenya, Malawi,

Mozambique

CHARACTERISTICS OF PLANTATION AGRICULTURE

a. Estate farming sometimes small holdings are possible
b. Foreign ownership and local labour
c. Scientific management in order to meet required standards
d. Heavy capital outlay

ADVANTAGES OF PLANTATION AGRICULTURE

a. Regular supplies of produce
b. Labourers are trained in various aspects of plantation agriculture
c. Organizations ensures no wastage since the waste is used as fuel or fertilizer
d. Harvesting is done quickly, effectively and cheaply

DISADVANTAGES OF PLANTATION AGRICULTURE

a. Being costly they are the first to suffer if prices of their products fall
b. They are very prone to climatic hazards such as droughts, frosts, winds, and for the workers heat and
high humidity sap their energy
c. They depend on the availability of cheap labour
d. Being a monoculture in nature diseases spread easily
e. Heavy rainfall leads to rapid deterioration of the soil through leaching and this necessitates heavy
application of fertilizers

Series 2012 Page 23 of 79

CASE STUDY I
TEA PLANTATION IN MALAWI
Malawi is the oldest tea growing country in Africa.
There are three tea producing areas in the country. These are:
a. Mulanje
b. Thyolo
c. Nkhata-bay

FAVOURABLE CONDITIONS FOR THE GROWING

OF TEA IN MALAWI
The areas that grow tea in Malawi experience the following
conditions:
a. Receive heavy rainfall of between 1150 mm and 1500
mm per year
b. Experience high temperatures averaging 210C with little
or no frost
c. Have loam soils with good drainage, usually on gentle
slopes
d. Experience high humidity that produces morning mists
Or due which enables young tea leaves to grow
quickly
e. Have abundant supply of labour as tea cultivation and
processing are Labour intensive

TEA PLANTATION
 Tea is grown from cuttings taken from the best clones.
 Sometimes tea is grown from the seeds directly.
Germination takes place in wet sand
 The seedlings are transplanted to nurseries
 When the seedlings are one year old they are
transplanted to open fields and planted in rows
 During the first four years of field growth the tea bushes are pruned to produce a spreading
framework which forms a close hedge along each row
 This close hedge is sometimes called the plucking table

Series 2012 Page 24 of 79

CYCLE OF FARMING ACTIVITIES
ESTATE ACTIVITIES

MONTHS ESTATE ACTIVITIES

April - Jun Old tea bushes are pruned to 1.2m high

Jul - Aug Topping or cutting the tops of the growing tea

bushes to level them off

Sept – Oct Application of Nitrate fertilizers to the tea

fields

Nov - Mar The main harvesting season

SMALL HOLDER TEA AUTHORITY

 It was formed in 1967
 It aimed at :
-Administering and promoting tea growing
- Distributing tea plants to small holder farmers
 It opened a modern tea processing factory in Mulanje in 1975
known as Malawi Tea Factory Limited Company (MATECO)

WHY DO FARMERS ALLOWED TO GROW TEA

a. Farmers do not require big land since tea is a high yielding
b. The farmers have the tea growing knowledge because they have worked on the estates before
c. To provide alternative source of income to farmers

HARVESTING TEA
 The main harvesting season is from November to March.
 During this season the estate employs about 1,800 work force some of which live in the estate in
estate compounds
 In harvesting tea, two top leaves and a bud are plucked because it is these which have a
high tannic acid concentration.
 After harvest the leaves or fine harvest is taken to the factory for processing

PROCESSING OF BLACK TEA

 Picked tea leaves are first weighed then withered by putting in troughs through which warm air is
blown to reduce moisture content to 50%
 The tea leaves are then taken to rollers, get crushed, and squeezed to get the juice out. The rolled
leaves are fermented to make the black tea
 Through fermentation, chemical reactions take place and the leaves change color from green to
copper or brown and give it the flavor it takes
 Drying/ firing is done to stop fermentation. Leaves are dried using very hot air reducing the moisture
content to 3.5%

Series 2012 Page 25 of 79

 Dried tea leaves are sorted out and graded .The tea is tested then packed in plywood chests with
aluminum foil coated ready for sale or export

FLOW DIAGRAM FOR THE TEA PROCESSING

 98% of the tea produced in Malawi is exported to USA, Germany, SA , through Nacala and Dare
salaam
 Only 2% is sold locally under different brand names

IMPORTANCE OF TEA INDUSTRY TO THE ECONOMY OF MALAWI

a. Provides employment to many Malawian
b. It is one of the major foreign exchange earners
c. Source of revenue to the government through taxes

PROBLEMS EXPERIENCED BY TE INDUSTRY IN MALAWI

a. Pests and diseases
b. High costs in exporting tea
c. Fluctuation of world prices
d. Soil exhaustion due to monoculture practices and soil erosion resulting in leaching the Soil

WORLD TEA PRODUCERS

1. India is the largest tea producer (33%)
2. China is the second (19%)
3. Sri Lanka
4. Kenya, Turkey, Japan , Russia, Malawi etc

CASE STUDY II
COCOA PRODUCTION IN GHANA
INTRODUCTION:
 Cocoa is a tropical plantation crop that produces cocoa beans or seeds for making cocoa powder and
chocolate
 The fruit cocoa seed is a pod
 The pod grows directly on the trunk and branches off the trees
 If processed the beans produce a powder called cocoa
 There are varieties of cocoa some are
- Criolia: from tropical America
- Forester: from Africa
Location:
o Ghana is between 00 and 50 West longitudes and between 50 and 150 North latitude
o The cocoa triangle is the main area made up of towns like Kumasi, Awaso, Takoradi and Accra. See
the map below

Series 2012 Page 26 of 79

FAVOURABLE CONDITION FOR COCOA GROWING
Cocoa in Ghana is grown under small holder management. The factors that favour cocoa growing are
a. Temperatures not less than 210 C
b. Well distributed annual rainfall of at least 2000 mm
c. No strong winds for such destroy the cocoa pods
d. Potash rich ,deep and well drained soils
e. Shade that prevents direct sunlight

FARMING ACTIVITIES ON A COCOA FARM

a. Cocoa land cultivation
- forest undergrowth are cut and burnt during January and
February
- big trees are left to provide shade to seedlings
- cocoa trees are planted either seeds or through
propagation
- seeds are first sown in nurseries. When they are 15 cm high are transplanted into the main fields
where forests have been cleared seedlings or cuttings are planted in rows and food crops like
plantations or cocoyam , maize etc are planted in rows
- weeding is done as well as spraying of pesticides to
protect pests and fungal growth
-the cocoa tress begins to bear in the fifth or sixth year
but produce the best in the eighth to tenth year and
decline after fifteenth year
-pods develop on tree trunks between April and June

b. Harvesting
- harvesting of mature pods is done in May and August and
second harvest is done between October and February
- good trees can remain in commercial production about
thirty to forty years.
c. Picking and processing
- pods are harvested with panga knives and spilt open on
the splitting area
- beans are separated from the pulp, then fermented for a

Series 2012 Page 27 of 79

 week
- there after the beans are dried for another week(as the
drying turn them brown)
- when they are completely dry, they are packed in sucks
and ready for Marketing
d. Labour
- Cocoa is grown on a small holder farmers, basis:
weeding, spraying and harvesting is done by the
family labour. But sometimes hired labour is used

COCOA PROCESSING
 The cocoa beans are cleaned, roasted and crushed
 The butter fat(cocoa butter)is squeezed out of the crushed mass, and what is left is dried and grounded
ton fine powder that is mixed with sugar and milk-cocoa(beverage) or drink
 The cocoa butter fat is added to the mass together with milk and sugar and then it is rolled to make
chocolate, which is then used for sweets, flavoring in cakes, ice creams etc
 Cocoa butter is also used in cosmetics

USES OF COCOA
a. for making beverage drink
b. for making chocolate
c. for making cosmetics

IMPORTANCE OF COCOA INDUSTRY IN GHANA

a. for employment
b. the industry earns Ghana 65% of her foreign exchange earnings

REASONS FOR DECLINE OF COCOA PRODUCTION IN GHANA

In the early 1960s Ghana was the world’s largest cocoa producer (38%) but now produces only 15 %
of the world production . The reasons are

a. Price overseas are falling discouraging farmers not to increase production

b. Lack of labour as young people migrate to towns leaving old people to manage cocoa farms
c. Smuggling of cocoa to neighboring countries where cocoa prices are better
d. Viral diseases called swollen shoot continues to reduce harvests
e. Uncontrolled bush fires have taken their toll
f. Lack of good roads in the border areas
g. Credit is difficult to obtain and mechanization is almost absent

MARKETING
 The farmers sell their cocoa beans to the United Farmers Council which is A State cocoa marketing
board responsible for the exportation of cocoa
 The cocoa beans are exported through Tema and Tekoradi ports to Great Britain, USA, Germany,
France, Sweden etc

Series 2012 Page 28 of 79

 REVISION EXERCISE
Figure 1 shows Map of Ghana.

Figure 1
i. Name the ports marked P and Q.
ii. Locate and name two areas where cocoa is grown.
iii. Name three products which are manufactured from cocoa.

TERM 1 FORM4
Unit 2
FISHING
It is all activities done by people in order to withdraw all forms of aquatic animals in the seas, oceans and inland
water systems

FACTORS INFLUENCING THE DEVELOPMENT OF FISHING INDUSTRY

These are:
 The availability of planktons
 Presence of indented coastlines which provide natural shelters for fishing e.g Hokkaido in Japan
 The lands bordering some of the coastal waters are not able to produce sufficient food either because the
soils are poor or the lands are mountainous or the land has too large a population, all of which have resulted
in the people turning to the sea for a livelihood
 Many of the regions near to water have large populations which provide good markets

CONDITIONS FOR FISH BREEDING

 Fish live on very small plant and animal organisms collectively called plankton. Oceans and seas which are
rich in plankton usually have an abundance of fish. Plankton grows best in seas and oceans where:
 The water is shallow(as in the seas on continental shelves),thus allowing plenty of light to
 penetrate to the sea bed
 The water contains a variety of mineral salts
 Cold and warm currents meet
 Cold waters up wells at the surface

MAIN TYPES OF FISH

There are two broad types of fish namely
a. Salt water fish:
Caught mainly from major seas and oceans
They are of two types namely
 Pelagic fish
Found near the surface of water systems
Examples are : salmon, mackerel, sardines, pilchards and anchovies

Series 2012 Page 29 of 79

  Dermesal fish
Found at the bottom of the sea waters
Examples are cod,haddock,halibut, hake and tuna
b. Fresh water fish
 Are caught from inland water systems
 Are comparatively of less commercial value than salt water fish
 Examples are sturgeon, chambo and car

MAIN FISHING METHODS

These are
a) By drift nets
 Nets are hang vertically in water
 They are weighed along the bottom edge and supported
along the top edge by floats
 Fish are caught by their gills as they become entangled
in the mesh of the nets
 Example of the fish caught by this method is pelagic
fish

b) By seine nets
 Similar to drift nets ,but instead of being left hanging in
the water they are pulled by their ends to surround a
shoal of fish
 They are of two types namely
a) Purse seine net
 More of a trawl net with a narrow conical end

b) Haul seine net

 Appear like a drift net
 Hang vertically and is supported by corks at the top and
weighed at the base
c) By trawl nets
 Comprises of a bag-shaped net
 With a mouth kept open by head beams
 Are fixed with floats at the top and weights at the base
 Are dragged along the sea bottom
d) By using lines
 Are line fitted with hooks
 They have often been put to catch a shoals of fish
 Hand lines with a single bait hook are cast into water
and pulled a shore

Series 2012 Page 30 of 79

 WORLD FISHING GROUNDS

NORTH WEST EUROPE

 It contains the fishing grounds such as
Barents sea
Ice land
The North sea
The Bay of Biscay
 Trawlers are used in catching fish
 Norway is the leading fishing country in Europe
 Cod ,herring and haddock are the main catch

EASTERN CANADA(NORTH-EAST AMERICA)

 Its fishing grounds include
Halifax
St.Johns
Lunenburg
Newfoundland
East coast of Canada
 Small boats and large vessels are used in catching fish
 The main fish caught are : cod ,haddock and sardines

NORTH-WEST AMERICA
 Fishing grounds extend from California to Alaska
 Halibut, cod and herring are extensively caught
 The most important fish is Salmon

NORTH-EAST ASIA
 Dominated by Japan
 Others in the region are China and C.I.S
 The main catch in the waters off Japan are : cod, halibut,herring,salmon,sardine,tuna and mackerel
 Shell fish such as prawn,lobster,crab and cuttle fish are also caught in the shallow areas
 The principal fish caught in the waters off China and C.I.S are garoup, carp and mullet.
 Japan is leading fishing country
Series 2012 Page 31 of 79
 PERU
 It is one of the most important fishing ground in the world
 The most common fish caught in anchovy
 Chimbote is the main fishing port

IMPORTANCE OF FISHING INDUSTRY

 Source of food in form of protein
 Source of employment
 Source of foreign exchange
 Source of cosmetics/perfumes
 Source of lubricants

PROBLEMS FACED BY FISHING INDUSTRY

These are
 Over fishing
Too many fish are caught, including the young fish which should
provide the catch in the future years
 Pollution
This is a habit at which human kind tends to use the seas and oceans as dust bins into which sewage,
industrial chemical and waste are poured and this could kill fish
 Ignorance of fish culture-thus depriving them of a chance to spawn
 Crowded seas
With ships on mechanical breakdown in a helpless situation, ships are thrown onto rocks or in shallow
seas. As a result fuel and oil carried by tankers can become a pollution hazard
 Fog and mist
Pose problems of fishing trawlers due to lack of visibility

SOLUTIONS TO THE PROBLEMS

 Prevent over fishing by international agreement and control
 Protect from pollution, by removing all poisonous and harmful chemicals from industrial waste before
discharged into the seas and rivers
 Restocking of over fished waters
 Introduce fish farming to breed fish to replenish the fish caught
Artificial fertilization of eggs

OTHER SOURCES FROM THE SEA

 Food in form of prawns and shells
 Salt
 Freshwater
 Metals
 Sand and gravel
 Oil
 Natural gas

REVISION EXERCISE
a) Explain any two points that show the importance of fish.
b) Explain two reasons why the per capita consumption of fish in Japan is the highest in the world.
c) Mention the main problem of fishing in Japan
Series 2012 Page 32 of 79
 Figure 2 shows the most important fishing grounds in the world. Use it to answer the questions that follow.

Figure 2

d) Name the fishing grounds labeled B, D and E.

e) Explain two factors which encourages fishing in the region labeled C.
f) Name the most important fish species caught in region A.
g) Explain why there are no major fishing grounds along or near the equator.
h) Explain the relationship between ocean currents and fishing grounds.
i) Explain any two factors that have led to the development of the North East
j) Atlantic fishing grounds
k) Name two resources form the sea other than fish

UNIT 3
CLIMATE CHANGE
OBJECTIVES: By the end of the topic learners should be able to :
a. Explain the causes of the climate change
b. Explain the effects of the climate change
c. Suggest possible solutions to causes of climate change

Climate has changed and still is constantly changing at all scales from local to global and over varying time
spans both long term and short term

CAUSES OF CLIMATIC CHANGE

These are:
 Deforestation :This leaves the area bare without vegetation, as a result no rain will fall,
 due to adverse changes in weather, inavailability of water and soil fertility
 Emission of gases(greenhouse effect):
 There is an increasing concern of built up carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases, together with the use
of aerosols and the release of CFC in the atmosphere which are blamed for the depletion of ozone in the
upper atmosphere
 Changes in the oceanic circulation:
This affects the exchange of heat between the oceans and the atmosphere. It can have both long term effects
and short term effects on world climate, for example the ElNino

Series 2012 Page 33 of 79

 EFFECTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE
The following are the effects
 It may result in global warming. This is high temperatures with increased evaporation but with reduced
condensation
 It may result in increased storms
 Changing of ocean currents
 It may cause the Antarctic ice cap to shrink
 High temperatures reduce water holding capacity which may increase soil moisture
deficit

SOLUTIONS TO CAUSES OF CLIMATE CHANGE

These are:
 Having international conventions

REVISION EXERCISE
a) Explain any two causes of climate change.
b) Mention any three effects of climate change
c) Explain any two ways of combating climate change

UNIT 4
WILDLIFE AND AQUATIC LIFE
OBJECTIVES: By the end of the topic learners should be able to :
 Identify endangered wild and aquatic life species
 Explain how wild and aquatic species are endangered
 Suggest measures for conserving wild and aquatic life species
 Explain the importance of wild and aquatic life
 Develop an appreciation of value of wild and aquatic life

ENDANGERED WILD AND AQUATIC LIFE SPECIES

 Wildlife species: are species that live on land.
Examples are: lions, elephants, zebra, leopards, buffaloes,
Black rhino, snakes, birds etc

 Aquatic life species: are species that live in water

Examples are: fish, the hippo crocodile etc

HOW WILDLIFE AND AQUATIC LIFE ARE ENDANGERED

The following are the ways
Through
 Poaching –this is the killing of wild animals unlawfully.
 Burning bush fires
 Opening land for farming
 Deforestation
 Over fishing
 Water pollution
 Water hyacinth (namasupuni)

Series 2012 Page 34 of 79

CONSERVATION OF WILD AND AQUATIC LIFE SPECIES
 Avoid poaching
 Educating school pupils and the public
 Use the recommended method of fishing
 Banning trade in elephant tusks and rhino horns
 Introduce fish farming
 A forestation and re-afforestation
 Raising funds to help fight against poachers
 Establish more protected areas

IMPORTANCE OF WILD AND AQUATIC LIFE SPECIES

 Add beauty to the country
 They provide foreign exchange
 They provide employment
 Attract tourists who bring money to the country
 Source of medicine
 Help to boost tourism
 Vegetation and water provide home for animals
 Help in research and education skills

WETLANDS IN MALAWI
OBJECTIVES: By the end of the topic learners should be able to :
 Identify wetland in Malawi
 Explain the importance of wetlands
 Describe human activities that threaten wetlands
 Suggest strategies for managing wetlands

The wetlands of Malawi are:

 Ndindi marsh in Nsanje
 Elephant marsh in Chikwawa
 Lake Chilwa marsh in Zomba
 Vwaza marsh in Rumphi

IMPORTANCE OF WETLANDS
 Good for rice and sugarcane growing
 Source of replenishment for ground water supplies
 Good for hunting, fishing and nature study
 Provide water for domestic use
 It is a habitat to many plants and animals
 Control flooding-they retain large amount of water

ACTIVITIES THAT THREATEN WETLANDS

 Bush fire setting
 Deforestation
 Poor farming methods
 Overgrazing
 Over fishing

Series 2012 Page 35 of 79

 Pollution

STRATEGIES FOR MANAGING WETLANDS

These are:
 Avoid setting bush fires
 Practise good husbandry farming methods
 Avoid overgrazing
 Civic educate through village based resource management committees(VBRMC)

UNIT 5
NATURAL RESOURCES
 These are the endowments supplied by nature
 For example: minerals, water, land , or air, the sun and even vegetation
 Without these, life would be extremely difficult.
 Among other uses, man gets energy he needs to advance.
 For along time the world has been depending on fossil fuel e.g. coal , oil, and natural gas but the supply
of these are dwindling fast.
 Alternative energy sources
As the fossil fuels are getting depleted man is looking at other sources of energy. These sources are
water, wood, grass, wind, tidal waves, and the sun.

TYPES OF ENERGY RESOURCES

There are two main types of energy, namely:
 Renewable energy resources: Are resources that can be regenerated or replenish themselves after use
e.g. wind, water , biomass geothermal thermal
 Non-renewable energy resources: Are resources that diminish and do not replace themselves after use
e.g. coal, petroleum, natural gas and nuclear fuels

HOW THE ENERGY RESOURCES ARE PRODUCED

 THERMAL ENERGY: Produced from water which is turned into steam by the use of coal or oil or
natural gas. The steam produced drives turbines to produce electricity.
Advantages
o It’s flexible – can be generated wherever you want
Disadvantages
o It’s expensive to produce energy in this way
o Burning of coal, oil and natural gas pollutes the atmosphere.
o Fossil fuels are dirty as such can not be handled in offices

HYDROELECTRICITY:
 Water from a good height, head of water flows fast through
penstocks to the turbines.
 The turbine is turned rapidly and as it rotate the generator produces electricity
 See the diagram below

Series 2012 Page 36 of 79

SOLAR ENERGY
It depends on sunlight.
Can be produced in 3 main ways namely
 Absorber pipes
 Mirrors
 Solar cells
In the latter method the sunlight is harnessed by solar panels and directly to the solar cells to produce
electrical energy
Advantages
 It is safe
 It is pollution free
 It is efficient and limitless supply

Disadvantages
 It is expensive to construct
 It is easily affected by bad weather

WIND ENERGY
 It is produced from wind especially where winds are strong, steady, and reliable.
 To produced suffient energy from wind a large number of wind mills is necessary
 Uses individual turbines 30m high, placed close to one another which form a wind farm.
 These windmills are connected to a generator
 As wind blows the mills rotate and produce electricity
Advantages
 It is pollution free
 The turbines are cheap to run
 It is anti-global warming
 The ground between the turbines can still be used for farming
 It is clean
Disadvantages
 It is noisy
 It can disrupt TV reception
 It is relatively expensive
 Pose danger to birds that fly into the moving blades

NUCLEAR ENERGY
 The energy is produced from uranium.
 This is done by putting the fuel rods of uranium into a reactor which split the atoms

Series 2012 Page 37 of 79

 The reactor gets very hot and turns water into steam
 Then the steam turns a turbine which generate electricity

 See the diagram below

Advantages
 It’s is cleaner than burning coal, oil and gas because it does not generate sulphur and nitrogen oxides
 It is cheap to produce
 It is carbon dioxide free
Disadvantages
 The nuclear radiation is hazardous and can cause cancer and other related diseases e.g. leukemia
 Any accidents can cause a major disaster
 The production of radio active substances remain dangerous for a long periods of time
 It is expensive

BIOGAS ENERGY
 Materials from which biogas energy is produced include organic matter e.g. wood, grass and dung
 These materials form biomass , and energy from biomass can be released by simple burning or by
the use of digesters
 The dung or grass is put in a digester and secured properly. Microorganisms act on the biomass and in
the process, gas is produced.
 The gas is burned to produce heat for cooking and heating
 See the diagram below

Advantages
 It is renewable
 It is cheap
 Does not lead to local environmental problems

Series 2012 Page 38 of 79

Disadvantages
o Encourages deforestation
o Share the carbon dioxide pollution problems of fossil fuels

GEO-THERMAL ENERGY
 Inside the earth, hot rocks heat water.
 Water sometimes is pumped down wards where it is heated naturally and is then returned to the
surface as steam.
 This water may come out as hot springs or geysers
 The hot steam from a geyser is harnessed and directed to a turbine connected to a generator, which
produces electricity.
Advantages
o It is feasible- no need to pump out
o It is renewable
o It is largely pollution free
o No ash, radio active waste or carbon dioxide problems

Disadvantages
 The resource is stationary- the geothermal plants must be put where the hot rocks are.
 Long distance transmission of power is not technically practical
 Each geothermal field can be used for a period of time
 Most of the areas are in accessible- total number of sites suitable for geothermal power cover only a
small part of the earth’s surface

IMPORTANCE OF ENERGY DEVELOPMENT

 Drives a variety of machinery during manufacturing activities
 More energy is used in the mining industry e.g. in the mineral beneficiation process and in electrolytic
plants like those used in refining copper
 It is used for domestic purposes e.g. lighting, cooking and provides the motive power for a variety of
electrical gadgets.

ENERGY CRISIS IN MALAWI

In Malawi
 93% of the population use fuel wood
 3.5% use petroleum
 2.5% use electricity
 1% coal
 0.2% use biomass

The use of such energy is expected to increase in the near future because of
 Rapid population growth
 Expansion of tobacco estates and other farms
 High price of electricity and poverty

However, the use of fuel wood is causing environmental problem of deforestation that leads to
 Soil erosion
 Siltation of rivers
 Flooding
 Loss of ground water

Series 2012 Page 39 of 79

 ENERGY CRISIS IN THE WORLD
Due to the dwindling of energy reserves and that some are non renewable, shortage of fuel lead to
 The increase in prices
 The production and use of them greatly contribute to environmental pollution

POSSIBLE SOLLUTIONS TO ENERGY CRISIS

 Encourage public transport
 Construct good roads to facilitate vehicle movement in order to conserve some
 Restrict the importation of high energy consuming vehicles
 Use efficient stoves that would help in conserving charcoal as well as firewood.

REVISION EXERCISE
Figure 2 is a diagram of hydro-electric plant .Use it to answer the questions that follow

1. Name the parts labeled A, B and C

2. Explain how electricity is produced at a hydro-electric plant
3. Describe any three disadvantages of damming rivers in order to establish hydro- electric plants

Unit 6
MINERALS
Are all substances that make up rocks of the earth
TYPES OF MINERALS
There are three types of minerals namely

 FUEL MINERALS:
e.g. coal, petroleum and natural gas

 METAL MINERALS:
They can be divided into
 Ferrous minerals: contain iron
 Non-ferrous minerals: contain metal such as tin, zinc,lead,gold, silver, copper, manganese and
aluminum

 NON METAL MINERALS :

e.g. asbestos, sulphur,salt, gypsum, phosphate, limestone, potash, graphite, mica, diamond, uranium
and nitrate

Series 2012 Page 40 of 79

 FORMATION OF MINERALS
Minerals are formed in several ways some of them are:
1. In and around igneous intrusion
 As magma solidifies to form different rocks, different minerals are also formed.
 Examples of minerals formed through igneous intrusion include copper, zinc, lead etc

2. Residual deposits or solution

 Minerals that are leached from topsoil may be concentrated in the subsoil e.g. bauxite

3. Placer or Alluvial deposits

 Minerals may be deposited in various areas e.g. in rivers, river bends and along the coasts e.g. tin,
diamond, gold etc
 Some deposits form as sedimentary deposits e.g. limestone, coal, salts etc.
 The deposits in which minerals are contained is called an “ ore”

METHODS OF MINING MINERALS

MINING: It is a process of taking or extracting minerals from the earth’s crust or ground
Minerals occur at different depth as such different methods are used .
These are:
1. OPENCAST/SURFACE/STRIP MINING
 Used when the ores are close to the surface.
 Involves the removal of overlying rocks or soil materials(overburden)
 The ores are then blasted, dug up, put in trucks to be transported to the terminal points.
 It is the easiest and cheapest method of mining

2. SHAFT MINING/UNDERGROUND/DEEP MINING

 Used when the ores are deep down the crust
 A vertical hole is constructed down deep to the level to which the mineral seams or deposits are found
 Then a shaft is fixed to ferry workers up and down the mine
 From the shaft, horizontal tunnels or galleries radiate to the directions of the mineral or layers.
 The tunnels are supported by steel framework to prevent them from collapsing, they are also ventilated
and constantly drained of water to keep them dry
 This method is expensive and quite risky to both the health and life of the miners . e.g. instances of
mines getting collapsed claiming lives of may a people. Gas explosions and gas poisoning

3. ADIT MINING/DRIFT MINING

 Used when ores occur on valley sides on hilly areas.
 Mining is done by digging tunnels (adits) to the horizontal or sloping seams up to a point the minerals
have been exhausted.
 It is cheap but the danger of collapsing is ever present.

4. ALLUVIAL MINING
Used when mineral ores occur in alluvial deposits of sand, clay and gravel e.g. gold, diamond, tin
etc.

5. SUBMARINE MINING
Used when ores occur deep in the ocean floor by the use
of submarine dredgers.

Series 2012 Page 41 of 79

PETROLEUM
Petroleum is a mineral oil, organic in origin which occurs in the pore spaces of sedimentary rocks.

HOW PETROLEUM WAS FORMED

 Formed from massive marine creatures that died millions of years ago.
 There remains settled at the bottom of the sea or ocean and were trapped in sediments of mud, sand and
other substances
 The sediments pilled up and were buried below the surface of the ocean floor.
 As the sediments get buried deeper and deeper, were subjected to increase the temperature, pressure
and action of bacteria in the absence of oxygen upon them, resulting in petroleum and natural gas
being formed.
 Later on, petroleum and natural gas got squeezed out of their original sedimentary rocks and driven
into porous rocks (reservoir rock) due to the weight of overlying rock layers or due to water that is
denser than oil.
 Due to folding, petroleum rose further and collected in the anticlinal parts of the folds as shown in the
following figure:

PETROLEUM EXTRACTION

 When petroleum bearing rocks are identified, a hole is drilled from the surface to the rocks
containing the oil
 This is done by using a large metal structure called derrick, the end of which a steel pipe is fitted
with a drill head called a bit (diamond cutter) which is slowly forced through the surface rocks.
 More steel pipes are added until the oil deposit are reached
 When the oil deposits are reached, the oil gushes out if it is under natural pressure. If there is no
natural pressure then it is to be forced out by pumping.

PETROLEUM REFINING
 Refining is done to convert crude oil into useful products.
 It separates the oil into various hydrocarbon groups known as fractions through a process called
fractional distillation in a fractionating column.
 In the fractional distillation:
 Crude oil is heated in a furnace to a temperature as high as 3850C .
 Resulting is a mixture of hot gases and liquids.
Series 2012 Page 42 of 79
 The hot gases and liquids pass into a vertical cylindrical steel called fractionating tower.
 In the fractionating tower different fractions vaporize/boil at different temperatures e.g. – gasoline
vaporizes at 240C , but some heavy fuels boil at temperatures of 3160C.
 As the vaporized fraction rises in the tower they condense at different levels e.g.
 Heavy fractions condense in the lower section of the tower
 Light fractions e.g. kerosene in the middle of the tower
 Gasoline in the upper section of the tower
 Some fractions do not cool enough to condense as such they pass out of the top of the fractionating
tower into vapor recovery unit
 Other fractions which vaporize at temperature higher than those in the furnance:
 Remain as liquids or semisolids and are recovered from the bottom of the tower and refined into
such products, as asphalt and lubricating oil, Vaseline, wax etc.
 Fractions produced by distillation are called straight run products, because all of them have
undergone conversion and chemical treatment before they are used. This is done to remove
impurities such as sulphur and lead. Some of the chemical treatments are as follow:

o Solvent extraction
Separates additional fractions from straight run products.
A chemical called a solvent e.g. benzene is added and
Causes:
(i) Some of them to separate out of the solids or
(ii) Dissolve some of the fractions
Quality of kerosene and lubricating oils are improved
through this process.

o Crystallization
Used chiefly to remove wax and other semisolid substances from heavy fractions.
Fractions are cooled to a temperature at which they form crystals or solidify.

o Cracking process
Convert heavy fractions into lighter ones.
This process improves both quality and quantity of Gasoline.
Cracking is done through catalyst(platinum or silica)
Or through combining process.

Series 2012 Page 43 of 79

 FRACTIONATING COLUMN

PETROLEUM PRODUCTS AND THEIR USES

 Natural gas
-Is an excellent fuel used for :
.Heating
.Burning
.Lighting

 Petroleum gases
-Consist of butane, ethane, and propane and are used for:
.Making petrochemicals such as alcohol, ammonia , cosmetics , drugs,(aspring) dyes, explosives,
fertilizers, fibres, additives, ink , insecticides , paints , plastics resins , solvents ,synthetic rubber ,
terylene etc.

 Fuels
Are used for
-Driving all the motor vehicles and aircraft of the world as well as a large
proportion of trains and ships e.g.
(i) Gasoline for planes and motor cars
(ii) Kerosene/ diesel/ paraffin for heating ,running lorries, buses, locomotives and industrial power for
running boilers and production of thermal electricity

. Miscellaneous oil
Used for
-Production of lubricating oils, geese, medical oils, Vaseline etc

OTHER RAW MATERIALS

These are:
(a) Asphalt and bitumen
-Used for road building as tar
-Used for manufacturing roofing materials
(b) Wax
Series 2012 Page 44 of 79
 -For making candles, polishes, seals etc.
(c) Carbon black
-For making ink, paint, carbon paper, tyres etc

ADVANTAGES OF PETROLEUM
They are:
 It occurs in great a abundance
 Can be cheaply distributed
 Has a wide range of both domestic and industrial uses
 Provides nearly half the source of energy used in the world.

DISADVANTAGES
 Gas is difficult to store because
-it vaporizes
-it becomes highly inflammable
-it is explosive
-difficult to transport
 Highly contributes to the environmental pollution
- offshore drilling and oil spills contribute to water pollution
- damages beaches and destruction of wildlife
- burning fossil fuels contribute to air pollution causing global warming
 Fluctuation of petroleum prices greatly affects economies of many countries
 Being a non-renewable energy resource, its supplies are going down hence energy shortage due to
increase worldwide demand

POSSIBLE SOLLUTIONS
(a) Use energy as efficiently and sparingly as possible
(b) Introduce an alternative energy resource e.g. converting coal to petroleum
(c) Use of unleaded fuel to control levels of pollution

TRANSPORTATION OF PETROLEUM
It is transported through:
(a) Pipelines
From wells to storage tanks, refineries, markets but mainly overland for great distances e.g. from
Dar-es-salaam to Lusaka
(b) Over the sea
Tankers (large ocean going ships) are used
(c) Tank trucks
Are used on roads and aircraft for emergency or military requirements

(d) Railway tankers

From coasts to the interior

LOCATION OF REFINERIES
(a) In or near the oil field
(b) Near market e.g. in Europe
(c) Coastal areas for easy transportation
(d) Entry ports of consuming countries e.g. Beira , Nacala , Durban, Dar-es-salaam
(e) Where pipelines end e.g. Tripoli and Said on the Mediterranean Coast

Series 2012 Page 45 of 79

 OIL PRODUCING COUNTRIES
 The leading oil producing countries are
(a) Saudi Arabia
(b) USA
(c) Russia
(d) Iran
(e) China
(f) Venezuela
(g) Nigeria
(h) Algeria
The oil producing countries are divided into
 OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries) which are
Libya, Nigeria, Algeria , Gabon, Indonesia , Iran , Iraq , Kuwait , Qatar , Saudi Arabia , United Arab
Emirates, Ecuador , Venezuela .
 Non- OPEC members

ROLE OF OPEC
 To control oil production
 To control oil prices for its member states
 Regulates and supplies petroleum

BAUXITE
The name bauxite is derived from a village in France where it was first discovered called Les Baux
It is clay that is rich in aluminum hydroxide (a chemical combination of aluminum, water and oxygen)
It is the most abundant metal in the earth’s crust

HOW BAUXITE WAS FORMED

 Heavy rains in the humid tropical regions cause leaching in the soil as some minerals like silica are
leached out leaving a concentration of aluminum hydroxide in the subsoil.
 Bauxite occurs in association with other minerals such as silica, limonite (iron ore) titanium, chromium.

MINING OF BAUXITE
Bauxite is mainly mined by opencast method because most of it is near to the surface.
o First, the earth- moving machinery clear away the overlying rocks and then the ores are blasted.
o Then power shovels load the bauxite into trucks which carry them to crushing plants where bauxite is
crushed and washed to remove the amount of silica in the ore.

HOW ALUMINIUM IS PRODUCED

There are two main steps in producing aluminum namely
(a) Refining bauxite to produce alumina
(b) Smelting alumina to obtain aluminum

REFINING BAUXITE TO PRODUCE ALUMINA

 Powdered bauxite is mixed with sodium hydroxide(a solution of caustic soda)
 The mixture is heated under pressure at 1500C to 2500C.
-then sodium aluminates solution is formed and other solids (red mud) are discarded.
 Sodium aluminates solution is cooled and then crystals of aluminum hydroxide are added to the
solution.

Series 2012 Page 46 of 79

 -causing the alumina in the solution to precipitate (coming out of the solution) and collect to the
solution.
 The solution is filtered to separate alumina crystals from the liquids and then washed to remove
impurities
 The crystals are heated at about 12000C to drive out any moisture leaving a fine white powder of
alumina
-During this process the weight of aluminum is reduced by about 50%.
 The alumina obtained is composed of aluminum and oxygen.

SMELTING THE ALUMINA TO OBTAIN ALUMINUM

This process separates the aluminum from oxygen
 Alumina is dissolved in a chemical bath composed of electrolyte (sodium aluminum fluoride, aluminum
fluoride, and calcium fluoride). The bath is held in pots that have carbon lining.
 One or more carbon blocks suspended in each pot introduce electricity and as it flows through the
electrolyte, the aluminum and oxygen are separated.
 The oxygen combines with the carbon in the anode and is released as carbon dioxide gas. The
aluminum metal collects at the cathode at the bottom of the pot and is siphoned off to pots called
crucibles before it is cast into ingots and billely .The ingots are either rolling or alloy ingots.
 About 16000 kilowatts hours of power are needed to make one tonne of aluminum as such most of the
world’s aluminum smelting plants are in regions where there is large-scale hydroelectric power
development.

PROPERTIES OF ALUMINUM
 It is a light metal
 It is strong and durable metal
 It resist corrosion (does not rust)
 Good conductor of electricity and heat
 It reflects light and heat
 It is malleable (can easily be molded into sheets)
 It is ductile ( easily molded into any shape)
 It is non poisonous metal hence used to wrap foods e.g. aluminum foil, making pots and plates
 It can be recycled
 It is non magnetic- valuable for protecting electrical equipments from magnetic influence.

USES OF ALUMINUM
Used for manufacturing
 Parts of aero planes, motor cars, buses, trucks, rail carriages etc.
 Electrical equipments, power lines, telephone wires etc
 Domestic utensils like pots , plates, knitting needles, refrigerators, washing machines etc
 Rocket fuel, door and window flames

WORLD PRODUCERS
 Australia is the leading producer then
 Guinea
 Jamaica
 Brazil
 China
 India
 Venezuela

Series 2012 Page 47 of 79

  Suriname
 Russia

REVISION EXERCISE
a. Describe each of the following process in oil refining
i. fractional
ii. cracking
iii. purification
b. Figure 1 is the pie chart showing total world production of bauxite in 1993. Use it to answer the
questions that follow

b) Calculate the total bauxite production for Africa. Show your

working
c) Suggest one reason why Africa is still poor despite the
presence of many minerals

TERM 2 FORM 4
UNIT 7
SETTLEMENT
A settlement is a place where people live and have built their
homes or
A settlement is a group of buildings with people living in
them and their social- economic activities
A settlement has:
a. SITE:
This is the actual place of land on which the settlement is built e.g. on a hill, along
the river
b. SITUATION:
Is a location of the settlement in relation to surrounding areas as well as other settlement

c. PATTERN:
The situation of buildings with respect to each other and the appearance of individual settlement
d. SHAPE:
Refers to the appearance of individual settlements. Also called the internal
structure of settlements.
e. FUNCTION:
This is the performance of a certain activity that justifies its existence for each settlement or refers to
what a settlement does of type of activity performed there e.g. village—primary industry, town—
secondary industry

Series 2012 Page 48 of 79

 TYPES OF SETTLEMENTS
There are two types of settlements namely:
a. RURAL SETTLEMENT:
In this type the inhabitants are involved in agricultural activities. The population is mainly
homogeneous (of the same type)

b. URBAN SETTLEMENT:
In this type the inhabitants are mainly involved in commerce and trade. The population is mainly
heterogeneous.

PATTERNS OF SETTLEMENTS

A. RURAL SETTLEMENT PATTERNS

Rural settlement assumes several patterns based on the closeness of the individual houses or the
shape the settlement assumes.

The major patterns are:

i. LINEAR SETTLEMENT PATTERN
These are usually formed along lines of communication such as roads,
rivers and coastal areas.

ii. NUCLEATED/COMPACTED/CLUSTERED SETTLEMENT PATTERN

Occurs when there is a grouping of several family residence or where
individual buildings are grouped very close together e.g.
markets, shops,schools,places of worship.

ADVANTAGES
 Land is put to maximum use
 There social interaction
 Protection
DISADVANTAGES
 Overcrowding
 Disease outbreaks spread quickly

iii. DISPERSED SETTLEMENT PATTERN

Residences are scattered or spread out across the land

ADVANTAGES
 Land is available for agriculture
 Mechanization is possible

OTHER RURAL SETTLEMENT PATTERNS

a. Isolated settlement pattern:
This consists of a single house or farm distant from any other
settlement.

b. Cross type/cruciform settlement pattern:

Forms where two lines of movement cross each other.

Series 2012 Page 49 of 79

 B.TOWN/URBAN SETTLEMENT PATTERNS
 These are the settlements whose main functions are trade and commerce.
 They tend to have high population densities, permanent structures and heterogeneous population
 Towns or urban settlements are classified according to location , function and size, for example:

A. CLASSIFIED ACCORDING TO LOCATION

i. COASTAL TOWNS:
Towns that are along the coasts e.g. Cape Town

ii. DELTA TOWNS:

Found on deltas e.g. Alexandria in Egypt

B. CLASSIFIED ACCORDING TO FUNCTION

i. SEA PORTS:
Handles imports and exports of a region e.g. Nacala, Beira, Dar- es-Salaam

ii. NAVAL PORTS:

Are constructed for military purposes e.g. Chilumba, Plymouth
in U.K.

iii. MARKET TOWNS:

Occupy fairly in central position in a well settled region and they are route centres to which the
regions send their produce for sale.e.g. Lilongwe, Blantyre, Johannesburg etc

iv. MINING TOWNS:

Famous for mining activities e.g. Ndola, Kimberly
Johannesburg

v. CAPITAL TOWNS:
These are headquarters of governments or centres of
administration e.g. Lilongwe and Lusaka

vi. RESOLT TOWNS:

These owe their origin to beautiful scenery e.g.Mangochi,
Monkey-bay

C. CLASSIFIED ACCORDING TO SIZE

These are:
i. HAMLETS:
Consist of two or three houses and in most cases without
schools, shops or services. Available in Blantyre,
Lilongwe and Mzuzu.

ii. TOWNS:
Have several thousand houses e.g. 20,000 with than 100,000 but vary in population densities.
Provide many services e.g. Zomba, Mangochi, Salima and Kasungu

iii. CITIES:
These are main towns in country .Have populations of
above 100,000. Cities of Malawi are just declared e.g.
Series 2012 Page 50 of 79
 Mzuzu. Blantyre, Zomba and Lilongwe.

iv. METROPOLIS:
Is a mother city of a region on which surrounding town depend. The dependent towns are referred
to as detached satellite settlements together with the mother city are called metropolitan system
or decentralized city

v. MEGAPOLIS:
Consists of gigantic urban complex formed by the merging of several conurbations and mega cities
(super cities) e.g. North eastern Seaboard of USA from Boston to Washington .

vi. CONURBATION:
Means several towns joined together or continuously urban areas. It is a large urban region formed
by the growth and merging of several individual towns and cities e.g. Witwatersrand in RSA

FACTORS INFLUENCING SETTLEMENTS

These are:
 Good source of water supply
 Availability of fertile soils
 Should be a natural focus of route e.g. Chicago has a
good access to other areas
 A good site for defence
 A good site adjacent to some natural resources such as
pasture
 A flood free area that is on a well drained higher ground
area

URBANISATION
It is the movement of people from rural to urban centres that result into demographic growth of towns

FACTORS RESPONSIBLE FOR URBANISATION

These are:
 Employment opportunity in industries
 Availability of social services e.g schools, hospitals entertainments and good accommodation
 Quarrels over land
 Droughts and floods
 Lack of capital and unemployment
 Break away from traditional constraints of social set up

EFFECTS OF URBANISATION
As the area gets urbanised there are both positive and negative effects

POSITIVE EFFECTS
 employment availability
 better housing
 better health facilities
 better education facilities
 More reliable sources of foo
Series 2012 Page 51 of 79
 NEGATIVE EFFECTS
 Un employment
 Underemployment
 Poor sanitation
 Overcrowding
 Prostitution
 Traffic congestion
 Crime rates increase e.g. theft and juvenile delinquency

SUGGESTED SOLUTION
 Building satellite towns which may reduce overcrowding
 Building multi-story flats and sky-craper office blocks to reduce overcrowding
 Improving living standards of rural areas so as to make rural life pleasant and attractive with the aim
of discouraging rural urban migration
 Making high-ways and one-way traffic to reduce traffic congestion
 Expansion of existing commercial and industrial activities and creation of new ones to minimise
unemployment problems

URBAN PROBLEM SUGGESTED SOLUTION

 Traffic congestion -construct one way
streets,traffic lights, bus
lanes and car parks
outside the CBD

 Rush hours - introduce electric driven

motor cars and trains
 Heavy noisy traffic and pollution -restriction of private
cars in the CBD,
construction of car
parks outside the
CBD
 Narrow streets limiting traffic flow - build new roads
like urban motor ways
and ring Roads

NB
Shanty towns: groups of shelters constructed from cheap or waste materials located on the outskirts of cities

Slum houses: an area of poor- quality housing usually found in the inner city in rich countries and older parts
of cities in poor countries

Squatter settlements
Areas of make up shifts housing built on what is often illegally
occupied land

Series 2012 Page 52 of 79

 UNIT 8
URBAN LAND USE (URBAN ZONING)
There is always competition for land in an urban area, and the final occupation of each is achieved by
land use, which can derive the greatest utility or profit. This is due to working of economic laws.

The competition for land is mainly due to its accessibility, which determines land values where land
values are very high such as road junctions and the city centre, rents are also very high.

Although each urban centre is unique, but because of the working of economic laws they follow a
certain pattern. One of the patterns is that of concentric zones.

CONCENTRIC ZONE MODEL

This is a model which suggests that urban centres expand radically from the centre
forming a series of circles.
See the figure below

1. Central Business District (CBD)

2. Transitional Zone(zone of deterioration)
3. Industrial and Lower class Housing
4. Medium class Housing
5. High class Housing/suburb/Commuter zone

1. CENTRAL BUSINESS DISTRICT (CBD)

 It is the centre or focal point of the town
 It is the hub of business and civic life with concentration of shops, offices, tall building, financial
institution, restaurants, hotels etc
 It is a focus for transport routes
 Absence of manufacturing activities
 Little or no residential
 High population during the day and low at night
 Land is intensively used

MAIN FUNCTIONS OF THE CBD

These are :
o Provision of shops - which is at the top of the shopping hierarchy
o Provision of offices like banks, company headquarters etc
o For culture and entertainment

PROBLEMS OF THE CBD

Traffic congestion-
Solution:
o Pedestrianisation of high streets
Series 2012 Page 53 of 79
o Multistory car parks
o Public transport schemes
o Urban motorways and flyovers
o Ring roads and by-passers to divert traffic not going into city centre

Pollution
Solution:
o Laws against litter
o Provision of litter bins
o Increased planting of trees and shrubs
o Banning heavy lorries from passing through city centres

Lack of space and high cost of land

Solution:
o High rise building to increase the floor area available
o New retailing areas in and out of town shopping centre

Urban decline
Solution:
o Redevelopment of zones of decline in the CBD
o Expansion of the CBD into areas of inner city

2. TRANSITIONAL /TWILIGHT ZONE (zone of deterioration)

 It is surrounded by the CBD
 Oldest housing is either deteriorating into slum property or being “invaded” by light industry.
 Land use is less intensively used
 The inhabitants tend to be of poorer social groups
 Land value and population is moderate

3. INDUSTIAL AND LOWER CLASS HOUSING

o It is a zone of heavy industries
o It has high population densities
o Has narrow streets and crowded
o Land values are relatively low
o Occupied by those who have escaped from zone 2 and they work to near by factories

4. MEDIUM CLASS HOUSING

o Low density residential area
o Houses normally detache3d or semi-detached
o Bigger plot areas per houses(number of houses per unit area is low)

5. HIGH CLASS HOUSING/SUBURB/COMMUTER ZONE

o Found in the outskirts of cities
o Better houses and wider streets
o Very low noise pollution
o Land values are very high
o Satellite cities of between 30 to 60 minute drive from CBD
o Has large detached houses with villages performing dormitory functions
o Moderate population densities

Series 2012 Page 54 of 79

 o Some land is used for agriculture

IMPOTANCE OF TOWNS
Towns:
o Are centres of consumption as they encourage commodity production in the rural areas
o Control import and export trade of a country
o Are centres of commerce, industry and government
o Enable business and industry to operate smoothly

DISADVANTAGES OF TOWNS
Towns:
o Grow at the expense of rural areas e.g. they lead to rural-urban migration
o Take away agricultural land.

FACTORS THAT LED TO THE GROWTH OF

MALAWIAN CITIES
BLANTYRE
o It is a missionary centre
o Closeness to the former capital city
o Close to the tea plantation in Mulanje and Thyolo
o Good accessibility by road, railway and air
o Major commercial and industrial centre

LILONGWE
 Move of capital city from Zomba to Lilongwe in 1975
 It has rich agricultural land
 It is the most accessible town in Malawi with the large international airport
 Some industries have also shifted from Blantyre to Lilongwe

MZUZU
o It is the major administration in the northern region
o Some industries are also being established there
o Forms the northern corridor

REVISION EXERCISE
1. Mention two major types of settlements
2. Describe any two settlement patterns
3. Define the term ‘urbanization’
4. Suggest any two reasons why Blantyre is called a city while Mangochi is
5. called a town
6. List any three factors that have influenced the growth of Lilongwe city
7. Give any one problem of urbanization and explain how it can be solved
8. State one advantage and one disadvantage of dispersed settlement
9. Describe any two physical factors that influence site of a settlement
10. Differentiate site from location in relation to settlement

UNIT 9
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POPULATION
It is the number of people in an area

POPULATION DENSITY
 It is the number of people living per unit area
o This is calculated using the formula below

Number of people = Number of people living per Sq.Km

Area in Sq. Km

POPULATION DISTRIBUTION
It is the way in which people are spread out across the earth’s surface

WORLD POPULATION DISTRIBUTION

 The population of the world is unevenly distributed
 Other areas have high population and others have low
population
 There are many geographical factors which influence
population densities and their pattern of distribution.

The factors are

a. Physical factors
i. Climate
 For example: Areas receiving very low rainfall annually e.g. the Sahara Desert
 Areas having a long seasonal drought, or unreliable and irregular rainfall e.g. Sahel countries tend
to have low population densities

 Areas where the rainfall is reliable and evenly distributed throughout the year with no temperature
extremes and lengthy growing season e.g. Northwest Europe has high population densities

ii. Relief
- Rugged mountains where temperatures and pressure decrease with height and with active
volcanoes e.g. Andes mts in South America have low population densities
- Flat lowland plains are attractive to settlements and have high population densities e.g.
Netherlands and Bangladesh

iii. Vegetation
- Areas such as the coniferous forests of Northern Eurasia and Northern Canada and rainforests of
the tropics have low population densities

-Areas of grassland tend to have high population densities than places with dense forest or desert

iv. Soils
-The leached soils of the tropic rain forests e.g. the Amazon Basin and the frozen soils of the Arctic
e.g. Siberia have low population densities

-Deep, humus- filled soils e.g. the Paris Basin and especially river deposited silt e.g. the Ganges
delta and Nile delta have high population densities

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v. Water supplies
- Areas with lack of permanent supply of clean fresh water mainly due to either insufficient,
irregular rainfall or lack of money and technology to build reservoirs, wells or lay pipelines have low
population densities e.g. Ethiopia

-Population is likely to increase in areas with a reliable water supply e.g. Northern England and
California in USA

vi. Diseases and pests

-These may limit the areas in which people can live or may seriously curtail the lives of those who do
populate the areas e.g. Malaria in Central Africa
-Some areas were initially relatively disease and pests free , others had the capital and medical
expertise to eradicate those which were a problem and these have high population densities e.g.
Malaria Pontine marshes near Rome

b. Human factors
i. Resources
-Areas devoid of minerals and easily obtainable sources of energy rarely attract people or industry
e.g. Paraguay
- Areas having or formerly having large mineral deposits or energy supplies have major
concentration of population

ii. Communication
-Areas where it is difficult to construct and maintain transport systems tend to be sparsely populated
e.g. Mountains (Bolivia), deserts (Sahara), Forests (Amazon).
- Areas where it is easier to construct canals, railways roads and air transport have attracted
settlements e.g. North European plain, Singapore.

iii. Economics
Areas with less developed, subsistence economies usually need large areas of land to support
relatively few people e.g. Tundra areas

- Regions with intensive farming or industry can support large numbers of people on a small area of
land e.g. in the Netherlands

iv. Political
- Areas where the state fails to invest sufficient money or encourage development either socially or
economically have low population densities e.g. Brazil
- Decisions may affect population distribution e.g. by creating new cities, opening pioneer lands for
development, tend to have high population densities.
It should however be emphasized that people tend to settle in areas that offer more advantages than
disadvantages.

POPULATION STRUCTURE
It is the composition of any society in terms of number of children, men and women

LIFE EXPECTANCY
It is the number of years that the average person born in a
given area may expect to live
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POPULATION PYRAMID
It is a graphic representation of population structure made
up of horizontal bars.
The following page is an example of a population pyramid

20 20- 24
15 15- 19

10- 10- 14
5 5- 9
0 0- 4

Million 6 4 2 0 0 2 4 6 million
Male Female

CHARACTERISTICS OF POPULATION PYRAMID

 Divides the population into 5 year age groups on a vertical scale e.g. 0 -4, 5 – 9 etc
 Divides the population into males and females on the horizontal scale
 Males are located to the left and females to the right of the central axis
 The length of each bar represents the proportion of the people in the age group to the population
and also reflect the trends in births and deaths

POPULATION STRUCTURE OF DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

Its population structure pyramid
 Has a very broad base meaning that there is a high birth rate
 Contains 50% of the population is below 15 years of age
 There a rapid fall upwards in each age group showing a high death rate
 Tapers quickly to a very narrow top because few people reach old age due to high death rate
 See the following figure

POPULATION STRUCTURE OF DEVELOPED COUNTRIES

The population structural pyramid
(i) has a narrow base due to low birth rate
(ii) has a high proportion of old people due to low death rate
(iii) is roughly rectangular and relatively wide at the top because of the larger proportion of older
people present in the society. See the figure below:

Series 2012 Page 58 of 79

CAUSES OF RAPID POPULATION GROWTH
These are:
(a) High level of illiteracy- illiterate families are more likely to have many children because years of
child bearing is from teen ages
(b) Religion
- Some religious beliefs encourage large families for example the Catholics, the
Muslims, and the Hindus
(c) No birth control or family planning
(d) So many children die at infancy as a result parents tends to produce more in the hope that several
will survive
(e) Children are viewed as economic assets as either sources of cheap labour or old age security
(f) Large families are a symbol of status
(g) Conservative attitude of most of the people make them reject innovative ideas concerning family
affairs

STRATEGIES FOR CONTROLLING POPULATION GROWTH

These are
(a) Use family planning or birth control
(b) Deliberate limitation of family size
(c) Female emancipation- enabling females to follow their own carriers e.g. being employed
(d) Social and psychological pressure as the society in general frowns at large number of children

EFFECTS OF RAPID POPULATION GROWTH

These are
(a) Deforestation
- The demand for land for settlements, fuel wood and growing crops, has resulted in the clearing of
large areas of forest land
-This has caused adverse changes in weather availability of water and soil fertility
(b) Overgrazing
-This has caused the shrinkage of both arable as well as grazing land

(c) Pollution
-Air, water, and land are prone to pollution especially due to the disposal of either domestic or
industrial waste

(d) Land degradation

- As a result of continuous cultivation of the land loses its chemical, physical,
and biological properties rendering it unproductive
(e ) Poverty
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 - If the total population grows faster than the economy it will cause the decline
in income per person resulting in poverty creeping in.

IMPLICATIONS OF POPULATION STRUCTURE ONDEVELOPMENT

(Problems of overpopulation or rapid population growth)
These are:
(a) Insufficient food
- More people to be fed than there are crops to be harvested
(b) Insufficient clothing
- Many going about in rags
(c) Housing is often acute
- Many families are crammed in small houses, badly ventilated and unhealthy
(d) There is high rate of illiteracy
- Many who cannot read and write
(e) High unemployment rate

DEMOGRAPHIC TRANSITION MODEL

This is a model that describes a sequence of changes over a period of time in relationship between
birth and death rates and overall population change
See the figure below

STAGE 1
Here both birth rates and death rates fluctuates at a high level() about 35 per 1000
Giving a small population growth.

Birth rates are high because:

-No birth control or family planning
- So many children die at infancy that prevents tend to produce more in the hope that several will
survive
- Many children are needed to work on the land
- Children are regarded as a sign of virility
- Some religions beliefs e.g. Roman Catholics, Muslims, and Hindus encourage
large families

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High death rates, especially among children are due to:
- Disease and plague e.g. bubonic, cholera, kwashiorkor
- Famine , uncertain food supplies, poor diet
- Poor hygiene e.g. no piped ,clean water and no sewage disposal
- Little medical science: few doctors, hospitals and drugs

STAGE 2
Birth rates remain high, but death rates fall rapidly to about 20 per 1000 people giving a rapid
population growth.

This fall in death rates is due to:

 Improve medical care e.g. vaccinations, hospitals, doctors,
new drugs and scientific inventions
 Improved sanitation and water supply
 Improvements in food production both quality and
quantity
 Improved transport to move food , doctors etc
 A decrease in child mortality

STAGE 3
Birth rates now fall rapidly to perhaps 20 per 1000 people while death rates continue to fall slightly(15
per 1000 people) to give a slowly increasing population.

This fall in birth rates may be due to :

 Family planning e.g. contraceptives, sterilization,
abortion and government incentives
 A lower infant mortality rate leading to less pressure to
have so many children
 Increased industrialization, mechanization meaning
fewer laborers are needed
 Increased desire for material possessions(cars holidays
bigger homes)and less desire for large families
 An increased incentive for smaller families
 Emancipation of women enabling them to follow their
own carriers rather than solely child bearers

STAGE 4
Both birth rates (16 per 100 people) and death rates (12 per 1000 people) remain low, fluctuating
slightly to give a steady population

REVISION EXERCISE
Fig 1 shows a population pyramid for a country. Use if to answer questions that
follow

Series 2012 Page 61 of 79

 1. Describe the population structure shown by the pyramid in terms of sex and age
2. What type of economy will be associated with such population structure?
3. State any four reasons for the broad base of the pyramid
4. Explain any two challenges a country having such structure would face

UNIT 10
INDUSTRY
 An industry is any work done for economic gain
Or
 It is any productive enterprise that employs relatively large amount of capital and labour

CLASSIFICATION OF INDUSTRIES
Industries are classified as follows
 Primary industry:
 This industry involves the production or collection of
raw materials of nature.
 Basically the raw materials do not undergo any changes
e.g. fishing, mining, forestry, farming etc
 Secondary industry:
 This industry transforms or processes the raw materials
produced in the primary industry into finished
products.
 The raw materials undergo chemical and mechanical changes e.g. cotton into cloth, ground
nuts into oil etc

 Tertiary industry:
 This industry provides services e.g. transport, trade,
finance, personnel, tourism, security etc
 Quaternary industry:
 It involves the collection and provision of information
and expert valuation (research).Like the tertiary
industry, the quaternary industry is a service industry

INDUSTRY AS A SYSTEM
An industry is as a system because it involves the use of
a) Inputs
Industries receive the inputs from the environment
b) Processing
Industries convert these inputs into outputs

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c) Discharging
Industries discharge waste matters into the environment
See the diagram below the interrelations

FACTORS INFLUENCING THE LOCATION OF INDUSTRIES

The following are the factors
 Raw materials:
Industries which require large quantities of bulky raw
materials tend to be located near the sources of raw materials
e.g. iron and steel industries and sugar manufacturing
industries

 Transport costs:
All industries require good system of communication to permit the transportation of both raw
materials and finished goods. Areas that have good communication therefore tend to attract more
industries e.g. ports

 Power:
All manufacturing processes require regular supply of power. Thus most industries need large
quantities of cheap power as such; they tend to locate near power stations. For example in Malawi
most industries are located in Blantyre close to HEP station. Iron and steel industries tend to locate
near coal while aluminum smelting near HEP

 Market:
Goods that increase in weight(bulky) after manufacturing e.g. drinks have to be produced close to the
market e.g. Southern Bottlers is located close to the market. Furthermore, industries that manufacture
perishable goods especially food stuffs e.g. Dairy industries tend to locate near the market

 Labour:
Labour intensive industries also tend to locate in urban centres or where there are already other
industries so that they can easily access both skilled and unskilled labour

 Water supply:
Some industries like the pulp wood, iron and steel require abundant and regular supply of water; hence
they tend to locate near water supply.

 Political influence and government policies:

Some industries are located where they are because the government put a side sites for industrial
development. For example in Blantyre there is Makata industrial area, Chirimba and Nkolokoti
industrial areas

 Flatland :
It is also an important factor for those industries that require larges land e.g. car assembling

Series 2012 Page 63 of 79

 CEMENT MAKING IN BLANTYRE
CEMENT is a fine grey powder which when added to water and sand and left to dry will harden and
make a concrete

RAWMATERIALS FOR CEMENT MAKING

 Limestone:
This is the major raw material used to make clinker. Formerly it was mined at Changalume and now
in Balaka. Clinker is imported from Zimbabwe

 Red soils /shale/clay:

It is a soft rock that split easily into layers. It is obtained locally.
 Silicon and aluminum:
A non-metallic element with oxygen content
 Gypsum:
A substance for making plaster

CEMENT MAKING
It is in stages as follows:
1.CLUSHER STAGE:
Limestone is carried away from the site of mining on small trains or trucks to a crusher. The crusher
breaks the limestone into small pieces

2.LIMESTONE BIN:
After the crushing of the limestone it is stored in a bin

3.LIMESTONE MILL:
Shale is added depending on the amount of calcium carbonate present in the limestone. From the
limestone mill, the limestone is known as the raw meal (crushed limestone and calcium carbonate)

4.MIXING SILOS:
Raw meals are mixed together to get an overall standard quality

5.KILN SILOS:
 Raw meal is heated using coal (previously imported from Mozambique by rail).
 The heating goes up to 700°C in order to remove any moisture from the raw meal.
 The increasing in temperature results in the formation of calcium silicates and calcium aluminates.
 The yellow colour changes to grey.

6.ROTARY KILN:
o Temperature reaches 1350°C causing sintering to occur.
o Sintering occurs when mixture of powdered metals is heated to the melting point of the metal.
o As the metal melts all the substances begin to react with each other to form a chemical compound
called Clinker (a substance which will not burn).
o The clinker is red in colour because of intense heat.

7.ROTARY COOLER:
It cools the red hot material by spinning it round rather than forcing air over it

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8.CLINKER STORAGE SHED:
It is in this shed where the clinker is stored

9.CEMENT MILL(clinker milling):

o Gypsum is added.
o The amount will depend on the composition of the clinker.
o Resulted into a fine powder which is recognized as cement.

10. CEMENT SILOS:

The cement is taken to storage silos.

11. BAGGING MACHINE:

Packs the finished products into bags ready for sale
See the flow diagram below

IMPORTANCE OF THE INDUSTRY

 It reduces the amount of foreign exchange needed to buy cement from elsewhere
 It offers employment to Malawians in the quarry, the factory and the offices
 Source of government revenue through tax collected

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT OF THE CEMENT MAKING INDUSTRY

 Contributes heavily to air pollution(causing respiratory infection)
 Destruction of vegetation in order to opencast mine for limestone
 Dirties the vegetation as well as the surroundings

PROBLEMS FACED BY THE INDUSTRY

o Financial constraints
o High tax rates
o Importing clinker is very expensive and forces the company to increase the price of cement

MALAWI INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT

Malawi industrial development is limited because of limited urbanization (economic and demographic
growth of towns is limited) due to lack of:
 Resources
 capital
 large and reliable markets
 Limited hydroelectric supply and power blackouts.

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 Some industries are located far from the markets
 tax rates very expensive(exorbitant)
 cheap imported goods are flooding the market and counterfeit products are almost everywhere

MAJOR INDUSTRIAL AREAS OF THE WORLD

The following are the major industrial areas of the world

WESTERN EUROPE:
 This is the greatest area of the world for the following reasons:
 Industrial revolution started in Europe as such they were the first to develop heavy industries on large
scale
 There is a high degree of technology of advancement in engineering, textiles, electronics and
chemicals
 Availability of power e.g. coal, HEP, and nuclear
 The region has a large urban- based population that provide both skilled labour and market for
industrial products
 Availability of raw materials e.g. iron and steel, coal etc and they have the ability to import where
necessary
 A large market for the industrial products is available at the international level

NORTH AMERICA (EASTERN USA AND CANADA)

o This area is also the greatest area for the following reasons:
o The area has a varied range of relief and climate suitable for agricultural products which are for raw
materials for many industries
o Availability of mineral resources e.g. coal, iron and steel, petroleum etc
o Skilled labour is in plenty supply from immigrants from Europe
o Availability of market in USA and world over
o Abundant power supply e.g. HEP, coal and petroleum
o Cheap water transport for both raw materials and finished goods provided by the Great Lakes and
St.Lawrence sea-way

JAPAN
 Japan has the following reasons
 Indented coastal line has helped ports development which has made it possible to import raw materials
from world over.
 Market availability in USA, Africa etc
 Large population in Japan provide both labour and market
Series 2012 Page 66 of 79
 Technically biased education help to boost industries

MOTOR VEHICLE INDUSTRIES IN USA

o Americans own more motor vehicles per person than any other country in the world
o The total number of vehicles in USA is three times that of Asia, Africa and South America combined.
o There are three major companies that manufacture cars and these are : General motors, Ford and
Chrysler
o All these companies are located in one region that is Detroit

MAJOR FACTORS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF MANUFACTURING

REGION IN USA
These are
o Historical incident because Henry Ford lived there
o Availability of high quality iron ores near Lake Superior
o An enterprising or skilled labour force from Europe
o Large flat land is available because cars had little power and breaks
o Availability of raw materials e.g. paints ,tyres etc
o Excellent natural communication of the Great Lakes and St.Lawrence river
o Availability of abundant power supply
o Availability of market
o A well established farming community

ENVIRONMENT PROBLEMS OF INDUSTRIES

There are some environmental problems that these industries have on the environment and these are:
o Pollution
Air pollution due to smoke and toxic fumes
Water pollution due to wastes from industries discharged in rivers and streams
Land pollution due to discharge of solid wastes and cabbages of the land
o Deforestation
The creation of new towns, requires the clearing away of the vegetation for settlements, road building
and many others by causing deforestation
o Erosion of traditional values
o Industrialization plant is a completely new way of life on to a traditional society. This leads to
social problems such as loss of cultural identity

IMPORTANCE OF CAR INDUSTRY IN USA

These are
Source of employment
Source of income to other companies
It has greatly expanded opportunities to enjoy leisure time
Provide comfortable and relatively cheap personal transport over both short and long distances

REVISION EXERCISE
1. Explain the meaning of tertiary industries with reference to any two examples in Malawi
2. What any four factors should be considered before opening a sugar factory at Mzimba
3. Discuss two environmental problems that may occur in Mzimba as a result of establishing such a
factory in question (2)

Series 2012 Page 67 of 79

 Figure I shows world Industrial areas numbered 1 to 4

4. Name the world industrial areas numbered 1, 2, 3 and 4

UNIT 11
TOURISM INDUSTRY
It is the business of providing services to tourists such as accommodation, transport, advertising, selling
the beauty and other amenities

A TOURIST
Is a person who travels for pleasure or culture. or
One who visits a number of places or scenery for his or her objective of interest

TYPES OF TOURISM
The following are the types
a) DOMESTIC
 Residents taking trips or holidays within their
own country.
b) INBOUND
 Non resident visitors to a country
c) OUTBOUND
 Residents going outside their own country.

ECOTOURISM
 Sometimes known as green tourism includes:
 Visiting places in order to appreciate the natural environment, ecosystems scenery and
wildlife and to understand their culture.
 Creating economic opportunities(jobs) in an area while at the same time protecting
natural resources(scenery and wildlife) and local way of life
ECOTOURISTS
 Travel in small groups (low impacts)
 Share in specialized interest e.g. bird watching, photography.
 Are more likely to behave responsibly
 Merge and live with local communities
 Appreciate local cultures
 Pay their holiday in advance(spending little in the visited country)
 Are not all environmental educated or concerned
 Can cause local prices to rise
 May still cause conflict with local people

Series 2012 Page 68 of 79

Tourism is one of the industries that is growing very fast in the world because of the following
reasons:
 Increase in disposable income available for traveling (more per capita income).
 People have more spare time
 Improvement in air transport making traveling fast and comfortable
 Increase in number of tour operators
 Growth in advertising and promotion of tourist destinations
 Increased education awareness of beautiful places

TOURIST ATTRACTION CENTRES IN AFRICA

These are
 Victoria falls, Lake Mweru, Lake Bangweulu in Zambia
 Livingstonia falls in Tanzania
 Lake Malawi in Malawi
 Serengeti plain, Mt Kilimanjaro, Ngorongoro crater national park e.t.c. in Tanzania.
 Lake Nahulu, Lake Victoria , Mt Kenya e.t.c. in Kenya

TOURIST ATTRACTION CENTRES IN MALAWI

These are:
 Lakeshore areas. Mangochi, Salima, Nkhata-Bay, Likoma, Karonga have got beaches and sand resort
centers
-Many go to visit Lake Malawi because it has clear waters, has over 300 fish species, the highest in the
world
-Lake Malawi national park at Cape Maclear has special fish species of chambo called mbuna.
 Wildlife in various National parks and Game reserves e.g. Nyika, Lengwe, Kasungu, Liwonde e.t.c.
and some common wildlife include elephants, hippos, impala, kudu e.t.c
 Historical and culture sites e.g, Likoma Island (UMCA), Mua Mission in Dedza, HHI in Blantyre,
PIM in Chiradzulu e.tc.
 Zomba : University town, old capital city plus old parliament building
 Mzuzu has cool and attractive climate
 Cultural sites like rock paintings at Mwala woyera in Dedza.
 Nkula falls, Kapichira and Hamilton falls.

FACTORS CONTRIBUTING TOWARDS THE GROWTH OF TOURISM

These are:
 Physical factors
-attractive scenery e.g. lakes, mountains, good beaches and forests, wildlife and good climate especially
pleasant sunny climate is more appealing when it is winter in Europe

 Cultural factors
-places of historical interests and entertainment such as theatres are vital

 Economical factors
-good accessibility by road, railway, air and sea, good accommodation and infrastructure utilities such as
telephones, water supply, fax, good management etc

Series 2012 Page 69 of 79

IMPACT OF TOURISM
Tourism has both negative and positive impacts, which are

Positive impacts (advantages)

 Employment-local people are employed in hotels as cooks, hotel personnel, tax drivers, tour guiders,
game rangers, and guards.
 Source of foreign exchange- as tourists pay for accommodation, transport, buy food etc.
 Source of revenue to the government through taxation on accommodation and other things
 Leads to improvements of infrastructures such as roads, airports, hotels, restaurants etc.
 Intellectual experiences as tourists meet local people
 Encourages entrepreneurship activities such as carving and weaving, which is a source of income to
those who sell their curios to the tourists
 Entrance fee to National parks and Game reserves help conservation and maintenance of such areas

Negative impacts (Disadvantages)

 Leads to the increase of vices such as prostitution, gambling and crime rates increase as these tourists
have video cameras, cameras etc
 Local people are sometimes chased out of their original places for the establishment of beaches and
lodges as such they hate tourism industry
 There is commercialization of culture ( art is lowered down) because people are becoming money
minded
 Sometimes local culture may be corrupted where tourists hang out for a long time
 Disturbance of wildlife
 Increase in soil erosion as a result of deforestation
 The industry is easily affected by political instability , outbreaks of diseases etc
 Deforestation due to establishment of beaches and curio making
 Increase in water pollution especially along Lake Malawi

PROBLEMS FACING THE TOURISM INDUSTRY IN MALAWI

 Poor transport by roads and air makes most of the areas inaccessible during rainy season. In addition,
bumpy roads within many potholes make roads impassable to saloon cars.
 Underdeveloped communication system e.g. by telephone is very difficult in
remote areas
 Electricity and water supplies are not reliable in some hotels
 Car hire rates are very expensive (exorbitant)
 Lack of large international standards hotels
 Inadequate publicity which makes tourists unaware of the existence of some of the places of tourists
interest
 Increase pollution in Lake Malawi may alter the ecology of the lake
 Bushfires have annually devastated National Parks and Game Reserves e.g. Nyika and Vwaza
respectively.
 Decline of wildlife species like elephants, hippos ,rhinoceros, leopards and lions due to poaching
 Lack of initiative on the part of local authorities invest in tourism activities in their
areas
 Management and staff in some hotels and resort centers are poorly trained and
supervised such that the services received by tourist leaves a lot to be desired

SOLUTIONS
 Upgrading some of the facilities and campsites e.g. Chilinda at Nyika national park.
 Construct tarmac roads to make most of the tourist centres accessible throughout the year
Series 2012 Page 70 of 79
 Ensure good management
 Control poaching, and agricultural encroachment into parks and reserves
 Avoid bushfires and clearing of vegetation
 Prevent water, air and land pollution

REVISION EXERCISE
a. Mention any three resources that offer tourists attraction in Malawi
b. What benefits does the tourism industry bring to Malawi? Give any four
c. Examine the chances of growth of tourism in Malawi

TERM 3 FORM 4
UNIT 12
TRANSPORTATION AND TRADE
Transportation refers to physical carriage of goods or people from place to place.

TYPES OF TRANSPORT
There are three main types of transport, namely

1. LAND TRANSPORT
Refers to the movement of people and goods on the physical landscape

FORMS OF LAND TRANSPORT

They are:
A. ROAD TRANSPORT
 It is the most important form of land transport used by
people, animals bicycles, cars etc

B. PIPELINE
 Initially used to ferry water but today transports
petroleum from wells to refineries.
C. RAILWAY
 Very useful in transporting bulky commodities.

ADVANTAGE OF LAND TRANSPORT

These are:
 Railways can carry very heavy goods and raw materials
 Railways can carry large quantities of goods at any one
time
 Roads form direct links between producers and
consumers
 Roads may be constructed almost anywhere thus allowing goods to be moved to any part of the
region

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DISADVANTAGES OF LAND TRANSPORT
These are:
 Railways are only possible where the land is level
 Railways bear heavy overhead expenses and running costs
 Railway tracks and sleepers are laid and maintained at high costs
 The construction and upkeep of railway stations is costly
 Building and maintaining roads is very expensive
 Roads cannot be constructed through dense forests and rugged topography

2. WATER TRANSPORT
 It is the oldest form of transport
 There are two types of water transport namely
A. Inland waterways
 It usually confines itself to river transport networks, canals, and lakes e.g. St Lawrence See Way in
North America
B. Ocean and seas water transport
Usually uses oceans and seas
To day there are special vessels for passengers and cargo some of them are:

 Passenger ships
Carry passengers and mails
 Cargo liners
Carry people and freight
 Packets
Used for crossing narrow straits or seas
Sometimes they are called ferryboats
 Bulk Cargo ships
Carry large quantities of one type of goods e.g. oil, iron ore : included in the group are
 Containerships
 Colliers for shipping coal
 Whalebacks for shipping wheat to main ships
 Refrigerator ships for transporting fruits, meat and dairy products
 Other ships
 Dredgers for deepening the coastal waters and river ports
 Ice breakers and many others

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THE MAJOR SEA ROUTES AND CARGO HANDLED IN THE WORLD

A. NORTH ATLANTIC ROUTE

 Between Western Europe and North America
Some of the important ports are:
 London,Southamptom,Humburg,Liverpool,Glassgow,Botterdam in Europe
 New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore Boston, Montreal, and Quebec North America.
 Goods to Europe from America include
Wheat, meat ,petroleum, cotton tobacco, metallic ores(gold, copper .nickel) iron and steel,
machinery, transport equipments ,chemicals and clothing

 Goods to America from Europe include:

Chemicals, machinery, fertilizers, steel, wine, and other manufacturing goods

B.THE PANAMA CANAL ROUTE

Links far- East, Caribbean countries and Europe i.e. west India- Central America- Europe
 It has greatly improved trade of Caribbean countries (Mexico, Jamaica, Venezuela) and Central
American states plus that of Colombia, Equador, Peru and Chile
 Goods bound for Atlantic states and Europe include iron, copper, tin, gold, nitrates, sugar, and
coffee. Timber, wheat, dairy products, wool and meat
 The far-East and pacific states go: machinery, mining equipments, cars drugs, textiles newsprints
chemicals etc
C.THE TRANS-PACIFIC ROUTE
Links Yokohama, Manila, and Sydney with Vancouver, San Francesco, or Panama by the way of
Honolulu (Hawaii)
 Commodities shipped are mainly: wheat, meat, dairy products, wool and manufactured goods.

D. THE CAPE OF GOOD HOPE ROUTE

One of the oldest route linking Europe- South Africa and Far-East as well as Australia
 Goods going to the East include: meat , manufactured goods, fertilizers, paper, textiles, fruits, tea,
g/nuts, cotton, tin, manganese, tobacco, sugar, rubber etc
 Goods going to the west include: meat, oil, copper, cars, diamonds, manufactured goods

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E.THE SOUTH ATLANTIC ROUTE
Links South America and Europe as well as North America
 Goods shipped to Europe include: coffee, wheat, meat, dairy products, cocoa, flax(from Brazil and
Argentina)
 To South America go: manufactured products and semi-manufactured goods.

F. THE SUEZ CANAL- MEDITERRANEAN ROUTE

Links Europe and Asia
 From Europe to Far-East go: textiles, chemicals, paper, machinery, fertilizers , etc
 From Asia to Europe go: oil, cotton, tea, coffee, sugar, rubber, tin, spices, wool, tobacco, wheat,
fruits, hides, etc

IMPORTANT CANALS OF THE WORLD

They are:
 Suez canal
 It is about 160km
 Connects Mediterranean sea and Red sea
 It has no locks therefore movement of ships is made simple
 It was built in 1969
 Main towns are : Suez at the extreme end of the canal on the Red sea
: Port said on the Mediterranean sea
 Panama canal
 It is about 65km
 Completed in 1914
 Passes through lakes that are 25 meters above sea level
 Systems of locks are used to raise and lower the ships
 Main towns are: Panama city on the Pacific coast
: Colon on the Atlantic Ocean

ADVANTAGES OF WATER TRANSPORT

These are:
 Uses existing routes except in the case of canals
 The cheapest form of transport for large , bulky loads

DISADVANTAGES OF WATER TRANSPORT

These are:
 Indirect routes have to be taken to get from one region to another.
 Construction and maintenance of ports are costly
 It is very slow
 Storms, ice and fog sometimes interfere with the movement of ships in some seas and oceans.

3. AIR TRANSPORT
It is mostly concerned with carrying people
Goods of high value are also carried

ADVANTAGES OF AIR TRANSPORT OVER OTHER FORMS OF TRANSPORT

They are:
 Being very fast it reduces transit time
 Direct route can be used and followed
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 It is relatively independent of physical barriers such as mountains. Aeroplanes fly over these.
DISADVANTAGES OF AIR TRANSPORT
They are:
 Costs of air transport are higher than other modes of transport
 Because they need large space, air terminals are usually located at some distance from the centre of
major towns.
 It has limited carrying capacity
 Air being less free, foreign planes cannot make use of air space unless they obtain permission to do
so in advance.

ROLE OF TRANSPORT ON PEOPLE’S ECONOMY

 Help to improve agricultural production
 Influence growth of towns(urbanization)
 Influences trade expansion
 Influences exploitation of natural resources
 Influences location of industries

FACTORS AFFECTING DEVELOPMENT OF TRANSPORT NETWORKS

These are:
A. Physical factors
Relief often dictates the actual location, density, and direction of transport infrastructure.
B. Government policies
It often retain the mandate to determine where and when to embark on the Construction of the
land, water, or air transport networks
C. Economic returns
Very often, routes which provide direct or indirect economic returns, are not only established but
also better refurbished than those of least economic benefits e.g. the northern corridor in Malawi is
aimed at reducing costs of transporting imports from Durban (South Africa)

REVISION EXERCISE
Figure 1 shows the major world shipping routes. Use it to
answer questions that follow.

Figure 1
1. Mention the commodity shipped through B to the west.
2. Name sea routes labeled A and C.
3. Mention the major advantage seaway B has over seaway C.
4. Why do so few ships use route Y? Give two reasons.
5. Mention a major problem to shipping that exists in the area labeled X.

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6. Explain any two major advantages of water transport.

INTERNATIONAL TRADE
 It is the trade that occurs among countries of the world.

TYPES OF TRADE
There are two, namely:
 Bilateral trade
It involves exchange of goods between two countries
For example; between an agricultural nation and an industrial nation.
 Multilateral trade
It involves one country between several countries which doesn’t necessarily engage direct
exchange among states
For example, the historical great triangle route

FACTORS AFFECTING INTERNATIONAL TRADE

 Differences in natural resources
Areas included such as minerals
 Population dynamics
The distribution of population, stimulate trade due to cultural differences e.g. some societies tend
to specialize in some activities such as wine industry
 Densely populated areas often import commodities
 Government policies
It usually dictates its trading partners on the account of ideological ground

REGIONAL ECONOMIC GROUPINGS

They are trading bodies operating in a particular region of
the world Some of the examples are as follows:
1. COMMON MARKET FOR EASTERN AND SOUTHERN AFRICA
(COMESA)
 Comprises of twenty two African member countries. These countries are: Mozambique, RSA,
Angola, Burundi, Comoros, DRC, Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi,
Mauritania, Namibia, Rwanda, Seychelles, Sudan, Swaziland, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe.
 It was established in 1994 with the following objectives
 To promote economic integration(preferential trade area, custom union ,common market, and the
economic community) .That is members agreed to have a free trade area guaranteeing the free
movement of goods and services and the removal of trade barriers.
 To improve on the structural and institutional(banks, courts, schools)weakness among members so
that they are able to attain collective sustainable development
 Improve commercial and economic cooperation in the region
 Transformation of the structure of production of national economic in the region
 Development of basic and strategic industries.

SADC
(The Southern Africa Development Community)
 Formed in April 1980.
 Comprises of fourteen African countries namely: Angola, Botswana, Congo (DRC), Lesotho,
Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania,
Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
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 Its headquarters is in Gaborone in Botswana
 Member countries of SADC have a total population of over 173 million people
 Covers an area of 9.2 million sq. km

AIMS OF SADC
 to attain independence and self sufficiency within the region through cooperation
 to increase trade amongst themselves
 to improve the transport and communication infrastructure to enable trade to be conducted
smoothly
 to cooperate in food security, energy trade and services

For coordinating purposes, most members have been allocated particular sector to oversee.
For example:
1. Angola- Energy
It has been given the task of seeking solutions to the current problems and
encouraging the use of alternative sources of energy such as solar power.
2. Botswana
Livestock production and animal disease control, Agricultural and Natural Resources Research and
Training.
It has been the duty to coordinate agricultural and crop research in the region
3. Congo (DRC)
4. Lesotho
Environmental and Land Management.
 Land management must go hand in hand with a policy for conserving the environment, so that the
land remains productive for future generation
 Lesotho and Congo have the responsibility for coordinating this sector.

5. Malawi
Inland fisheries, wildlife, and forestry
 Malawi’s responsibility is to ensure good management of these natural resources including such
projects as the development of freshwater fisheries and the control of desertification by more a
forestation.

6 Mauritius
Tourism
Has been given the duty to coordinate the promotion of tourism through policies of research,
training and development.

7. Mozambique
Transport and communication, culture and information
Has the duty to emphasize cultural development as part of regional integration.

8. Namibia
Marine fisheries and resources
Has the duty to strengthen the role of small scale and commercial fisheries as a
source of food, income and employment and to increase its contribution to gross
domestic product .

9. Seychelles
10. South Africa
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 Finance and investment
Have the duty to attract industrial investment and to coordinate economic
policies and the development of the financial sector

11. Swaziland
Human resources development
Has the duty to coordinate manpower development so that SADC countries may
become self sufficient in skilled manpower.

12. Tanzania
Industry and Trade
Has the task of finding out which type of industry should be developed in each
country to ensure the best use of locally available raw materials.

13. Zambia
Mining, employment, and labour
Has the duty to coordinate the mining sector
14. Zimbabwe
Food security
Has the duty to anticipate and prevent food shortages in the region by ensuring
that adequate supplies are maintained

THE ROLE OF REGIONAL TRADE GROUPINGS

They are:
 Catering for dependency which is a realistic status of people other than self-sufficiency
 Offering specialization which in turn boost productivity
 It is quite handy to undersupplied countries

Unit 13
STATISTICS IN GEOGRAPHY
OBJECTIVES: By the end of the topic learners should be able to:
 State common elements of statistics
 Explain the importance of statistics
 Describe methods of collecting data
 Present data using appropriate methods

ELEMENTS OF STATISTICS
These are;
 Data gathering
It determines what to measure, time and extent of collection process including design of the survey
or experiment and assessment and control of errors which may find their way into such operations

 Data description
Deals with the extraction from data properties which describe adequately the
underlying structure of the process being studied.

 Statistical inference
Deals with drawing conclusions about what has been and described

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 Interpretation
Investigates how the inference has to be used.

ROLE OF STATISTICS
Play crucial role in decision making

COLLECTION OF STATISTICAL DATA

Statistical data are collected using a number of methods which are:
OBSERVATION
 The data collector gathers data using an observation checklist e.g.
 Number of vehicles by colour passing through a roadblock.
 Sometimes the data collector actually participates in what is happening. Apart from observing the
data collector gets involved in what is happening.
 This is referred to as observer –participant method. This method is widely used in attachments.

INTERVIEWS
Data is collected through asking questions and getting responses
QUESTIONNAIRES
o A prepared list of questions is printed on paper.
o This is called a questionnaire. The questionnaires are sent or delivered to people to answer or
complete them.
o Once completed the questionnaires are sent back or collected by the data collector.

PRESENTATION OF COLLECTED DATA

Collected data can be presented in various ways some of them are:
TABLES
These are illustrations that place numbers or words I columns, rows, or both.
Tables are used as extensions of text.

FLOW CHARTS OR FLOW DIAGRAMS

Used when some process descriptions contain steps that are occurring at the same time.
A flow chart uses boxes, circles and other geometrical shapes to show progress and relationships
among various steps

PIE CHARTS
It is circular presentation of data in which sectors of circle represent
proportions of collected data.
A pie chart shows a relationship between parts and the whole
o AGE-SEX PYRAMIDS
Used in population studies
o HISTOGRAMS
Used when the quantity under consideration is a continuous variate
o BAR GRAPHS
Bars are separated from one another. Space between bras should be equal.
o COMPOUND GRAPHS
Used when two or more bars are combined into a single bar. Though complex to read it saves time
and space.

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