Important Leaders

I believe that the success of Africa, in the past and for its future, relies greatly on the leaders that run the countries. If the leaders tend to towards corrupt practices then it is likely that the country will lean towards those practices as well and ultimately become unsuccessful as a whole. It is the righteous, kind, and dedicated leaders that can really prove to bring success to their country. Africa is desperate for strong leaders to bring this continent into a new light. Below I would like to talk about some successful leaders who worked hard and brought success to Africa. The one thing that all three leaders have in common is their work at non-violent, peacefull attempts at resolution towards African issues. I believe that a great reason for their successes are due to their peaceful actions.

Albert John Luthuli is a South African born man who later became the preseident of the African National Congress and even won a Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts. Luthuli led ten million Africans in a non-violent campaign for civil rights in South Africa. Before becoming president of the ANC, Luthuli was a tribal leader, a professional educator, and performed church work. Albert John Luthuli was born in 1898 and died in July 1967 when he was hit by a freight train while walking home.

A more recent leader in Africa is Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, who is famous for becoming the first female to be elected as president of an African nation. Johnson-Sirleaf was elected as the 24th preseident of Liberia in 2006 and continues to hold her position in the country. She too won a Nobel Peace Prize for her work within her country. Johnson-Sirleaf won this award along with two other women for their "non violent struggle for the safety of women."

One African leader that is more commonly known is Nelson Mandela. After being imprisoned for 27 years, Mandela emerged to serve as the South African president for five years. A big impact from his presidency was that he was the first president to be elected in a fully representative democratic election. Just like the previous two leaders, Mandela also won a Noble Peace Prize in 1993. Mandela continues to give his support for Africa and African policies through his campaigns as an Ambassador.


http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/1960/lutuli-bio.html
http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/albert-john-luthuli-9.php
http://www.emansion.gov.lr/
http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/2011/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12305154
http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/1993

Visit Africa!

I have always thought that Africa would be a very interesting place to visit. There is so much wildlife and beauty that the country has to offer despite the poverty and conflict that it faces. My mom was able to go on a safari and spent over a month touring different parts of Africa. When she came back home I was able to see all her pictures and hear her stories, I became mesmorized by what I learned. Ever since then I have wanted to visit Africa for myself to see the beauty of the continent. The most exciting thing to me was the fact that on these safaris you are able to get so close to the wildlife you encounter. You are basically just taking a drive through their homes and it all looks so amazing!

  

The most common place for tourists to visit when heading to Africa is Egypt. In 2007, almost 10 million people visited this country alone!

Here are some fun facts about Egypt:

• Most of the population live near the Nile River as this is the only ground where food can be grown.
• The whole country is about as large as the combined size of Texas and California.
• Apart from the Nile River, most of the land in Egypt is desert.
• The threat of sea level rise due to global warming could threaten the many cities on the coast of Egypt.
• 80-90% of the population are Muslim and most of the remaining population are Christians.
• Football (soccer) is the most popular sport in Egypt. The national Egyptian team has won the Africa Cup of Nations a record six times.
• Egypt’s most successful Olympic Games was in London in 1948. They won 2 gold medals, 2 silver medals and 1 bronze medal.
• Egypt and Israel are considered the leading military powers of the Middle East.

http://goafrica.about.com/od/africatraveltips/a/africafacts.htm

http://wanttoknowit.com/interesting-facts-about-egypt/

What does poor mean to you?

Here in America our idea of poor is still very blind to what most of the world would consider poor. Here a homeless person on the streets may still be receiving more food and money than countless citizens in parts of Africa. The Heavily Indebted Countries Initiative was created to help very poor countries by offering aid. In Africa 34 countries qualify for support from the HIC.

I want to look more specifically at the Democratic Rebulic of Congo. More than 70% of this country is below the poverty line, compared to 1 in 7 people in the US living below the povery line. These numbers are amazing to me, I have always known that Africa was poor and that its people struggled but to read these statistics really puts things into perspective. Many people, especially Americans tend to ignore the problems that the rest of the world is facing and this is so greatly hurting these poor countries. My fear is for the children of these areas who will possibly die before they have had much of a life to live. These children are being born into hard times and have no way to support themselves.

Below is a map to better illustrate the GDP levels throughout Africa.

http://web.worldbank.org/
https://www.cia.gov/library
http://articles.latimes.com/2010/sep/17/business/la-fi-poverty-census-20100917

Want to help?

Children all over Africa are suffering. Some from disease, others from war, and others from lonliness and depression. There are several ways to help these children and ensure them a more prosperous and exciting future. Charities such World Vision and Aid for Africa allows people to donate money or sponsor children in African countries. Helping children who are suffering is such an important way to help and can change the future of the whole continent. A newer charitable group, Invisible Children, has brought awareness to people all over America and made people really begin to care. I became aware of this group in highschool when they did a presentation for my whole school. Even being young teenagers I remember everyone really being affected by their presentation. Several students reached out to buy products and DVDs of the presentation to help support the effort. I really believe that even as an individual we can all make an effort to help.

Visit these great sites!
http://www.invisiblechildren.com/
http://www.aidforafrica.org/

http://www.wvafrica.org/

Child Soldiers

A large topic of concern for children in Africa is the fact that many are forced to become soldiers at very young ages.  There are many modern movies that depict how these children must live. A few of these movies include "Blood Diamond," "Hotel Rwanada," and a documentary called "Soldier Child." All of these films are very emotional and do a great job at demonstrating the lives many children are forced into. These children are forced into fighting with the rebels and sometimes even have to kill members of their own families. The children often have to perform others tasks besides killings. They are asked to spy, send messages, or become sex slaves. To me this is one of the worst things I have learned about Africa. Disease and poverty occur all over the world, even in parts of America. Children becoming angry,murderous soldiers isnt as commonly seen so this type of news is the most shocking. I really feel that someone needs to step in and protect these children. It is the children of Africa that will decide what the future of Africa will become. With children being forced into this rebel role the future of Africa isnt so bright.

Below is a clip of children soldiers in Africa and how they live.

Children of Africa

I wanted to start this blog to bring awareness to all the issues that the children of Africa face. While life in Africa has improved some there are still many troubling issues that must be improved. Hearing about these children and seeing movies about these topics really upsets me. My mom has visited parts of Africa and she was able to see some very poor parts of the continent, but there were also very beautiful things she saw as well. She came back home with pictures of amazing wildlife, gorgeous scenery and really made me want to see all this beauty for myself. I wish that Africa can be a place where people think about it beauty before thinking about the downfalls of the continent. I want to address the issues children face in hopes to bring awareness and maybe even encourage some to help change the way things are.