Côte Divuar General information: The close ties with France since independence in 1960, the development of cocoa exports and foreign investment have made Côte d’Ivoire one of the most prosperous countries in tropical Africa. Decline in cocoa prices and political unrest, however, caused an economic downturn in 1999-2000. The first military coup in the history […]
Category: Africa
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Zimbabwe Politics, Population and Geography
Background: Britain annexed Southern Rhodesia from the ‘South Africa Company’ monopoly in 1923. The 1961 constitution was specifically designed to preserve white power. In 1965, the government unilaterally declared the country’s independence, but Great Britain did not recognize this act as valid and demanded suffrage for the black African majority of the country (then called […]
Zambia Politics, Population and Geography
Background: The territory of Northern Rhodesia was controlled by the ‘South Africa Company’ monopoly until Britain took control in 1923. In the 1920s and 1930s the progress of the country’s mining industry accelerated its development and spurred immigration. Northern Rhodesia changed its name to Zambia after gaining independence in 1964. In the 1980s and 1990s […]
Uganda Politics, Population and Geography
General information: Uganda gained independence in 1962 (until 1962, a protectorate of Great Britain). The dictatorial regime of Idi AMIN (1971-1979) is responsible for the death of 300,000 of its opponents; guerrilla warfare and civil rights abuses under Milton OBOTE (1980-1985) claimed another 100,000 lives. During the 1990s The government announced a transition to a […]
Tunisia Politics, Population and Geography
General information: After independence in 1956 (until 1956 – protectorate of France) President Habib Bourguiba (Habib BOURGIU-BA) established a rigid one-party rule. He ruled the country for 31 years, suppressing the activities of Islamic fundamentalists and providing the female part of the population with rights unprecedented in the Arab world. In recent years, Tunisia has […]
Togo Politics, Population and Geography
Background: French Togo became the independent state of Togo in 1960. General Gnassingbe EYADEMA, a military ruler who came to power in 1967, is the longest-serving head of state in Africa. Despite the formally multi-party elections of 1993, which were won by EYADEMA, the government continues to be dominated by the military. In addition, Togo […]
Tanzania Politics, Population and Geography
General information: In 1964, shortly after independence, Tanganyika and Zanzibar merged into a single state, called Tanzania. One-party rule ended in 1995 with the first elections since the 1970s. democratic elections. Zanzibar’s semi-autonomous status and popular resistance have caused two elections won by the ruling party since 1995 to be dubious by international observers. Geography […]
Swaziland Politics, Population and Geography
General information: Britain granted autonomy to the South African Swazi tribe at the end of the 19th century; independence was proclaimed in 1968. In the 1990s. student and worker uprisings forced the monarchy (one of the oldest on the continent) to begin political reform and democratization. Geography Location: South Africa, between Mozambique and South Africa. […]
Sudan Politics, Population and Geography
General information: Since independence in 1956 (until 1956 – a colony of Great Britain), the country was mainly ruled by various pro-Islamic military governments. Over the past 20 years, civil wars between black Christians and animists from the south and Muslim Arabs from the north have killed at least 1.5 million people, including due to […]
South Africa Politics, Population and Geography
Background: After the capture of the Cape of Good Hope area by the British in 1806, many Dutch settlers (Boers) moved north to establish their own republics. The discovery of diamond deposits (1867) and gold (1886) attracted funds and immigrants and increased the oppression of the natives. The Boers resisted the British invasion but were […]
Somalia Politics, Population and Geography
General information: The SIAD BARRE regime collapsed in January 1991, and riots and clashes between factions and anarchy tormented the country for 9 years. In May 1991, the northern clans proclaimed the independent Republic of Somaliland, which now includes the regions of Avdal, Vokuyi-Galbid, Togdir, Sanaag, and Sul. Although this republic is not recognized by […]
Sierra Leone Politics, Population and Geography
Background: Since 1991, the civil war between the government of Sierra Leone and the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) has claimed tens of thousands of lives and displaced more than 2 million people (over a third of the total population), many of whom are now hiding in neighboring countries. A peace agreement signed on 7 July […]
Seychelles Politics, Population and Geography
General information: The long struggle between France and Great Britain for possession of the islands ended in 1814 in favor of the latter. The islands achieved independence in 1976. Socialist rule ended in 1993 with a new constitution and free elections. Geography Location: East Africa, a group of islands in the Indian Ocean, northeast of […]
Senegal Politics, Population and Geography
General information: Having achieved independence in 1960 (until 1960 – a colony of France), in 1982 Senegal united with the Gambia in the nominal Senegambia confederation. However, the planned integration of the two countries did not take place, and in 1989 their union broke up. Despite ongoing peace talks, since 1982, a group of southern […]
Sao Tome and Principe Politics, Population and Geography
General information: The islands were discovered by the Portuguese and declared a confluence of Portugal at the end of the 15th century. The economy, which was based on the production of sugar, in the XIX century. switched to the production of coffee and cocoa; these crops were grown on plantations by slaves; remnants of this […]
Rwanda Politics, Population and Geography
General information: In 1959, three years before independence, Rwanda’s largest ethnic group, the Hutus, overthrew the then-ruling Tutsi king. Over the next few years, thousands of Tutsis were killed and approximately 150,000 were forced to flee to neighboring countries. Subsequently, the children of these refugees created the Patriotic Front of Rwanda and in 1990 started […]
Republic of the Congo Politics, Population and Geography
Background: After gaining independence in 1960, the former French colony of the Middle Congo became the Republic of the Congo. In 1990, the quarter-century experiment with Marxism ended, and in 1992 a democratically elected government came to power. In 1997, after a short civil war, the former Marxist president of SASSU-NGESSO was reinstated. Geography Location: […]
Nigeria Politics, Population and Geography
Background: In 1999, after nearly 16 years of military rule, Nigeria adopted a new constitution and completed its peaceful transition to civilian rule. The new president faces the serious task of rebuilding an inefficient and corrupt economy based on oil production, as well as the task of creating a legislative framework for the development of […]
Niger Politics, Population and Geography
General information: Only in 1993, 33 years after the declaration of independence (until 1960 – a colony of France), the first free and open elections were held in Niger. The five-year Tuareg rebellion in the north of the country ended in 1995 with the conclusion of a peace agreement. Coups of 1996 and 1999 led […]
Nepal Politics, Population and Geography
Background: In 1951, the King of Nepal ended the century-long system of hereditary prime ministers and established a cabinet of ministers. The reforms of 1990 led to the establishment of a multi-party democracy within a constitutional monarchy. The problem of about 100,000 Bhutanese refugees in Nepal has not yet been resolved; 90% of them are […]
Namibia Politics, Population and Geography
Background: South Africa occupied the German colony of South West Africa during World War I and administered it as a mandate until the end of World War II, when it annexed the territory. In 1966, the Marxist guerrilla group South West Africa People’s Organization (SWAPO) launched a war for the independence of the area, which […]
Mozambique Politics, Population and Geography
General information: Mozambique was a Portuguese colony for almost five centuries and achieved independence in 1975. Mass emigration of whites, economic dependence on South Africa, a severe drought and a protracted civil war have long held back the development of the country. In 1989, the ruling party formally abandoned Marxism, and a new constitution was […]
Morocco Politics, Population and Geography
Background: Morocco’s long struggle for independence from France ended in 1956. In the same year, the “international zone” of Tangier became part of the new country. In the late 1970s Morocco has, in effect, annexed Western Sahara, but the status of this territory has not yet been definitively determined. Gradually carried out in the 1990s. […]
Mauritius Politics, Population and Geography
General information: The island was discovered by the Portuguese in 1505; later it belonged alternately to the Dutch, French and British until it gained independence in 1968. As a stable democratic country with regular free elections and a healthy human rights record, Mauritius attracts large foreign investment; per capita income in Mauritius is one of […]
Mauritania Politics, Population and Geography
Background: Having achieved independence from France in 1960, in 1976 Mauritania annexed the southern third of the Spanish Sahara (now Western Sahara), but abandoned these lands after three years of attacks by the guerrilla Polisario Front, which sought the territory’s independence. In 1991 opposition parties were legalized and a new constitution adopted. Twice since then, […]
Mali Politics, Population and Geography
General information: The Sudanese Republic and Senegal achieved independence in 1960 (until 1958 – French colonies), forming the Federation of Mali. Just a few months later Senegal withdrew from the federation and the Republic of Sudan was renamed Mali. The era of dictatorship ended in 1991 with the establishment of an interim government, and in […]
Malawi Politics, Population and Geography
Background: The English Protectorate of Nyasaland, established in 1891, became the independent Republic of Malawi in 1964. In 1994, after three decades of one-party rule, the country’s first multi-party elections were held under an interim constitution that came into full force on next year. National multi-party elections were again held in 1999. Geography Location: South […]
Madagascar Politics, Population and Geography
General information: Once an independent kingdom, Madagascar became a French colony in 1886, but regained independence in 1960. In 1992-93. free presidential and National Assembly elections were held, ending 17 years of one-party rule. In 1997, in the second presidential election, Didier RATSIRAKA, who led the country in the 1970s and 1980s, was elected president. […]
Libya Politics, Population and Geography
Background: After a military coup in 1969, Colonel Muammar Abu Minyar al-QADHAFI seized power and introduced his own political system in the country – a combination of socialism and Islam, which he himself calls “the third international theory “. Considering himself a revolutionary leader, in the 1970s and 1980s. QADDAFI used oil revenues to spread […]
Liberia Politics, Population and Geography
Background: The seven-year-long civil war in Liberia has ended and free and open presidential and legislative elections have been held. At present, President TAYLOR has executive power in the absence of real political opposition. Long years of fighting, as well as the flight of most businessmen from the country, disrupted the normal functioning of the […]