Agriculture

1. There were plants and animals.
2. Increase of human population, natural environment could not provide adequate food.
3. Changes of climate i.e. drought or occurrence of drought.
4. Competition for food between the humans and the animals.
5. People searched for goods far away from their homes.
6. There were mainly three types of agriculture practiced in ancient Africa:
7. Crop cultivation
8. Mixed farming
9. Pastoralism

Different types of crops were grown in various regions of Africa depending on the natural resources. Crop cultivation was divided into two

1. Shifting cultivation.
2. Permanent cultivation.

Shifting cultivation

This farming practice was to allow the land to regain its fertility and control diseases and pests. In Africa shifting cultivation was common in the central, western and southern Tanzania (miombo wood land) and Eastern Kenya). This system was possible where the area was low populated (moderate climate/average amount of rainfall), soil was light and fertility was easily haunted.

Permanent crop cultivation

Permanent crop cultivation was adopted in areas or regions with dense population. There was no extra land to move to availability of rainfall, also irrigation, terracing and fertilizers (manure) were applied.

Examples of these areas where permanent cultivation was carried out include the following:

1. Cambrai region in the north eastern Togo.
2. Among the Chagas on the slopes of mountain Kilimanjaro.
3. The Lozi of Zambia.
4. The Akamba of Kenya.
5. Slopes of mountain Meru, southern highland of Tanzania and central Kenyan highland.
6. Indian Ocean coastline, North west of Lake Victoria.

This was kind of agriculture which includes crop cultivation and animal keeping, mainly in glass land areas with seasonal rainfall. The glass land areas were goods for growing crops and postures for animals.

The Crops grown was such as:

1. Sorgham
2. Maize
3. Cassava
4. Beans
5. Millet

Animals kept were:-

1. Goats
2. Donkey
3. Cattles
4. Horses
5. Sheeps.

This kind of agriculture was common among the

1. Waha
2. Nyamwezi
3. Fipa
4. Hehe
5. Kikuyu

Pastoralism is the practice of keeping livestock such as cattle, sheep, camels and goats. One important factor in the spread of pastoralism in Africa was the presence or absence of the tsetse fly. These flies caused sleeping sickness to human and try pasonomiasis to domestic animals. The pastoralist avoided tsetse fly infected areas especially in the moist low-lying valleys and thick forest regions.

Examples of Pastoralists in Africa are:

1. The Fulani of west Africa
2. The Gaua and Somali of North-East Africa
3. Masai of East Africa
4. Barabaig, Karamajong of East Africa

There are two types of pastoralism

1. Nomadic pastoralism
2. Sedentary pastoralism

Nomadic pastoralism

Is the seasonal movement of people with their livestock in search of water and pastures. Many nomadic pastoralists lived on meat, milk and blood. They occupy the scrubland and the savannah regions. Those areas get little rain fall.

Examples of Nomadic Pastoralists include:

1. The Fulani
2. The Barbeigr
3. The Omomo
4. The karamajong
5. The maasai

Sedentary pastoralism

Sedentary means staying or living in the same area. Sedentary pastoralists did not move from place to place. Examples are the agriculturalist maasai (kwavi), the animals kept by such communities are fewer than those kept by nomadic pastoralists.

1. It led to the production of more food in these societies.
2. Agriculture forced people to settle down in one place.
3. It encouraged social and political organizations.
4. It led to the expansion of exchange trade due to surplus.
5. It encouraged specialization of work in the society, for example people begun to practice medicine, priestly duties and different crafts.
6. Some people became wealthier than others in the society due to the presence of more land and animals.
7. The agriculturists were forced to come up with new religions that could save their animals or livestock, For example new Gods.
8. Agriculture led to the introduction of science and technology. For example in Egypt, there was need for irrigation.