# African Cities



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

*30 African Cities - What do you think?*

- edit


----------



## xzmattzx (Dec 24, 2004)

nice pictures. while many buildings don't look too great (old 70's style block architecture), the cities look pretty nice. they sure aren't like american cities, but many of the countries are somewhat poor, so they do what they can. a couple cities look pretty nice by any standards though. i liked the ivory coast city and the angola city.


----------



## LSyd (Aug 31, 2003)

really interesting...i like the look of African cities. it is the 70s block architecture...it's good from that style, it sorta looks mechanical. too many buildings with that look in the U.S. just don't have that look anymore.

is it just me, or does anyone else notice an absence of parking lots and decks?

-


----------



## xzmattzx (Dec 24, 2004)

LSyd said:


> is it just me, or does anyone else notice an absence of parking lots and decks?


i think it is the abundance of trees. many urban planners use trees to hide things that don't look very pretty, especially parking lots. this has been done moreso in britain and other places than the us (mainly because muggers can hide behind trees better than they can behind bushes or nothing).


----------



## Texan#1 (Nov 20, 2002)

thanks for the pics. my favorite ones are of Antananrivo, Madagascar


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

^ many more pics and city added from earlier


----------



## pwright1 (Jun 1, 2003)

Simply beautiful. Africa is breathtaking. I love it.


----------



## IntrepidMan (May 22, 2004)

I like the pic of Addis Ababa. Makes the place look peaceful.


----------



## bunt_q (Jul 29, 2003)

xzmattzx said:


> i think it is the abundance of trees. many urban planners use trees to hide things that don't look very pretty, especially parking lots. this has been done moreso in britain and other places than the us (mainly because muggers can hide behind trees better than they can behind bushes or nothing).


I think you're both wrong... I think it is the lack of formal planning and regulatory structure in nearly every one of those cities that makes nearly everything, including parking lots (few decks) and landscaping a completely ad hoc process...

There is definitely something unique and charming about the "African city"... Keeping in mind that the pictures you see are already out of date. Africa is not an urban continent... but that changes more and more every day. I recognize stuff from Gaborone that already looks out of date 

Anyways, thanks! Good stuff...


----------



## LSyd (Aug 31, 2003)

xzmattzx said:


> i think it is the abundance of trees. many urban planners use trees to hide things that don't look very pretty, especially parking lots. this has been done moreso in britain and other places than the us (mainly because muggers can hide behind trees better than they can behind bushes or nothing).


where are you coming up with that from? easier to hide behind trees? lol...

i live in "tree city USA," so no lack of trees here.

that said, i like bunt_q's theory and think that's a better explanation than an abundance of trees, although that is a lot of nice trees in a lot of those (even more than here.)

-


----------



## yournewmayor (Jun 23, 2004)

Any pics of Freetown, SL? I heard that they are doing alot of post-war reconstruction out there... I have extended family who are from the town and came to the States by the hundreds to escape the war. Nowadays many are moving back due to the progress that has been made out there... A-F-R-I-C-A Angola Soweto Zimbabwe - Tanzania Gambia Mozambique and botswana so let us speak about the motherlaaaand!... hehe


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

i doubt that i would be able to find any recent pics of freetown. aspecially since it's very hard to find recent pics of more major african cities. I took me a whole lot of time to find those pics above and most are at least 10 years old or more. I know Luanada, angola is another post war city thats building alot and is flush with billions from oil sales. In a few year Luanda will look alot different than the pics above.


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

^ ghana, kampala, maputo are the economy center for 3 countries which are have had a high rate of growth for a while now and they are building newer towers buidings aswell


----------



## SkyscraperStrasbourg (May 2, 2004)

South Africa and maghred aren't africa?

Windhoek has a pretty good skyline for the population who is about 200 000 inhabitants, and I think there is a project of a tower, a sout african inverstor.

And these are the first pics of Gaborone I ever seen. I would see more african cities pics.


----------



## yournewmayor (Jun 23, 2004)

*How de body?*



You are to blame said:


> i doubt that i would be able to find any recent pics of freetown. aspecially since it's very hard to find recent pics of more major african cities. I took me a whole lot of time to find those pics above and most are at least 10 years old or more. I know Luanada, angola is another post war city thats building alot and is flush with billions from oil sales. In a few year Luanda will look alot different than the pics above.



Thats sounds about right, here are some pics(not really that recent) but they are pretty cool. 

The cotton Tree is a Famous Landmark in the city, it has been there for centuries. Here are a few pics centered around the cotton tree...

Circa, 1991








Circa, 2002









Circa, A long ass time ago









Thats about it for the cotton tree, here is a shot of the State House...









some residential, pretty effed up... u can thank Foday Sankoh for that...









Thats about it...


----------



## Nick in Atlanta (Nov 5, 2003)

Holy Awesomeness!! That was an unbelievable collection of cities. Excellent job on collecting those photos and putting together the thread!! Really good work.

I was very impressed with Windhoek, Namibia, which still has a big German influence. Libreville, Gabon was very nice and quite impressive. Abidjan and Luanda look great too. Also really liked Port Louis, Nairobi, Addis Ababa (I love Ethiopian food), Asmara, Eritrea (I never thought I'd see a pic of that city). Gaborne, Botswana is very modern, but it is almost right on the South African border, so that must affect it. I can't believe you have a pic of Djibouti. I thought that was basically a French military outpost. Accra, Ghana and Dakar look good too.

I had mixed feelings about Harare, Zimbabwe. Looks nice, but Mugabe has almost completely destroyed the country. Lagos is very poor and overcrowded, while all the oil money is spent by the crooked government in Abuja.

Again, awesome thread!!


----------



## bunt_q (Jul 29, 2003)

Nick in Atlanta said:


> Gabarone, Botswana is very modern, but it is almost right on the South African border, so that must affect it.


Who are you kidding?... South Africa wishes they had the wealth, safety, and overall comfort that Botswana enjoys. My absolute favorite time when living in Pretoria, South Africa was taking the bus to Gaborone for the weekend where we could sit outside, relax, no gates with electrified barbed wire... No racial tension... Good times. Oh, and the beer is better too  It is a whole different world from South Africa... same diamond money, no apartheid hangover.


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

Nick in Atlanta said:


> Holy Awesomeness!! That was an unbelievable collection of cities. Excellent job on collecting those photos and putting together the thread!! Really good work.
> 
> I was very impressed with Windhoek, Namibia, which still has a big German influence. Libreville, Gabon was very nice and quite impressive. Abidjan and Luanda look great too. Also really liked Port Louis, Nairobi, Addis Ababa (I love Ethiopian food), Asmara, Eritrea (I never thought I'd see a pic of that city). Gaborne, Botswana is very modern, but it is almost right on the South African border, so that must affect it. I can't believe you have a pic of Djibouti. I thought that was basically a French military outpost. Accra, Ghana and Dakar look good too.
> 
> ...


I Agree with you about Mugabe, but i disagree with you about the current nigerian government. They are the best government nigeria has had in two decades, they are serious about lessening coruption and have privatizing wasteful state corparations and are slowly are turning around the economy. Nigeria unlike most african countries has a sizable population and the money to restructure there economy, it will take time and effort but the country is on the right track IMHO


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

*See Page 2 for part 2 with more cities*


----------



## Nick (Sep 13, 2002)

What a great thread.Most of those cities I have never seen pictures of.Only names on a map.

Antananarivo looks the most picturesk


----------



## Nick in Atlanta (Nov 5, 2003)

@You are to blame: I'm glad to hear that Nigeria is getting better, in terms of government corruption. Hopefully Lagos will get some more money to improve its quality of life. There are so many immigrants from Nigeria, and Lagos especially that come to North America in search of a better life.


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

Nick said:


> What a great thread.Most of those cities I have never seen pictures of.Only names on a map.
> 
> Antananarivo looks the most picturesk


Antananarivo is also my favourite and was suprised aswell, but i think the other cities would look alot better with better quality , newer pictures like the one for Antananarivo


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

Nick in Atlanta said:


> @You are to blame: I'm glad to hear that Nigeria is getting better, in terms of government corruption. Hopefully Lagos will get some more money to improve its quality of life. There are so many immigrants from Nigeria, and Lagos especially that come to North America in search of a better life.


If nigeria stays on the same path right now i think it will be very improved country in 15 years


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

I probably should have put this up at the very beginning but here is a map of the continent. highlighted purple are the cities shown so far, more to come


----------



## Andrew (Sep 11, 2002)

Here are some pics of Lomé, capital of Togo (just east of Ghana on the map above). The city has a population of approx 600,000.


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

*Lusaka, Zambia* pop ~ 1.2 million


































































*Ouagadougou , Bukina Faso* ~ 750 000


























































































































































*kinshasa, DR Congo pop. ~ 6-7 million*
The capital of the most chaotic country in africa, at end of a massive 5 year civil war. But Kinshasa was never really damaged in the war


----------



## sa-dreamer (Oct 24, 2004)

African cities are wonderfully surreal... that is what I love most about them, and the fact that they are full of contrasts!


----------



## Andrew (Sep 11, 2002)

A lot of those places are a lot more affluent than I expected, however, the state of the capital city isn't usually a good reflection of the state of the whole country. Lomé, where I went last summer is a very poor city and is the capital of one of the poorest countries in Africa.


----------



## Victoria (Feb 23, 2005)

Awesome pictures. Beautiful!!! :banana: :banana2: :banana:


----------



## Rapid (May 31, 2004)

Wow, who'd have guessed thats Africa!


----------



## Zaqattaq (Nov 17, 2004)

Alright I have been waiting for a thread like this for awhile now. My favorite is Harare it seems the most modern. I had no idea Lagos was so huge I just knew Nigeria was the most populated country. Tana looks beautiful too, keep the pics coming


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

some more of *Dakar,Senegal* - *(PART 2 OF 3)* and surroundings - the western most tip of africa, Brazil is half the distance away compared with the distance to cape town



























































































































































































































































































































and for my favourite Dakar pic, you have seen it before but here it is


----------



## Jayayess1190 (Feb 6, 2005)

Just lovely!


----------



## MattSal (Dec 24, 2004)

Wow, those pictures make Africa look almost livable. :jk: 

Here's a good picture of Harare:


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

*Accra, Ghana* - *(PART 1 OF 2)*

from skyscraperking2005 in the accra thread http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=185049


















































































































































































































































































































































*Abidjan, Ivory coast* - *(PART 2 OF 3)*


----------



## arzaranh (Apr 23, 2004)

MattSal said:


> Wow, those pictures make Africa look almost livable. :jk:
> 
> Here's a good picture of Harare:



That is not Harare - it just can't - if it was I would have seen that pic a long time ago. I mean it just can't be, no I don't believe it, I won't! This is all some kind of cruel joke shame on you!!

But, that really tall one looks so familiar - impossible! - But...


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

i can't tell if you are being sarcastic or not


----------



## bunt_q (Jul 29, 2003)

Sure that can be Harare... Zimbabwe used to be a very well off place. Okay, so Mugabe the criminal takes everything fromt he people, and spends it to build a lavish capital like you see above. No big deal... any dictator can do that. Bill Gates could build that if he wanted... It's the squallor he leaves for the rest of the country that is tragic. And I hate Mbeki for supporting him too... (I don't hate him, I just wish he would stop!)


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

^ well i wouldn't say Mbeki is supporting him
but anyways here's *Brazzaville, Republic of Congo* pop. ~ 1 million , not to be confused with the democratic republic of the congo across the river.



















































































*and a few more of Libreville Gabon - (PART 2 OF 2), for those that don't know Gabon has one of the the highest GDP per capita on the continent at $5,700 *


----------



## arzaranh (Apr 23, 2004)

You are to blame said:


> i can't tell if you are being sarcastic or not


I'm not, I just wasn't expecting to see anything as dense as that especially seeing how I've been researching African cities for years. And I have seen most of the cities and/or buildings in this thread, but Harae seems to have escaped me - until now.
Also have you noticed that it kinda looks like Los Angeles before most of the tallest buildings had been built.


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

Well it is Harare, but it's to green to resemble LA, but i get what you are saying about how the built up area resemble each other


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

*Nairobi, Kenya - (PART 2 OF 4)*

































































































































































































































































older pic









Lake Victoria not that far away from nairobi


----------



## HirakataShi (Feb 8, 2004)

Harare is still a beautiful city, even if the economy is in tatters.


----------



## skyscraper_1 (May 30, 2004)

I don't think Kenya is doing that bad by African standards.


----------



## Tri-City Guy (Oct 23, 2004)

Some really great pics there. Nice to see the real Africa for once.


----------



## NCubed (Apr 17, 2004)

What about Cairo, Egypt!?


----------



## arzaranh (Apr 23, 2004)

NCubed said:


> What about Cairo, Egypt!?


Go to the Middle Eastern threads


----------



## fredcalif (Dec 3, 2003)

NIce pics, good job


----------



## Chibcha2k (Oct 19, 2002)

Awesome continent....way to go Africa...


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

it's time to bring back this thread

*Dar es Salaam, Tanzania* pop ~ 2 million another country that is experience rapid economic growth currently


































































































































































































Near Dar es Salaam is island of Zanzibar


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

EDIT: pics no longer show


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

Lets bring this thread back since it's been over a month and a half

*Mombasa, Kenya* pop ~ 750,000, kenya's 2nd city


----------



## lumpia (Apr 10, 2004)

some pics of 
ABIDJAN, COTE D'IVOIRE (IVORY COAST)


----------



## Nightsky (Sep 16, 2002)

Thanks for the pics of these rarely seen cities. I just can't understand why so many pictures of African cities are so old despite there are many people with cameras that visit Africa each day.


----------



## StormShadow (Apr 14, 2005)

Fantastic thread indeed! It's not everyday we get to see cities in Sub Saharan Africa. :cheers: Thanks alot for this thread. I think Africa is in the need for their own photo section. :whisper:


----------



## Dhakar Odhibashi (Nov 26, 2004)

Brilliant photographs! Africa is very underrated. More positive images need to come out from Africa- I know how disconcerting it is to be often stereotypically underrated. 

Do you have any recent photographs as the buildings look old?


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

i don't have any recent ones, but there are recent ones in people online albums like in pbase and others, however you can't link there to these forums


----------



## kony (Jan 18, 2003)

you are to blame, along with the "streetscape of paris" thread, this one is one of the most educative i have ever seen on here...educative in the sense that even when we think we know African we just realize that the rare pix of Africa we get to see are the ones of misery, and war...all those pix that we see every day on western TV channels (with the exception of course of channels like Discovery channel or Planet)... 

so to being able to see real life pix or urbanscapes of all those african cities has really educated me (even if i have many african friends in Paris, when they talk about how great life is in such places like Abidjan or Dakar, they don't actually show you pix...they just talk about it, so it remains quite abstract !)


Besides those pix really have a natural freshness...and when you get used to see pix of London-Paris-NYC-Hong Kong-Shangai-Toronto...all the time, you'd like to enjoy something really new 



Nightsky said:


> Thanks for the pics of these rarely seen cities. I just can't understand why so many pictures of African cities are so old despite there are many people with cameras that visit Africa each day.


very very good question !


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

^ Great to hear you liked it. Those are the exact reasons i started the thred


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

*Nairobi, Kenya - (PART 3 OF 4)*


















































































































































































































































































































Mt. Kenya


----------



## Victoria (Feb 23, 2005)

Great pics.


----------



## indistad (Apr 21, 2004)

I've been to Maputo, Mozambique. Unfortunately I got I lost my camera in Jo'burg International when I had to transit there. So no pics. Anyway, I thought for a nation with a per capita of something like 200-300 dollars, Maputo was kept really nice. It had large boulevards with Flamboyant trees that had red flowers, a friend of mine commented that it feels like Brazilian cities (I wouldn't know, never been there). 

But I saw a lot of whites there. I stayed at this hotel, and each morning I'd look out the window and I noticed that a lot of the cars that sped through morning traffic had whites in them. I also saw again in restaurants that at least 50 % of people eating there would, at any time, be whites. And the price, for a third world country (believe me I know, I come from one also), is ridiculous! But there were no large non-formal economy I could see of. How do people buy goods, when everything seems to have been manufactured in South Africa and imported there? 

Anyway, I just want to ask, since I felt really like being in a colonial city, how much power and influence and number do whites exerts in the southern parts of Africa? Do all Southern African cities have a number of white citizen in them? Thanks for anyone who wants to answer my questions. I really fell in love with the region, its really beautiful. Maputo was great!


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

a couple more *Luanda, Angola* pics (not the most recent) - *(PART 2 OF 3)*

Semi pano 
*SCROLL --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------->*


----------



## clive330 (Nov 10, 2003)

indistad said:


> I've been to Maputo, Mozambique. How do people buy goods, when everything seems to have been manufactured in South Africa and imported there?
> 
> Anyway, I just want to ask, since I felt really like being in a colonial city, how much power and influence and number do whites exerts in the southern parts of Africa? Do all Southern African cities have a number of white citizen in them? Thanks for anyone who wants to answer my questions. I really fell in love with the region, its really beautiful. Maputo was great!


A few people make a lot of money from transport and tourism in Mozambique. There is a fair trade in selling weapons left over from the civil war to South African criminals. 

Virtually all of the whites you would have seen would have been South Africans on holiday or on business. Mozambique used to be a Portuguese colony (hence possibly while the city appeared a bit Brazilian) although the settlers left decades ago. Maputo earns a fair bit of money for importing goods for Johannesburg, much of the rest from tourism.

South Africa is the only country in Africa with a signficant white population (5 million) who still exert a dominant economic force in the sub-continent. Most other countries used to have white populations who have now largely emigrated.


----------



## XiaoBai (Dec 10, 2002)

Awesome thread. However I do find it strange the lack of existance of large, detailed or high quality photos of Lagos and Kinsasha--2 of the largest cities in the world. You would think at least one photographer would have some decent pics floating around cyber-space of the those places...if anybody finds more photos of these 2 places plese post!


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

XiaoBai said:


> Awesome thread. However I do find it strange the lack of existance of large, detailed or high quality photos of Lagos and Kinsasha--2 of the largest cities in the world. You would think at least one photographer would have some decent pics floating around cyber-space of the those places...if anybody finds more photos of these 2 places plese post!


a lot of the new pics are not link-able to forums because they are in personal albums(Pbase has great high quality african pics but they are not linkable). 

Plus google is a bad place to look for new pics try that with cities like toronto and all the pics are out-dated.


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

*Maputo, Mozambique* - *(PART 2 OF 3)*


----------



## HirakataShi (Feb 8, 2004)

You Are to Blame, you are a gift from God. Please keep this thread alive.


----------



## Skyland (Jul 3, 2005)

Maputo seems to be so empty compared with other African cities. Anyway, thanks for the pictures...


----------



## Cape Town Guy (Jun 21, 2005)

great topic, nice to put africa in the picture.


----------



## Chino_waro (May 22, 2005)

These African Cities are a bit Similar to Central AMerican Cities yall should see for your selves


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

*Lagos Nigeria*, again - *(PART 2 OF 2)*

Lagos is a city that i find very hard to find pics of especially pics from 2000-2005 here is my latest attempt, hope you enjoy


















































































































































































































































































































Ogidi

















some unique local art




























































































































Continuing with the Nigeria team i bring you *Abuja, Nigeria* - *(PART 2 OF 2)*, coutersy speakerboxx


----------



## dingyunyang179 (Feb 5, 2005)

Bravo!!


----------



## dingyunyang179 (Feb 5, 2005)

Bravo!!


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

Ok now for something a little different the legendary city of *Timbuktu, Mali the population is only 5000*, but it is an old city (900 years).

here is some background to the city.



> Timbuktu, Mali: Intellectual and Spiritual Capital
> Few places in the world have an air of mystery as alluring as Timbuktu. The name of this city in the West African country of Mali is so wrapped in legend that many people think of Timbuktu as a mythical, timeless land rather than a city with a real history.
> 
> In many cultures, Timbuktu is used in phrases to express great distance and to suggest something beyond a person's experience. Popular sayings such as "I'll knock you clear to Timbuktu" suggest that, for many people, Timbuktu has existed more as an idea of the remote and mysterious than as an actual place.
> ...


http://www.historychannel.com/classroom/unesco/timbuktu.html

now for what you are waiting for, some pics


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

*the ancient city of Great Zimbabwe, population 0, age 900 years*

background



> Sub-Saharan Africa probably has no greater a monument to its pre-colonial past than the ruins of Great Zimbabwe*, a massive stone city that impresses on so many counts: sophistication, mystery, wealth and power. The monument is located in southeastern Zimbabwe on a granite plain, about 160 air miles south of Harare, modern Zimbabwe’s capital city.
> For 16th-century Portuguese, the first Europeans to see the city, the ruins, strewn over almost 1,800 acres, had to have been the seat of some great power. They theorized that the site might have been the capital of the Queen of Sheba or perhaps the legendary African Christian king, Prester John. Whoever Great Zimbabwe’s ancient monarch may have been, the Portuguese knew they had come upon something grand. The site’s biggest structure, later named the Elliptical Building or Great Enclosure, was a huge oval space formed by a mortarless granite wall up to 32 feet high, 17 feet thick and 800 feet in circumference. Its dimensions and massiveness reminded the Portuguese of the great castle walls of Europe.
> 
> The Great Enclosure (which some claim housed a harem) was the second of Great Zimbabwe’s three major sites to be built. Preceding it was the nearby Hill Complex, constructed around 1250 A.D., which included housing and religious structures. A third element, the Valley Complex, was the smallest of Great Zimbabwe’s precincts, and was probably built in the early 15th century.
> ...


----------



## Nainawaaz (Jul 8, 2004)

you are to blame....have I ever said that you are the best? If i havent...man you are the best......this is the best thread so far man.


----------



## Jayayess1190 (Feb 6, 2005)

Africa rocks


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

Nainawaaz said:


> you are to blame....have I ever said that you are the best? If i havent...man you are the best......this is the best thread so far man.


 your welcome, and love adding more to this thread aswell


----------



## Imperfect Ending (Apr 7, 2003)

Woah.. I would have never known.
Africa is much better than I thought


----------



## Zaqattaq (Nov 17, 2004)

Was a Abuja created to be the capital, like Brasilia?


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

zaqattaq said:


> Was a Abuja created to be the capital, like Brasilia?


Yep it was purposly built to get away from lagos because lagos had become to big and everything was concentrated there. Abuja is also located in the center of the country to help reduce regional alienation. Abuja is about 20 years old and there is tonnes of construction in it. Also i would guess it has the highest income oer capita.


----------



## 真琴 (Jul 23, 2005)

OH`they are much better than my imaginary!!


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

*Gaborone, Botswana - (PART 3 OF 3)* courtsey of Fusionist


----------



## Victoria (Feb 23, 2005)

Beautiful, thanks for sharing.


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

thanks for appreciating the pics :cheers:

*Maputo, Mozambique (part 3 of 3)*











































































































---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

*Windhoek, Namibia (PART 2 OF 2)* - From StormShadow


















































-----------------------------------------------------------------------

*Luanda, Angola (PART 3 OF 3)* Thanks to paulo2004





























































































































































































































































-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Yaounde , Cameroon - (PART 2 OF 2) - compleid by speakerboxx




































































































































































































































































































































































































*Douala, Cameroon (Part 2 of 2)* complied by speakerboxx


----------



## Quezalcoatl26 (Apr 19, 2005)

Mauritius (formerly ile-de-france  ) capital is great. Lot of french and british influence, perhaps one of the nicest in africa. Great beaches


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

*Lagos, Nigeria (Part 4 i think)*



























































































































































*Ibadan, Nigeria (Part 1 of 1)*























































*Abuja, Nigeria (Part 4 of 4?)*


----------



## kony (Jan 18, 2003)

great pix !!!

i love the "chaos" market atmosphere...very common in African countries


----------



## fcarvall (Nov 6, 2004)

On Google Earth, you can clearly see this church in Windhoek, Namibia. Looks like a great city from above too.


----------



## Victoria (Feb 23, 2005)

Awesome pics.


----------



## thryve (Mar 5, 2005)

I will be visiting some family friends in Ghana this December and January... perhaps I will post some photos of Accra when I am back.


----------



## TEBC (Dec 26, 2004)

i want new pics!!


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

some more accra pics


----------



## StevenW (Sep 12, 2002)

Very nice:


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

Back to Nairobi baby


----------



## skyscraperking2005 (Oct 27, 2004)

that last pic was amazing!!!


----------



## skyscraperking2005 (Oct 27, 2004)

some more accra:
























































































































































new stadium due for 2007


----------



## ♣628.finst (Jul 29, 2005)

You are to blame said:


> *Port Louis, Mauritius* pop. ~ 1 million - *(PART 1 OF 2)*
> 
> 
> 
> ...


----------



## StormShadow (Apr 14, 2005)

What a excellent thread. :rock: 
Accra, Ghana looks pretty nice.


----------



## Machiavel (Jul 26, 2005)

You are to blame said:


> yeah axactly, you just made my point. You agree that Mobutu held the DRC back for 20 year rule. Made if Belgium didn't kill the first elected president zarie/DRC would have end up similar as Botswana instead.
> 
> By the way Boswana has been blacked ruled since independent and has done better than most developing countires in the world, if you think all africa are other DRC then you are mistakened.


There a few exception like Botswana may be, but overall, most African countries are doing very poorly despite their tremendous wealth in natural ressources. The proof, just look at the human developement index. And Botswana is maybe doing well by subsaharan-African standards, but it's not yet an economic force such as South Africa with has 40% of black Africa's GDP. And most of those countries have a terrible AIDS problem et other health issues.

The point I am trying to make is, with all their wealth, African countries should be in a better position than Belgium, France, Singapour, Malaysia and even Japan(why not?) because they have the potential in wealth, but not in overall working skills, technology and innovation. Logically, without any natural ressources, there could be no industries, and yet, Africa has all of the natural ressources, but Europe has all the industries. That's need to change.

And has far as the DRC is concerned, there's no guarantee or proof that Lumbumba would have been a better leader than Mobutu. No body can predict the future, so we can't make judgement on what a man could have become rather than his actual stay in power. Lumumba could have just easily become a tyrant who didn't provides the country with social programms and infrastructes, or he could have become the Roosevelt for the Congo...nobody would ever know for sure.

But there are 48 countries in sub-saharan Africa, and how many of them are doing very well and are worthy of consideration by international standards? How many except South Africa? If they are doing well, compared to what? Greece, Portugal etc, which are not economical forces in Europe, are muche better off than any Africans countries, even those of northern Africa.


----------



## eklips (Mar 29, 2005)

Machiavel said:


> There a few exception like Botswana may be, but overall, most African countries are doing very poorly despite their tremendous wealth in natural ressources. The proof, just look at the human developement index. And Botswana is maybe doing well by subsaharan-African standards, but it's not yet an economic force such as South Africa with has 40% of black Africa's GDP. And most of those countries have a terrible AIDS problem et other health issues.
> 
> The point I am trying to make is, with all their wealth, African countries should be in a better position than Belgium, France, Singapour, Malaysia and even Japan(why not?) because they have the potential in wealth, but not in overall working skills, technology and innovation. Logically, without any natural ressources, there could be no industries, and yet, Africa has all of the natural ressources, but Europe has all the industries. That's need to change.
> 
> ...



The difference is that Greece and Portugal have been totaly independant for centuries, africa has never been truly independant, Greece and Portugal also developed nicely because of the EU.

Greece and Portugal have never been ran by foreign companies (such as total) and the IMF


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

Machiavel all i can tell you is that it will take a couple of more decades. The sub-saharan region has one of the fastest economic growth rate in the world, if sustained for 2 decades the continent will be much different. Also the infection rate of aids has peaked and going down in many countries. 

you also have to remember all but a couple african countries have only been independent for 35 years. before that they were run by europe as a source of raw materials, that systems is not as easy to change as you might think. 

Asian countries that were colonies have a good 15-20 year head start, and look how much the region has developed in the last 20 years. 

and finally the when belgian left DRC it was a disfunctional country, it had a dessent infastructure, but it had very very few engineers, doctors, teachers and other professional to run the country even when compare to it's neighbours. unlike the british and french the belgian did not want the locals to develop and prevented them from going in to fields that an independent country would need


----------



## Machiavel (Jul 26, 2005)

You are to blame said:


> Machiavel all i can tell you is that it will take a couple of more decades. The sub-saharan region has one of the fastest economic growth rate in the world, if sustained for 2 decades the continent will be much different. Also the infection rate of aids has peaked and going down in many countries.
> 
> you also have to remember all but a couple african countries have only been independent for 35 years. before that they were run by europe as a source of raw materials, that systems is not as easy to change as you might think.
> 
> ...


Actually, when the Belgian left the Congo, the economic level of that country was tantamount to the one of South Korea. The economy was booming for a while until Mobutu came in with his zairianization policy, it was then that things started going downhill.

If you think that colonialism is part of the problem, then tell me why Ethiopia, which has never been colonized, is still a poor country and ranked 170 among 177 countries in the human development index. Tell me why Liberia which has had its independance in 1847 is still a poor country. Explain me why Singapour got its independance in 1965, 5 years after the DRC, and has now a GDP almost equal to its former colony. Look at what Sinapore did in 40 years with no natural ressources and compare it to what the DRC did in the same period with that mind boggling wealth in natural ressource. Of course Haiti is not in Africa, but it has had its independance since 1801, and yet its the poorest country in the western hemisphere. So the age of the country and the time they became independant are not relevant or not a good excuse I think.

Look at Malaysia who got its independance on August 31, 1957, and Ghana on March 6, 1957. The two countries received their independance from the British crown the very same year, and yet they have taken two different path. Malaysia manufactures comestics products with its palm oil, the country is specialized in semi-conductor andhas an automobile industry. Kuala Lumpur is one of the most renowned and prosperous city in the world, Malaysian Airlines is ranked 7th among the 10 best Airlines in the world, and the Kuala Lumpur is ranked 5th among the 10 best Airports in the world. What about Ghana? Ghana has the same natural ressources as Malaysia, they were colonized by the same British crown, they received their independance the same year, but one is clearly ahead of the other. Why is that?

The problems with African countries is that, they have all the natural ressources necessary, but virtually no industry. They dont exploit their potentiel to the fullest.

The cities on the pictures should have been all like Chicago, Los Angeles etc because they certainly have the means with all that copper, diamonds, gold, oil, coffee, cocao, palm oil, coltan, uranium, cobalt and forest producst and hydroelectricity.


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

Machiavel said:


> Actually, when the Belgian left the Congo, the economic level of that country was tantamount to the one of South Korea. The economy was booming for a while until Mobutu came in with his zairianization policy, it was then that things started going downhill.
> 
> If you think that colonialism is part of the problem, then tell me why Ethiopia, which has never been colonized, is still a poor country and ranked 170 among 177 countries in the human development index. Tell me why Liberia which has had its independance in 1847 is still a poor country. Explain me why Singapour got its independance in 1965, 5 years after the DRC, and has now a GDP almost equal to its former colony. Look at what Sinapore did in 40 years with no natural ressources and compare it to what the DRC did in the same period with that mind boggling wealth in natural ressource. Of course Haiti is not in Africa, but it has had its independance since 1801, and yet its the poorest country in the western hemisphere. So the age of the country and the time they became independant are not relevant or not a good excuse I think.
> 
> ...


i can just say that singapore had better leadership and is in a more properpous region and has a professional class that many african countries lacked in the 60's and 70's. Anyway this thread is about showcasing african cities not into political discussion, i think we should get back to that.

The reason i didn't show SA cities is because most people only know those cities when they think of africa.


----------



## Machiavel (Jul 26, 2005)

You are to blame said:


> i can just say that singapore had better leadership and is in a more properpous region and has a professional class that many african countries lacked in the 60's and 70's. Anyway this thread is about showcasing african cities not into political discussion, i think we should get back to that.
> 
> The reason i didn't show SA cities is because most people only know those cities when they think of africa.


You're absolutely right, but we saw the differences between countries that had the benefit of having quality leadership and political stability with the other who didn't. I was trying to explain that good management, work ethic lead to incredible results a fabulous cities like Singapore and Kuala Lumpur.

Would you by any chance have pictures of cities like Lubumbashi, Boma and Muanda in the DRC? I've seen pics of Bukavu already I am curious to see the others cities pictures.

Thanks


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

^^^ I didn't take any of the pics myself, they come from google image and photo blogs. Enter the city name under google image and you will get plenty of pics of that city.

i.e.
http://images.google.com/images?sou...GGLG:2005-26,GGLG:en&q=Lubumbashi&sa=N&tab=wi

but you wouldn't find the most recent pics that way, photo blogs are the ones with the most recent pics

Now back to the pics 

*Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania* by Vertigo


















































































































A couple *Nairobi* pics by SE9


----------



## Soulbrotha (Feb 8, 2003)

i've been to Johannesburg, Cape Town, and Dakar. Going to Africa was the greatest experience of my life. But i lost my camera on the way back in New York, so I have no pictures to share unfortunatley. IF anyone has any questions about my experiences i'd be happy to answer them.


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

The continents economic forecast

http://riskwire.eiu.com/index.asp?layout=display_article&doc_id=819450467



> Africa economy: EIU's October assumptions
> COUNTRY BRIEFING
> 
> FROM THE ECONOMIST INTELLIGENCE UNIT
> ...


----------



## XxRyoChanxX (Jul 5, 2005)

wow..not bad!


----------



## krazeeboi (Jan 21, 2005)

I have THOROUGHLY enjoyed this thread.


----------



## SE9 (Apr 26, 2005)

Here's just a few more of Nairobi 

Nation centre:










Modern housing:











This must be a new building.. I don't remember seeing it last time I was there:











Downtown:































Greener suburbs:


----------



## SE9 (Apr 26, 2005)

Downtown Nairobi:


----------



## chitrakaar (Apr 24, 2005)

*Sympathize w. Africa*



virtual said:


> The difference is that Greece and Portugal have been totaly independant for centuries, africa has never been truly independant, Greece and Portugal also developed nicely because of the EU.
> 
> Greece and Portugal have never been ran by foreign companies (such as total) and the IMF


I agree it is unfair to compare African countries with European countries.

For instance, not too many years ago, (before the world discovered India's scientists and engineers), hardly anyone had a kind word for India, or any patience or understanding of its poverty.

All of a sudden, thanks to the recognition of India's intellectual talents, perceptions about India are changing.

I think those who argue that colonial rule is NOT a factor in a nation's development have no idea of the damage that was wrought by colonial rule. Just becase a handful of ex-colonies have recovered faster than some others (due to unique and special circumstances) doesn't change the fact that colonization was very debilitating. 

For instance, Singapore is just an island nation and Malaysia is oil rich and sparsely populated.

This doesn't take away from their progress since both the nations have paid considerable attention to science and technological development which has helped them grow more rapidly. Its good that Singapore and Malaysia have progressed as much as they have. And I daresay African leaders could learn a thing or two from them

But I also think African nations have had one very big disadvantage. They are too fragmented, and are only now beginning to cooperate more. For instance, there is nothing comparable to the ASEAN block in Africa yet.

India, which suffered from the most heart-wrenching poverty when the British left has progressed - at least partly because of its unity. Its unity has meant that people from the North can study in the South and vice-versa. They can travel by train from North to South and East to West without going through numerous different customs barriers and border controls (as in Africa)

This has led to certain economies of scale as well as different states/regions complementing the economy of one other. It has also ensured a modicum of political and economic stability that has ben conducive to steady growth (and relatively less external manipulation).

If African countries could form cooperative blocks like ASIAN and learn to overcome sectarian rivalries - I am sure they too will progress faster.

I would also note that just as Indian intellectuals have only recently recieved international recognition, African scientists - some of whom are doing their best with very limited means will also make a mark in the coming future. 
I see scientists from Nigeria (for instance) publish in Indian scientific journals all the time. 

A time may come when Nigeria will be known for its scientists and engineers rather than its corrupt politicians.

Hopefully, its only a matter of time.


----------



## ryanr (Sep 11, 2002)

krazeeboi said:


> I have THOROUGHLY enjoyed this thread.


Same here.

Awesome thread...great photos. This really opened up my view of African cities. I'm quite impressed.kay: I've been wondering how African cities look like especially since a friend of mine moved to Lagos a few months ago.


----------



## Harkeb (Oct 12, 2004)

Nice african city pics. Some are my very first views on these cities. I like Cote D'Ivoire's capital. Looks very neat.


----------



## kony (Jan 18, 2003)

hi how come there is no pix of Kampala, ouganda

Ouganda isn't it a nice country ?


----------



## You are to blame (Oct 14, 2004)

kony said:


> hi how come there is no pix of Kampala, ouganda
> 
> Ouganda isn't it a nice country ?


look at page 1


----------



## kony (Jan 18, 2003)

oh yeah 

thanx


----------



## Paulo2004 (Oct 13, 2004)

Nice pics.


----------



## arzaranh (Apr 23, 2004)

Tourniquet said:


> Cairo is an african city.


it is also a ME city and in the ME section there are pictures


----------



## Tourniquet (Nov 28, 2006)

^^
maybe in culture, but geopolitically it's not.


----------



## christos-greece (Feb 19, 2008)

*Nairobi, Kenya*








http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/4027477750/









http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/4225482365/









http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/4026723023/









http://www.flickr.com/photos/laepelba/3823128658/









http://www.flickr.com/photos/laepelba/3822322693/

*Dakar, Senegal*








http://www.flickr.com/photos/dantoujours/3065824441/









http://www.flickr.com/photos/duwaxloolu/1096003595/









http://www.flickr.com/photos/eggpost/3569620081/









http://www.flickr.com/photos/unipus/3230439356/









http://www.flickr.com/photos/robertbach/1172029051/


----------



## DAVINCHEMACKER (Feb 15, 2010)

THANK YOU MAN


----------



## arzaranh (Apr 23, 2004)

Tourniquet said:


> ^^
> maybe in culture, but geopolitically it's not.


you have no idea what i was saying:


> if you want to see pictures of _Cairo_ *right now* you will find plenty of pictures in the ME thread


 i did not mean:


> _Cairo_ is not an _African city_ and doesn't belong in this thread


----------



## Tourniquet (Nov 28, 2006)

^^
ok XD


----------



## christos-greece (Feb 19, 2008)

DAVINCHEMACKER said:


> THANK YOU MAN


Welcome


----------



## bilche (May 3, 2007)

nice pictures


----------



## bilche (May 3, 2007)

Cotonou, Benin


----------



## The E.N.D (Oct 16, 2008)

BUMP. 

Port Elizabeth is South Africa's fifth largest city. 
Sorry for the blur in some of the pictures; I suck at taking cameras + my love for Woolies Crunch Stix knows no bounds. 










































































































































































































































































































































All pics are mine


----------

