10 things you might not know about East Africa

1) Modern humans are thought to have originated in East Africa. Some of the earliest archaeological and fossilised artefacts associated with our earliest ancestors have been discovered in Kenya, Tanzania and Ethiopia. This has led to the region being known as ‘the cradle of humanity’.

2) The gelada, which lives in the Simien mountains of Ethiopia, is the world’s only existing species of grazing monkey. Also known as the ‘bleeding heart baboon’ owing to a striking patch of red on its chest, the gelada uses its excellent gripping ability to pick fresh green grass to sustain itself.


The gelada, or 'bleeding heart baboon',
is the world's only grazing monkey.

3) Kenya is a highly multilingual country. While Swahili and English are its official languages, there are well over 50 other local dialects in usage.

4) One of East Africa’s favourite beverages is banana beer. Fermented from mashed bananas, it’s a potent drink that contains around 10% alcohol by volume. Kenya and Tanzania are two of the region’s major banana beer producers.

5) The Maasai live in homes called Inkajijik. These shelters, built by women in the tribe, are either star-shaped or circular. They consist of a timber framework, a network of smaller branches, and a render made from a mixture of mud, sticks, grass, cow dung and ash.

6) In 2008, Rwanda became the first ever country to have a democratic government with a female majority. Following the election in that year, the county’s Chamber of Deputies was occupied by 45 women, accounting for 56% of the total parliamentary seats.

7) Despite being positioned almost at the Equator, Mount Kilimanjaro’s towering altitude means that the temperature at its peak can plummet to minus 25 degrees Celsius.

8) The classic movie, Out Of Africa, was filmed partly in the Ngong Hills in Kenya. The film also featured genuine descendants of the Kikuyu, a Kenyan tribe.

9) The Great Rift Valley, which passes through Ethiopia, Kenya and Tanzania, is visible from space. This geological depression, which is responsible for stunning volcanic, mountain and valley features on the ground, appears as a long crack in the surface on the Earth when seen from space.

10) The African elephant uses its trunk as an incredibly versatile tool. It’s used to pull leaves, strip bark from trees and suck up water for drinking or spraying to keep cool. The trunk is also utilised for greetings and communication, smelling danger, and even to fight off lions.

An elephant's trunk has an amazing
variety of uses.