The Cape of Good Hope Sea Route

The Cape of Good Hope sea route is one of the world's major ocean highways, linking the industrial heart of Western Europe to several resource-rich and agricultural regions across the Southern Hemisphere. Its name comes from the southern tip of Africa, which ships must round to travel between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans.

This route connects the highly industrialised countries of Western Europe with three broad regions: West Africa and South Africa on the African continent, South-east Asia, and the commercial agriculture and livestock economies of Australia and New Zealand. Because it serves both developed industrial nations and primary-producing regions, the route carries a diverse mix of manufactured goods, raw materials, and food products.

A key feature of this route is the growing volume of trade and traffic between East and West Africa. This increase is driven by the development of rich natural resources found across the continent. The textbook lists the following commodities as examples of these resources:

• Gold
• Diamond
• Copper
• Tin
• Groundnut (peanut)
• Oil palm (palm oil)
• Coffee …