Introduction

A desert is a hot barren region that receives little rainfall. Rainfall is scarce in all desert regions. It is generally considered as a region that can support little plant life because of insufficient moisture and dry soil.
 
One-fifth of the world’s land surface is made up of desert. In Africa, more than ¼ of the land is a desert.
 
The Sahara is the greatest desert in the world covering about 9 million square kilometres an area equal to USA, the Kalahari and Namib follow this, deserts cannot support large numbers of people.
 
Residents of desert areas must adjust to the dry climate. Large areas are thinly covered with grass and shrubs, which are used, for grazing cattle, sheep and goats.
 
The Sahara is a region of bare rock, boulders, gravel and sand dunes broken only by a few oases and the fertile Nile valley. The Namib Desert borders the Atlantic coast of south-western Africa. The Kalahari Desert lies inland from the Namib.