World Heritage Sites of Africa Quiz

Answer: Robben Island

Robben Island is a living museum and became a cultural World Heritage Site in 1999. The five square kilometre (two square miles) island was used as a prison base from 1961 to 1996 and three of its former inmates (Nelson Mandela, Kgalema Motlanthe and Jacob Zuma) have gone on to become president of South Africa.

Answer: Uganda

Apart from its much treasured gorilla population, Bwindi is also home to an incredible selection of flora and fauna, including the giant forest hog, the side-striped jackal and over 200 species of butterfly. The park also contains over 200 different species of tree and over 100 different types of fern.

The 331 square kilometres (128 square miles) of the park was declared a World Heritage Natural Site in 1994.

Answer: Kasubi Tombs

The Kingdom of Buganda is home to the Ganda people and dates back to the 14th century, when the first king was Kato Kintu. The four kings buried there are Muteesa I (died 1884), Mwanga II (died 1903), Daudi Chwa II (died 1939) and Sir Edward Muteesa II (died 1969).

In 2010, a fire broke out at the tombs, causing so much damage that the tombs, which had been a world heritage site since 2001, were placed on the list of "sites in danger". Since then, much rebuilding work has been carried out, funded mainly by the Japanese government.

Answer: Zambezi

Victoria Falls were named for Queen Victoria by explorer David Livingstone in 1855. They are also known as "Mosi-oa-Tunya", meaning "the smoke that thunders" and "chongwe" meaning "the place of the rainbow" in indigenous languages. The falls became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1989.

Answer: Matobo

Matobo National Park, incorporating the Matobo Hills, is in southern Zimbabwe and is also home to a protected game park which houses white rhinoceros. Mzilikazi died in 1868 and is buried at Matobo Hills. In 2003, the park was declared a world heritage site.

Answer: Tanzania

Mount Kilimanjaro is the focal point of the national park, which covers 1,688 square kilometres (652 square miles) and is home to several species of antelope as well as leopards and elephants. Mount Kilimanjaro is 5895 meters high, and was first scaled in 1889 by Hans Meyer and Ludwig Purtscheller. The national park joined UNESCO's list of world heritage sites in 1987.

Answer: Slaves

The island of Goree is believed to have been the place where many Africans left the continent with their new owners and the House of Slaves built in 1776, served as a holding centre for slaves before their journey. It featured the "door of no return" through which as many as 15 million passed, from the island to a waiting ship.

The House of Slaves was converted into a museum and memorial in 1962 and has attracted many high profile visitors such as Barack Obama, Nelson Mandela and Pope John Paul II.

The site became a world heritage site in 1978.

Answer: Inaccessible Island

Inaccessible Island is part of the UK territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha in the South Atlantic Ocean, approximately 2,500 kilometres (1550 miles) from Cape Town, South Africa. Both Gough and Inaccessible are uninhabited apart from a six man weather station on Gough, and together they are a protected wildlife reserve as well as being designated a world heritage site in 1995.

The Inaccessible Island rail is the smallest flightless bird in the world and is endemic to the island where it flourishes due to the lack of introduced predators such as rats or cats.

Answer: Cradle of Humankind

The name Cradle of Humankind refers to the staggering numbers of early hominid fossils found in the area, some dating back over three and a half million years. There are almost 40 fossil bearing caves in the area, which attract many palaeoanthropologists, while the visitor centre, which opened in 2005, fascinates thousands of people each year.

Answer: Lamu

Lamu city is listed by UNESCO as the oldest and best-preserved Swahili settlement in East Africa. The mosque was built in 1900 and is also one of the foremost East African centres for Islamic studies, attracting students and pilgrims from all over the world.

The island has no motorised vehicles and uses donkeys as transportation, so the sanctuary provides an invaluable free of charge service for the 3,000 or so animals on the island.