We all hear about the Tropics but do we really know about them?
Firstly, the Tropics are a region of the Earth, roughly defined as the area between the tropic of Cancer and the tropic of Capricorn.
The Tropic of Cancer is situated at 23.5° towards the northern part of the equator. 36% of the total earth’s surface is covered by it, and one-third of the total population of earth resides in this region. While the Tropic of Capricorn is a line that runs from the East to the West situated at 23.5° south of the equator and less than 3% of the global population live below this line.
The majority of Africa, ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) countries, Gulf nations, and a significant part of South America fall between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn (=the nations of the Tropics). The central and the southern parts of India also fall between the two imaginary lines on the globe.
The nations of the Tropics face many challenges like poverty and undernourishment, population explosion, global warming, social stigmas or terrorism and civil unrest. That’s why in 2014, after collaboration, 12 leading tropical research institutions and came up with a State of the Tropics Report.
Two years after, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution which called for June 29 to be the international day of the Tropics. The nations of the Tropics are often forgotten while they are very important for the World: by 2050 more than the half of the world’s population will live in this region. Moreover, they have a big role to play to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. Because of the covid 19 pandemic, the economy, well-being and life of the tropical nations got much worst.
That’s why, we, as Westerners, have to stop to take advantage of the Tropical regions and to help them to face their challenges.