Africa: The people & the history !

Africa is actually a continent and not a country.

It is called a continent because it Houses several Independent countries juts like Europe.

There are 54 independent countries in Africa according to the United Nations (UN) and 2 other countries: Western Sahara and somaliland whose Independence is disputed.

These African countries have a union called the African Union ( AU), Whose objective is to achieve greater unity, cohesion and solidarity between the African countries and African nations. To defend the sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence of its Member States. To accelerate the political and social-economic integration of the continent.

The country where all this African Union member states meet is called Ethiopia, because the African Union building is located in the city of Addis Ababa, which is also the Ethiopian capital just like London being the capital of England.

Africa is divided into 5 regions:

North Africa;

• Algeria
• Egypt
• Libya
• Morocco
• South Sudan
• Sudan
• Tunisia
• Western Sahara

East Africa;

• Burundi
• Comoros
• Djibouti
• Eritrea
• Ethiopia
• Kenya
• Madagascar
• Malawi
• Mauritius
• Mayotte
• Mozambique
• Reunion
• Rwanda
• Seychelles
• Somalia
• Tanzania
• Uganda
• Zambia
• Zimbabwe

West Africa

• Benin
• Burkina Faso
• Cape Verde
• Cote d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast)
• Gambia
• Ghana
• Guinea
• Guinea-Bissau
• Liberia
• Mali
• Mauritania
• Niger
• Nigeria (my country)
• Saint Helena
• Senegal
• Sierra Leone
• Togo

Central Africa;

• Angola
• Cameroon
• Central African Republic
• Chad
• Congo
• Democratic Republic of the Congo
• Equatorial Guinea
• Gabon
• Sao Tome and Principe

South Africa;

• Botswana
• Lesotho
• Namibia
• South Africa
• Swaziland

Interesting Facts about African Countries

• Algeria is the largest African country and the tenth-largest country in the world. This country measures 919,595 square miles (2,381,741 square kilometers).
• The 115-island country of Seychelles, located in the Indian Ocean, is the smallest African country. This country measures 176 square miles (455 square kilometers).
• Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania is the highest point in Africa. It is 19,336 feet (5,894 meters) high. The lowest point is Lake Asal in Djibouti it is 502 feet (153 meters) below sea level.
• Egypt is home to the world's first great civilization.
• Ethiopia is Africa's oldest independent country.
• Approximately ninety percent of Algeria is desert.
• The Libyan desert is one of the most arid places in the world. This desert covers most of Libya.
• Sudan was once the largest country in Africa (measured by total area), however when it split into Sudan and South Sudan in 2011 it became the third largest country in Africa. Algeria and the Democratic Republic of the Congo are now larger.
• Tunisia is the northern most country on the African continent.
• The African country Western Sahara has a very small population and is mostly desert flatlands.
• The country of Madagascar is the fourth largest island in the world.
• In the 1950s African countries began to gain their independence from control by the Major European powers. In 1951 Libya gained independence from Italy; in 1956 both Tunisia and Morocco broke away from France; followed by Ghana in 1957. This became possible due to the weakened state of the major European powers after World War 2.
• For decades a horrible civil war raged in Sudan which, in 2011, resulted in South Sudan gaining its independence. Approximately two and a half million people lost their lives during this conflict.