It may sound ridiculous, but the truth is that most Africans don’t know the number of African countries. In fact, just saying you don’t know when that question is staring at you is always better than embarrassing yourself. Here’s a nice opportunity to help you avoid the blushes usually associated with asking how many countries are in Africa.
Africa is the second largest and most populous country continent with a population of up to 1,216,130,000, which is about 14 percent of the world’s population. Up to 185 million people live in the continent’s most populous country, Nigeria. The African continent is home to the most black or black people in the world (yes, the black race is from Africa). It is also one of the very popular and rich continents in the world. The popular notion that Africa is very popular stems from the fact that the continent is often considered to be the oldest inhabited area. This is in the sense that it is the only continent from which the human species is said to have descended.
For those who don’t know, the Nile, which flows through eleven countries and is often considered the longest in the world, can be found in Africa. With around 30.2 million square kilometers, Africa covers about 20.4% of the earth’s land area and 6% of the total surface of the earth. The African continent is surrounded by the Mediterranean Sea, which also lies between Europe and Asia.
The continent is not only large or extensivepopulation, but is also known to have a variety of different ethnicities and cultures. In fact, there are thousands of ethnic groups on the African continent, each with a different language, culture and values.
Africa consists of 54 fully recognized sovereign states (countries), ten territories and two de facto independent states with limited or no recognition. The 54 are referred to as “Recognized States” because they are member states of the African Union (AU). The next two states are referred to as “de facto states” because they can be called one country structurally and governmentally, but are not recognized as they are not part of the AU. The remaining 10 are just territories or regions owned or governed by other non-African countries.
Here are the names of the 54 independent African countries in alphabetical order:
- Algeria
- Angola
- benin
- Botswana
- Burkina Faso
- burundi
- Cameroon
- Cape Verde
- The Central African Republic
- Chad
- Comoros
- The Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Republic of the Congo
- Ivory Coast
- Djibouti
- Egypt
- Equatorial Guinea
- Eritrea
- Ethiopia
- Gabon
- The Gambia
- Ghana
- Guinea
- Guinea Bissau
- Kenya
- Lesotho
- Liberia
- Libya
- Madagascar
- Malawi
- mali
- Mauritania
- Mauritius
- Morocco
- Mozambique
- Namibia
- Niger
- Nigeria
- Rwanda
- Sao Tome and Principe
- Senegal
- Seychelles
- Sierra Leone
- Somalia
- South Africa
- Sudan (North)
- South Sudan (Rep.)
- Swaziland
- Tanzania
- Walk
- Tunisia
- Uganda
- Zambia
- Zimbabwe
Note: The Sahwari Arab Democratic Republic and the Republic of Somaliland claim to be recognized as sovereign states in some neighboring countries, but are de facto states.
You may want to see: What is the Largest Country in Africa?
Territories politically administered as external dependencies or as part of a primarily non-African state:
1. French South Antarctic Country.
2. St. Helena, Ascension and Tristan de Cuhna (ruled by Great Britain).
3. The Canary Islands.
4. Melila
5. Autonomous City of Ceuta (No. 3-5 Spanish owned).
6. Autonomous Region of Madeira (owned by the Portuguese).
7. The Islands of Mayotte.
8. Réunion, (7 & 8 owned by the French).
9. Plaza de Soberania.
10. Lampedusa and Lampione.
Read more: These three African empires shook the world
In conclusion, if we go by the criterion of being member states of the AU, Africa has 54 countries. If the de facto states are included, our number becomes 56, and if we include all territories, we will say that the African continent consists of 66 countries.