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Political Map of Africa

Wildebeest in the Serengeti National Park
Wildebeest in the Serengeti National Park.
Image: DipaliLath

About Africa


Flag of the African Union
Map of Africa, the world's second-largest and second-most-populous continent is located on the African continental plate. The "Dark Continent" is divided roughly into two parts by the equator and surrounded by sea except where the Isthmus of Suez joins it to Asia.
In the north, the continent is bounded by the Mediterranean Sea and the Strait of Gibraltar, in the west by the Atlantic Ocean, in the south and the southeast by the Indian Ocean, and on its north-eastern coast by the Red Sea, and the Gulf of Aden.



Fast Facts about Africa
Area: 30.2 million km², Population: 1.3 billion people (2019)

How many countries are there in Africa?
There are 54 sovereign states (or countries) in Africa - see the list below the map.

55 African countries, 54 sovereign African states plus the territory of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, are members of the African Union, a federation of African nations established in 2001 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

On 6 June 2019, the African Union has suspended Sudan's membership "with immediate effect." [1]

As well a member of the Union is the Sahrawi Republic, which established itself in northwest Africa as a sovereign state, recognized by the African Union and 47 UN members as the representative government of Western Sahara, which is claimed by Morocco.

Somaliland declared itself to be independent from Somalia and is de facto a state although it is not recognized as a sovereign nation by any other country.

There are several dependent territories still controlled by former colonial powers, like the Tromelin Island and Mayotte, controlled by France, and the Ascension Island and Saint Helena which are administered by the UK.

Languages of Africa
Africa's languages can be subdivided into three main language families, Afro-Asiatic, Nilo-Saharan, and Niger-Congo. The thousands of languages and dialects which are spoken on the continent are classified into six major language families:
Afro-Asiatic (e.g., Berber, Semitic, Cushitic, etc.), Austronesian languages (Madagascar), Indo-European languages (colonial languages), Nilo-Saharan (African interior), Niger-Congo (Bantu), and Khoi-San (a language with click consonants).

Africa's Largest Urban Areas:
Lagos, Cairo, Kinshasa, Johannesburg, Abuja, Khartoum, Dar es Salaam, Alexandria, Abidjan, Algiers, Kano, Casablanca, Ibadan, Nairobi, Addis Ababa, and Accra.

Africa's National Parks
Selous Game Reserve in Tanzania is Africa's largest national park and a UNESCO World Heritage Site (whc.unesco.org/en/list/199). Kruger National Park in South Africa is famous for its plethora of wild animals including the Big 5 (elephant, lion, leopard, buffalo, and rhino). Serengeti in Tanzania's Mara and Simiyu regions is famous for its massive annual migration of wildebeest and zebra. The Ngorongoro Conservation Area covers an area of more than 8,000 km² in northern Tanzania. It is a protected area where wildlife coexists with semi-nomadic Maasai; since 1979 it is a World Heritage Site (whc.unesco.org/en/list/39)


 
Political Map of Africa

Political Map of Africa
Political Map of Africa

The map shows the African continent with all African nations, international borders, national capitals, and major cities in Africa.

You are free to use the above map for educational and similar purposes; if you publish it online or in print, you need to credit Nations Online Project as the source.

 

More about Africa


Dunes in Algeria in the Sahara Desert
The endless Sahara Desert. With an area of more than 9 million km², the Sahara covers about 30% of the African continent.
Image: Fiontain



Regions of Africa

The African continent is commonly divided into five subregions: North or Northern Africa, West Africa, Central or Middle Africa, East Africa, and Southern Africa.


North Africa

North Africa refers to the northern part of the African continent. According to the United Nations classification of geographical regions, these countries belong to Northern Africa:

South Sudan Flag South Sudan
Western Sahara Flag Western Sahara


Map of North Africa


Sub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa is a term to describe the area of Africa that lies south of the Sahara; it encompasses all African countries that are fully or partially located south of the world's largest hot desert.

West Africa

West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost portion of Africa.
According to the United Nations classification of geographical regions, these countries are West African Countries:

Saint Helena Flag Saint Helena


Map of West Africa

Central Africa

Central Africa is a region in the center of Africa that stretches across the equator and partly along the Atlantic Ocean.
According to the United Nations classification of geographical regions, Central African or Middle African countries are:


East Africa

East Africa is the term used to describe the eastern part of the continent, including the islands in the Indian Ocean. According to the United Nations classification of geographical regions, East African Countries are:


Southern Africa

The southern part of the African continent is called Southern Africa, also to distinguish the region from the state of South Africa, the southernmost country on the continent.
According to the United Nations classification of geographical regions, Southern African countries are:

Swaziland Flag Eswatini (Swaziland)


 

 



More about Africa:

Cities:
Capital Cities of Africa 

Countries:
Countries of Africa

Continent:
Map of Africa
Another map of Africa showing a satellite image of the continent with the African states, their capitals and major cities.

Political Map of North Africa, the Middle East, and the Arabian Peninsula

Map of West Africa
Political Map of West Africa.

Languages:
Languages of Africa

Flags:
Flags of Africa
 

Related Categories:


 Third World Countries
Third World Countries by various categories.

 Least Developed Countries (LDCs)
More about the least developed countries (LDCs) in Africa.

 Population by Country
From the most populated countries to the least populous nations in the world.




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Maps of African Countries:
Algeria Map, Angola Map, Benin Map, Botswana Map, Burkina Faso Map, Burundi Map, Cameroon Map, Cape Verde Map, Central African Republic Map, Chad Map, Comoros Map, Congo-Brazzaville Map, Congo-Kinshasa Map, Cote d'Ivoire Map, Djibouti Map, Egypt Map, Equatorial Guinea Map, Eritrea Map, Ethiopia Map, Gabon Map, Gambia Map (see Senegal Map), Ghana Map, Guinea Map, Guinea-Bissau Map, Kenya Map, Lesotho Map (see South Africa Map), Ghana Map, Guinea Map, Guinea-Bissau Map, Kenya Map, Lesotho Map (see South Africa Map), Liberia Map, Libya Map, Madagascar Map, Malawi Map, Mali Map, Mauritania Map, Mauritius Map, Morocco Map, Mozambique Map, Namibia Map, Niger Map, Nigeria Map, Rwanda Map, Senegal Map, Seychelles Map, Sierra Leone Map, Somalia Map, South Africa Map, South Sudan (see Sudan Map), Sudan Map, Swaziland Map, Tanzania Map, Togo Map, Tunisia Map, Uganda Map, Zambia Map, Zimbabwe Map