Buckle up for a longer ride around Africa, because today we are going to answer the question: “how many countries are there in Africa?!

I intend to write about most of these countries on my website, but that is going to take quite some time to get round to it all, as you can imagine ;-)f

Geographie has always been kind of a passion of mine, trying to learn about all the countries in the world, their capitals, etc.

It can be a challenge, but of course today, we are just going to discuss my favorite continent!

I will split things up to make it easier. Let’s go!

But First, Some General Information!

• Africa has 54 independant and official countries and a number of non-independant territories.
• It is the second largest continent in the world (it is however in the third place if you would consider North and South America to be one continent)
• This continent has 1,3 million inhabitants and rising. (estimated is that it will have doubled by the year 2050)
• it covers about 30,244,050 square kilometers ( this is the mainland together with the islands)

We are going to divide all countries in these sections: West Africa, East Africa, Central Africa, Southern Africa, and North Africa.

All The Countries in North Africa.

Just a little summary of all the countries considered to be in the North of Africa:

Algeria

• Officially the People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria
• Algeria is the largest country in Africa and is located between Morocco to the West and Tunisia and Libya to the east.
• The capital and largest city of the country is Algiers

The Canary Islands

• The Canary islands are Spanish territory ( called Islas Canarias in Spanish)
• They are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, west of Morocco and the Western Sahara
• This independent region is divided into 2 provinces: Santa Cruz de Tenerife (capital : Santa Cruz de Tenerife), and Las Palmas (capital: Las Palmas de Gran Canaria)

Egypte

• Officially Egypt is called “The Arab Republic of Egypt”
• It is located in the Northeast of Africa and the Southwest of Asia. This country borders the Mediterranean Sea to the North, the Gaza strip and Israël to the Northeast, the Red Sea to the East, Sudan to the South, and finally Libya to the West.
• The capital city is Caïro

Libya

• Officialy the state of Libya, largely of Arab and to a lesser extent Berber descent
• The country is located at the Mediterranean Sea and mostly belongs to the Sahara
• The capital is Tripoli

Madeira

• Madeira (Portuguese for wood) is a Portuguese island in the Atlantic Ocean, about 700 kilometers west of Africa and 850 kilometers southwest of the Portuguese coast.
• Funchai is the largest city of Madeira and also the capital of this autonomous country

Morocco

• Morocco is officially called the Kingdom of Morocco
• It is a country in Northern Africa on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, the street of Gibraltar, and the Atlantic Ocean. Also it is bordering Algeria and the Western Sahara.
• The capital of Morocco is Rabat and the largest city is Casablanca.

Mauritania

• Officialy the Islamic Republic of Mauritania
• This is a country on the West coast of Africa, bordering the Western Sahara, Algeria, Mali, Senegal, and the Atlantic Ocean
• Nouakchott is the capital and the largest city

Sudan

• This country is officially the Republic of Sudan, also called North Sudan, to distinguish it from South Sudan
• It borders Egypt and Libya to the North, Chad and the Central African Republic to the West, South Sudan to the South, Ethiopia and Eritrea to the East, and finally the Red Sea to the Northeast.
• The capital of Sudan is Khartoum

Tunisia

• Officially the Republic of Tunisia
• This is a country in Northern Africa that borders Algeria and Libya and the Mediterranean Sea.
• The capital is Tunis

There are others, but they are not considered to be independent countries.

All The Countries In East Africa.

A few of these countries in East Africa, I have visited already, like Tanzania (and Zanzibar), and Kenya.

Burundi

• Officially the Republic of Burundi
• Is a country in Africa that borders Congo-Kinshasa, Rwanda and Tanzania
• The capital is Gitega

Kenya

• Officially the Republic of Kenya, in the east of Africa
• This country borders Somalia to the East, Ethiopia to the North, the Indian Ocean to the Southeast, Tanzania tothe South, Uganda to the west, Lake Victoria to the Southwest, and finally South Sudan to the Northwest.
• The capital of Kenya is Naîrobi

Uganda

• Officialy the Republic of Uganda
• Uganda is a country on the equator in East Africa that borders South Sudan, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda and Congo-Kinshasa
• The capital is Kampala

.

Rwanda

• Officially called the Republic of Rwanda
• This country borders Congo-Kinshasa, Uganda, Tanzania and Burundi
• The capital is called Kigali

The Seychelles

• Officially this country is called the Republic of The Seychelles
• This is a archipelago North of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean, about 1600km east of the African continent. It consists of more than 115 islands.
• The capital is Victoria

Tanzania

• Full name Republic of Tanzania
• This country borders Congo-Kinshasa, Burundi and Rwanda to the West, Uganda and Keny in the North, and furthermore to the south: Mozambique, Malawi and Zambia.
• The capital is Dodoma and within the republic, Zanzibar has a semi-autonomous status.
  

Southern Sudan

• Officialy the Republic of South Sudan
• It borders Sudan to the North, Ethiopia to the East, Congo-Kinshasa, Kenya and Uganda to the South and the Central African Republic to the West
• the capital is Djoeba

In the “horn” of Africa:

Djibouti

• Officially the Republic of Djibouti
• Bordering Eritrea to the North, Ethiopia to the West and South, and Somaliland to the Southeast, it is also strategically located on one of the busiest shipping routes in the world.
• The capital is Zeila

Eritrea

• Officially the State of Eritrea
• It borders Sudan to the Northwest, Ethiopia to the South, Djibouti to the southeast, and the Red Sea to the East and Northeast.
• The capital is Asmara

Ethiopia

• Formally the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia
• It borders Eritrea, Djibouti, Somalia, Kenya, South Sudan and Sudan
• the capital is Addis Abeba

Somalia

• Officially the Federal Republic of Somalia
• This country borders Djibouti, Somaliland, Ethiopia and Kenya
• The capital is Mogadishu

There are countries that can be included in this area as well, as a whole or partly, namely:

Comoros, Madagascar ( I have talked about this gorgeous island before ), Mauritius, Mozambique, Malawi, Réunion, Sudan, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

All The Countries In Central Africa.

The list of countries in Central Africa are:

Central-African Republic

• Officialy the Central-African Republic
• This is a country in central Africa, bordering Chad, Sudan, South Sudan, Congo-Kinshasa, Congo-Brazzaville, and Cameroon
• The capital is Bangui

Congo Brazzaville

• Officially the Republic of Congo or also called Congo-Brazzaville or Congo
• This is a country in Central Africa, bordering Gabon, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Congo-Kinshasa and Angola
• The capital is Brazzaville

Congo Kinshasa

• Congo, officially the Democratic Republic of Congo and DCR for short. ( République démocratique du Congo)
• This country borders Congo-Brazzaville, Central African Republic, Uganda, South Sudan, Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania, Zambia and Angola
• The capital is Kinshasa

Equatorial Guinea

• Officially the Republic of Equatorial Guinea
• It borders Gabon and Cameroon and the island of Annobon also belongs to the country
• The capital is Malabo

Gabon

• Gabon, officially the Republic of Gabon
• This country borders Equatorial Guinea, Cameroon, and Congo-Brazzaville
• The capital is Libreville

Cameroon

• Cameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon
• Borders with Nigeria, Chad, the Central-African Republic, Congo Brazzaville, Gabon, and Equatorial Guinea
• the capital is Yaoundé

Chad

• Chad, officially the Republic of Chad
• The country borders Libya, Sudan, the Central African Republic, Cameroon, Nigeria and Niger
• The capital is Ndjamena

Sometimes these countries are also included in this area:

Angola, Burundi, Rwanda, Zambia, Sao Tome And Principe

All The Countries In Southern Africa.

And here is a list of all the countries in the South of Africa (not to confuse with the country South-Africa):

Angola

• Officiall the Republic of Angola
• It is bordered by Namibia to the South, by Congo-Kinshasa to the North, Zambia to the East and to the West it borders the Atlantic Ocean
• the capital is Luanda

Botswana

• Officially the Republic of Botswana
• This country is locked between other countries and it borders Namibia, Zimbabwe, Zambia and South Africa
• The capital is Gaborone

Comores

• Officially the Union of the Comoros
• The Comoros are of volcanic origin and is located in the Indian Ocean, Northwest of Madagascar, and it consists of 3 islands.
• The capital is Moroni

Lesotho

• Aka the Kingdom of Lesotho
• It is completely surrounded by South-Africa and it got independend in 1966
• the capital is Maseru

Madagascar

• Officially the Republic of Madagascar
• It is a country but also an island, located East of the mainland of the continent of Africa, separated from it by the Mozambique Strait
• The capital is Antananarivo
• I have written lots of touristic information before about this gorgeous island.

Malawi

• Officially the Republic of Malawi
• This country borders Zambia, Tanzania and Mozambique
• The capital is Lilongwe

Mauritius

• Mauritius is an independent republic in the Indian Ocean, consisting of several islands
• The islands of Mauritius, Rodigrues, Agalega islands and the Cargados Carajos, together form the Republic
• The capital is Port Louis

Mozambique

• Officially the Republic of Mozambique
• It borders Malawi, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Swaziland and the Mozambique Strait. And then there is Madagascar on the other side
• The capital is Maputo

Namibia

• Officially the Republic of Namibia
• It is located on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean between Angola and South Africa
• The capital is WIndhoek

I have written about Namibia before here, take a look!

Swaziland

• Officially the Kingdom of Eswatini
• It is landlocked by South Africa and Mozambique
• This country has two capitals: Mbabane is the administrative capital and Lomamba is the royal capital.

Zambia

• Officially the Republic of Zambia
• It borders the Democratic Republic of Congo, Malawi, Tanzania, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Namibia and Angola
• The capital is Lusaka

Zimbabwe

• Officially the Republic of Zimbabwe
• It is bordering Zambia, Mozambique, South Africa and Botswana
• the capital is Harare

South-Africa

• officially the Republic of South-Africa
• It is a country located at the Southern tip of Africa and it is bordered to the North by Namibia, Botswana and Zimbabwe, to the east by Mozambique and Swaziland
• South Africa has 3 capitals: Pretoria, Cape Town, Bloemfontein

Here is your ultimate travel guide for South Africa!

All The Countries In West Africa.

Benin

• Officially the Republic of Benin
• Benin is bordered to the West by Togo, to the Northwest by Burkina Faso, to the Northeast by Niger and to the east by Nigeria.
• The capital is Porto-Novo

Burkina Faso

• Burkina Faso is a republic, formerly known as Opper-Volta
• The country borders Benin, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Mali, Niger and Togo
• The capital is Ougadougou

Gambia

• Officially The Republic Of Gambia
• This is a country in Africa bordering Senegal and the Atlantic Ocean and is the smallest country of Africa
• The capital is Banjul

Ghana

• Officially the Republic of Ghana
• The country borders Ivory Coast to the West, Burkina Faso to the North, Togo to the East and the Gulf of Guinea to the South.
• The capital is Accra

Guinea

• Officially the Republic of Guinea
• It is located on the Atlantic Ocean between Guinea-Bissau and Sierra Leone
• the capital is Conakry

Guinea Bissau

• Officially the Republic of Guinea Bissau
• This country in West-Africa is bordering Guinea, Senegal and the Atlantic Ocean
• The capital is Bissau

Ivory Coast

• Officially the Republic of Ivory Coast ( Côte d’Ivoire )
• This is a country that borders Liberia, Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso, Ghana, and the Gulf of Guinea
• the capital is Yamoussoukro

Cape Verde

• Officially the Republic of Cape Verde
• This country is a group of islands of volcanic origin. They are located off the West coast of Africa in the Atlantic Ocean.
• The capital is Praia

Liberia

• Officially the Republic of Liberia
• Liberia is a country located on the west coast of Africa, originally founded as a colony to repatriate black and colored people that were set free from slavery, back to Africa. It is one of the poorest countries in the world
• the capital is Monrovia

Mali

• Officially the Republic of Mali
• The North and Northeast of this country is located in the Sahara, the South and Southwest in the Sahel. It is completely cut off from the sea
• the capital is Bamako

Mauritania

• officially the Islamic Republic of Mauritania
• This is a country on the West coast of Africa, and it is bordering the Western Sahara, Algeria, Mali, Senegal, and the Atlantic Ocean
• the capital is Nouakchott

Niger

• Officially the Republic of Niger
• This country doesn’t have a coast and it borders 7 other countries: Algeria, Libya, Chad, Nigeria, Benin, Burkina Faso and finally Mali;
• the capital is Niamey

Nigeria

• Officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria
• It is located on the South Atlantic Ocean and it borders Benin, Niger, Chad, and Cameroon
• the capital is Abuja

Senegal

• officially the Republic of Senegal
• This is a country in Africa that borders Mali, Guinea-Bissau, Gambia and Mauritania
• The capital is Dakar

Sierra Leone

• officially the Republic of Sierra Leone
• This is a country in West Africa that borders Guinea and Liberia and has a coastline on the Atlantic Ocean
• The capital Freetown

Togo

• Officially the Republic of Togo
• Is a country in Africa that borders Ghana, Burkina Faso, Benin and the Atlantic Ocean (Bay of Benin)
• the capital is Lomé

My Final Conclusion.

I hope that I have answered your question on: “how many countries are there in Africa”, and if you have never been to Africa, I hope that you will figure out soon where you want to travel to 😉

If you have any questions, feel free to ask below in the comment section, and if you would be so kind to join my social media channels?

I wish you happy travels!

Kind regards,

Lizzy

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