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The Geography of Africa, at a glance
One continent, 54 countries, and the only one the Equator splits down the middle
54 countries
Recognised nations across the continent.
30.4 million km²
Africa’s total area, world’s second-largest continent.
5,895 m
Mount Kilimanjaro, Africa’s highest point.
5 regions
North, West, Central, East, and Southern Africa.
The Basics: Size, Regions, and Borders
How big is Africa, and how is it divided?
- Africa covers roughly 30.4 million square kilometres and is home to 54 recognised countries. That makes it the world’s second-largest continent by both area and population, after Asia.
- Africa is bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, the Red Sea and Indian Ocean to the east, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west. It connects to Asia only via the narrow Sinai Peninsula.
- Africa is commonly divided into five regions: North Africa, West Africa, Central Africa, East Africa, and Southern Africa. Each has its own distinct climate, history, and political groupings.
- Africa is the only continent the Equator crosses through its middle, a line examined further in the Equator. That gives it a broadly symmetrical climate pattern of tropical zones near the centre and drier zones toward the north and south.
Q1. True or False: Africa is home to 54 recognised countries, making it the world’s second-largest continent by area and population.
Q2. True or False: Africa connects directly to Asia along a wide, open land border.
What Shapes Africa’s Rivers, Mountains, and Deserts?
Which landmarks come up most often in questions about Africa?
- The Nile, generally considered the world’s longest river, flows north through Sudan and Egypt to the Mediterranean, with Lake Victoria as one of its main sources.
- The Congo River, Africa’s second-longest, drains the vast Congo Basin rainforest, the world’s second-largest tropical rainforest after the Amazon, whose peatlands are covered in more depth in the Congo Basin peatlands.
- The Niger River loops through West Africa, while the Zambezi flows across Southern Africa and plunges over Victoria Falls, one of the world’s largest waterfalls.
- The Atlas Mountains run along Africa’s northwest coast. Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, a dormant volcano, is Africa’s highest point at 5,895 metres.
- The Sahara, the world’s largest hot desert, covers most of North Africa, examined on its own in the Sahara Desert. The Sahel is the semi-arid transition belt immediately south of it, stretching coast to coast.
Q3. True or False: Mount Kilimanjaro, a dormant volcano in Tanzania, is Africa’s highest point.
Q4. True or False: The East African Rift System marks where the continent is slowly splitting into two tectonic plates.
Think it through, before reading on. The East African Rift is slowly tearing the continent into two separate tectonic plates. Millions of years from now, what might that mean for Africa’s map?
Show the explanation
Given enough geological time, the rift could widen into a full ocean basin, much like the Red Sea itself began as a similar continental rift. The land east of the rift, the Somali plate, would then separate from the rest of Africa, the Nubian plate, becoming its own landmass with a new coastline where the rift valley used to be. This is also exactly how the Great Lakes formed in the first place, in basins created by the rift’s slow stretching and sinking, including Lake Victoria and Lake Tanganyika.
Remember the trap. Africa has 54 countries, not a round number like 50 or 52. It is the second-largest continent after Asia, not the largest outright.
Quick Q&A
How many countries make up the African continent?
54 recognised countries.
Which river is generally considered the world’s longest?
The Nile, flowing north through Sudan and Egypt to the Mediterranean.
What is Africa’s highest point?
Mount Kilimanjaro, a dormant volcano in Tanzania, at 5,895 metres.
What does the East African Rift System mark?
Where the continent is slowly splitting into two tectonic plates.
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