Africa is the second largest and most-populous continent of the seven continents on Earth (Asia being the largest) lying south of Europe, with the Atlantic Ocean to the west and the Indian Ocean to the east, the Mediterranean Sea on the north and the Red Sea on the northeast. Africa is connected with Asia at its northeast extremity by the isthmus of Suez, and separated from Europe by the Mediterranean Sea. There are 47 countries on the African continent, the islands off the coast brings this number up currently to 54 countries (including Western Sahara, which is disputed). The islands that make up the 54 countries are; Madagascar, Comoros, Seychelles, Cape Verde and Sao Tome and Principe. Sudan is the largest country in Africa and Madagascar the largest island. Africa's newest country is Eritrea, which is located in the East Africa. Eritrea became an independent republic in 1993, following a referendum which allowed its secession from Ethiopia. Africa is the poorest continent despite its abundant natural wealth which is due mainly to its colonial history. Below are the names of the current 54 countries of Africa.

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List of African countries

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A
Algeria
Angola

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B
Benin
Botswana
Burkina Faso
Burundi

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C
Cameroon
Cape Verde
Central African Rep.
Chad
Comoros
Congo (Brazzaville)
Congo (DRC, Zaire)
Cote d'Ivoire

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D
Djibouti

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E
Egypt
Equatorial Guinea
Eritrea
Ethiopia

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G
Gabon
Gambia
Ghana
Guinea
Guinea-Bissau

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K
Kenya

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L
Lesotho
Liberia
Libya

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M
Madagascar
Malawi
Mali
Mauritania
Mauritius
Morocco
Mozambique

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N
Namibia
Niger
Nigeria

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R
Reunion
Rwanda

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S
Sao Tome & Principe
Senegal
Seychelles
Sierra Leone
Somalia
South Africa
Sudan
Swaziland

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T
Tanzania
Togo
Tunisia

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U
Uganda

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W
Western Sahara

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Z
Zambia
Zimbabwe

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