Flags of Africa

Algeria

Algeria is the largest country in Africa by area, bordering the Mediterranean in the north, with its south in the Sahara. The capital is Algiers.

💡 Did you know? More than four fifths of Algeria is desert: the Sahara.

Angola

Angola lies in south-west Africa on the Atlantic, with the capital Luanda. The country is rich in oil and diamonds.

💡 Did you know? The machete and cogwheel on the flag stand for farm workers and industrial workers.

Benin

Benin is a narrow country in West Africa on the Gulf of Guinea, with the capital Porto-Novo. The historic Kingdom of Dahomey lay here.

💡 Did you know? Green, yellow and red are the pan-African colours.

Botswana

Botswana is a landlocked country in southern Africa, with the capital Gaborone. Large parts are covered by the Kalahari Desert.

💡 Did you know? The black and white of the flag stands for harmony between population groups, blue for precious water.

Burkina Faso

Burkina Faso is a landlocked country in West Africa, with the capital Ouagadougou. Its name means 'Land of the upright people'.

💡 Did you know? The yellow star on the flag stands for the revolution from which the country's present name emerged.

Burundi

Burundi is a small, densely populated landlocked country in East Africa, with the capital Gitega. It lies on Lake Tanganyika.

💡 Did you know? The three stars on the flag stand for the motto 'Unity, Work, Progress'.

Cameroon

Cameroon lies in Central Africa on the Gulf of Guinea, with the capital Yaoundé. Because of its variety it is called 'Africa in miniature'.

💡 Did you know? Cameroon combines desert, savannah, rainforest and mountains in a small area.

Central African Rep.

The Central African Republic is a landlocked country in the heart of Africa, with the capital Bangui. It is rich in minerals such as diamonds.

💡 Did you know? The four horizontal stripes and the vertical red one deliberately combine the colours of Africa and France.

Chad

Chad is a large landlocked country in Central Africa, with the capital N'Djamena. Its north lies in the Sahara.

💡 Did you know? The once vast Lake Chad has shrunk dramatically over the decades.

Congo

The Republic of the Congo lies in Central Africa on the Atlantic, with the capital Brazzaville. Large parts are covered by rainforest.

💡 Did you know? Its capital Brazzaville sits directly across the river from Kinshasa, capital of the neighbouring DR Congo.

Côte d'Ivoire

Ivory Coast lies in West Africa on the Gulf of Guinea, with the seat of government at Yamoussoukro. It is the world's largest cocoa producer.

💡 Did you know? About a third of the world's cocoa for chocolate comes from Ivory Coast.

Dem. Rep. Congo

The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a vast country in Central Africa, with the capital Kinshasa. Large parts are covered by the Congo rainforest.

💡 Did you know? The Congo rainforest is the second-largest rainforest on Earth after the Amazon.

Djibouti

Djibouti is a small country on the Horn of Africa by the Red Sea, with the capital also called Djibouti. It lies on a strategically important strait.

💡 Did you know? Because of its position on one of the busiest shipping routes, the country hosts several foreign military bases.

Egypt

Egypt lies in north-east Africa on the Nile and the Mediterranean, with the capital Cairo. It is home to the pyramids and one of the oldest civilisations.

💡 Did you know? Almost all Egyptians live on narrow strips along the Nile; the rest is desert.

Eritrea

Eritrea lies on the Horn of Africa by the Red Sea, with the capital Asmara. It became independent from Ethiopia in 1993.

💡 Did you know? The capital Asmara is known for its Italian Art Deco architecture and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Ethiopia

Ethiopia is a mountainous highland in the Horn of Africa, with the capital Addis Ababa. It is one of the oldest independent countries in the world.

💡 Did you know? Ethiopia's green-yellow-red inspired many African flags, as one of the few African countries never lastingly colonised.

Gabon

Gabon lies in Central Africa on the Atlantic, right on the equator, with the capital Libreville. Almost the whole country is covered by rainforest.

💡 Did you know? About 90 percent of Gabon is forested: much of it protected.

Gambia

The Gambia is the smallest country on mainland Africa, wrapped around the Gambia River, with the capital Banjul. It is almost entirely surrounded by Senegal.

💡 Did you know? The country is barely wider than the valley of the Gambia River that runs through it.

Ghana

Ghana lies in West Africa on the Gulf of Guinea, with the capital Accra. It was the first country south of the Sahara to throw off colonial rule.

💡 Did you know? The black star on the flag stands for African freedom and inspired many other countries.

Guinea

Guinea lies in West Africa on the Atlantic, with the capital Conakry. Several major West African rivers rise here.

💡 Did you know? Guinea holds a large share of the world's reserves of bauxite, the raw material for aluminium.

Kenya

Kenya lies in East Africa on the Indian Ocean, with the capital Nairobi. It is famous for its safari national parks.

💡 Did you know? On the flag a traditional Maasai shield with spears stands for the defence of freedom.

Liberia

Liberia lies in West Africa on the Atlantic, with the capital Monrovia. It was founded in the 19th century by freed slaves from the USA.

💡 Did you know? Liberia's flag deliberately resembles the US flag: in memory of its founders from America.

Libya

Libya lies in North Africa on the Mediterranean, with the capital Tripoli. By far the greater part of the country is desert.

💡 Did you know? Over 90 percent of Libya is desert: almost everyone lives on the coast.

Madagascar

Madagascar is a large island in the Indian Ocean off East Africa, with the capital Antananarivo. It is famous for its unique wildlife.

💡 Did you know? About nine in ten of Madagascar's animal and plant species exist nowhere else on Earth, such as the lemurs.

Malawi

Malawi is a landlocked country in East Africa, with the capital Lilongwe. It is dominated by the vast Lake Malawi.

💡 Did you know? Lake Malawi is home to more fish species than any other lake on Earth.

Mali

Mali is a large landlocked country in West Africa, with the capital Bamako. Its north lies in the Sahara.

💡 Did you know? The ancient desert city of Timbuktu in Mali was once a famous centre of trade and learning.

Mauritania

Mauritania lies in West Africa on the Atlantic, with the capital Nouakchott. By far the greater part of the country is desert.

💡 Did you know? The crescent and star on the flag stand for Islam, the gold for the sand of the Sahara.

Morocco

Morocco lies in north-west Africa on the Atlantic and the Mediterranean, with the capital Rabat. It reaches from coasts over the Atlas Mountains to the Sahara.

💡 Did you know? The green star on the red flag is the 'Seal of Solomon'.

Mozambique

Mozambique lies on the south-east coast of Africa on the Indian Ocean, with the capital Maputo. It has long, beautiful beaches.

💡 Did you know? Mozambique's flag is one of the very few to show a modern firearm: an assault rifle.

Namibia

Namibia lies in south-west Africa on the Atlantic, with the capital Windhoek. It is home to one of the oldest deserts in the world.

💡 Did you know? The Namib Desert has some of the tallest sand dunes on Earth.

Niger

Niger is a large landlocked country in West Africa, with the capital Niamey. Its north lies in the Sahara.

💡 Did you know? The orange disc of the flag stands for the sun over the Sahara.

Nigeria

Nigeria lies in West Africa on the Gulf of Guinea, with the capital Abuja. It is the most populous country in Africa.

💡 Did you know? Nigeria has more people than any other country in Africa.

Rwanda

Rwanda is a small, hilly landlocked country in East Africa, with the capital Kigali. It is called the 'Land of a Thousand Hills'.

💡 Did you know? Some of the last wild mountain gorillas on Earth live in Rwanda's mountain forests.

S. Sudan

South Sudan is a landlocked country in East Africa, with the capital Juba. It is the youngest widely recognised state in the world.

💡 Did you know? South Sudan became independent in 2011, making it the youngest country on Earth.

Senegal

Senegal lies at the westernmost point of Africa on the Atlantic, with the capital Dakar. It almost entirely surrounds the small country of the Gambia.

💡 Did you know? Dakar lies at the westernmost mainland point of the entire African continent.

Sierra Leone

Sierra Leone lies in West Africa on the Atlantic, with the capital Freetown. It has one of the largest natural harbours in the world.

💡 Did you know? The name means 'Lion Mountains' and goes back to Portuguese seafarers.

Somalia

Somalia lies on the Horn of Africa on the Indian Ocean, with the capital Mogadishu. It has the longest coastline on mainland Africa.

💡 Did you know? The five-pointed star on the flag stands for the regions where Somalis live.

South Africa

South Africa lies at the southern tip of Africa with coasts on both the Atlantic and the Indian Ocean, and has three capitals. It is known for its diversity.

💡 Did you know? South Africa has three capitals (Pretoria, Cape Town and Bloemfontein) for its three branches of government.

Sudan

Sudan lies in north-east Africa on the Red Sea, with the capital Khartoum. The Nile flows through the country.

💡 Did you know? Sudan has more ancient pyramids than all of Egypt: the pyramids of Meroë.

Tanzania

Tanzania lies in East Africa on the Indian Ocean, with the seat of government at Dodoma. Africa's highest mountain, Kilimanjaro, stands here.

💡 Did you know? Kilimanjaro, at around 5895 metres, is the highest mountain in Africa and carries snow despite being near the equator.

Togo

Togo is a narrow country in West Africa on the Gulf of Guinea, with the capital Lomé. It reaches only a little way inland.

💡 Did you know? Togo is one of the narrowest countries in Africa: in places only about 50 kilometres wide.

Tunisia

Tunisia is the northernmost country in Africa, on the Mediterranean, with the capital Tunis. The Sahara lies in its south.

💡 Did you know? Near Tunis once stood Carthage, the mighty rival of ancient Rome.

Uganda

Uganda is a landlocked country in East Africa, with the capital Kampala. It lies on Lake Victoria, the largest lake in Africa.

💡 Did you know? The crane on the flag is Uganda's national bird.

Zambia

Zambia is a landlocked country in southern Africa, with the capital Lusaka. The mighty Victoria Falls lie on its border.

💡 Did you know? The Victoria Falls are among the largest waterfalls on Earth.

Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe is a landlocked country in southern Africa, with the capital Harare. It is named after the historic stone-ruin city of Great Zimbabwe.

💡 Did you know? The bird on the flag is the 'Zimbabwe Bird', a soapstone figure from the ancient ruins of Great Zimbabwe.