Africa with its beautiful natural features is the world’s second largest continent and comprises of 54 independent sovereign nations recognized by the UN and 4 dependencies and each of these comprise of their own capital cities. Thus the continent approximately has 58 capital cities. Country capitals refer to the administrative region of a country that comprises the highest number of government seats within a region. For example- In any country, the president directs the affairs from the country’s capital city. The capital city of a country holds a greater significance as the media often symbolizes a country through the name of its capitals because the decision making the authority of any of the country depends onto it. Most of the countries of Africa have a very low quality of living because these are lesser economically developed. Cape Town and Pretoria are the two capitals of Africa that are considered to be one of the best places to live in this particular region. Cape Town, Tunis and Cairo are one of the most visited cities of the African continent by the tourists. These are the major travel destinations here and are best for all those seeking for ancient monuments, vibrant colors, natural attractions, beautiful beaches along with exotic life. Capital cities of Africa like Dakar, Port Louis, Nairobi, and Antananarivo are least recognized yet these are very exciting places to travel. Another interesting fact about Africa is that the southernmost country of the continent which is named as South Africa has three capital cities i.e. Cape Town being its legislative capital, Pretoria is the administrative capital, and Bloemfontein is the judicial capital of South Africa.
Country | Capital | Language/Currency/Time Zone/ Calling Code |
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Algeria | Algiers |
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Egypt | Cairo |
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Libya | Tripoli |
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Morocco | Rabat |
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Sudan | Khartoum |
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Tunisia | Tunis |
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Burundi | Gitega |
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Comoros | Moroni |
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Djibouti | Djibouti |
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Eritrea | Asmara |
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Ethiopia | Addis Ababa |
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Kenya | Nairobi |
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Madagascar | Antananarivo |
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Malawi | Lilongwe |
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Mauritius | Port Louis |
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Mozambique | Maputo |
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Rwanda | Kigali |
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Seychelles | Victoria |
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Somalia | Mogadishu |
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South Sudan | Juba |
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Tanzania | Dodoma |
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Uganda | Kampala |
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Zambia | Lusaka |
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Zimbabwe | Harare |
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Angola | Luanda |
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Cameroon | Yaounde |
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Central African Republic | Bangui |
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Chad | N'Djamena |
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Benin | Porto Novo |
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Botswana | Gaborone |
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Burkina Faso | Ouagadougou |
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Cabo Verde | Praia |
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Congo, The Democratic Republic | Kinshasa |
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Congo, Republic | Brazzaville |
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Cote d'Ivoire | Yamoussoukro |
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Equatorial Guinea | Malabo |
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Eswatini(formerly Swaziland) | Mbabane |
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Gabon | Libreville |
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Gambia | Banjul |
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Ghana | Accra |
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Guinea | Conakry |
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Guinea-Bissau | Bissau |
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Lesotho | Maseru |
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Liberia | Monrovia |
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Mali | Bamako |
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Mauritania | Nouakchott |
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Namibia | Windhoek |
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Niger | Naimey |
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Nigeria | Abuja |
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Sao Tome and Principe | Sao Tome |
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Senegal | Dakar |
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Sierra Leone | Free Town |
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South Africa | Pretoria |
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Togo | Lome |
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Cape Town
Cape Town being the legislative capital of the country South Africa comprises of the seats of the National Parliament. This city held a significant role in the country’s history especially post European contact. The peninsular location of the city made it a significant stop over the spice trade route since the early 1500s. During the year 1652, a ship way station was established here by the Dutch East India Company and gradually this settlement began to grow. After numerous attempts made by the British to take control over the area, the Cape Town in the year 1814 became a British colony and was then recognized as the colonial capital. In the year 1910, the two Boer republics and Natal which were a British colony were joined with Cape Colony leading to the foundation of Union of South Africa. Thereafter, Cape town was established as the legislative seat. This city today accommodates a population of about 3,740,000 and is thus regarded as the Economic center of the Western Cape.
Tunis
Tunis is the capital city of the African country named as Tunisia and is known to be the second happiest place of Africa with a high average life expectancy being around 74.6 years. Tunis is recognized as the UNESCO World Heritage Site and is the very first Muslim city to become so. This capital city in South Africa comprises of an ever-increasing manufacturing sector and also a consistent growth in the gross domestic product of the city has been witnessed.
Cairo
Cairo- the capital city of Egypt is the largest city within the country and is known to be the cradle of civilization. It is also the largest city in the middle east that accounts for a population of about 20.4 million along with its metropolis. As per the report of the Population Reference Bureau report, the country witnesses an annual population growth of about 2.6%. With about 2/3rd of the country’s GDP being generated here in the greater metropolitan section as per the City-Data. Iron and Steel production, consumer good productions and Textile and food processing are some of the sectors that create large scale jobs in the city. Additionally, Cairo is also known to be the vibrant tourism hub, commerce as well as the financial center and also the hub of all the government services. Post the January 2011 revolution, the economic growth in the city has witnessed a negative affect on its economic growth with an increase in the prices of food and medicines and also the rise in unemployment. Cairo also faces crime issues and has been rated high with OSAC. As per the UN Data the region of Greater Cairo area along with the 8 informal settlements that are overcrowded has a larger population segment that lives under international poverty level with $2 per day. Such segments of the city comprise of lower education levels, higher malnutrition, poor health conditions as well as disease rife amongst the children.
Africa is a continent with the big exotic capital cities such as Cairo, Cape Town, Tunis, Pretoria, and others. Capitals like Dakar, Port Louis, etc. are the smaller and less recognized capitals of Africa.Strategically situated in all the four hemispheres of the earth Africa is the second largest continent of the world with an area of about 11.7 million sq. mi. Africa constitutes about 16% of the world’s human population i.e. approximately 1.2 billion people. Algeria is the largest country here with its capital city being Algiers which is one of the most populous cities in the country.