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Africa Misconceptions

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South Africa

I am African. A mix of Sierra Leone and Nigeria, to be specific. I was born in Sierra Leone, and I lived there for 10 years of my life before moving to the U.S. My mom was born there too, and my dad was born in Nigeria. Most of the times when Africa is brought into conversations, or topics, many people talk about the common misconceptions of the Africa the media shows. I have grown impatient with the media as they are constantly deceiving those who don’t have much knowledge about Africa.
Often when I hear or see these common myths and misconceptions of Africa, I’ve just wanted to overthrow them and set the record straight. This is the perfect opportunity for me to do so.
Below are a few common myths about Africa

1.) AFRICA IS A COUNTRY
I, personally have not heard this one around me but after doing research on the topic, many have concluded that this was the number one misconception about Africa. First of all, Africa is not a gigantic country. It is a CONTINENT! As a matter of fact, it is the second largest continent in the world, after Asia. It is almost three times the size of Europe. The population is over ONE BILLION. It contains over 54 different countries and one “non self-governing territory” – The Western Sahara.

2.) AFRICANS SPEAK AFRICAN – “AFRICAN IS THEIR LANGUAGE”
This is completely false! English and French are the most common languages in Africa. That doesn’t mean that there aren’t other languages being spoken. In fact, there are several more languages. Each tribe/ethnic group has its own language that they use to communicate with each other. WE DO NOT ALL SPEAK THE SAME LANGUAGE! Within one country alone, you may find several languages. For example, there’s roughly about 9 spoken languages in Nigeria. Hausa, Igbo, Yoruba and Ibibio are just a few of them and the evolved from different tribes

3.) EVERYONE IN AFRICA IS POOR
One popular common misconception of africa is that everyone lives in poverty.
While it is true that some nations and cities in Africa do live in extreme poverty, that is not the case throughout the continent. Africa is in fact rich in some other areas. For examples, minerals. 46 percent of the world’s diamonds come from African countries. Botswana, Tanzania, Democratic Republic of Congo and Sierra Leone top exporters.

4.) AFRICA IS A “DISEASE-RIDDEN”
Many African countries don’t have proper advanced health resources therefore it is likely for diseases to spread around. However, there have been several innovations to prevent the spread of diseases in Africa. Like the mosquito tent, which prevents mosquitoes to have contact with a human. This mosquito tent eventually leads to the decrease of the spread of malaria.

5.) Finally, I’d like to address the common misconception that Africa is a very unsafe place to visit. This is completely FALSE! Though there are certain parts that may not be generally attractive for foreigners to visit, that does not reflect the beauty of the whole continent as a whole. The media nowadays tend to focus on the negatives. People around the world on hear about the wars, diseases, and poverty. But Africa is way much more than that.

It is very important for people who do not have enough knowledge about Africa to be educated about the beautiful continent.

Yes, there are some locations that are generally unsafe and unattractive to some, but it’s our job to work towards fixing those economies and rebuilding areas that are in need.

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