west africa

English - English

Definition of west africa in English English dictionary: An area of west Africa, spanning 16 African countries; A region of western Africa between the Sahara Desert and the Gulf of Guinea. It was largely controlled by colonial powers until the 20th century.West African adj. & n; region located in the western part of the African continent (includes Senegal, Mali, Mauritania, etc.); an area of western African between the Sahara Desert and the Gulf of Guinea
French West Africa: French West Africa is the (literal) English rendering of Afrique Occidentale française (abbreviated AOC), a geographical group of French colonies in West Africa under the supervisory authority of a single governor-general, comprising the following colonised countries (present names as independent republics in perenthesis if different): Dahomey (Benin), French Guinea (Guinea), the French Sudan (Mali), Ivory Coast, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal and Upper Volta (Burkina Faso); the last governor-general was also the first of two successive High commissioners, charged with the transition to independence as independent republics, without a common administrative level
Portuguese West Africa: A former country and colony of Portugal in Africa, now called Angola
South West Africa: A former province of South Africa, which gained independence in 1990 and was renamed to Namibia
Berlin West Africa Conference: (1884-85) Series of negotiations at Berlin in which the major European nations met to determine the future of Central Africa. The participants declared the Congo River basin region to be neutral, guaranteed freedom of trade and shipping for all colonial powers, forbade slave trading, and rejected Portugal's claims to the region
British West Africa: The former British territories of western Africa, including Nigeria, Gambia, Sierra Leone, Gold Coast, Togoland, and Cameroons
South West Africa People's Organization: Party in South West Africa (now Namibia) that advocated immediate independence from South Africa. Founded in 1960, it used diplomacy to attain its goals until 1966, when it turned to armed struggle. Led by Sam Nujoma and backed by the Angolan ruling party and the Soviet Union, SWAPO used Angola as a base for launching guerrilla attacks. From 1978 South Africa made periodic retaliatory strikes into Angola. That same year the UN recognized SWAPO as the Namibian people's sole representative. South Africa finally accepted a UN resolution requiring the withdrawal of South African troops in Namibia and the holding of free elections in 1988