Deleted member 103950
Africa these days, is a complicated and messy place to say the least. Home to many civil wars, disease outbreaks, ethnic tensions, a history of exploitation by western powers, and depressing cases of starvation and malnourishment caused by all of the aforementioned. Even a person more ignorant of African politics is at least aware in broad strokes of the Rwandan Genocide and the legacy of Belgium In The Congo. Certainly this preconception lots of people have of Africa isn't true across the board, as there are exceptions and certain parts of Africa today are just as developed as anywhere in the west. But it's hard to ignore the harsh realities plaguing the continent and the many people who live there.
I recently rewatched OSP's video on Africa to refresh my memory about some of the misconceptions people have about Africa for the fandom thread post, and this in addition to the current cultural zeitgeist surrounding a certain Marvel Movie got me thinking. Was this always going to be Africas fate? Exploited by colonial powers for it's resources and plagued by disease and war? Is there any way it could have been the other way around? An African nation being the dominant colonial power while Europe is the one plagued by such things?
Is it at all plausible or even possible for there to be an Sub-Saharan African Colonial power on par with the British/Spanish?
I asked about this question on Discord and someone said he/she thought the best candidate for an African Nation becoming a colonial power was the Ashanti/Ghana people on the west coast of Africa as they actually had a prosperous empire while Europe was going through the dark ages. But he also thought that them being a colonial power would be short lived, short of the Europeans being stalled in the age of colonialism somewhat.
So I considered deeply. In order for a Sub Saharan African colonial power to rise. Europe would likely have to suffer the fate Africa did OTL. But is that even possible given differences in geography in weather patterns?