Africa's not a country has been a rallying cry for african writers commentators for decades. You hear it all the time, the way in which people speak about the continent. This is a place of 54 countries, one point four billion people, over two thousand languages and innumerable etne groups. There may be certain share experiences, but there are countries that have been through similar things, but they've chosen very different parts. It's important to understand that, because there could be a third country following behind who's about to face something similar.