West Africa has four main climates - the Sahara desert in the north, the dry Sahel grasslands, the more fertile savanna region in the south, and the coastal forests that receive plentiful rainfall. The Niger River runs through West Africa from Guinea in the south to Nigeria in the north, forming inland deltas. West Africa has natural resources like gold, iron, diamonds, and oil, which is a key export for Nigeria. The region experienced the slave trade starting in the 1400s and was later colonized by European powers until independence in the late 1900s. Newly independent nations faced challenges of arbitrary borders, developing education systems, and political instability including civil wars and dictatorships. Poverty is widespread