How does Africa's geography impact trade opportunities compared to other continents?

Africa faces severe geographical disadvantages for trade compared to other continents. While China's Yangtze River and North America's Mississippi Basin offer extensive navigable waterways connecting interior regions to oceans, Africa lacks such natural transportation networks. The Nile River, Africa's only significant navigable waterway, becomes unnavigable beyond Khartoum in Sudan due to rapids, preventing Sub-Saharan African merchants from efficient sea access. This geographical constraint forces African merchants to use expensive land transportation around unnavigable river sections, significantly increasing costs compared to their European, Asian, and American counterparts. When combined with Africa's lack of natural harbors and the barrier of the Sahara Desert, these factors have historically isolated Sub-Saharan Africa from global trade opportunities, contributing to the continent's economic challenges.