[A CA Guy]

They are among the most backwards civilizations on earth.

[LenS]

Isn't that the real problem? Geography and climate have made civilizations few and far between south of the Sahara. The conquests and colonizations of the late 19th century were, sadly, a major step forward for this region. European barbarians took centuries to civilize. It's only been a bit more than a century in Africa. Still, the pressures of the rest of the world will force improvements at a historically faster rate than occurred in Europe. It just will seem slow to us since we measure events in decades, not centuries or millenia.