History of West Africa more states. Early human settlers arrived in West Africa around 12,000 BCE. In the fifth millennium, as the ancestors of modern West Africans began entering the area, the development of sedentary farming began to take place in West Africa. The Iron industry, in both smelting and forging for tools and weapons, appeared in Sub-Saharan Africa by 1200 BCE, and by 400 BCE, contact had been made with the Mediterranean civilizations, and a regular trade included exporting gold, cotton, metal, and leather in exchange for copper, horses, salt, textiles, and beads. Culture developed further with the Nok culture (1000 BCE to
Ghana–Nigeria football rivalry Ghana–Nigeria football rivalry The Ghana–Nigeria football rivalry is a sports rivalry that exists between the national football teams of Ghana and Nigeria, as well as their respective sets of fans. The sport has been played since prior to both countries' respective independence, and the match-up is among the oldest and most proliferate rivalries in African football. The football competition reflects the long-standing socio-economic rivalry between the two nations, which are two of the five Anglophone nations in West Africa and home to the largest populations in the region. FIFA lists the first official match between the two as a World