The second largest continent in the world, Africa covers six percent of the world’s total surface area. The continent is surrounded by water, with the Mediterranean in the north, the Suez Canal and the Red Sea in the north-east, the Indian Ocean in the south-east and the Atlantic in the west. There are 54 sovereign states which include Madagascar and various other islands. Africa is on both sides of the equator and is the only continent to extend from the northern temperate to the southern temperate zones making for a large variety of climate.