Balkanized peoples are difficult to manage and are confronted with developmental hurdles. For instance, one of the major disadvantages faced by the Confederate side during the Civil War was that, unlike the Union states, many Southerners were only loyal to their states and not the overarching Confederate cause. Many Confederate soldiers resisted serving under a general from another state and some disliked leaving their states to fight.
Also, Gwynne Dyer pointed out that there are at least 200 ethnic groups over over a million people each in Africa. Nation building and democracy become very difficult when you are that carved up. The contrast is huge, if you look at the rest of Eurasia. Eight ethnic or at least linguistic groups account for 75% of Europe's population. Three linguistic groups account for half of Asia's. In the Americas, only three languages are spoken, four if you count Quebec and Haiti.
Hundreds of years ago, the large countries were very stratified. What was to become the U.S. and Canada had hundreds of Indian tribes, now there are just two major countries. When Ceasar invaded Gaul there were 40 different tribes. Now there is just the French. The same is true with Germany, China, Britain and Italy. Africa remains fractured ethnically and linguistically and its development is hindered by such Balkanization.
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