The Columbian Exchange refers to the enormous system of trade that took place between America and Europe after the arrival of Christopher Columbus. This exchanged allowed new goods to be spread all over the world, even arriving to Africa. However, this was not the most important way in which Africa was affected.
The most significant way in which the Columbian Exchange affected Africa was the fact that, due to these new interactions, many Native American people died from diseases they had never been exposed to before. This led to a shortage in labor, which was addressed by the Atlantic slave trade, which led to the kidnapping of thousands of African people.