Final answer:
The claim that Western colonialism left a legacy of a modern industrial sector and extensive continental railroads in Africa is false. The infrastructure built was designed to exploit resources, not to develop local economies or support intracontinental travel.
Step-by-step explanation:
The statement that Western colonialism in Africa left as a legacy not democracy but a modern industrial sector and extensive railroad networks which spanned the entire continent is false. While European colonialism did indeed have an impact on the economic and political landscapes of African countries, the transportation systems such as railroads were typically built with the primary goal of extracting resources from the interior of colonies to ports for export, rather than to create an interconnected transportation network across the continent.
Europe's colonial powers focused mainly on the economic exploitation of African territories, promoting industries and infrastructure that would benefit their own interests. They did not prioritize the development of democratic institutions or the building of an industrial sector beneficial to Africans. Despite some diffusion of technology and introduction of structured government systems, the legacies of colonialism include arbitrary national boundaries, continued economic dependencies, and authoritarian governance structures.