Cheickna Bounajim Cissé wrote an article in Mars 2013 in the Journal Les Afriques N. º 237, suggesting a new acronym, MANGANESE, for the nine African countries: Morocco, Angola, Namibia, Ghana, Algeria, Nigeria, Egypt, South Africa and Ethiopia. According to Cissé, this group of African nations will be the fastest growing states in the region over the next few years. The purpose of this article is to test the pertinence of the acronym, discuss the credibility and reliability of the future prospects of these countries by comparing selected socioeconomic and sociopolitical indicators based on the latest global rankings and trends. Likewise, the potential of Cissé’s claim will be assessed, especially in relationship to drug trafficking and terrorism that may put their recent sustainability in danger now and in the future.