Is that a rhetorical questions or you genuinely seek to expand your knowledge?

In case it’s the latter, then your slant of:

> northern Mediterranean/Nile influenced groups

is weird. Many European cultures were influenced by the Romans, who were influenced by the Greeks, who were influenced by other cultures. The flow of ideas across time and space is what actually gives rise to civilizations.

So what if an African civilization was influenced by another civilization? Does that make it less meaningful?

As for what civilizations Africa had, you can read about Kerma/Napata/Kush/Nubia, Aksum, Kongo, Swahili coast, Ghana/Mali/Songhai, Kanem-Bornu, Egypt, etc. However, I suspect you have your mind made up, hence the dismissive “Or was it primarily tribal conquering/uniting?”