So, an African country, a country in Africa (7)
I believe the answer is:
somalia
'country in africa' is the definition.
(African nation)
'so an african country a' is the wordplay.
'an african country' becomes 'mali' (country in Africa).
'so'+'mali'+'a'='SOMALIA'
(Other definitions for somalia that I've seen before include "E. African state" , "East African country" , "Eastern African state" , "Mogadishu its capital" , "Country of East Africa" .)