Question

What was the main goal of the coastal African kingdoms that were part of the slave trade?

Answer 1

The goal was wealth and expansion of power and control over rival tribes of inland African kingdom.

Explanation:

The African Kingdoms along the coast of East Africa were able to trade with the Islamic Empires by sea. Arabic ships sailed from the Middle East along the Indian Ocean to the kingdoms along the East Coast of Africa.

The Coastal Kingdoms controlled the trade with the interior tribes.
This allowed the the coastal kingdoms to acquire wealth and weapons not available to the tribes in the interior. This power was used to acquire slaves, ivory, and gold that could be used for trade with the Arab Empires.

The Arab Empires also gained wealth and power through the trade with the African Kingdoms along the East African coast.

The mutually beneficial trade between the African Kingdoms and Arab Empire made the African Costal Kingdoms wealthy and powerful.