I NEED HELP THIS IS DUE IN 5 MINIUTES. QUESTION: EXPLAIN THE SCRAMBLE FOR AFRICA

one of the last regions of the world largely untouched by "informal imperialism", was also attractive to Europe's ruling elites for economic, political and social reasons. During a time when Britain's balance of trade showed a growing deficit, with shrinking and increasingly protectionist continental markets due to the Long Depression (1873–96), Africa offered Britain, Germany, France, and other countries an open market that would garner them a trade surplus: a market that bought more from the colonial power than it sold overall.

do not copy and paste this is from wiki