...COLONIALISM IN AFRICA How does the legacy of colonialism affect contemporary African international relations? If questioned today about Africa in general the first reactions I would have are poor governance, poverty, conflict, economic instability and hunger. These are the major characteristics that dominate most of the states within the continent as a whole. The question would be has it always been this way? Different debates and differences have been focused on the colonial legacy for post-colonial Africa and the nature of colonialism. Various characterizations and conceptions tend to differ considerably among the international relations and African scholars. Between 1800 and 1900, majority of the European powers colonized the African continent. Colonialism, a political-economic occurrence whereby the various European nations exploited, took over, explored and settled down in great parts of the world still has a far reaching impact on the African continent. The colonialists; prolonged their ways of living beyond their domestic borders, economically exploited their colonies natural resources and this was done in order to strengthen and develop the colonies of the West and lastly created new markets. The African continent was indirectly impacted on the social, political, economic and cultural way of living. The colonial legacy is the inheritance of the state that belonged to the colonial administration from this administration by post-colonial rulers in...
Words: 2829 - Pages: 12
...Modern African states have several problems ranging from corruption, to armed conflict, to stunted structural development. The effects of colonialism have been offered as a starting point for much of the analysis on African states, but the question of why African states are particularly dysfunctional needs to be examined, given the extent to which they have lagged behind other former European colonies in many aspects. In the first section, I will consider the problems with African states from the level of the state. That is, the nature of the states' inceptions and the underlying flaws may explain some of the issues that have been associated with African states today. Next I examine the development of, or lack of, civil society and the institutions which took place across the continent in the colonial era. In particular, I consider the lack of education and judicial authority and how this affected the formation of the structures which exist in the post-colonial era. Lastly, the economic legacy of colonialism is analysed, and whether the failure of African states to prosper can be explained by colonial practices. State Formation Ever since the boundaries of Africa were drawn up in 1884/5, very little has changed in terms of the continent's territorial divisions. Much has been made of the fact that the post-colonial states which constitute Africa were the products of colonial demarcations, and whose territories are not congruent to existing political and ethnic organizations....
Words: 1734 - Pages: 7
...the continent of Africa, there would be several uninformed viewpoints. Most of these myopic opinions are shaped by television sound bytes, and some are formed from generalizations. There is truth in stereotypes, but that truth is an incomplete narrative. With the exception of Afghanistan, Africa holds the position of listing the top twenty poorest countries in the world. (anetki.com) Aggregates of poverty yield disease, famine, and conflict which have all compromised Africa’s homeostasis. What seems to evade the average American’s conscious is that Africa was not always a continent filled with such calamities, or viewed as a collection of nations dependent on foreign aid. The continent has two distinct, defining periods that characterize Africa’s struggles. Evidence shows that western colonization of Africa began its destruction while contributing to dependency. The irony is that Africa’s dependency is exacerbated in the post-colonial era. Colonialism is not implemented achieved to bolster good faith with a new trade partner, but to serve the colonizer’s geopolitical or economic interest. (Gordon) When conversations begin concerning Africa and Africans, it seems that the continent and its people are treated as one monolithic block instead of collection of nations with vast diversity. This would be tantamount to grouping China and India together, because the two nations are part of Asia. Another misconception is that ‘African tribes’ and Africa lacked civility until...
Words: 1244 - Pages: 5
...12/1/10 Anti-Colonialism Professor Nanes When European countries went to Africa for various resources and control of land they greatly affected the natives that were there. Resentment grew in the hearts of Africans towards their imperial leaders and the only way they knew how to deal with it was with violence. When the Europeans finally left the people of Africa were free to live as they wanted but that did not mean things would get much better with their governments. After years of being controlled by European colonists, the Africans or the “colonized” will not allow others to have power over them without a fight. According to Fanon, the colonists are in a position of envy because they have taken control and made their presence in Africa be viewed as supreme beings above the colonized. The colonized have rage built up inside them and when they have their chance they will strike on the colonists. It was written in Wretched of the Earth, that the colonized “is dominated but not domesticated. He is made to feel inferior, but by no means convinced of his inferiority. He patiently waits for the colonist to let his guard down and then jumps on him.” From this statement, the colonized man wants to get rid of the colonist because the colonist has attempted to make the colonized feel inferior and subservient. The colonized are stimulated by everything the colonists do to prove their superiority, but this fight will not be postponed forever. Eventually...
Words: 737 - Pages: 3
...22, 2014 AFAM-101 The Negative Political and Economic Impacts of Colonialism on Africa In October 1884, Otto von Bismarck, the German Chancellor, summoned European countries to a conference in Berlin, Germany. At the conference diplomats from Europe and America signed the Berlin Convention, which ultimately ended the Berlin Conference. This conference was created to diminish intensifying colonial struggles in Africa. This conference effectively established the boundaries of European powers. The signing of the Berlin Conference led to the scramble for Africa, which is defined as “efforts to fully occupy” portions of Africa that remained independent. With the exception of a couple countries the continent of Africa became controlled by seven European powers, including: Belgium, Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Portugal, and Spain. After European powers possessed control over the continent, they began to transform African society and its politics. The reason I have for choosing this topic is that a thorough understanding of colonialism in Africa is key to comprehend the obstacles that the continent of Africa and it’s leaders have to face to lead their countries into prosperity (Schraeder). Peter J. Schraeder, author of the book African Politics and Society: A Mosaic in Transformation, credits the spread of the Roman Empire as the precursor to European colonialism. The Roman Empire’s spread to Africa started in 146 B.C. when the city of Carthage, (present day Tunisia),...
Words: 2712 - Pages: 11
...Writer] [Name of the Institution] Introduction Neo-colonialism is used to illustrate the interference and involvement of the developed countries in third world countries. It describes how the system of capitalism and cultural behaviours are being used by these developed nations to take control over a country. Basically, neo-colonialism is no different than traditional colonialism but simply masked in an altered shape. While in colonialism, the country or colony is being ruled by political involvement or by means of military support, neo-colonialism is more refined but uniformly harmful. Rather, it can be more destructive than colonialism. In the traditional way of colonialism, the country taking control of a colony is accountable for its actions, by reporting back to the mother country. All actions and decisions are monitored to a specific level. Also, the country being colonised has a protection of the colonial power. While in neo-colonialism, the developed country is free of any accountability. There is no official system of check and balance and colonial power is not officially responsible to provide protection for the country being affected by its colonial power. All the foreign capital and investments are utilized for the profits of the developed country, leaving the less developed country oppressed with a very nominal or no investment for its betterment. Apart from economical and financial damage, neo-colonialism also casts some health related impacts on the less...
Words: 1435 - Pages: 6
...GEO 3106 Producing Africa: Take – Home Exam 1) The ‘real Africa’ is presumed to be filthy and miserable (Wainaina, 2005). Discuss. Representations of Africa in a global context have been largely negative, often presumed to be one country the continent is stigmatised as backwards, disease ridden, violent and in need of Western assistance. Although some positive imagery does emerge from Africa including that associated with Comic Relief, corporate campaigns such as Guinness’s stylish philosophy and in music videos like ‘Am I wrong’ by Nico and Vinz, Africa is subject to the use and re-use of negative imagery resulting in prominent stereotypes shaping our geographical imaginations of the continent. This is a similar concept to that of orientalism explored by Edward Said (1987). This essay will argue that presumptions of the ‘real Africa’ are largely negative, discussing how ‘Africanism’ and stereotypes of the continent are heavily influenced by colonial representations of people and place arguing that these assumptions are highly compatible with Western domination and power rooted in imperial attitudes. Jan Pieterse (1992:75) recognises that Africa has been depicted as the ‘Dark Continent’ plagued by stereotypes ‘which colonialism would build on and elaborate’. Imaginaries of childlike, savage, inhumane distant others who are dependent upon Western help dominate the way in which Africa is perceived. Campbell and Power (2010) suggest that a dominant scopic regime shapes...
Words: 3627 - Pages: 15
...opposite looking at the ideological forces that have shaped North (First World) and South (Third World) countries relations for half a century. In this essay one will be looking at the question of to what extend can the process of colonialism be blamed for the problems being experienced by developing countries today? Also matters pertaining to African migration, the spread of Islam, gold and slaves will be included in this essay as they are central to the process of colonialism. Towards the end of the last century, with a long history already behind it European colonization branched out in quite different forms according to the place and the interests of the metropolis. According to Thirlwell (1994:60) it was “a transitional period in which brutal power relations existed alongside paternalist feelings of responsibility towards natives who needed to be civilised” thus, great powers put the then dominant ideas into practice opening up the way to the so called “development” (Thirlwell, 1994). According to Rist (1997:100) “colonialism is a practice of domination, which involves the subjugation of one people to another”. The term colony comes from the Latin word colonus, meaning farmer. Thus, one believes that this root reminds us that the practice of colonialism usually involved the transfer of population to a new territory, where the arrivals lived as permanent settlers while maintaining political allegiance to their country of origin. I tend to agree with Rist (1997:105) when he says...
Words: 2499 - Pages: 10
...how surplus was drawn from Africa to develop capitalism in the metropolitan sector. “Colonialism was not merely a system of exploitation but one whose essential purpose was to repatriate the profit to the so called mother land” [page 177].It means that the development of Europe as a part of the same dialectical process which Africa was Underdeveloped. African labourwas cheap. The employer often required more from the worker but paid him less not even enough to maintain his physical self. This was not the case in Europe when feudalism gave way to capitalism. Employers paid their employees a living wage. Wages paid to workers in Europe and North America was far higher than that of Africans. The Africans were discriminated from occupying official positions and even when they did they were paid less compared to the wages of the European officials. This chapter’s main point is to explain how much greater was the exploitation of African workers. Walter Rodney’s How Europe Underdeveloped Africa Part 4-6 The fourth chapter is entitled Europe and the Roots of African underdevelopment to 1885. It evaluates the European slave trace as a dominant factor in African underdevelopment, all in the interest of European capitalism. Further, a penetrating discuss on the advancement of Europe technology as against that of Africa which is stagnant (this culminating into a distorted economy) was evaluated. Again, the continuing political/military development in Africa from about 1500 to 1885 was...
Words: 753 - Pages: 4
...Early Colonization Ethnic and cultural diversity is an internationally shared social experience. In today’s society several countries possess “natives” of different ethnicity. Many ethnicity who are believed to be original natives of their country are usually descendants of colonists or a race made up of a mixture of ethnicity from a particular region. Early colonialism is one cause for such diversity. Colonization is the establishment of a colony through the organized migration to an outside territory. From the 1600’s to 1800’s Western Europeans were the colonized groups dominating many parts of the world for a variety of reasons. Many conquest to other countries were to discover natural resources like, spices, gold and other trade-able material unique to its region. Some expedition set out to explore for other reasons like proving a theory or to follow up on stories told by their fellow explorers. Once reaching their destination, other factors made them stay such as the discovery of monetary gain, religious freedom and political powers. While some countries like China, were unable to become colonized, others were dominated to the extent of their people eventually becoming a minority in their own land. Imperialistic ambition was a major element in the colonization of many third world countries. As immigrants settled on foreign soil, they believed they were legitimately entitled to occupy the land. They eventually impose their economic, religion, and social systems onto an...
Words: 2076 - Pages: 9
...POS 322 QUESTION 1 DISCUSS THE ESSENCE OF POLITICAL THOUGHT Solution In discussing the essence of political thought, we need to first ask the question, what is political thought? Political thought though has several meaning in application, is most referred to as that body of thinking, idea, reason that has examined issues and events and phenomenon relating to politics at large. It is the intellect one’s philosophical expression of one political part, that expresses itself. A person political thought is that which expresses itself through its interaction with others, and is often difficult to separate political thought from other thought like, economic, social, religious, jurisprudence, emotional and among others. Since it is made up of idea that involves politics, and has passed through from one generation to another. Its automatically made everyone in the society to be a potential contributor to political thought. Invariably since one had an idea on politics and share thought about what he thinks, like or dislike, its already playing or practicing politics and political process (which express the process of practicing politics). In order word, political thought is neither archaic nor restricted to professional philosophers who are terms as major thinker of political thought. Since we have body of idea of political thought, however is to simply imply that there might be other body which are not political thought which include (economic, psychological...
Words: 3908 - Pages: 16
...NATIONAL OPEN UNIVERSITY OF NIGERIA SCHOOL OF ARTS AND SOCIAL SCIENCE COURSE CODE:POL 122 COURSE TITLE:INTRODUCTION TO AFRICAN POLITICS POL 122 INTRODUCTION TO AFRICAN POLITICS COURSE GUIDE POL 122 INTRODUCTION TO AFRICAN POLITICS Course Writer/Developer Mr. Sikiru Lanre Nurudeen Department of Political Science and Conflict Resolution Al – Hikmah University, Ilorin Kwara State Course Editor Prof. M. Olarotimi Ajayi Faculty of Social Sciences Covenant University Otta Course Coordinator Mr. Abdul-Rahoof A. Bello National Open University of Nigeria ii POL 122 INTRODUCTION TO AFRICAN POLITICS NATIONAL OPEN UNIVERSITY OF NIGERIA National Open University of Nigeria Headquarters 14/16 Ahmadu Bello Way Victoria Island Lagos Abuja Office No. 5 Dar es Salaam Street Off Aminu Kano Crescent Wuse II, Abuja Nigeria e-mail: centralinfo@nou.edu.ng URL: www.nou.edu.ng Published by National Open University of Nigeria Printed 2009 ISBN: 978-058-415-3 All Rights Reserved iii POL 122 INTRODUCTION TO AFRICAN POLITICS CONTENTS PAGE Introduction ………………………………………….…………… 1 Course Aims ……………………………………………………… 1 Course Objectives ………………………………………………... 1 Working through Course……………………………………. This 2 Course Materials………………………………………………….. 2 Study Units………………………………………………………. . 2 Text books and References……………………………………….. 3 Assessment File…………………………………………………… 3 Tutor-Marked Assignment ……………………….. ……………… 4 iv POL 122 INTRODUCTION TO AFRICAN POLITICS Final Examination Grading…………………………………...
Words: 67952 - Pages: 272
...Define Colonialism (Western) Colonialism: A political-economic phenomenon whereby various European nations explored, conquered, settled, and exploited large areas of the world. The purposes of colonialism included economic exploitation of the colony's natural resources, creation of new markets for the colonizer, and extension of the colonizer's way of life beyond its national borders. In the years 1500 – 1900 Europe colonized all of North and South America and Australia, most of Africa, and much of Asia by sending settlers to populate the land or by taking control of governments. The first colonies were established in the Western Hemisphere by the Spanish and Portuguese in the 15th – 16th centuries. The Dutch colonized Indonesia in the 16th century, and Britain colonized North America and India in the 17th – 18th centuries. Later, British settlers colonized Australia and New Zealand. Colonization of Africa only began in earnest in the 1880s, but by 1900 virtually the entire continent was controlled by Europe. The colonial era ended gradually after World War II; the only territories still governed as colonies today are small islands. http://www.answers.com/topic/colonialism#ixzz1lYMQdYfY http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonialism Colonialism is the establishment, maintenance, acquisition and expansion of colonies in one territory by people from another territory. It is a process whereby the metropole claims sovereignty over the colony, and the social structure...
Words: 2538 - Pages: 11
...Colonialism COM/172 University of Phoenix November 12, 2013 Kesha Eason Throughout the recent history of the last one hundred years Colonialism has proved to be in part a good thing for the world. It has shown to be at times violent with nations fighting war after war. But it also has brought numerous different cultures together. It has also helped to stop the genocide against people of different faiths and walks of life around the world. No matter how controversial Colonialism is in History it has proved to be a positive thing as a whole and it has helped to develop and modernize the world. 1. Negatives of Colonialism The roots of slavery quite often are varied and extensive, but often go hand in hand with Colonialism. What happens when a country invades and controls another nation or area, the controlled nation or area is forced to give up food, goods, and people usually by force. This has happened throughout history and it is very well written down and documented. Slavery has been used as a tool of colonialism all over the world. It is not uncommon that the people of the newly acquired territory will be forced into slavery to pay the debts of the war and to pay for the goods coming in to the country, clear out the land for the people that will surely come in, and it is a form of subjugation as a way to show the people that the new ruler reigns supreme now. It is well documented that the longest running slave trade is the Arab Slave Trade. The Arab Slave Trade...
Words: 1804 - Pages: 8
...European colonies in Africa or Asia) in lieu of direct military or political control. Such control can be economic, cultural, or linguistic; by promoting one's own culture, language or media in the colony, corporations embedded in that culture can then make greater headway in opening the markets in those countries. Thus, neocolonialism would be the end result of relatively benign business interests leading to deleterious cultural effects. Neocolonialism describes certain economic operations at the international level which have alleged similarities to the traditional colonialism of the 16th to the 20th centuries. The contention is that governments have aimed to control other nations through indirect means; that in lieu of direct military-political control, neocolonialist powers employ economic, financial, and trade policies to dominate less powerful countries. Those who subscribe to the concept maintain these amounts to a de facto control over targeted nations. What are the social phenomena neocolonialism? It is a set of political, economic, social and colonial arrangements or systems which continue to exist in a society, managed and controlled by little local property-ruling class on behalf of their corresponding foreign property-ruling class. The arrangement is a phenomenon which is heavily imposed on the majority of the people who remain poor, unemployed, low income-earned, unskilled, and uneducated. These arrangements designate a continuation of colonialism wherein the majority...
Words: 1136 - Pages: 5
