When engaging in a study of imperialism and neo-colonialism in Africa, one common theme that runs through in most scholarly discourse on this subject is the inherent impoverishment of Africa and the exploitation of its resources when the European Companies and Multinationals dominated the coastline of Africa, thereby establishing spheres of influence from whence they carved out settlements and colonies. The presence of Multinationals and European Companies across Africa led to an attendant disruption in the indigenous economic structures and institutions that existed in Africa long before contacts with the outside world. However, this study will cast light on the long-term aftermath of imperialism and colonialism in Africa. This is reflected in the concept of neo-colonialism which emerged as a new form of colonialism and the continuation of imperialism in Post-independent Africa.
Walter Rodney in How Europe Underdeveloped Africa asserted that the impoverishment in Post-colonial Africa can be traced to the continent’s experience of imperialism and colonialism, which had lasting impacts on the politics and economy of African Societies after independence. Africa’s persistent impoverishment in the 21st century can be traced to the largely parasitic relationship that existed between the continent and Europe over a period of four centuries.
The desire for oversea expansion
that swept across Europe was as a result of changes in the mode of production
in Europe through the emergence of the industrial revolution drove the
imperialist ambitions of the European City States and Empire to acquire oversea
territories that had the requisite resources needed for the development of its
industries. However, before the industrial revolution, slave trade had long
provided the primitive form of capital and labour needed in the various
European plantations and factories. The need for raw materials to fuel the
expansion of European capital and investments led to the colonization of
Africa. It must be noted that in this study, the terms colonialism and
imperialism will be used interchangeably, as they both mean the same thing.
Therefore, colonialism came to be as a result of the desire by the Europeans to
gain direct control of the indigenous capital and means of production which as
at the late 17th and 18th century could not meet the
voracious European demand and market. With the direct control of the indigenous
economies through trade and military pacts came the era of imperialism.[1a]
What is Imperialism?
The word imperialism is coined from Empire. It is the practice of domination of one country by another, with the goals of expansion of territory, power and influence. While imperialism refers to political, cultural and economic rule over indigenous people transforming their ideas, institutions and material culture. The end goal of imperialism is to create economic dependencies. Imperialism therefore became a policy of colonial expansion in Africa. All imperial powers in Europe viewed imperialism as a way and means of achieving their goal of civilizing non-European societies and to also facilitate their economic growth and survival.[2a]
Imperialism and Colonialism
The colonial experience shaped
Africa in many ways leading to the long-lasting impacts in the post-colonial
economic survival of African societies in the 21st century. However,
in a bid to stick to the narratives and not deviate from the subject matter of the
conference theme, the paper focused on examining the origin of imperialism in
Africa, tracing it to the pre-Atlantic and Atlantic economic and sociopolitical
contacts that existed between Africa and Europe for over three centuries before
the nineteenth century which can be dubbed as the century of imperialism and
colonial expansion into Africa and Southeast Asia, Middle East and South
America. Meanwhile, the emergence of the age of imperialism was as result of
the colonial desire for the expansion of empire following the success of the
industrial revolution which brought about the expansion of European capital or
capitalism across Europe and the world. The wake of the imperialist incursion
into Africa paved the way for colonialism, after which came neo-colonialism,
the aftermath of neo-colonialism in Africa is Post-colonialism.
Post-colonialism on its own focuses more on the long-term impacts of
Imperialism, colonialism and Neo-colonialism on Africa and the so called Third
World.
The motives of imperialism and
colonial expansion into nineteenth century Africa were primarily driven by
economic factors. First, it was driven by the need for the European powers to
carve out diverse spheres of influence/colonial empires in Africa. Secondly,
the need to seek for new areas/territories that had the requisite raw materials
that will fuel the industrialization in Europe. Thirdly, the need to source for
new markets for the excess output/production in different European
Factories/Industries. Therefore, the emergence of imperialism and colonialism
in Africa led to the death, decline and neglect of the indigenous industries
and class of capitals. For Karl Max, in his explanation of colonialism, and
imperialism, he came to the conclusion that colonialism was the settlement of
uninhabited areas from which indigenous people were driven out. His refusal to
use the term imperialism was because he believed that the colonial experience
occurred differently across the colonized world. J.A Hobson believed that the
British imperialism stemmed out of the desire to resolve the problem of
domestic under-consumption of products destined for foreign markets. Joseph
Schumpeter viewed imperialism as a prelude to the capitalist expansion that
would disappear with progressive and rational capitalism.
Walter Rodney asserted that to
discuss on the trade that existed between Africa and Europe in the Pre-colonial
times is to discuss on the Trans-Atlantic slave trade or the institution of
slavery. Furthermore, he stated that the shipments of Africans as slaves was
controlled by the Europeans, to markets controlled by the Europeans and for the
interest of European capitalism and nothing more. In his argument, Walter
Rodney believed that the ways and manners in which slaves from Africa were
obtained and transported across the Atlantic was a violent process which
involved warfare, banditry, trickery and kidnapping. He linked this process to
the underdevelopment of Africa which he believed took place over a period of
four hundred years. Warfare was however the principal means of obtaining
slaves. Therefore, the destructiveness of the slave trade to Africa’s economic
development was reflected in the massive loss to the African labour force.
Rodney also made mention of the East African slave trade or the Indian Ocean
slave trade as another gory episode of Africa’s impoverishment and
underdevelopment. The Indian Ocean slave trade caused as much damage to the
African kingdoms and empires that inhabited the Indian Ocean coastline, as did
the slave trade. Therefore, he traced the origin of Africa’s impoverishment to
the huge loss of human capital that came with the slave trade. This huge
population loss to the continent in this view hampered the economic activities,
growth and development in the continent.[1]
Imperialism and colonial expansion
into Africa can be traced to the fifteenth century when the Portuguese landed
in Cape Verde and Guinea Bissau to divert control of West African trade from
the Muslims to Portuguese Merchants and to also find Christian allies that will
contend against Islam which penetrated into this region of Africa through the
Trans-Sahara trade. It was through Cape Verde that the Portuguese established
dominance over that region. The Portuguese and Spanish were the earliest set of
Europeans to have trading contacts with Africa, other European powers and new
players in the vast African El Dorado emerged on the scene in the ensuing
centuries. The European imperialist incursion into Africa commenced as trading
partnerships which escalated into a toxic and parasitic relationship in the
years that followed. Amilcar Cabral believed that colonialism and imperialism
had impeded national consciousness, independence and real national liberation
across Africa. In his view, classical colonialism was transformed into
imperialism which offered direct control and domination. Imperialism is
therefore capital in action which was destined to fulfill the role of
developing the productive forces and transforming the means of production.
Neo-colonialism emerged as an aftermath of the decades of reconstruction and
rebuilding of the ruptured global economy after the Second World War, and
became another and new stage of imperialism. In this stage, monopoly capitalism
and emergence of new Multinational Corporations and international organizations
such as the Bretton wood Institutions (IMF: International
Monetary Fund, World Bank and World Trade GATT: General Agreement on Trade and Tariff/World Trade Organization)
became the norm. Neocolonialism is thereby at work in both Europe/The Western
world and likewise in the Third World in this second phase.[2]
The growth of Industry and the rapid
concentration of production in ever-larger Enterprises are one of the dominant
features of capitalism. For example in the 18th and 19th
century Britain, the competition among the various Capitalist Enterprises and
Corporations drove outward expansions of these Enterprises in search of new
markets oversea due to stiff competition at home and the need to secure a new
market for the surplus goods produced in Europe in the wake of the industrial
revolution. Vladimir Lenin in his summation on imperialism and history of
monopolies highlighted five stages that drove imperialism; 1860-1870: which was the highest stage, the apex of the development
of free competition and the embryonic stage. The second stage is the
after-crisis of 1873 in which there
was a lengthy period of development of cartels, however, as a transitory
phenomenon. The Third Stage is the boom at the end of the nineteenth century
and the crisis of 1900-1903. This
stage saw the rise of cartels as the foundations of the whole of economic life.
Capitalism also transformed into imperialism. The monopolistic tendency of the
European Enterprises was revealed in their expansionary drive into Africa in
which various Multinationals established monopolies across different parts of
Africa. The Royal Niger Company for instance established its presence in the
Niger basin and area of contemporary Nigeria, thereby driving out foreign
competitions like the French, German and Portuguese from this region.
Therefore, the rise of monopolies in Europe is worth noting as a phase of
capitalist development and is equally important in a discussion on imperialism
and colonialism in Africa.[3]
Furthermore, when conducting a study on imperialism and colonialism in Africa, it is an established fact that African economic development was significantly changed and altered through its relationship and contacts with Europe. The impacts of these contacts first manifested through the Trans-Atlantic slave trade, which subsequently led to the scramble for African Territories in the early nineteenth century when the slave trade was abolished in Britain. The abolition of the slave trade led to the emergence of a commodity-based trading system and a cash crop agriculture system. Therefore, in this regards, imperialism and colonialism altered the natural development of African economies. However, Africa was not economically isolated from the rest of the world in its earliest contacts or before its contacts with Europe, and the outside world, as diverse African States had engaged in international trade long before the fifteenth century. The earlier kingdoms and empires across Africa engaged in various forms of trade and commerce with their immediate and distant neighbours.
This earliest form of contacts was not mercantile in nature, the empires and kingdoms generated revenue and prosperity by taxing foreign trade, as well as relying on levies, custom duties and booties from war. The long existing Trans-Sahara trade preceded the emergence of oversea trade with Europe. The Trans-Sahara trade did not disrupt the indigenous capitals in Africa, it served to expand and facilitate the growth and wealth of cities such as Timbuktu, Jenne, Gao, Agadez, etc. that participated in it. However, in Africa’s international trade with Europe, the indigenous economy operated and was subordinated to the interests of Europe. This pattern of unbalanced trade between Africa and Europe equally manifested in the colonial and Post-Colonial period. In this unbalanced trading pattern, Africa became the core supplier of commodities and raw materials for European governments and Multi-nationals that plied and traded on the African coastline. In the era of the so called legitimate trade that emerged after the abolition of the slave trade, Africa became a source of raw materials for the rapidly industrializing European powers. The transition from the slave trade to legitimate commerce was without any significant impacts, as the increase in demand for raw materials and cash crops across the industrializing Europe in which Africa was dubbed and seen as a supplier of the needed materials ensured that the transition was without any fracas. In all these, the economic goals of colonialism and imperialism was to provide maximum economic benefit to the colonizing powers at the lowest possible price.
Due to
the rapid development that Europe had been undergoing from the start of the 18th
century, the need for raw materials from Africa and other colonized Territories
was sacrosanct for the economic development and survival of the European
Powers. In the years that led to the rise of imperialism and colonialism in
Africa, the European powers operating in Africa were able to wrest control of
the indigenous economy from the local Rulers, thereby establishing monopolies
and company rule in different parts of Africa. The insistence by the European
Companies and Monopolies on the growth of certain cash crops needed as raw
materials for the factories and industries of Europe from their African
territories/colonies undermined the existing power structure and made Africa
totally dependent on Europe for its economic growth and development. However,
it must be noted that it was through imperialism and colonialism that Africa
became fully integrated into the world economic system. Subsequent sections of
this paper will fully examine how the integration of Africa into the world
economic system and international trade turned African states into unequal
partners with Europe and the Global west in this new found economic system
introduced by Europe, which was more or less a parasitic relationship. It was
therefore the colonial economic policies in Africa that forced the demise of indigenous
industries and also forced Africa to become economically dependent on the
imported good/products from Europe and America. This was the pattern of unequal
relations between the Third world and the developed countries of the world
which persisted into the 21st century.[4]
In this study on the African
experience of colonialism and imperialism, the industrial revolution and
subsequent expansion of capital and imperialism was driven by the changes in
the mode of production in Europe. It was the industrial revolution in Europe
that ushered in a new process of production through the mechanization of
production which eventually replaced the slave-based economic system and mode
of production. The introduction of industrial or mercantile capitalism by
Europe into the world economic system led to an increase demand by Europe upon
the resources of the world. In Africa, the need for the Europeans to control
the means of production and source of raw materials drove the incursion into
the hinterland/interior of Africa so as to organize the farms, mines and
markets for greater profit in Europe. Thus, the entry of Europe into the
hinterland relegated the historical role that the Middlemen have played in
controlling trade with the coast. The European companies that pioneered the
expansion/incursion of Empire into the hinterland obtained Charters from their
home governments to operate in different parts of Africa. The entry of these
European Companies into the hinterland led to a conflict of interest between
the Indigenous Merchants who had direct access to the market obtained in the
hinterland. This move which will alter the profits of the Middlemen and also
lead to direct control of the means of production by the European Companies
became one of the remote causes of the collapse of the indigenous industries
and class of capitals.
Imperialism and colonialism was also
driven by the need for the European powers to protect the vast amount of
capital they had invested in Africa. The surplus capital accumulated by
European merchants during the industrial revolution was invested in different
parts of Africa and the colonized world. This need also led to the direct
European control of the African economy and political administration so as to
fuel the continuity of the imperialist schemes. The Royal Niger Company for
instance obtained a Royal Charter from the British Crown in the 1880s to
control the politics and trade of Pre-colonial Nigeria/Niger Area which lasted
until 1900 when the British Government officially revoked the charter and took
over the political and economic administration of this Area formerly controlled
by the Royal Niger Company. Thus, the entry of Europe into Africa was
predicated on the belief that it was to create a conducive atmosphere in the
host countries for the operation of the capital invested. Therefore, this
period (End of company rule) ushered in over five decades of direct colonial
rule over major parts of Africa with different policies and systems adopted to
facilitate the exploitation of African territories and to also promote the
European economic interests. In this regard, colonialism served to promote and
facilitate the continuity of imperialism in Africa.[5]
Underdevelopment in the Third World
When studying and attempting to
understand the reason and cause of the underdevelopment in the Third World,
there are many factors and yardstick to consider in this regards. One of such
yardsticks which will be discussed in this section is the concept of
development in relation to the deplorable economic situation in the Third
world. Therefore, the concept of development and the efforts to eradicate
poverty and improve the lives of people in the third world has been in
existence for a long period of time. Therefore, in the Post-World War II era,
and in the decade of independence in Africa, Asia and Latin America, many
development theories were proposed as probable solutions to the
underdevelopment and impoverishment in the Third world.
However, to go further in this study, the
concept of Third World must be fully
examined. Typically, this concept emerged in the aftermath of the Second World
War and the Cold War era, and at the peak of the ideological confrontation
between the Soviet Union and the United States. The concept referred to a group
of non-aligned countries who were outside the great power blocs. The first
usage of this concept can be traced to the French Demographer; Alfred Sauvy who
coined the term in the 1950s to refer to a third force in the French Republic.
Most importantly, the term was coined to categorize the power blocs during the
Cold War, with the existence of a Third force which was distinct from the
Western and Eastern bloc. Therefore, Non-Alignment became one of the earliest
movement and ideological position associated with the Third World. It was in
the Bandung conference of 1955 which was attended by representatives from
twenty nine African and Asian conference that the Third World Countries were
first identified.
In similar vein, the Third world was
also identified as a movement that sought to bring solidarity among developing
countries based on their economic status and their models of production. The
Third world was seen to exist outside the first world of the advanced
capitalist democracies and the second world of the industrially advanced
communist countries. Furthermore, in the analysis of British Political
Scientist; Samuel Finer, he regarded the Third world as countries that were poor
and share a common experience of colonialism, as well as deep diplomatic and
economic penetration by the western powers. In this view, the concept of the
Third world was equally associated with anti-imperialism, anti-colonialism,
neo-colonialism and racialism and the efforts of the developing countries in
the Global South to confront these vices to their economic development and
advancement. Therefore, the Third world is seen as a solidarity movement
against the continuing intervention and involvement of the advanced and
powerful countries of the West in the developing economies of the world. The
idea of the Third world tried to capture a common experience of exploitation by
richer and more powerful societies against the weaker and colonized territories
of Africa, Asia and Latin America. This common experience is shared by all
Third World countries and was seen as persisting even after independence.
In another wise, the concept of the
Third world from the 1960s represented the desire and campaign by the Global
South economies to forge a new international economic order under which
developing countries would secure greater control of their natural resources
and also control the pricing of their raw materials in the international market
so as to protect their economies in a way. The concept is also expressed as a
form of grievance by the developing or impoverished economies against the
developed countries who were believed to have rigged and manipulated the rules
of international economy against less developed countries. The third world
countries have expressed their desire to gain greater access to markets in
industrialized countries for their own manufactured goods by urging the
government in the advanced countries to lower the trade barriers that protect their
domestic industries from competition from third world products. However, many
Scholars and Economists from the earliest times have questioned the validity or
need for a Third world concept. It is believed that the Third World’s
experience of globalization and development has not been uniform, pointing to
the globalization of market economies and pluralistic democracy which emerged
after the end of the Cold War, thereby challenging the validity of the concept
of a Third World in the 21st century. The deep internal division
among the Third world countries was reflected in the uneven level of
development among the Third World Countries. This unevenness also led to
divisions between the Third World Countries by the end of the 1960s. Some group
of the Third World countries such as Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand
and Philippines maintained anti-communist stance, which brought an end to the
Third World as a united voting bloc in international relations and in the
United Nations, splitting it along ideological lines. This internal divisions
on many fronts; economic, political and social led to the failure of the Third
World bloc in surviving into the 21st century. [6]
Neo-colonialism and the
Persistence of Western Capitalism in Post-colonial Africa
Neo-colonialism is viewed
differently by diverse scholars. Generally, the concept is seen as the
persistence of colonialism in Africa in the 21st century. Some
Scholars attributed the concept of neo-colonialism to Jean-Paul Sartre, a
leading French anti-colonial activist and writer who used the term in 1956.
Other scholars trace the origin of the word to Leninism in which it is referred
to as the new form of colonial domination over independent African States in
the Post-colonial period. In this regard, the western capitalist countries rely
on the resources and manpower of their former colonies in order to preserve
their dependence on Europe by granting them independence. This independence
however has been described as a political one, without the accompanying
economic freedom or independence for
African states. Neo-colonialism is also seen as a new form of colonial policy
with new hidden mechanisms intended to reinforce capitalism, maximize profit
and maintain the economic, political, military and ideological dominance and
influence of Africa by the western capitalist countries. In other words, from
the above summations, Neo-colonialism was only a subtle continuation of
colonialism and imperialism in the Post-independent Africa. In the All African
people’s conference resolution of 1961, the concept of neo-colonialism was
defined as;
The survival of the colonial system in spite of formal
recognition of political independence in emerging countries, which become
victims of an indirect and subtle form of domination by political, economic,
social, military, or technical means.
Furthermore, in the Leninist
worldview as noted earlier, neo-colonialism is seen as adapted form of
colonialism which takes advantage of the inherent weaknesses of the newly
decolonized states of Africa, Asia and Latin America in order to achieve,
political, economic and cultural benefits for the colonizing powers. In this
view, the goal of neo-colonialism is the same as during colonialism, which is
to ensure that the former colonies remain in a dependent position which
facilitates their continuous exploitation. However, what changed in the
transition from colonialism to neo-colonialism are only the mechanisms applied
to ensure continuous dependence. Some of these neo-colonial mechanisms as highlighted
by Haag, Diana include; the control and fixing of prices for raw materials by
the dominant or capitalist power, the obligation to buy certain amounts of
manufactured and uncompetitive products from the former colonial master and to
sell a determined quantity of raw materials in exchange, the monopoly of the
metropolis on the transport of goods, the conditionality of aid sustaining the
commercial interests of the donor country (such as the lowering of trade
barriers, the obligation to use part of the aid to buy goods or to favour
companies of the donor country), the control of capital through imposed foreign
exchange rates and banking systems, the imposed right to influence internal
financial decisions, foreign influence in policy making through bribery of the
local administration or instalment of civil servants in high positions,
assistance in political coups, the presence and interventions of the military
of the neo-colonial ruler, etc.[7]
these and many more are the noticeable mechanisms of neo-colonialism in
Post-colonial African societies. Neo-colonialism has influence in the economic,
political, educational, cultural and social life of the countries affected.
In similar vein, Kwame Nkrumah while making reference to the colonial and Post-colonial experiences of Francophone countries in West Africa, he asserted that while France granted political independence to French speaking countries in the 1950s and 1960s, the newly independent states which became autonomous and obtained international sovereignty however were under adverse conditions such that the newly independent francophone countries had to maintain all their economic, commercial, financial and military links to France. Therefore, in order to exist as independent states, these Francophone countries were forced to accept French aid. Nkrumah further traced the origin of French aid to the competitive advantages which French Firms and Business merchants derived from the African Franc zone, which also determined the framework in which the aid is provided. So long as the relationship which the aid provided to France was profitable, the aid continued to be given. In return for these aids given to its newly independent former colonies, France was guaranteed markets and prices for primary products such as coffee, cocoa, groundnut, beans, bananas and cottons. The African states in return had to import from France fixed quantity of goods such as; machinery, textiles, sugar, and flour. The countries were also forced to limit their imports of manufactured products from countries outside the Franc zone.
Therefore, Nkrumah believed that aids of these type can determine Africa’s relations with the developed and western capitalist world, which may become extremely dangerous to the recipient countries. Furthermore, Nkrumah believed that all African countries which have now become independent are subject to some degree of neo-colonialist pressures, which they cannot escape, even though they struggle and try so hard to do so. He however believed there was a difference between countries that accepted neo-colonialism as a policy, and those that resisted it. In this regards, Nkrumah regarded the colonial problems of Africa as largely neo-colonial. Furthermore, he described modern day neo-colonialism as based upon the control of nominally independent states by giant capitalist financial interests. On this note, Nkrumah declared that the only way Africa can develop industrially is if the artificial boundaries that divide the countries of the continent are broken, so as to provide for viable and profitable economic units, and to ultimately provide for a single currency in the continent.
He further emphasized on the need for a common
currency and the development of communication of all kinds so as to allow the
free flow of goods and services. Due to the fragmentation of Post-colonial
African states into too many small and uneconomic/non-viable units, majority of
the countries are struggling hard to survive in a globalized economic that is
unfavorable for these newly independent and weak states. This accounts for the
reason why at independence, many of these newly independent African states had
to cling to and maintain their old ties with their former colonial masters,
which made them vulnerable and fall prey to neo-colonial forces. Therefore,
Nkrumah staunchly advocated for an economic unification of all African states
which would benefit those African countries that are industrializing, and grant
them access to a wider market. Similarly, with economic unification of all
African states, he believed that the domination of African countries by foreign
firms will be ended, which will lead to economic growth and progress.[8]
Neo-colonialism and Decolonization in the 21st century
In the modern times, neo-colonialism
has been perpetuated in new forms and dimensions. Having passed through the
experience of slave trades, imperialism, colonialism, apartheid,
neo-colonialism, neo-liberalism and currently globalization, African countries
have remained in a lopsided and asymmetrical power relations with the Global
West. In this view, Sabeloj. Ndlovu believed that the decolonization movement
of the 1960s to 1970s in Africa did not succeed in removing coloniality. He
however, made a clear distinction between colonialism and coloniality,
asserting that coloniality survived the direct end of colonialism and has
remained persistent ever since. Furthermore, coloniality is seen as a
continuous existence of the imperialistic, racialized, Euro-American centric
and Christian-centric worldview that was introduced from the time of the
discovery of the new world. Since then, this power and economic structure
developed into a global capitalist and imperialist system. Therefore, in order
to eradicate coloniality in Africa, Sabeloj. Ndlovu recommended that
decoloniality which is borne out of a realization of the asymmetrical nature of
the world order and global economic system must be adopted. Furthermore, in
quoting Michael Hardt and Anthony Negri in their book; Empire, it is believed
that the current international order which European modernity has continuously
proposed and reproposed since the Peace of Westphalia is gradually collapsing
and in crisis. Furthermore, Arturo Escobar in his book; The making and Unmaking of the Third World believes that the
current global economic, political and security crisis emanates from the
reality of modernity which created modern problems, in which there are no
modern solutions. This current crisis in the western civilization was equally
observed and aptly noted by Aime Cesare who stated that;
A civilization that proves incapable of solving the problems
it creates is a decadent civilization. A civilization that chooses to close its
eyes to its most crucial problems is a stricken civilization. A civilization
that uses its principles of trickery and deceit is a dying civilization.
Therefore, this crisis in western
civilization led to the decolonial struggles in Africa and the Third world from
the late 1950s and throughout the 1960s and 1970s, which were premised on the
outright rejection of colonialism, imperialism and neocolonialism. Some of the
modern problems confronting western civilization include; ecological
destruction, climate change, global migration, increasing level of
inequalities, poverty, etc. Decolonization therefore in this regard can be used
to describe the withdrawal of direct colonialism from the former colonies, as
well as the struggles against the empires that were reluctant to give up their
colonies or colonial possessions. In this regard, South Africa became the last
colony to decolonize from an internal form of white colonialism called
apartheid in 1994.[9]
The major theoretical framework of neocolonialism is centred on the control of the economy of a former colonized territory through foreign actors which serves to reveal the continuity of colonialism. In other words, neocolonialism is a continuation of colonialism in disguise or in another form. Therefore, decolonization is seen as an anti-imperialist move to oust foreign multinationals who serve as agents of colonialism in Africa. It must also be noted that when analyzing decolonization and neo-colonialism in the 21st century, the question of economic globalization must also come into play. Globalization has been closely linked by many Scholars to European expansion and European colonialism since the 15th century. In this regard, economic globalization has been a major driver of the dichotomy in the global economic system from the 1950s to date. It is reflected in the inordinate concentration of trade flows within just three regions of the world; Western Europe, North America, as well as East and Southeast Asia. This uneven and triadization of the global economy has left many Post-colonial African states on the losing side in an ever competitive global economy. However, economic globalization still serve to perpetuate the long existing colonial division of labour, with raw materials production centred in Africa and the Third World, while technological production is concentrated in the Industrialized western countries and some Asian countries.
The IMF and World
Bank have been known since the 1960s to be the core institutions of the western
capitalist global institutions. The World Trade Organization which was created
in 1995 have also been accused of free trade imperialism, while the IMF and
World Bank through their injurious structural Adjustment Programmes and
austerity measures against countries of Africa and the Third World have further
perpetuated neo-colonialism. Neo-colonialism in these institutions is revealed
in the voting rights on the executive boards of the IMF and World Bank, which
is weighed according to the capital shares of each member country. The western
capitalist countries, especially the United States which pays the highest
shares have the highest voting rights. In the World Bank, the Executive
Directors from Germany, France and Britain together have more than twice as
many votes (11.96%) as compared to the representatives of over 50 African countries
combined. Therefore, the strict conditionality attached to the IMF and World
Bank loans/credit facilities serves to reflect neo-colonial and neo-liberal
influences of these organizations. The debt servicing of the loans offered to
African and Latin America countries by the IMF and World Bank has not led to a
reduction of the mountain of debts, but have served to continue perpetuate it
and also led to the expansion of the debt service payments. This is what is
referred to as the debt trap.[10]
CONCLUSION
Therefore in all these analysis,
what does decolonization entails for
African countries in a fast advancing, digitizing and increasingly competitive
global economy?
Decolonization in the 21st
century will entail Africa and the third world countries to consciously break
free from the western capitalist system and its institutions which had
impoverished African societies from times past. Decolonization which is
generally believed to have started from the period or decade of independence in
Africa and the colonized world, which led to an outright rejection of
colonialism and all its influences, however can be traced much earlier to the
period of the various forms of resistance instigated by African States and
Rulers such as Shaka the Zulu, Oba Overamuen of Benin, Nana of Itshekiri
kingdom, Mammy Yoko of the Mende tribe, Queen Nzinga of Angola, King Ghezo of
the Abomey empire, etc against slavery and imperialist penetration into their territories..
Decolonization is also regarded as the undoing of colonialism. In the 21st
century, decolonization will take the form of charting new economic paths for
African countries, it will also entail seeking new forms of partnership and
bilateral relations with other countries across the world, far away from the
West which will be a form of break from the long-entrenched western imperialism
and hegemony. The subject of decolonization must transcend beyond just
political independence which was attained by the colonized territories to also
include other forms of independence such as economic, social and cultural.
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Paper presented at the second edition of the Pan-African Assembly Conference, with the theme: Imperialism, Neo-colonialism and Post-colonialism: The African Experience on 29th August, 2024, at the Institute of African Studies, University of Ibadan, Nigeria by: David Olushola Adejumo and Liu Shaojie.
David Adejumo: A Researcher, Poet and Graduate Student of History Department, University of Ibadan.
Liu Shaojie: A Researcher and Graduate Student of the Institute of African Studies, Zhejiang Normal University, China.
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