French Colonialism in North Africa:
Preliminary Results of the Afristory project
Denis Cogneau (PSE-IRD)
with Hédi Brahimi (PSE)
Work in progress
Please do not quote
From colonial to present
Preemptive colonization in Africa end-19th century
(competition between European nations)
 Little ‘development’, or capitalist exploitation
 Minimal administration + economic extraction
 Legacy of ‘gatekeeper states’ today (Cooper)
However settlement colonies were different
 More capital, more wage labor, larger States
 Racial separatism more salient / violent
 ‘Enclave’ economy
 What was left when settlers were ousted?
Questions
Comparing Algeria, Tunisia, and Morocco
also Indochina, AOF, AEF, Madagascar
Algeria : colony governed by settlers, at least after 1870 or 1900
Tunisia & Morocco: protectorates  metropolitan govt had more say
Others: non-settler
1) How the size of the State varied across colonies?
2) Was there ‘development’ outside of the ‘settler enclave’ and in
which dimensions?
3) Political economy:
Who paid? / Who benefitted?
 Incidence analysis of taxation and expenditures + international transfers
Missing data
Very few works in quantitative economic history of
colonized areas in Africa or Asia, and even fewer of
the comparative kind
British Empire: Davis & Huttenback (1986) for 18601912, Booth (2007) for E/SE Asia 1900-1960
French North Africa:
- Nouschi (1961) on Constantine area 1830-1919
- Amin (1966) on economic accounts of colonization
and decolonization (Maghreb)
- Marseille (1984) on the costs-benefits of Empire
« Afristory » project
(1st part)
Exhaustive Pub. Fin. data for the 19th c. French Empire:
Algeria (1830), Indochina (1871, GG: 1899), Tunisia (1881), Madagascar
(1898), Western Africa (1865, GG: 1905), Equatorial Africa (1899, GG:
1910), Morocco (1913), Togo & Cameroon (1920)
Federal governments, territories, provinces, municipalities
+ Metropolitan ministerial budgets
+ Appendix budgets for public loans
+ Data on population, health, schooling, production…
*: Dates of first budget, not necesarily for the whole territory, due to the
conquest. GG: date of « General Government » first budget. Syria-Lebannon
(1920-45) is still to be included.
Top-incomes in former colonies
with Alvaredo, Atkinson and Piketty
Income tax was introduced in British and French
colonies after WW1
Measurement of inequality at the top
- Alvaredo & Atkinson (2011) on South Africa
- Atkinson (2013) on other British colonies of Africa
- Alvaredo, Cogneau & Piketty (ongoing) on French colonies
(Algeria, Tunisia, Indochina, Cameroon)
Caution
Data are difficult:
Demography
Prices and incomes
Changes in administrative layers
Categorization of expenditure & revenue
…
A few preliminary results
1. Colonial State not too different in size in
Algeria compared to Tunisia, Morocco lagging
2. Development outcomes not too ≠ either, as of
1937 or 1955
- Income level and income inequality
- Health and infrastructure
3. However higher dualism in Algeria?
Repression of indigenous education, visible after WW2
(see also Kateb 2004, Sraieb 1993)
French Empire: Population 1936
2,608,313
6,296,000
Indochine
23,250,000
7,234,684
AOF + Togo
Madagascar
Cameroun
AEF
3,421,749
Algérie
Maroc
2,341,000
Tunisie
3,797,900
15,463,000
Syria-Lebanon and earlier colonies (West Indies, Indian Ocean, Pacific) not included
Metropolis: 41,905,968. Total French Empire: 64,412,646.
Europeans and French (1936)
Européens
(%)
Dont Français
(%)
Israélites non français
(%)
Algérie
13.6
10.4
-
Tunisie
8.2
4.1
2.3
Maroc
3.8
2.4
2.6
Indochine
0.2
-
-
Madagascar
1.0
-
-
A.O.F. + Togo
0.2
-
-
A.E.F.
0.1
-
-
Source: Cogneau et al. (2014)
Wage levels
Purchasing power of unskilled workers' wages around 1938
(A)
Daily wage
(francs)
(B)
Price of
1600 kcal per day
in rice or wheat
(francs)
(C)= (A)/(B)
Wage
ratio
Algérie
16.4
1.6
10.4
Tunisie
20.0
1.5
13.1
Maroc
6.8
1.1
6.1
Indochine
2.5
0.7
3.4
-
0.9
-
A.O.F. (capitales)
4.5
-
-
A.E.F. (Brazzaville)
3.8
1.2
3.0
Madagascar
(A): Salaire minimum du manoeuvre non spécialisé (sauf Indochine: salaire moyen)
(B): Retail price of 441g of rice (Indochine, Madagascar, AEF), or 472 g of wheat flour (Algérie, Tunisie, Maroc)
Source: Cogneau et al. (2014)
Size of the colonial State (1)
Non-military public expenditures per capita, 1937 francs
1870
1913
1937
1955
194
390
1,052
3,490
With social security transfers
(b)
194
390
1,125
5,218
72
201
282
741
With social security transfers
(c)
72
201
282
930
Tunisie
Maroc(c)
-
169
25
213
107
625
370
Indochine(d)
Madagascar(d)
A.O.F. (avec Togo)(d)
A.E.F. (hors Cameroun)(d)
-
47
49
30
30
40
65
44
52
195
128
193(e)
France métropolitaine(a)
Algérie
(a): Including counties and municipalities, excluding debt service, and social security. Source: André, Delorme, Terny (1973). (b):
Gouvernement général, départements et communes (c): Budget du gouvernement (d): Gouvernement général, territoires, et budgets
annexes d'emprunts (y.c. FIDES) (e): 1952.
Source: Cogneau et al. (2014)
Size of the colonial state (2):
Share of State expenditures in GDP
France
Algérie
Tunisie
Maroc
1871
5%
5%
1913
6%
9%
11%
1937
13%
10%
9%
5%
Non-military. Debt service and Social security transfers not included
France: André, Delorme, Terny (1973)
GDP figures for Algérie, Tunisie, M aroc: Amin (1966)
1955
29%
26%
23%
15%
Enclave State?
Counterfactual exercise: Public spending per capita among indigenous people if Europeans
"receive" the metropolitan figure
1913
1937
1955
Europeans
390
1050
3,800
Algerians
173
160
424
Tunisians
152
138
425
Moroccans
16
70
216
Indochinese
46
39
-
Malagasy
48
58
153
A.O.F. (avec Togo)
29
42
116
A.E.F. (hors Cameroun)
30
51
177
Top-income shares 1955
Top 0.1%
2,9%
2,9%
Top 0.01%
0,7%
0,8%
South Rhodesia
7,4%
1,8%
North Rhodesia
4,9%
1,2%
Algérie
Tunisie
South Africa
France
Top 1%
10,8%
10,5%
14,4%
3,6%
9,3%
2,5%
0,7%
Algérie & Tunisie: Alvaredo, Cogneau & Piketty (2014)
British colonies: Atkinson (2013) and Alvaredo & Atkinson (2011); France: Piketty (2009)
Caution: preliminary estimates, subject to changes
Tunisie: 1) Europeans made 80% of top 1%, 0.1% or 0.01%
2) Around 20% Europeans (resp. 1.2% Tunisians) paid the tax
3) Top 0.1%: 50% of Europeans are salaried, 25% of Tunisians
4) More equal distributions within groups: Top 1% around 7%
Infrastructure
Public spending
infrastructure
per capita
1937
(1937 francs)
Kwh
per capita
Kwh
per capita
1937
1955
-
433.4
1,158.7
Algérie
89.9
35.3
92.2
Tunisie
42.1
19.4
58.2
Maroc
26.6
21.2
85.9
Indochine
8.3
5.9
-
Madagascar
13.1
3.4
11.5
A.O.F. + Togo
11.9
0.5
6.0
A.E.F.
18.7
0.3
8.9
Métropole
Source: Cogneau et al. (2014)
Health
Public spending
in health
per capita
1937
(1937 francs)
Medical staff
per 100,000
inhabitants
1937
Medical staff
per 100,000
inhabitants
1955
-
143.7(a)
-
Algérie
12.0
28.4
28.4
Tunisie
22.7
30.9
28.8
Maroc
6.3
7.2
12.0
Indochine
3.1
3.3
-
Madagascar
6.7
-
-
A.O.F. + Togo
4.5
5.2
-
A.E.F.
6.0
-
-
Métropole
(a) : 1934
Source: Cogneau et al. (2014)
Education
Algérie
Gross primary Public spending Gross primary Public spending
enrollment ratio in education enrollment ratio in education
1936
per capita
1956
per capita
Indigenous
1937
Indigenous
1955
(%)
(1937 francs)
(%)
(1937 francs)
(a)
(e)
7.4
26.6
13.3
Tunisie
8.2
26.1
24.0(a)
-
18,178(c)
Maroc
1.4
13.0
11.6
65.5
12,220(c)
11.9
3.1
(1943: 14.9)
-
(1943: 19,754)
5.3
26.7
13.7
15,317
(a)
2.0
9.0
9.2
14,948
(a)
2.2
23.5
(a)
9.3
1,357
(a)
0.8
17.0
(a)
5.1
3,640
Indochine
(b)
(c)
Madagascar
16.1
A.O.F.
2.1
Togo
5.2
A.E.F.
3.0
(a)
70.2
Enrollment in
secondary
1956
Indigenous
(N)
(c)
3,888
(d)
(d)
d)
Traditional koranic schools not counted.
(a) : Estimates, assuming 100% enrollment of European children (b) : Enrollment in indigenous schools.
(c): Public only (d): Europeans & Indigenous (e): General government only
Source: Cogneau et al. (2014)
d)
Political economy of public finance:
more questions than answers
Enclave economy
The scale of the State expanded with the size of settler economy
-
After WW1, European settlers most likely paid a large share of direct and
indirect taxes collected on trade, urban sector, or high incomes
(e.g. Nicolaï 1962 on Tunisia)
-
Also first beneficiaries from the bulk of public expenditures
Yet the exact balance is difficult to compute…
-
(Non-indemnized expropriation at independence: extent?)
Metropolitan taxpayer: subsidiziation of the enclave economy?
- Trade deficits w.r.t. metropolis (also rest of the world), with
exceptions in 1930s, and especially in 1950s (Marseille 1984)
- Partly compensated by budget surpluses until 1950s
- End-of-period public loans and private capital losses?
- Paid for military expenditures (Bobrie 1976 for 1850-1913)
Trade and Public Finance
Trade deficits, and budget surpluses (millions 1937 francs)
1913
1937
1955
Trade
Budget
Trade
Budget
Trade
Budget
Algérie
-975
+133
+250
+114
-4,433
+33
Tunisie
+202
+459
-183
+371
-972
-
Maroc
-829
-34
-621
+28
-2,241
-24
Indochine
+220
+109
+1,010
+76
-
-
Madagascar
+71
+41
+125
+14
-510
-17
A.O.F.
-147
+41
-164
+59
-454
+177
A.E.F.
+64
+10
+33
+29
-700
+29
Total
-1,393
+750
+449
+669
-9,310
+198
Budget surplus / deficit: Including loans received and debt payments (capital and interest).
Source: Cogneau et al. (2014)
Thank you
‫شكرا‬
Merci
谢谢