Topic 4: Africa Political Geography –
From Kingdoms to Nationhood

Introduction

Indigenous Heritage
- Africa: Cradle of Civilization
- Era of Ancient Civilization
- Bantu Migration
- Era of Medieval Civilization and
Modern Kingdoms
- Significance of the History of
Indigenous Heritage
Topic 4: Africa Political Geography –
From Kingdoms to Nationhood

Islam in Africa

History of Western Heritage in Africa
- Period of Initial European Contact
- Period of Enslavement of Africans
- Period of Land Exploration
- Period of Colonial Rule in Africa
- Consequences of Colonialism in
Africa
Political Geography of Africa:
Introduction

Africa triple heritage:
- Indigenous heritage
- Islamic heritage
- Western heritage

all influence cultural landscape of Africa

western and northeastern parts of Africa
experienced a longer history of indigenous
influences
Political Geography of Africa:
Introduction

eastern and southern parts have a more
recent history

history of the indigenous heritage of Africa:
- Africa as a cradle of civilization
- era of ancient civilization
- Bantu migratory patterns prior to
European contacts
- era of medieval civilizations and modern
kingdoms
Political Geography of Africa:
Introduction

Islam arrived in Africa in the 8th century
through trade and Jihad

history of western heritage:
- period of initial contact
- enslavement of Africans to the Americas
- age of land exploration
- balkanization of Africa and the
colonial period
Indigenous Heritage:
Africa - Cradle of Man

Homo sapiens first appeared in Africa some
150,000 to 200,000 years ago

evolutionary succession leading to
humankind includes:
- early hominid called australopithecine
appeared some 4 million years ago
-
fossil evidence uncovered in South Africa,
East Africa rift valley, and Afar
depression
African Origin of Homo Sapiens
Indigenous Heritage:
Africa - Cradle of Man
-

its brain size, shape of teeth and jaw,
skeletal characteristics differentiated it
from both the higher apes and the human
species (Homo)
a more advanced hominid called Homo habilis
appeared some 2.4 million years ago
-
it has larger brain and a tool maker
it used simple stone tools and lived in
encampments
Indigenous Heritage:
Africa - Cradle of Man

Homo erectus appeared 1.8 million years ago
- more erect posture and larger brain
- devised a variety of more sophisticated tools
- lived in savanna environments close to
large water bodies

the appearance of Homo sapiens is well
documented in the discovery of Zinjanthropos
in Olduvai Gorge and the discovery of Lucy in
Ethiopia
Indigenous Heritage:
Era of Ancient Civilization

important civilizations during this era
include:
- Egypt (c. 3000 B.C. to 1580 B.C.?)
- Kush with capital Meroe (c. 2000 B.C. to
300 A.D.)
- Nok (c. 500 B.C. to 200 A.D.)
- Axum (c.200 B.C. to 700 A.D.)
- Nubia (c. 500 to 700 A.D.)
- Carthage (Libyan-Berber State)
African Kingdoms and Empires
Indigenous Heritage:
Era of Ancient Civilization

some of the ancient kingdoms became Christian
empires (Axum, Kush, and Ethiopia) which
flourished till the arrival of Islam in 8th century

common features of ancient civilization include:
- well-established political structures with
strong central government
- extensive use of iron technology for making
tools and weapons
- major centers of iron-making include:
Nok, Nubia,Egypt and Lake Victoria District
Iron-Technology Centers and Diffusion Routes
Indigenous Heritage:
Era of Ancient Civilization
- most parts of Africa did not experience the
bronze age between the stone age and the
iron age (notable exceptions: Nubia and
Egypt)
-
iron-making people expanded territorially
at the expense of those using only stone
tools and weapons
Indigenous Heritage:
Era of Ancient Civilization
-
well-established farming system with
production of food surplus through
domestication of plants like:
cereals: teff, finger millet, bulrush millet,
sorghum, African rice
 Roots and Tuber: yams
 Pulses: bambra groundnuts, cowpeas
 Oil Crops: castor oil, oil palm, shea butter
 Starch and Sugar Plants: ensete
 Vegetables: okra, garden eggs
 Stimulants: coffee, kola and Fiber: cotton

Indigenous Heritage:
Era of Ancient Civilization

Crops introduced into Africa:
- banana and yams from Asia
- corn and cassava from the Americas in the
16th century

agricultural innovations occurred in the
following cultural hearths:
Egypt, Ethiopia Plateau, West Africa Savanna,
Forest-Savanna Boundary
Indigenous Heritage:
Era of Ancient Civilization
-
elaborate irrigation networks like the
Egyptian network of dikes and irrigation
channels controlling the annual floods of
the Nile
-
hillside terracing in Axum
-
well established cities with impressive
architecture: Meroe ruins of stone
buildings (Kush kingdom)
Indigenous Heritage:
Era of Ancient Civilization
- well established long distance trade
networks and exchange economy like
that between Nok and Carthage
- impressive Africa arts and
sculptures:
terra cotta sculptures of the Nok
 Egyptian Great Sphinx and Pyramids

Bantu Migration

Began at about 5000 B.C.

originated from areas around the Benue
River

occurred in stages over a period of five
millennia

two major directions of migration:
- eastward stream of migration towards the
Lake District of East Africa following the
savanna corridor
Pathways of Bantu Migration
Bantu Migration
- southward stream of migrants through
Cameroon into the rainforest and Central
Africa regions

the two groups rejoined in south-central
Africa about 1500 years ago

Bantu migration was over by 1000 A.D.

Bantu migrants encountered stone-age
aborigines, like the Khoisan people, with no
elaborate economic and political associations
Bantu Migration

Bantu migrants inter-married with the
aborigines and some assimilated into the
Bantu culture

Bantu migrants were mainly farmers and used
iron tools and weapons

Bantu migrants introduced innovations:
- iron smelting technology
- herding of cattle & crop cultivation
- superior political and economic structures
- new forms of social organization
Bantu Migration
-
established important empires in East
and Central Africa: Loango, Kongo, Luba,
Zimbabwe,Changamire

Other Migrant Groups:
 Madagascar was settled by Indonesians >1500
years ago

people of Caucasian origin originating in the
Sahara, North Africa and Arabian Peninsula
Bantu Migration

Berber-speaking peoples intermingled with
Negroes of the Sahara

Arabs occupied the Red Sea and East
African coast

Arabian cities which became important
points of trade and cultural development

pastoral Fulani extended their grazing
territories from their Senegambia base into
the savanna all the way to Lake Chad
Bantu Migration
 these
recurrent processes of migration,
diffusion and assimilation are important
in the evolution of ethnic and cultural
maps of Africa
Main Ethnic Groups in Africa
Indigenous Heritage: Medieval
Civilization
 includes
empires with well developed
political structures and social orders
 in West Africa,
they include early sudanic
empires:
- Ghana (A.D. 700 - 1070)
- Mali (A.D. 1230 - 1430)
- Songhai (A.D. 1460 - 1590)
Indigenous Heritage: Medieval
Civilization

main distinguishing features of the sudanic
empires from the ancient empires:
- Islam was an important organizing
philosophy (example: Mali and Songhai)
- depended on extensive Trans-Saharan
trade networks which exchanged local
products: gold, salt, ivory, ostrich feathers,
hides and slaves, for North African goods:
dried fruits and cowries
- control of gold and salt mines
- use of iron implements
Trade Routes in the 16th Century
Indigenous Heritage: Medieval
Civilization

collapse of the sudanic states shifted the
power base towards the forest belt

in southern Africa, Karanga evolved with
Great Zimbabwe as its capital

Great Zimbabwe was a city built of stone
without mortar and has remarkable ruins of
stone towers and walls
Indigenous Heritage: Medieval
Civilization

Karanga produced gold for international trade

no major civilizations in East Africa except for
a few important city states

the city-states created between A.D. 700 and
1500 as trading points between the Arabs and
people across the Indian Ocean

important city-states:
Mogadishu, Kilwa, Mombasa, Sofala, etc
Indigenous Heritage: Medieval
Civilization

late medieval period saw the emergence of
more states in West Africa, East and
Central Africa that later evolved into
modern kingdoms
Indigenous Heritage:
Era of Modern Kingdoms

include kingdoms after 1600 or after the
collapse of medieval civilizations

include the forest kingdoms of West Africa:
Ashanti, Benin, Oyo, Dahomey, Futa Toro,
Fonta Djallon, Jolof, Segu, Nupe, Cayor and
Boal

kingdoms protected trade routes and their
people
Indigenous Heritage:
Era of Modern Kingdoms

kingdoms initially engaged in trans-Saharan
trade on gold, ostrich feathers, salts and slaves

coastal trading emerged after European
arrived

large-scale slave trade began

European weapons (guns and gun powder)
used for political expansion and slave raids
Indigenous Heritage:
Era of Modern Kingdoms

kingdoms in Central and East Africa include:
Kuba, Lunda, Malawi, Burundi, Rwanda,
Buganda, Shona, Angola, etc

very few modern kingdoms in southern Africa
because the San people were hunter-gatherers

however, threats of over population and over
grazing set in motion the shaking up of the
peoples in southern Africa called Mfecane
Indigenous Heritage:
Era of Modern Kingdoms
 resistance
to European control, and
the need to organize trade and
defense prompted the creation of
kingdoms like: Zulu, Ndebele, and
Sotho in the middle of the 19th
century
Significance of the History of the
Indigenous Heritage
 revealed
the rich history of Africa and its
great contributions to the collective
human history
 disproved
the general stereotyping of
Africa as uncivilized and barbaric
 revealed
a well defined social structure,
division of labor, cities, trade network
and communication systems
Significance of the History of the
Indigenous Heritage

revealed a history of diverse socio-political
organizations

revealed rich history with cultural symbols
proudly displayed in non-African museums

traditional forms of governance, social
organization based on lineage and kinship and
the traditional religious value systems are
evident in all aspects of daily living of Africans
Significance of the History of the
Indigenous Heritage

forms the foundation of present-day culture
and has influenced the spatial organization
and development of the region

It has interacted with Islamic and western
influences to produce social unrest, political
instability and economic and cultural
dependency

source of inspiration and identity (names of
African countries reflect its ancient history)
Islam in Africa

spread to Africa in about 700 A.D.

spread along three major pathways:
- East African Coast Spread:
first wave of spread began at about 700 A.D.
 through trade contacts between Arabian
traders and Africans along the coast

-
Trans-Saharan Trade Route Spread:
second wave of spread began at about 900 A.D.
and continued till 19th century
 facilitated by trans-Saharan trade routes

Islam in Africa
-
Islam was later spread by holy wars
called Jihads
-
Also spread by Fulani zealots, preachers
and warriors in search of grazing lands

-
helped to advance the political dreams of the
Fulani aristocracy
Spread into Egypt

spread by trade into Egypt and the horn of
Africa
Islam in Africa

major Islamic regions:
- North Africa & East Africa Coastlands
- Horn of Africa
- Sahel and Savanna belts of West Africa

forest belt & interior parts of eastern and
southern Africa were hardly impacted by Islam

prevalence of tse-tse fly and forest trees limited
the spread of Islam into the forest belt by
Moslems riding on horse backs
Some Impacts of Islam in Africa

educational systems in Islamic regions
(Koranic Schools flourished)

Arabic language favored and flourished

import of Arabian architectural designs
favored and flourished

political systems and laws (Sharia Laws
introduced)
Some Impacts of Islam in Africa

dominance of Fulani aristocracy in West
Africa politics

Islamic heritage was not as disruptive of
African indigenous heritage because it
accepted major African practices such as:
- polygamy
- female circumcision
- use of African drums in certain religious
practices
History of Western Heritage
 occurred
in four main periods:
- Period of Initial European Contact
- Period of Enslavement of Africans
- Period of Land Exploration
- Period of Colonial Rule
Period of Initial European Contact:
1430 - 1500
 The
result of European search for sea
route to India to continue their trade on
silk, porcelain, spies
 first
contact was with Portuguese
navigators at about 1434
 first
contacts were limited to the coast
because existing kingdoms refused
European penetration into the interior
Period of Initial European Contact:
1430 - 1500

Europeans granted concessions to establish
trading posts and forts along the coast

about 50 forts established along the west coast

trade involved exchange of African goods like:
gold, ivory, kola nuts, palm produce for
European alcohol, guns and sugar

Portugal pushed out the Arabs in the East
African coast and established its headquarters
in Mombassa in 1592
Trading Points in Africa between the 16th &
18th Centuries
Period of Enslavement of Africans:
1500 - 1870

it is the period of Trans-Atlantic slave trade

Before then, slave trades occurred across the
Sahara desert and Indian Ocean

result of a high demand for plantation workers
in the Americas between the 16th and 19th
centuries

the commercial economy organized to facilitate
the capture, transportation & sale of slaves
Main Slave Trades in Africa
Period of Enslavement of Africans:
1500 – 1870

Portuguese and Spanish navigators were
among the first slave traders in the 15th
century

the English, Danes, Dutch, Swedes and French
joined the trade in late 16th century

peak of the slave trade was between 1700 and
1870 when about 80% of the slaves were
traded
Period of Enslavement of Africans:
1500 – 1870
 castles,
like the Elmina castle in Ghana,
were established as centers for slave trade
 elsewhere, African
intermediaries
assembled slaves at slaving entrepots
 the
slave trade was one element in a
triangular trade linking Europe, Africa
and the Americas
Sources of Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade
Period of Enslavement of Africans:
1500 – 1870

in the trade, European alcohol, guns, and other
manufactured goods were exchanged for
African slaves

the money obtained from selling the slaves
were used to purchase American gold, silver,
tobacco, sugar, and rum for European markets

6 to 30 million slaves were traded and probably
many more died during slave raids and in
transit
The Triangular Trade - Goods Exchanged
Period of Enslavement of Africans:
1500 – 1870

much of the slaves came from West African
coast all the way to Angola

African royalties who resisted the slave trade
include:
- Queen Nzinghu of Matamba in Angola
- Tomba of Baga (Guinea)
- King Nzega Meremba of Kongo
- King Agaja Trudo of Dahomey
Effects of Slave Trade

popularized the concept of race discrimination
by Europe because it was ok to enslave people
of different color

fostered the development of racist stereotypes
and myths in Europe

intensification of ethnic hatred, conflicts and
wars in Africa

depopulation of Africa, especially West Africa
Effects of Slave Trade

truncated the normal course of African
history and development

disruption of agriculture, manufacturing and
trading activities for over 400 years

a major cause of underdevelopment of Africa,
due to loss of productive labor force

European goods were mainly armaments and
luxury goods which did not provide the
impetus for development
Effects of Slave Trade
 emergence
of local aristocrats who
benefited from the slave trade
 powers
of the traditional rulers were
challenged by the new aristocratic class
and religious leaders resulting in frequent
unrest
 European
trading companies and
consular representatives exerted
increasing influence after the slave trade
Effects of Slave Trade
Effects in the Americas:
 slave labor kept the mines and plantations
producing and freed slaves worked as
sharecroppers

some slaves possessed skills in iron making
and weaving needed in the plantations

left a number of African cultural imprints in
the Americas:
– development of the Creole language
Effects in the Americas
– development of new religions based on the
worship of African deities
– or the mixing of African religion with Christian
worship:
Macumba
 Xango
 Umbanda in Brazil
 Santeria in Cuba and Puerto Rico

Effects in the Americas
– African folklore and Arts evident in African
American music culture: spiritual, gospel, blues,
jazz, soul, and reggae music share common
African roots
– European rulers and merchants benefited
materially from a slave- based economy
Period of Land Exploration: 1780 - 1884
 European
interest in Africa stopped
temporarily after the abolition of slave
trade
 Industrial
revolution in Europe provided
new reasons for Europe to maintain
further interest in Africa
 the
new interest is on Africa’s raw
materials and market for European
finished goods
Period of Land Exploration:
1780 – 1884
Reasons for the exploration of Africa's
interior include:
- determination of the resource
potentials of Africa's hinterlands
- scientific and geographic curiosity
- need to understand the land, culture
and people of Africa
Period of Land Exploration:
1780 – 1884

a number of explorers were sponsored by:
- Crowns or royalties in Europe
- scientific and geographic societies
- companies and merchants
- missionary societies

some of the explorers include:
- James Bruce (1783) explored the source of
the Nile River
- Mungo Park (1795-1806) explored the
source and mouth of the Niger River
Land Exploration in Africa
Land Exploration in Africa
Period of Land Exploration:
1780 – 1884
-
David Livingstone (1840-1873) explored
the Zambezi River, Lake Malawi, source
of the white Nile and large part of Central
Africa; He was sponsored by the London
Missionary Society
-
Burton and Speke explored the White
Nile to its source
-
Henry Stanley (1876) explored the Congo
and was sponsored by King Leopold II of
Belgium
Period of Land Exploration:
1780 – 1884
- Stanley obtained trade
concessions and signed treaties
for Leopold
- returning explorers presented
their findings to their sponsors
Results of the Land Exploration

provided detailed description of Africa's
landscapes, peoples, culture and resources

generated European interests in Africa
resources and trading opportunities

generated the interests of missionaries eager to
spread the gospel

aroused interests of the rich class seeking to
establish effective control over the newly found
riches in Africa
Results of the Land Exploration

set the stage for land hunting and intense
competition for territories in Africa
among European powers

missionaries, explorers, and commercial
agents paved the way for the
establishment of colonial rule in Africa
Land Exploration in Southern Africa

colonization of southern Africa began during
this period by the Dutch (Boer) and the British

After the fall of Portugal, the Dutch (Holland)
became the next European power

the Dutch established a service port or station
for her ships at Table Bay in 1652

the station grew to become Cape Town
Land Exploration in Southern
Africa

Cape Town grew very slowly to a population of
25,000 by 1800

Cape Town later became the base of the Dutch
East India Company

the company traded with the Indies on behalf of
the Netherlands government

the Dutch workers could not return home
because they were either criminals or deportees
Land Exploration in Southern
Africa

instead, retiring Dutch workers fought their
ways into the interior to settle on their own

when Holland declined, Britain became the new
European power by the end of the 18th century

in 1806, Britain took over the Cape Town area
but showed no interest in the interior
Land Exploration in Southern
Africa

the abolition of slave trade in British empire in
1833 & poor British attitude led to the mass
exodus of the remaining Dutch settlers from the
Cape onto the plateau in 1836

this came to be known as the First Great Trek

the Dutch settlers defeated the Zulus in the
battle of the Blood River in Natal during the
penetration
Land Exploration in Southern
Africa

the Dutch established two republics on the
plateau:
- Orange Free State Republic
- Republic of South Africa (called Transvaal)

the Second Great Trek of 1867 was initiated
when diamond was discovered on the Orange
River banks and large numbers of fortune
hunters moved-in
Colonization of South Africa
Land Exploration in Southern
Africa
 Britain
annexed the diamond region into
the Cape Colony
 the Third
Great Trek of 1884 was
initiated when large quantities of gold
was discovered near Johannesburg
 within
ten years, the population of
Johannesburg exceeded 100,000 white
settlers
Land Exploration in Southern Africa
 British
move to annex the gold region
provoked the Anglo-Boer war of 1899
 the
Dutch settlers (Boers) were defeated
but Britain allowed the Boers to join in
running the government
 the
Union of South Africa was
established by Britain in 1910
Land Exploration in Southern Africa

The Union is made up of the four territories
in the area:
- Natal Colony (British)
- Cape Colony (British)
- Orange Free State Republic
- Republic of South Africa (Transvaal)

Britain granted the Boers their desire to
exclude all Africans and non-whites from the
politics of the new union
Land Exploration in Southern Africa
 hence,
the Union of South Africa was
ruled by all-white electorate
 in
1948 when the Boers or Afrikaners
controlled the seats of government, racial
segregation was fully implemented
 the
union became the Republic of South
Africa in 1961.
European Spheres of Influence in 1884
Period of Colonial Rule (1884 - 1960)

>90% of Africa was still ruled by Africans by
1884

extension of European enclaves along the coast
into the hinterland occurred

French established its "spheres of influence"
over the Senegal River and Dahomey

British established its interest over the Gambia
River valley, Sierra Leone and South Africa
Period of Colonial Rule:1884 – 1960

Portugal established its presence over Angola
and Mozambique

by 1857, France recognized British sovereignty
over the Gambia River valley

in turn, Britain recognized France sovereignty
over Senegal River valley

by 1880, claims and counter claims over the
same territories by the major European powers
have reached conflict level
Period of Colonial Rule:1884 – 1960

the Berlin Conference of 1884/1885 helped to
resolve some of the conflicts by establishing the
ground rules for sharing the continent

at the conference:
- colonial possessions were consolidated
- problematic boundaries were defined and
delimited
- rules for effective occupation of territories
were established
Period of Colonial Rule:1884 – 1960

France wanted to establish a continuous and
interconnected empire from Algeria to
Congo

hence, French West Africa stretched across
the Sudan to the Guinea coast

but Britain and German quickly extended
their coastal trading stations inland in order
to halt France expansionism in West Africa
Period of Colonial Rule:1884 – 1960
 hence,
Britain penetrated the interior of:
- Sierra Leone
- Gold Coast (Ghana)
- Nigeria
 and
Germany penetrated the interior of:
- Togo
- Cameroon
British Colonial Empire

Britain wanted to establish a continuous
empire from Cairo to Cape Town

Used trading companies to penetrate Africa

penetrated Nigeria with the Royal Niger
Company

penetrated East Africa with British East
Africa Company of 1888 to gain control over
Uganda, Zanzibar and Kenya
British Colonial Empire

in Southern Africa, Cecil Rhodes helped
obtain mining concessions in
Bechuanaland (Botswana) and Rhodesia
(Zimbabwe and Zambia

British South Africa Company used to
penetrate and control Central Africa
Germany Colonial Empire

wanted to establish permanent homes in
Africa and spent its resources to develop its
territories

Germany colonized:
- Southwest Africa (Namibia)
- Togo and Cameroon
- German East Africa (Tanganyika,
Rwanda and Burundi)

lost its African possessions after the war to
the League of Nations
Colonial Possessions in1914
Germany Colonial Empire

League of Nations distributed German
possessions as follows:
– Togo and Eastern Cameroon given to France
– Tanganyika and Western Cameroon given to
Britain
– Rwanda and Burundi given to Belgium
– Southwest Africa (Namibia) given to South Africa

Italians established at Eritrea and Somaliland
but failed to conquer Ethiopian forces led by
Emperor Menelik II in 1896
Colonial Map of Africa in 1957
Germany Colonial Empire
 King
Leopold II of Belgium controlled
Congo Free State as his personal estate
but was taken over by the Belgian
government in 1914
 Ethiopia
and Liberia were never colonized
 colonialism
involved some form of
political and economic and cultural
domination
Colonial Policies
 colonies
run by administrative and
military officers
 operated
as an extension of the European
metropolitan state
 colonial
policies were developed in
Europe and often reflecting the political
climate of Europe rather than African
needs
Colonial Policies

main responsibility is to maintain law and
order at little or no cost to European tax payer

colonial officers:
- defined and delimited administrative
boundaries
- oversaw the immigration of administrators,
missionaries and settlers
- establish some form of government
machinery
Colonial Policies
- building infrastructures like railways
-
and services to help in moving goods
o the ports for export
promoting developments deemed to be
important to the metropolis
goals of the colonial state did not
include fostering development of
modern, self-reliant nation-states
because racist assumptions
underpinned colonialism in Africa
Colonial Policies

colonies with large number of white settlers
like Kenya, Rhodesia and South Africa,
were governed differently

the settlers had considerable powers which
were often used to legitimize their special
privileges

hence, restrictions were placed on the
economic and social choices of Africans,
Asians and Arabs in settler colonies
Colonial Policies

areas with very few settlers, British called them
protectorates

the indirect rule was introduced by the British
in the protectorates

indirect rule implemented in protectorates
where indigenous political systems were well
established

it is a rule through handpicked local chiefs told
what to say or do
Colonial Policies

they are used to implement unpopular colonial
policies, such as: tax collection, recruitment of
labor for colonial state projects

local chiefs were replaced or punished if they
become incompetent or too independent
minded

areas like the Igboland of Nigeria with no local
chiefs, or among the Swahili of Tanganyika
with no history of chieftaincy, the colonial sate
created chiefs and used them
Colonial Policies

areas of indirect rule witnessed little or no
development throughout the colonial era

the French relied on the policy of assimilation
where the objective is to get the people to
adopt the French way of life

Belgian colonial state adopted the paternalistic
policy & governed its territories with iron fist

Belgium limited education of Africans to the
elementary level.
Consequences of Colonialism

colonialism seen by colonizers as:
- a "civilizing mission" bringing peace among
warring rivals
- introduced western medicine and education
- construction of cities, ports, rail systems
- transformed African economies through the
development of mining and commercial or
large scale agriculture
- introduced legal and administrative systems
Consequences of Colonialism

the modernization perspective of colonialism
challenged by scholars from the dependency
school of thought:
- colonialism undermined indigenous
economies and society
- colonialism developed Europe and
underdeveloped Africa
- introduced economic structures that are
highly dependent on European economy
Consequences of Colonialism
-
introduced a dual economy:
cash crops (cocoa, coffee, tea, rubber, timber,
cotton, etc) and mineral export sector
 a traditional food crop sector

-
-
settlers in East Africa appropriated the
goods lands
introduced forced labor laws, poll and
house taxes
forced Africans to work in mines,
plantations and small holdings for wages to
pay taxes
Consequences of Colonialism
-
decline in local food production and a shift
toward preference for European rather
than African foods
colonial policies discouraged the
development of local industry and the
growth of traditional manufactured goods
development of transportation lines that
favor the movement of materials from
Africa interior to the ports for export
introduction of western models of
government that have failed
Consequences of Colonialism
- colonial governments were
authoritarian and local chiefs were
appointed into the colonial state for life
-
as a result, African heads of state want to
rule for life through the introduction of
one-party state (Nkrumah of Ghana,
Sekou Toure of Guinea, Kaunda of
Zambia and Mugabe of Zimbabwe)
-
transportation network has failed to
integrate the economy of Africa
Independence & Nationhood in
Africa

independence of Libya in 1951 started the
"wind of change" that swept south

struggle for independence was favored by:
- declining power of Europe after WW II
-
the shift of world power to 2 anti-colonial
nations; U.S.A. and the former U.S.S.R.
-
strong opposition to colonial injustice by
Pan-African movements of W. E. B. Du
Bois and Marcus Garvey
Independence & Nationhood in
Africa
-
series of six Pan-Africanists International
meetings between 1900 and 1946
-
sustained pattern of armed and passive
resistance by ordinary Africans (MauMau uprising in Kenya, Algerian war of
independence, etc)
-
local nationalists leaders, such as:
Nkrumah of Ghana
Azikiwe of Nigeria and
Senghor of Senegal, established political
Independence & Nationhood in
Africa
parties, trade unions and newspaper that
fought for justice and self-determination
-
first conference of independent African
States held in Accra in 1958 argued
strongly for national independence
-
OAU and Arab League became effective
platforms for anti-colonialism and proAfrican ideals
Independence & Nationhood in
Africa
- independence of India in 1947 stirred
much optimism in African colonies
 by
1960, a large number of African
colonies became independent
 most
independent states opted for
capitalist multi-party democratic system
of government and others opted for a
one-party socialist model
Cycle of Political Change
Independence & Nationhood in
Africa
IMPLICATIONS:
 independence resulted in the birth of nations
in Africa

many of the new nations were small both in
area and in population:
-
only six states have population that is more
than 20 million
-
10 states have population of < 5 million
African Countries
Independence & Nationhood in
Africa
 national
boundaries were inherited from
colonial period with some implications:
- boundaries reflected colonial interests
and divided ethnic communities into
two or more countries:
Somalis found in Somali, Ethiopia, Kenya
and Djoubiti
 Ewe people found in Ghana and Togo
 Hutu and Tutsi people found in Rwanda
and Burundi

Independence & Nationhood in
Africa
-
intensified religious conflicts as Muslims
& Christians are mixed up in countries
like Sudan, Nigeria, Ghana
-
high degree of contiguity resulting in
more neighbors than expected:

Zaire has nine neighbors hence, frequent
boundary disputes
Independence & Nationhood in
Africa

landlocked states causing fifteen
state dependency on neighbors for
access to world economy

hence, increased import prices and
lower returns on exports and a
politically weak state
Independence & Nationhood in
Africa
 African Transport
network designed
to service European markets rather
than African markets
African Rail Transport Network