As political and industrial revolution scoured across Europe in the 19th century, governments and businesses began to take a particular interest in a continent of Africa. Due to the challenges it presented in previous centuries, it was not susceptible to imperial conquest similar to the Western Hemisphere in the 16th century. With the outset of the Industrial Revolution, along with its subsequent aspiration for raw materials and potential markets, a new set of motivations helped shape the dispute whether or not to make a presence in Africa. From economic gain, to building a sense of national honor and pride, European powers consumed the continent below them with a mentality that only the “survival of the fittest” being able to prevail.…
In his examination of security threats and violence in Africa, Mangala (2010:88) defines conflict as a ‘dispute or incompatibility between two or more opposing sides... It becomes a destructive force where the capacity to mediate incompatible interests breaks down and those interests are pursued through violence, either at a community, national, or international level’. One of the most prevalent forms of violent conflict in Africa affecting states and civilians are civil wars. Collier & Hoeffler (2004:565) define civil wars as ‘an internal conflict with at least 1,000 combat-related deaths per year’. The greed vs grievance debate examines factors within these categories which drive civil wars.…
For many of us, conflict over natural resources is not a part of everyday life. But in many places around the world, access to natural resources cannot be taken for granted. Conflict over natural resources is often part of a larger struggle over political, social, and economic power. The control over water, land, and oil has economically and socially changed the world.…
The exploration of oil in Nigeria began on June 5 1956 after Shell-BP struck ‘black gold’ during a drilling expedition in Oloibiri, Bayelsa State in the Niger Delta region. Over the years, the Nigerian economy has become highly dependent on the exportation of oil as its main source of foreign exchange. Between 1972 and 2013, oil rents were averaged to account for 25 percent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) (World Development Indicators). Fuel exports as a percentage of Nigeria’s merchandise exports has risen from 10.3 percent in 1962 to 90.9 percent in 2014 (World Development Indicators).…
There are many dams built all over Africa because that is their main source for electric power. While some dams were a success, others were as successful. Because of poor planning, a lot of people had to move and ended up in refugee camps in which the hygiene was very poor and as a result, many diseases spread. Over a thousand wild animals relocated after the water rose in the dams. Because of the droughts in Africa, the supply of electricity had decreased.…
The Decolonization of Africa by David Birmingham is a detailed account of the struggle between African and European countries to decolonize. As many African countries began to come together, they decided that they were more fit to govern their own people than any outside controllers. However, in this essay I will argue that it was Ghana that created an African revolution and led to more countries becoming decolonized; but it was a long and difficult road for all countries and many things were sacrificed to achieve the ultimate goal of independence. The Decolonization of Africa created a timeline of the decolonization of many African colonies.…
With the majority of countries being in the Sub-Saharan Africa it takes a large amount of effort to unite all of them into a peaceful community. With wars, political corruption and disease spreading out, it can take away from natural opportunities that Sub- Saharan Africa has to offer such as the tourism industry that brings in a large part of any African country since they have so much to offer in the wildlife aspect. Most of those countries hold very specific advantages to their geography such as vast deserts and tropical forests. With vegetation and many different types of ecosystems this part of Africa has very large reserves in oil, which still makes this continent very significant to the rest of the world. Besides natural resources and conflicts this part of Africa is known to be the birthplace of early humans and is the roots of the human race.…
I. So do you guys remember Kony2012? Bet you haven’t heard that name in a while. While noble in its goals, it had a major flaw. It oversimplified the issue and focused on the obvious eg killing kids is bad.…
Mafurania The discovery of natural resources marks a point in a country’s history where either great development and economic prosperity can occur, such as in the United Arab Emirates, or, paradoxically, economic ruin (Coyle & Ralph, 2009: 153). The resource curse has burdened many African countries from the Central African Republic to Sudan. This essay briefly analyses the causes of the resource curse, policy initiatives to mitigate this harm and ultimately what democratic institutions Mafurania requires in order to ensure these policy initiatives are implemented and enforced. Through case studies of many African countries, such as the DRC these causes of the resource curse have been identified.…
There are many reasons that could explain underdevelopment in Sierra Leone, and for that matter in many African countries with shared experiences and similar backgrounds. The eleven-year civil conflict in Sierra Leone resulted in a large scale devastation of the economy, and of basically everything else in the country. The conflict has been perceived as the most important cause of poverty and underdevelopment in the country today. However, a civil conflict doesn’t just simply boil up out of nowhere. Which is why natural resources comes to the matter.…
INTRODUCTION: The book How Europe underdeveloped Africa is written by Walter Rodney and it was published in 1972. The book explains the relation that existed between Africa and Europe during the 15th Century to after the colonization of Africa. The book takes the view that Africa was deliberately exploited and underdeveloped by the European Colonial Regimes.…
Given the limited focus on African history in Western education this book provides an eye-opening experience, which challenges the dominant understanding that the West can do no harm, perhaps one of Rodney’s goals in writing this particular piece. Although the book’s discussion of African history ends in the 1970’s, this does not make it any less valid today, as many of the patterns described by Rodney can be observed in present day African society. An argument can be made that the aid industry in Africa is following a similar trajectory to formal colonialism and only goes to further Rodney’s original thesis that the only true way to develop Africa is through a severance of ties with the international capitalist economy. Overall, Rodney’s How Europe Underdeveloped Africa was a refreshing read, which challenged Western accounts of African history. His arguments were well supported and have stood the test of time; both of which are important for academic texts.…
The first issue is social cohesion. In order to address the “violence, elitism, corruption and poverty” The Department of Social Affairs (2013: 2) that divide the African continent, Mbeki suggested that Africans promote education and “the reversal of the ‘brain drain’ of African intellectuals.” The Department of Social Affairs (2013: 2) Thabo Mbeki emphasised the importance of Africans taking pride in where they come from. “There is no African Renaissance without African unity. When Africans overcome their differences to unite, then true African Renaissance will be realized.”…
INTRODUCTION. Pre colonial Africa was has varied has the continent itself. Different circumstances produced different societies with different tradition, customs, and politics these societies rose, fell and adapted as the centuries passed. Despite this variety, it is possible to divide political organisation amongst these communities into two broad categories states and stateless societies. Low population densities and the production of relatively small economic surpluses, hindered the formation of states in many parts of pre colonial Africa.…
Processes of democratisation and decentralisation in the early 1990s in Africa have transformed the practices of power and authority on a local level. A closer look at the African political landscape reveals the existence of other forms of institutions that operate at the same level as the state and are contemporaries of its institutions, but can be “either rivals, watchdogs, parasites or servants” of state institutions (Ferguson 2014, p. 59). Lund (2006) terms these “twilight institutions”; they operate between state and society, i.e., public and private spheres, and use various strategies and tactics to legitimise their public authority (p. 686). Using an example of vigilance and vigilantism during democratisation periods, I argue that the…