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TABLE OF CONTENTS |
Topics Covered
Lagos, Nigeria is home to Africa's largest democracy. At the opening of the Nigerian Parliament, Princess Alexandra of Britain sat in for the Queen. The creation of the new government gave Nigerians a sense of hope and achievement. It was the ending of colonial rule. Lagos is a perfect example of the many modern cities in Africa. It is in great contrast with the countryside of Nigeria. The city of Lagos, like many large African cities, grew too fast. In the past twenty years, most African cities have doubled or quadrupled in size. This amazing growth has created the problems of high crime rates, traffic, and overcrowding. Shantytowns are common outside the city. There is massive unemployment in these towns. Lagos is an example of the great growth in African cities and the great troubles accompanied by growth.
The European models of government work well in Europe, but they have had little success in Africa. This is true partly because European government is associated with colonialism. The Europeans governments are very conducive to a separation in classes. Africans have only seen it work with corrupted European colonists, and many wanted their positions. Hence, the African governments based on European examples tended to be corrupt. General Bokasa of the Central African Republic was possibly the most corrupted and selfish post-colonial African ruler. He promoted himself as ruler of the country in 1974. An enormous gap between the rich and the poor existed under Bokasa. Riots and killings resulted from his takeover. in 1977, Bokasa crowned himself emperor, using large funds for the ceremony alone. A dictator came into power in Uganda. The British supported his authority. Uganda, under his rule, attacked neighboring Tanzania. However, Tanzania was militarily stronger and stuck back at Uganda, overthrowing the dictator. The Tanzanians discoved some of the atrocities of the dictator. They found many tortured opponents of his ideas. Unfortunately, many had been killed just before the Tanzanian Army arrived.
Nigeria suffered one of the worst internal wars. The loyalties of the Ibo people were manipulated. Even the very young Ibo fought in this war. They were all tricked into thinking that they must kill the Federal Nigerians or be killed by them. The armies of Federal Nigeria were much stronger, and destroyed many helpless people. Federal Nigeria won the war and restored the Federation to peace and stability. In 1979, the army withdrew from rule in Nigeria to allow civilian rule. This didn't work, so the army returned to power in 1984. Nigeria had many other problems as well. One of the problems was that the British divided Nigeria into three areas, one for each race. This separated the peoples and did not help relations. The Nigerian solution was to divide Nigeria into smaller regions to rule. Another problem was corruption; officials expected bribes. Nigeria was also getting massive imports. One of the main imports to Nigeria was food.
Africa has experienced many economic troubles. The new idea of taxes and heavy dependencies on Europe made surviving difficult. In addition to former problems, Africans were now getting accustomed to European goods. There was heavy foreign borrowing in Africa to finance large imports.This sent Africa into an economic crisis. The value of exports, such as cocoa and cotton, plummeted. The cost of imports, such as food for some nation and European clothes, rose greatly. Inflation in Africa was much greater than in Europe. This is what is meant by Neo-colonialism: the economic colonialism of Africa. The only growing industry was tourism, to see the wildlife and beautiful lands of Africa. The reduction of disease was common throughout Africa, due to new medical technology. This increased the population growth greatly. There wasn't enough food being produced to accommodate the new people. Overfarming was common, which destroyed land. Droughts created dust bowls. Terrible suffering and starvation resulted. In Ethiopia, a drought lasted for years as the population suffered. Most Africans were hurting for food.
Mozambique gained independence from Portugal. After independence, the country faced the reconstruction along with some new problems. The peace in Mozambique was threatened by Apartheid in South Africa because Mozambique and South Africa are so close. Many people from Mozambique commute to South Africa to work in the mines. Another problem that Mozambique faced was gangs. There is a dam in the Zambezi River created by South Africa under colonial rule. The dam is now useless because South African gangs have cut the power lines. Mozambique, like other African nations, faces recovery from European colonialism. As part of its social and economic reconstruction, the stress has been on education of youth. Racial boundaries are ignored. The government doesn't want people to classify others by race. The government has also convinced the workers to produce more output and given them modern equipment. Another government program was resettlement. Farmers with very little land were moved to larger areas of land. Community work has also helped. One community made the agreement with the government that they would build a school if the government supplied the teacher. This helps both education and the sense of community. Mozambique is on the road of reconstruction.
Basil Davidson's Concluding Remarks Basil Davidson does not make a particularly enlightening conclusion to his great series. Africa will move on, he says. Africa moves with the times in small advances, and will overcome its troubles. It is beginning to show new energy and power, just like the pre-colonial Africa. As the continent develops from its own rules of life, Africa will separate itself as an independent civilization. The sense of purpose and destiny are being renewed in Africa. The African leaders feel as though their efforts are improving their countries. Africa is breaking free of the aftermath of colonialism.
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