Weaknesses of African states

The issue of weaknesses of African state is an issue that has many answers to it and it will not be solved by single issues but the consideration of many issues. However there are key issues that need to be considered in dealing with this issue.

This article looks at the lack of political vision by new law-makers, economic challenges that can not be viewed separate from political challenges and the colonial government systems that have been inherited from the colonial regimes. It will then conclude by looking at the weaknesses of the African states, the factors that are hampering the progress of the African states. Amongst many other issues, corruption, tribalism, poverty, international institutions like IMF and WB and many other issues are addressed in the paper as a need for consideration.

I do agree that politics play the most important role in development of Africa and it can not be separated from economy because I believe they are intertwined, therefore my argument is on that notion. Long before the colonial penetration of Europeans, Africa was a continent rich in natural resources and sparsely populated socio-political empires and kingdoms.

These kingdoms were organized political and economic structures governed by chiefs and headmen. Chiefs and headmen controlled the social and political order through punishment of wrong doers, holding communally-owned land on behalf of their communities, and protecting their territories from intruders by military groups drawn predominantly from young men. Traditional doctors also played a key role in these kingdoms, by communicating with the ancestors on behalf of the political leaders. As a result, these different kingdoms coordinated the political, economic, social-cultural, and spiritual spheres into strong and balanced social structures.

The advent of European colonialism brought a very different socio-political siuation to African communities: an introduction to state system, an unbalanced social structure that altered the political, economic, social- cultural and spiritual spheres, and thus changed the mentalities of the African people. Colonialism also introduced missionaries to the African continent, who “wanted to stay and win Africa for Christianity” (Okoth: 1979: 32)

The missionaries’ main agenda was to Christianize the African. This was a difficult task as Africans already practiced their own religions. Missionaries, along with European traders, met resistance from the African kingdoms. Feeling insecure, if not threatened, “they invited their home countries to come and conquer Africa” (Okoth: 1979: 32), leading to increased European presence in Africa through military, as well as economic and religious incursions.

Challenges in the decolonisation of Africa

At independence, African peoples had high expectations for their new governments. Many of the liberation movements were strongly allied with socialist ideology and during the liberation struggle usually addressed issues of social justice. “… The widespread references to socialist aspirations at meetings of African leaders on the continent and at international forums helped generate a sense of common purpose which further enhanced the mood of elation at having acquired independence.” (Turok: 1987: 33).

African people had witnessed how the colonial masters had enriched themselves with the national resources at the expense of the African peoples. As a result, the lives of the African people were in a very poor condition when compared to the wealth acquired by European masters through colonial enterprises. Social justice was thus the biggest expectation of the African people from Independence.

A sense of Nationalism was also fostered through these socialist forums, and as a result, slogans such as ‘One Nation, One Country’ were found in newly Independent states across Africa. At the beginning of the independent regime in the African countries what came to emerge was the new black ruling groups that was mainly ruling the country politically and economically. This hampered the development of Africa, because of the unfair distribution of the national resources that were predominantly used by the ‘powerful groups’.

As African States became independent, they were faced with a broad range of challenges.

First and foremost, economically, African peoples were poor in comparison to the former colonial masters, and the new states were dependent on external economies.

Secondly, many of the resources were still owned by former colonialists, and as a result, newly-independent governments were still economically dependent on their former colonial masters. This meant that colonial powers still have control over the politically independent states.

The third main challenge faced by the new African states was inheritance of the colonial government and social system. These systems had been designed to benefit the European members of the colonies as well as the colonial powers themselves.

Newly-independent states inherited these systems, and were left with the task of re-orienting the sociopolitical spheres to meet the new social justice/socialist ideals.

Finally, the fourth major challenge resulted from the difficulty in creating a common vision aspired to by all lawmakers. I believe that there was not a common vision shared by the members of newly-independent governments.

For example, in Ghana, Kwame Nkrumah observed that many of his parliamentarians were getting rich while the issues of social and economic development of their constituents were overlooked. As a result, Nkrumah had to fire some of his parliamentarians.

Causes of the weaknesses in independent African States

A number of African countries are faced with deep corruption. These countries have the capacity to be one of the strongest states in the world but because of overlooking the priority by some law makers their citizens are suffering.

The small black elite that emerged in many African states following Independence are expanding in terms of their wealth, but not their number. Indeed, this small group becomes richer while more and more people become poorer. As a sociology student I strongly believe that there is a rapid class formation in many of the African countries where people are very anxious to secure their individual financial futures than plough anything back to Africa.

I therefore do agree with the notion that corruption is one of the factors that are hampering the progress of African states. Good example is Mobuto Sese Seko the former president of DRC, then Zaire who enriched himself by plundering his countries resources while dragging the country in deep poverty.

A related cause to the underdevelopment and underperformance of post-independent states is the role of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank (WB) and the creation of international debt. “Today, the average African is said to owe twice more debt to external creditors, roughly about US$400 per person, than the per capita income of the population” (Ankomah: 32: 2002 (April edition)).

Many African countries borrow funds from the IMF and the WB, however the loans are attached with conditions such as “structural adjustment” (privatization) of nationally-owned programs. These loans and their attached conditions are crippling African economies: the majority of countries end up paying back much more than the amount that they borrowed, while some African countries have been so bankrupted by the loan conditions that they are unable to repay their debts. As a result, loan repayments form large percentages of African budgets, taking money away from funding further economic or social development.

It is important to remember that international communities still benefit from African socio-political and economic instability. For example, the socalled “blood diamonds” and cheap oil harvested by rebel groups through forced labour are sold for lower prices to the international communities than resources derived through fair labour practices.

Furthermore, international power struggles such as the Cold War have been propagated on African soil: just like Bin Laden and the Taliban, most of the dwindling arsenal of Savimbi and UNITA had been supplied by the US to fight the previous worldwide threat of communism…”Ankomah: 2002: 31 (April edition).

It is important to remember that Savimbi in Angola was in control of the oil rich area in Angola, thus the American government was likely motivated by both anti-communist ideals, and the promise of access to oil.

In the first two decades of independence, there were some forty successful coups and countless attempt coups. In 1967 a 27 year old Ghanaian army lieutenant, Sam Arthur, finding himself in temporary command of an armored car unit, decided on an attempt to seize power because, he later confessed, he wanted to ‘make history’ by becoming the first lieutenant successfully to organize a coup” ( Meredith: 200: 218).

Military coups are one of the biggest activities that seriously take a country backward in terms of development, this is never healthy to the state, because it disturbs any progress that the country was having. For many independence meant that the indigenous people now have the right to govern the territorial jurisdiction formed under colonial rule, but tribalism in the African states prevent unity and national development.

Conclusion

There are many factors that contribute to the weaknesses of African states in a post independent Africa, but what needs to be prioritized is the development of the masses. However it is very important for the African states to address issue that prepares a better future for the next generation. In general the issue of nation-building is one of the most important that need to be achieved by African states, but tribalism and religious conflict are hampering the achievement of nation-building.

That is why to me unity is the key to Africa’s development, a state that is not united will never have a strong state. Rwanda is a good example were ethnical conflict was brutal and Sudan is a current good example were religious conflict is destroying the state. With all the rich resources I belief that Africa has the capacity to develop its self just like it developed other continents.

Capacity building is therefore key to Africa’s strengths, so that we fairly utilize the Africa’s resources for the benefit of all in Africa. It is therefore vitally important that resources of Africa be owned and control by Africans for the benefit of the masses. It is also equally important that the human resources that Africa lost during the slave trade should also come and contribute to the development of Africa. One of the most important factors that the African states need to address is not to separate politics with economy, so that the right politics is geared towards the right economy.

Yes it is true that politics play a very important role to the strengths of a state but it can not be left alone that is why we are still facing problems in Africa. It is for this reason that I agree with Martin Janicke in his book titled State Failure “ The theory of state failure arose as a response to the theory of market failure” (Janicke: 1990: 31).

This will also require the right education system that will train the population for issues benefiting the countries as a whole. To me the future of African states lies with in Pan Africanism, were the masses of Africa are given the chance to fairly contribute to the economy of Africa as a whole.

With the regional groupings such as Southern African Development Community (SADC), the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESAS), West Africa Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA) and many others, should address the poverty of African states and rescue the African countries from IMF and WB. And to effectively root out corruption in many of the countries.