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Impact of colonization on africa
Effect of european colonization on africa
Effects of colonialism in Africa's Economy
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Poor, desperate, starving, sickly, war torn and in economic distress. A great number of African countries suffer from pauperism and these obstacles originating within them. Poverty in Africa is a major problem that needs more external help and attention. Poverty in Africa was initially caused by the separation and juncture of many African tribes at the Berlin Conference along with lasting tribulations; causing many issues disrupting Africa's economy and society for instance decreased living standards, scarcity of schools and few modern technologies.
Poverty in Africa was caused by many different aspects but mainly from being imperialized. During the Berlin Conference in 1885 countries separated Africa into different territories (__). This caused many social and political conflicts throughout all of Africa. Along with the separation and the combining of African tribes European imperialist countries also stripped Africa of its resources. European counties setup their roads leading out of Africa this created interior problems for many African countries. This proved to be a challenge for African countries because this made it hard for them to develop their independent economies. Land lock states in Africa must transports their exports through other countries adding another obstacle. “The sad truth is that many African states are caught in a poverty trap that they cannot escape of their own accord. Aid, debt relief and trade reform can help these nations” (¬¬¬¬____). This quote from the Daily telegram shows a widely believed view on the poverty in Africa. These countries in Africa that suffer from extreme forms of poverty need help! They need external powers to aid them. After obtaining independence countries could not develop thei...
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...astructure and sturdy economy. In many countries across Africa do get aid from other countries and have seen a slight improvement in there economies going from having fifty percent of the population in poverty to recently changing to forty seven percent (___). This show that with help Africa’s struggle against poverty will improve. Poverty in Africa also causes many other problems that are form from not having money. Poverty in needs to be one of the most important worries they have in Africa. Countries must assist Sub-Saharan Africa to help it conquer its struggle with poverty.
Works Cited
"Chapter 5. Sub-Saharan Africa." Pew Global Attitudes Project. Pew Research Center, 2007. Global Issues In Context. Web. 12 May 2014
"Unfair trade rules increase African poverty." Daily Telegraph [London, England] 21 Apr. 2005. Global Issues In Context. Web. 12 May 2014.
With Europe in control, “the policies of the governing powers redirected all African trade to the international export market. Thus today, there is little in the way of inter-African trade, and the pattern of economic dependence continues.” Europeans exported most of the resources in Africa cheaply and sold them costly, which benefited them, but many Africans worked overtime and were not treated with care.
Priscilla. “The World Economy and Africa.” JSpivey – Home – Wikispaces. 2010. 29 January 2010. .
Every year, more and more money is donated to Africa to promote democracy in order to get rid of the powerful coups in many countries through out the continent. While the coups are declining and democratic governments are being established, the economic growth and development of Africa is not anywhere it should be considering the abundant natural resources and coastline that the continent possesses. Even though countries, like the United States of America, donate millions of dollars they are a large reason why Africa is underdeveloped economically. The Trans-Atlantic Slave trade is the most devastating event in the history of the world. Nearly 14,000,000 men, women, and children were displaced, sold into slavery, and killed by the trade routes.(
This failure suffered by Africa has prevented it from attaining success and economic viability since it has been addicted to the aid and, therefore, become aid dependent, to the disadvantage of economic growth and responsible governance (Ashta, 2013).
Economic ways started in the nineteenth century, still have a hold on the countries of the sub-Sahara today. These countries are all impoverished and have seen horrific civil wars, however, the general consensus is that they are making slow improvements in their economy. The starvation, overpopulation and health problems are still very evident. Perhaps continued assistance coupled with education and protection will keep them on the road to stability and more rewarding lives for their citizens.
Africa has had a long and tumultuous road of colonization and decolonization the rush to colonize Africa started in the 17th century with the discovery of the vast amounts of gold, diamonds, and rubber with colonization hitting a fever pitch during World War I. However, the repercussions of colonization have left deep wounds that still remain unhealed in the 21st century. Early on, European nations such as Britain, Portugal, Spain, Italy, Germany and Belgium scrambled for territories. Countries wanted land so they could harvest the resources, increase trade, and gain power. The European colonization of Africa brought racism, civil unrest, and insatiable greed; all of which have had lasting impacts on Africa.
Poverty in Developing and Less Developed Countries The world includes less developed countries and developing countries. Less developed countries are countries considered to be poor and often contain many people who are in absolute poverty. Developing countries are countries like India, which are gaining in wealth. There are two types of poverty within the world.
Problems began for Africa when there was the “scramble for Africa. Africa was extremely divided throughout the continent. There was no nation intact. Even though they were divided into colonies, they still had no sovereignty. Since they had no form of nationalism it made it impossible to succeed as a nation. This really hurt Africa economically. If they would have been able to come together as a nation they could have pulled all of their assets together and exploit them in order to make money. By not doing this it allowed the government to exploit the people. This is why there are starving people in Africa on television. The states of Africa were created in order to make money by exporting all the various resources, whether it was slaves, minerals, or agriculture. There was much to gain by owning a chunk of land in Africa. This reason being because Africa is so rich in their resources for trade. After the race was over it left Africa severely divided.
The overriding challenge Uganda faces today is the curse of poverty. Poverty, ‘the lack of something”(“Poverty.”), something can be materials, knowledge, or anything one justifies as necessary to living. Associated with poverty is the question of what causes poverty and how to stop poverty? The poverty rate in Uganda has declined from the year 2002 from the year 2009, which shows the percent of residents living in poverty has decreasing. Yet, the year is 2014 and the poverty rate could have drastically changed over the course of five years. One could assume the poverty rate would continue to decrease, which would be astounding and beneficial, but does poverty ever decrease enough to an acceptable level or even nonexistence? Poverty is a complex issue that continues to puzzle people from all across the globe. Poverty could possible be a question that is never truly answered.
There are many causes of poverty that do not stem from an individual’s choice, but from society as a whole. They include the history of generational poverty, war and political instability, national debt, discrimination and social inequality and vulnerability to natural disasters.
There is no doubt that European colonialism has left a grave impact on Africa. Many of Africa’s current and recent issues can trace their roots back to the poor decisions made during the European colonial era. Some good has resulted however, like modern medicine, education, and infrastructure. Africa’s history and culture have also been transformed. It will take many years for the scars left by colonization to fade, but some things may never truly disappear. The fate of the continent may be unclear, but its past provides us with information on why the present is the way it is.
For example, a resident of the country of Chad will only bring in $100 each year. Since many people can make more than that in one week, some in one day, can you imagine having the feed a family of five or six, or even a family of two, for only $100 a year? These are the conditions that exist in poverty-stricken countries. There are many reasons why poverty is an increasing problem. The first is delayed modernization.
As developed countries quench their thirsts for petrol, developing countries around the world are left behind, force to watch on without any help from the outside community. Being poor means to be disadvantaged in every single way. It means not being able to support yourself or your family or have the basic necessity to life. Without substantial help for these helpless people then we should be feeling guilty that we are living lives far better than what others are experiencing. Poverty may because by wars, disease or lack of education and infrastructure and the resulting consequences may be hunger, starvation, crime and ultimately death. If poverty is not eradicated then injustice will continue, increasing death tolls and lives.
Over one billion people are living in poverty, lacking safe water, housing, food, and the ability to read. There is a high concentration of communities in poverty in Africa particularly Central Africa. States that are considered in Central Africa are the following: Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Central Republic of Africa, Chad, Equatorial Guinea and the Congo. The majority of these Central African states’ economies are dependent on agriculture. As a result of this dependency, natural disasters, droughts and wars can displace subsistence farmers from their land, resulting in poverty becoming even more prevalent and harder to come back from.
Poverty is one of the greatest problems facing South Africa. South African families live in very unsatisfactory conditions. The South African government works hard to bring down the rate of poverty but it also seems to increase as they try.