AFRICANS EXPLANATION OF AFRICA’S UNDER DEVELOPMENT 3
Running head: AFRICANS EXPLANATION OF AFRICA’S UNDER DEVELOPMENT.
Africans Explanation of Africa’s Under Development.
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Africans Explanation of Africa’s Under Development.
Introduction
The under development that is witnessed in Africa cannot be viewed in isolation with the economic history of Africa. The poverty observed in Africa has gained international attention as there is broad recognition of the poverty levels witnessed in the continent. The account that the Africans have which brings about the reversal of fortune and the ethnicity that exists among the distinct ethnic groups of people in Africa has contributed to the poverty and underdevelopment in the continent (Hopkins, 2009). Most of the hindrances to development are emanating from the continent itself and the people living in it.
The Africans were under colonial rule, and the Europeans were the dominant economic influencers during the colonial era, and most of the Africans worked for the Europeans instead of working to grow their economy. For example, the British used the indirect rule in their colonization period while the French used the assimilation method to ensure that Africans were under the colonial control (Jerven, 2011). In such a case, Africans had little to offer to their economic development as the Europeans forced them to work for them, making their economy to lag.
Before colonization, the Africans were engaging in economic activities that were aimed mainly at serving their basic needs other than focusing on the general economic growth. For example, the Africans used to cultivate land on a small scale which was sufficient to feed them throughout the season. Nowadays, the trend that existed in those early days can still be seen in the current lifestyle of some of the communities where there is a focus on catering for the basic needs only. Among the Masai communities in Kenya and Tanzania, they still practice pastoralism which cannot promote the large scale farming and contributes least to the economic development.
According to the modernization theory of development, there must be technological incorporation in the industries within the community and other changes that need both social and cultural changes (Matunhu, 2011). In Africa, there is still a lot that needs to be done in terms of technology as there are still out of date technologies that are used in the industries and which hinder production leading to a lagged economy. For example, in animal rearing, Africans are still rearing cattle which are of a traditional breed and which cannot be used for either milk or beef production. If the new technology can be applied in the field, better breeds can be reared and which can be used for agribusiness.
Social changes include that need to embrace the role played by education in a community where education brings new ideas into the industries while keeping in mind the need to have democracy instead of autocracy as it is witnessed in Africa. Autocratic kind of leadership ends up ruining the relationship that exists between the leaders and their subjects. When there is no cooperation among the stakeholders who are supposed to uplift the economy of a country, then there is no economic progress.
Democracy will ensure political stability in the state which creates a favourable environment under which the economy of a country can thrive. African leaders should exercise the rule of law which unifies all the individuals and binds them to the law (Thomson, 2010). In contrary, African leaders always seem to be above the law, and any wrong that they have committed does not bind them to the punishment that the law stipulates that it be administered to them.
Corruption has its roots in the African society where the practice is prevalent mostly in the public offices. Corruption creates wrong channels to the resources whereby the government does not receive the funds that are supposed to reach them due to the services that the government offers, fines or taxes by the government. These resources should be directed to the right use to realize economic growth which calls for the government to enact strict regulations to discourage corruption. The members of the public also have a role to play by ensuring that they report any cases of corruption to the authorities but instead the general public encourages corruption by accepting to pay some amount to get a favour. For example, in Kenya, there has been a case of corruption known as the ‘Eurobond’ that involved $ 2.8 billion which ended up into the accounts of the corrupt leaders. Such a large sum of money could have been used to fund the development projects in the host country but ended up being used by a few.
Failure to embrace education in some parts of the African continent has also been a great inhibitor of development in Africa where there are members of the community who are yet to embrace formal education. Formal education will equip children with the necessary skills that will help them to take different career paths and be able to meet their needs when they grow up (Acemoglu, & Robinson, 2010). Education serves to add knowledge as well as skills to the learners so that they realize the career that they are willing to pursue and most important the various aspects of life and how to solve problems in life.
In other areas, education has been introduced but the quality of education offered is still wanting as it does not equip students with the necessary skills required in the industry. Such kind of education should be abandoned and new curriculum to be in place so that students remain relevant in the industry. The government should ensure that the curriculum is reviewed frequently and adjustments are made as required to keep up with the workplace requirements while hiring qualified trainers who will impart the required skills to students.
Unemployment is a leading problem facing the African countries with many citizens in the respective countries living unemployed and those who are employed still receive a little salary to cater adequately for their needs. There is a large population of individuals who are educated, and they are living without employment which is a setback for the individuals who are studying. The unemployed are unproductive in the country since they have unutilized skills that can contribute to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the country. The government is therefore entitled to the responsibilities of creating employment opportunities for such individuals or set up funds directed to those groups to help them start their projects and have a source of income.
Overdependence on foreign aid and grants has made many African countries to accumulate a large amount of public debt (Moyo, 2009). The consequence to suffer is that the country will spend most of its income in repaying the obligations that it has acquired other than having that money to fund development projects within the state. The country will, therefore, experience a lagging or stagnant economic growth which means that the country will continue to lag behind economy wise. The government should ensure that there is a balance in the debt that the country obtains so that it does not default the debt blocking its credibility to access future loans.
Conclusion
As much as Africa is faced with many problems that hinder its economic growth, most of these problems are internal to the continent and can be solved by those who reside on the continent. To do so, the government must ensure that it offers the necessary support to the citizens in an attempt to curb these problems. A collective effort, however, is needed to eliminate the many barriers that exist within the continent so that the citizens are willing to accept the changes that the government is proposing. By so doing, Africa will be able to grow its economy as well as eliminating the accelerating poverty levels in the continent.
References
Acemoglu, D., & Robinson, J. A. (2010). Why is Africa poor?. Economic history of developing regions, 25(1), 21-50.
Hopkins, A. G. (2009). The new economic history of Africa. The Journal of African History, 50(2), 155-177.
Jerven, M. (2011). The quest for the African dummy: explaining African post‐colonial economic performance revisited. Journal of International Development, 23(2), 288-307.
Matunhu, J. (2011). A critique of modernization and dependency theories in Africa: Critical assessment.
Moyo, D. (2009). Dead aid: Why aid is not working and how there is a better way for Africa. Macmillan.
Thomson, A. (2010). An introduction to African politics. Routledge.