The Untold History of Neocolonialism in Africa (1960-2011) (Published)
After the Second World War, the imperialist trends of the eighteenth and nineteenth century began to decline. Through collective struggles, the Africans achieved independence from the whites. But though they attained freedom, they could not imagine the fact that it was just a treacherous exchange of power between the out-going masters and few of their faithful heirs. In the colonial period, the European rulers propagated that as the Africans had no culture and history of their own, it was their holy duty to civilize the native Africans. Thus, they regarded themselves superior to Africans whose culture they considered inferior, uncivilized, and savage. In the name of spreading civilization, they dominated, oppressed, tyrannized and persecuted the native Africans not only economically and politically, but also culturally. When the Europeans left, the Africans got political freedom, but the foul practice of imperialism did not end. It appeared in a new form namely neocolonialism which the scholars had branded as the worst form of imperialism. This camouflaged imperialist practice is turning Africa into a museum of acute poverty, hunger, corruption and famine. The paper aims at elucidating the effects of neocolonialism in Africa from four major perspectives– economic, political, cultural and literary.
Keywords: Africa, Cultural Imperialism, Disillusionment of African Writers., Imperialism, Neocolonialism
IMPERIALISM AND ECONOMIC UNDERDEVELOPMENT IN AFRICA: A STUDY OF SUDAN (Published)
This work attempts to examine the connection between imperialism and the socio-economic challenges that have hindered development in post-independence Sudan. With data derived extensively from secondary source materials on the subject, the paper reveals that the Sudanese have been victims of the struggles among contending imperialist powers in the country, which has over the years, resulted in political destabilisation and economic stagnation in the country. The contention of this paper is that while Anglo-Egyptian imperialism, laid the foundation for the present political and economic turmoil experienced in the country, the trend has been sustained in recent times, by China-US rivalry for the control of Sudan’s oil industry. The paper further reveals that the recent media propaganda and economic sanctions of the US against the Sudanese government in Khartoum, is not a humanitarian gesture. Rather it is part of US Strategy to force the regime of Omar Al-Bashir to sever economic and diplomatic ties with China, who is a major threat to US economic interest in the country. The paper concludes by stating that unless constitutionalism, the rule of law and true nationalism is promoted in the region, the Sudanese (both North and South) would remain pliant and amenable to the interest and subtle machination of contemporary imperialist powers
Keywords: Africa, Imperialism, Sudan, Underdevelopment