The economic penetration of the developing states has become a competitive replacement for colonialism. Thus, National autonomy– the capacity of a nation–state to make and apply decisions shaping its political and economic future, has significantly been subjugated by neocolonialism- the determinations of the former colonial and new powers to maintain control over independent developing states. The peripheral states have become satellites of the center nations as their economies have been structured to serve international capitalism. The aim of this work is to place the relationship between the neo-colonialist activities and the national autonomies of the developing states. The paper adopted the survey research design. The instrument for data collection was structured questionnaire while the simple linear regression analysis was used to examine the extent of the relationship that exist between the variables. The two hypotheses were tested at 0.05 level of significance. Findings revealed that there exists a significant relationship between national autonomy and the phenomena of neo-colonialist activities, and that though colonialism may virtually be dead, but neo-colonialism continues as the 3rd world states have become victims of a subtle form of domination. The work recommends that autonomy should include choosing to orient economic and political decisions of the nation-state instead of the continues political hegemony and economic exploitation by the advanced states. Therefore, the developing states must be constructive in their relations with the advanced nations and ensure the respect and enhancement of local autonomy. African states; as Timamy postulated, should promote self-esteem, institutionalize human dignity and entrench the values of integrity. The leaders must realize that the present world order is part of the problem and not; in any way, the solution to Africa’s unending nightmare.
Keywords: Autonomy, National, neo-colonialist, phenomena
