By Muheeb Mashood
Africa is a continent better than many other continents when it comes to sustainable materials of life. However, this seems to be an irony, owed to the level of slow development provoking its geographical area. The standard is so poor that it is difficult to survive there.
Africa was renowned for its technological advancements and innovative experiments long before now in contact with the exploiters.
This region of the world was able to carry out scientific experiments by its prolific intellects with the use of local instruments and valuable experiences. Dutchs were wowed with the societal attractiveness of Benin, thereby comparing it with the Netherlands.
In Benin, the Terracotta sculpture found there, also illustrated how Africa was civilized back then. King Shaka of Ama Zulu, somewhere now in South Africa was an African celebrated hero .
He was respected for his intellectual capability of inventing ‘assegai’ more stronger than the throwing spear used by his people during war. His political organization was claimed to be sensational, thus named among the best personalities of all time.
As put by Walter Rodney “it is a matter of building upon what is inherited and advancing slowly, provided that no one comes to “civilize” you”. That’s the true definition of development.
This region saw a decline when European was received into African soil through their mischievous legitimate and slave trade most especially when they’re opportune to penetrate an interior part of the continent. Hence, this resulted in displacement of native people and extraction of their natural resources.
In a documentary titled ‘The Africans: A Triple Heritage’. Ali Al’Amin Mazrui exposed the transatlantic trade system. Where slaves were shipped out of Africa through the Indian Ocean to work on British plantations in America. The finished goods were transported to Europe, where it found its final destination back to Africa.
Thus, selling the goods to Africans at multiple prices. This halted creativeness in Africa, enriching an outside world. Then, our rulers were to carry the blame as they were blindfolded by their greed. One writer has this to say “Development and Underdevelopment are not only comparative terms but they also share a dialectical relationship. As Africa developed Europe, Europe underdeveloped Africa”.
Since many decades ago, Africa suffered a plethora of unjustified rule by alien countries, passing from slave trade to western colonization. The devilish activities of these wrong doers was justified on the ground of civilizing and developing African nations. According to Lord Lugard, one of the British colonial leaders of Nigeria. He highlighted his dual mandate as thus ” to discover Africa resources for African benefit and to help industrial revolution in Europe”.
A comparison of the growth levels of these two continents will surely lead us to the conclusion that Lugard’s dual mandate was exploitation theory. His objective was actually practicalized in the extraction of African resources. Truly, these people left a beneficial legacy before leaving but these infrastructures were built to facilitate their hypocritical plan.
After a successful ejection of the colonists, Africa is still under colonial control in disguise. This is an introduction to neo-colonialism. With this system, developing nations were subjected to indirect rule by developed ones. The perpetrators of this apparatus operate through the use of international organization and their treaties.
Nigeria had once promised a loan of 120 million dollars with the conditions of reducing Nigeria’s varsities from 28 to 8. kudos to the erudite protest of the leaders that saved their country from both foreign and local guerrillas. Literacy would have suffered a blowback in this country.
These people had succeeded in making us believe that westernization is equivalent to civilization, leading to modernization. However, these three phenomenons are different. The term modernity is an illusion that’s likely to cause harm to us. As Alexander Pope put it “A little modernity is dangerous, drink deep or taste not, a western spring”.