History

Key unit competence

Assess the political, economic and social transformations brought

about by colonial rule in Africa

Introduction

The 19th and 20th centuries have been marked by the domination

and exploitation of Africa by European countries. The coming of

Europeans to Africa was aimed at the economic gains they expected

to obtain from selling their manufactured commodities and the raw

materials they intended to get from African countries.

Europeans had to establish their control in order to achieve their

economic objectives. This resulted in European domination of

Africans. In most cases, the colonial activities benefited Europeans

and not the Africans. Consequently, this impacted African societies

negatively.

Links to other subjects

Wars and conflict in General Studies and Communication Skills

and migration in Geography

Main points to be covered in this unit

࿤ Colonial activities in Africa

࿤ Impact of colonial rule in Africa

Colonialism and Capitalism

Activity 1

Define the terms colonialism and capitalism and then present

your work to the class.

Activity 2

With examples discuss the different types of colonialism and

present the results of your discussion to the class.

Activity 3

Examine the following negative effects of Colonisation on

African societies: loss of independence and division of African

peoples. Present the results of your discussion to the class.

Activity 4

Evaluate the following negative effects of Colonisation on the

African societies: loss of political power, killings, and sexual

abuse. Present the results of your discussion to the class.

Activity 5

Assess the following negative effect of Colonisation on African

societies: Change of African ways of life. Present the results of

your discussion to the class.

Activity 6

Organise a debate on the following negative effect of Colonisation

on African societies: Exploitation of African resources. Present

the results of your discussion to the class.

Activity 7

Discuss the following negative effect of Colonisation on the

African societies. Introduction of taxes and forced labour.

Present the results of your discussion to the class.

Activity 8

Explain the following negative effect of Colonisation on the

African societies: extraversion of the African economy. Present

the results of your discussion to the class.

Activity 9

Account for the following negative effect of Colonisation on the

African societies: colonialism retarded development. Present

the results of your discussion to the class.

During the 19th century and early 20th century, imperialism started

in Europe as a result of industrialisation in order to sustain economic

prosperity. Protectionist policies in many countries limited the

markets and the demand for manufactured products.

Therefore, the European powers considered imperialism as a

means to secure foreign markets and guarantee consumption

for their products by monopolising trade with their colonies.

Additionally, the rapid industrialisation made it necessary to seek

cheap sources of raw materials to supply their businesses at home.

These economic interests, and nationalism, called for the building 

of huge worldwide empires, where imperial powers established

their control over vast territories, including most of Asia, Africa,

Polynesia, and the Americas.

Colonialism aimed at the economic exploitation of colonised nations

to benefit the mother country. As colonial states began controlling

the economy of the colonised territory, the economic interests of the

colonised were ignored. Instead, colonialists wanted to maximise

their profits and gains, regardless of the consequences on the

colonised areas. In most cases, the colonial economic policies had

negative effects.

In order to have a common understanding of the aims of colonial powers

in Africa, the definitions colonialism and capitalism are essential.

Definition of the Concepts: Colonialism and Capitalism

Colonialism and capitalism cannot be understood separately

especially when it is a matter of finding answers to the impact that

the two practices had on African society.

Colonialism is the policy and practice of a power in extending

control over weaker people or areas. Colonialism is also defined

as a relationship of domination between an indigenous (or forcibly

imported) majority and a minority of foreign invaders.

The fundamental decisions affecting the lives of the colonised

people are made and implemented by the colonial rulers in pursuit

of interests that are often defined in a distant capital. Rejecting

cultural compromises with the colonised population, the colonisers

are convinced of their own superiority and of their mandate to rule.

Capitalism is defined as the possession of capital or wealth; a

system in which private capital or wealth is used in the production

or distribution of goods; the dominance of private owners of capital

and of production for profit.

This definition shows that capitalism is a system in which only

those with the rights to capital and machinery can produce for the

whole society while the rest of the people who have no business

skills or interests remain dependent on the owners of capital who

decide on the fate of the lives of the masses. This is the same as colonialism whereby the political, social and economic powers are

in the hands of the minority colonial administrators.

Types of Colonialism

Historians often distinguish between two overlapping forms of

colonialism:

Settler colonialism involves large-scale immigration, often motivated

by religious, political, or economic reasons.

Exploitation colonialism involves fewer colonists and focuses

on access to resources for export, typically to the mother

country. This category includes trading posts as well as larger

colonies where colonists would constitute much of the political

and economic administration. However they rely on indigenous

resources for labour and material. Prior to the end of the slave

trade and widespread abolition, when indigenous labour was

unavailable, slaves were often imported to the Americas, first by

the Portuguese Empire, and later by the Spanish, Dutch, French

and British.

Plantation colonies would be considered exploitation colonialism.

However, colonising powers would utilise either type for different

territories depending on various social and economic factors as

well as climate and geographic conditions.

Surrogate colonialism involves a settlement project supported by

a colonial power, in which most of the settlers do not come from

the ruling power.

Internal colonialism refers to inequalities in power between areas of

a nation state. The source of exploitation comes from within the state.

Negative Effects of Colonisation on African Societies

Loss of African independence

African communities lost their independence because they ceased

to be self-governing states. They were brought under colonial

administration either through peaceful signing of agreements or

military conquest.

Division of African tribes

People from the same tribes were divided by colonial boundaries

drawn arbitrarily. They lived under different political, economic and

social systems. For instance, a big group of Banyarwanda lives in

the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Europeans caused conflicts among social groups. For example, the

Belgian rulers of Rwanda-Urundi provided identity cards indicating

social groups.

In addition, the partitioning of colonies of imperial powers created

territories that encompassed numerous ethnic, linguistic, and

religious groups into single political entities. The partitioning did

not correspond to the historical, cultural, or ethnic boundaries

of pre-colonial African societies. Such states had diverse ethnic

populations which were forced to join single political entities.

The artificially-formed states had no historic or cultural similarities

to legitimatise their existence. This has led to political

instability based on ethnic, religious, and linguistic differences.

Countries deeply divided among ethnic lines, a result of imperialism,

not only led to the political instability of the former colonies, but

also, in some cases, led to serious violence. In Kenya the

competition of two different ethnic groups for the control of the

government has led to a situation comparable to a civil war.

Change of African lifestyle

The arrival of Europeans in Africa introduced radical change in African

societies. History has proven that the changes that Europeans brought

did not do any good to Africans. The environment became that of

“survival of the fittest” which the indigenous people were not used to.

The colonial conquest had a twofold impact: it forcibly seized rural

means of production, and it pursued agrarian commercialisation.

African communal life has suddenly turned out to be individualistic.

The people had to adapt to the changes although not all societies

could completely transform successfully. Most of the land was

taken by Europeans through tricky treaties that illiterate chiefs and

kings blindly signed. For example, some Nama and Herero Chiefs

like Samuel Maherero signed treaties and entered into land sale

business that in the end resulted in the loss of huge chunks of land.

Exploitation of African resources

The long-term well-being of the colonised nation was of no interest

for the imperial state. Any form of sustainable development

was unnecessary for colonialists. This is the reason why deforestation is a serious problem for many nations which had

been under colonial rule.

Colonial powers, in their quest for economic prosperity,

disregarded the need for the sustainable management of forest

areas and established minimally-regulated lumber industries. These

sought only short-term profits for colonialists and their mother

country. Thus, unsustainable overexploitation of natural resources

followed. The effects are clear. The environmental degradation

caused by the self-interest of colonialists is now difficult to reverse.

It is connected with the rampant poverty and hunger in former

colonies.

Introduction of taxes and forced labour

Africans were forced to pay taxes like hut tax, gun tax and later on

poll tax was introduced by the colonial government to force Africans

to provide labour for colonial governments and for European settlers

and to make their colonies financially self-reliant.

Africans were frequently forced to provide labour for European

settlers and for government building and agricultural programmes.

Forced labour resulted in widespread African discontent and

migration to areas where the Africans hoped to get paid work.

Distortion of the African economy

Colonial investment and construction focused on the development

and construction of communication lines, railways, plantations

and mines. However, these investments did not contribute to the

economic transformation of the colonies into industrialised nations.

These investments were only intended to support the exploitation

of natural resources and agricultural capacities. Colonialists

established an economy which depended on the export of a few

selected natural resources and agricultural products. This exposed

the economy to market price fluctuations.

The unwillingness of imperial powers to reinvest the profits

gained from their colonies in colonial industrial development

kept colonies under a weak agricultural economy. This also deprived

them of their natural resources. 

Retarding of development

In colonies with centralised states and white settlement colonialism

retarted development. In centralised states colonialism not only

blocked further political development, but also indirect rule made

local elites less accountable to their citizens.

After independence, these states were ruled by selfish rulers. These

states suffered from racism, stereotypes and misconceptions which

have caused problems, especially in Burundi and Rwanda.

In settler colonies, there was exploitation of the people and loss of

land. This caused the impoverishment of Africans. The evolution

and spread of technology plus the absence of slavery makes it likely

that, without colonialism, African ways of life would have slowly

improved. Increase in inequality and the racial and ethnic conflicts

intensified by colonialism, show that African countries would be

better off today if they had not been colonised.

All in all, there is no country today in sub-Saharan Africa that is

more developed because it was colonised by Europeans. 

Positive Effects of Colonisation on the African Societies

Activity 10

Discuss the following positive effect of Colonisation on African

societies: development of the education system. Present the

results of your discussion to the class. 

Activity 11

Organise a debate on the following positive effect of Colonisation

on African societies: development of modern transport

infrastructures. Present the results of your discussion to the

class.

Activity 12

Assess the following positive effects of Colonisation on the

African societies: Introduction of new crops and agricultural

methods. Present the results of your discussion to the class.

Activity 13

Find out the benefits of the modern medicine introduced in

Africa by Europeans. Present your findings to the class.

Positive Effects of Colonisation on AfricanSocieties

Development of education system

The colonial governments supported education services which

were mainly managed by missionaries. The missionaries founded

the first primary and secondary schools which still play leading

role in development. The colonial governments carried the financial

burden of supporting mission schools.

Development of modern transport infrastructure

The modern transport and communication network and facilities

were developed in many parts of Africa. Railway networks and

roads, and bridges were built. Motor vehicles, bicycles, steamers

and air planes were introduced.

Introduction of new crops

New cash crops were introduced and promoted. They included

cotton, tea, coffee, sisal, rubber, pyrethrum and wheat. Experiments

were made on new species of both crops and livestock which were

adapted to the local conditions.

Africans adopted the new agricultural methods introduced by

the colonial governments such as plantation farming, cash crop

growing and terracing, etc.

Development of the health system

Europeans introduced modern medicine in Africa. They constructed

hospitals, health centres and dispensaries. They also organised

programmes to fight against killer diseases by vaccination. These

diseases include polio, pneumonia, measles, tuberculosis, leprosy

and small pox.

The colonisation of Africa by European countries during the 19th

and 20th centuries led to negative and positive consequences.

These effects resulted from the activities of European colonial

masters. The few positive colonial effects on African societies

include the introduction of new agricultural methods and new crops

in Africa, development of modern transport and communication

lines, introduction of modern education and the development of the

modern health system.

It should be noted that colonisation was generally marked by

the preoccupation of serving European interest, leaving aside the

African cause. Thus, the European relations with Africans during the

colonial period were at a large scale negative. The latter comprised

the extraversion of the African economy, introduction of forced

labour, introduction of taxes, over exploitation of African resources,

loss of land, loss of Africans’ judicial power, disruption of African

governments, loss of African identity and the disappearance of

African civilisations, etc.

Glossary

Cluster: a group of similar things

Predatory: living by or given to victimising others for

personal gain

Plausible: reasonable, valid, and truthful

Surrogate: providing or receiving parental care though not

related by blood or legal ties

Modus Vivendi: a temporary accommodation of a disagreement

between parties pending a permanent

settlement or a manner of living that reflects

the person’s values and attitudes

Revision questions

1. Define the concepts of colonialism and imperialism and find

out the differences.

2. Describe the types of colonialism.

3. In what way was the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi a result

of colonialism?

4. Demonstrate how the modus Vivendi of Africans was far

different on eve of the colonial period from that of after the

arrival of Europeans.

5. Explain at least ten negative effects of colonisation on African

societies.

6. Find out and explain at least six positive effects of colonisation

on African societies.