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AU is 50

Dr Kwame NkrumahWhen the conference of the then African Heads of State met in the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa on May 25, 1963, they had the primary responsibility of erasing from the continent all remnants of colonialism.

Ghana had been the trailblazer, securing her political independence  in 1957, while majority of the francophone countries wrested their freedom from France in 1960.

Little, however, did  they realise that they would be confronted with neo-colonialism in its devastating form and  which in actual fact  has rendered their  political independence nominal.

Countries on the continent profess independence and often once in a year organises parades with grandeur to celebrate the day but they are economically and financially over-dependent on the same colonial masters.

Ghana’s first President, Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah, complained at several fora about the issue of neo-colonialism which he said  should be dealt with  collectively by many the continent but which was rejected outright by  of African leaders.

Nkrumah said in their fragmented state created by the colonialists, it was very easy for the developed countries to manipulate them towards satisfying their inordinate ambition of ensuring  that the continent remained a producer of raw materials and a market for their finished products.

He further explained that it would be extremely difficult for independent states on the continent, looking at their fragile economies to withstand global financial shocks.

Furthermore, Nkrumah has observed that the usage of certain currencies in global trade which did not  include any from Africa was an indication that the continent will be tied to developments in countries whose currencies were the benchmark of world trade.

In addition, there existed trade cartels and monopolies which determined the prices of mainly all the  export commodities of African countries, as well as the manufactured products exported  by them to the continent. 

In another word, although Africa exported more to the developed world, it receives little from the sale of its commodities due to the manipulation of prices by the cartels.

This explains why Nkrumah advocated the establishment of  a continental body with a common market, common currency and a military high command to serve as a bulwark to the machinations of the  colonialists.

The economies of African countries are regarded as mere trading posts for the developed countries since such countries are engaged in the business of exporting raw materials and receiving finished products.

Today, the AU is confronted with the issue of neo-colonialism in its worst form. Neo-colonialism is the process where a country’s  economic system and political developments are directed from outside.

Ghana, for example, has been subjected to uncountable financial and economic experiments dictated by agents of colonialism and neo-colonialism  .

Although such arrangements implemented by the National Liberation Council (NLC),  the National Redemption Council (NRC), the Progress party (PP), the People’s National Party (PNP) Provisional National Defence Council (PNDC), the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the New Patriotic Party (NPP) were intended to re-arrrange the economy, unemployment rather rose, while the local currency suffered losses to the international ones.

The neo-colonialists rolled out arrangements such as the divestiture programmes where state assets considered not viable were sold to cronies of the prevailing establishment, Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) under which companies were asked to shed weight by way of declaring redundancies.? One can count on one’s fingers what remains of the numerous state assets bequeathed to the country by Dr Nkrumah as most of them have been divested and ran down completely.

The only railway system built by Governor Guggisberg between 1919-1927 has been destroyed, putting pressure on existing roads which do not last their lifespan.

The abandonment of the country’s railway system has in no small measure dislocated the economy of rural areas and the income levels of farmers who used the system to transport their produce to the marketing centres for sale.

Africa today cannot produce adequate food to feed itself. The mass of countries on the continent depend on food hand outs  from their colonial masters.

In other words, the continent continues to eat from the kitchens of the colonial masters and until countries recover from their deep slumber and realise the need to built their own kitchens, they would continue to wallow in economic servitude.

How can the fragile systems of African countries be described as economies when they are indeed trading posts where raw materials are exported to the developed countries, which in turn export their manufactured articles at higher prices to the continent for sale.

Since independence some five decades plus ago, the productive forces and productive relations on the continent still remained largely underdeveloped, making it difficult for countries to maximise economies of scale.

The political system, whether capitalism or socialism, which the country has practised since independence, was borrowed from outside and imposed on the masses of the people.

Both systems had been overthrown and suspended one time or the other by military regimes which managed the country between 1966 and 1992.

The 1969 Constitution was borrowed from the British parliamentary system where the country was managed by an executive Prime Minister  and a ceremonial President.

The 1992 Constitution was largely copied from the American system which has an executive President and Vice-President and this has prevailed since that period, witnessing four Presidents in the process.

The forces of neo-colonialism had greatly infiltrated the culture, music and language of countries on the continent, including Ghana. Majority of parents prefer their children to express themselves in the English Language to their local dialect at home, while people gifted with speaking the Queen’s language impeccably are highly respected in the African society.

These are some of the challenges facing the continent. How is the AU preparing towards  the coming decades to overcome such challenges?

Article by Kweku Tsen

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