Unravelling the Mysteries of Africa's Underdevelopment

W. Forje

Description

Unravelling the mysteries of Africa�s underdevelopment presents an Afrocentric ideological understanding of the continent�s fragmentation; a scientific and objective (Mijadala) discourse as well as an approach of how to move progressively and sustainably Africa forward. The breadth and depth of the book shows the unwavering impoverishment and urgent need for the continent to stand up and take the bull by the horn. It offers an inspiring means of grappling with the continent�s problems to build the change we want � An African Wealth of Nation � not the continent of collapsed, failed states under the governance construct of centralised authoritarian regimes It is a thought-provoking discourse that challenges us all to be inherent participants in the reconstruction of a Brave New Africa far beyond the 21st Century.

Informations

• Publié par: Langaa RPCIG
• Date de parution: 19 mai 2020
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9789956551880
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 11 Mo

Extrait

Unravelling the mysteries of Africaʼs underdevelopment presents an Afrocentric ideological understanding of the continentʼs

It offers an inspiring means of grappling with the continentʼs problems to

University of Salford. Widely published, Forje is the author of In the Heat of Africaʼs

Unravelling the Mysteries of Africa’s Underdevelopment Changing Africa, One Idea at a Time

- John W. Forje -

Unravelling the Mysteries of Africa’s Underdevelopment: Changing Africa, One Idea at a Time John W. Forje Langaa Research & Publishing CIG Mankon, Bamenda

Publisher: LangaaRPCIG Langaa Research & Publishing Common Initiative Group P.O. Box 902 Mankon Bamenda North West Region Cameroon [e-mail] www.langaa-rpcig.net Distributed in and outside N. America by African Books Collective [e-mail] www.africanbookscollective.com

ISBN-10: 9956-551-39-2

ISBN-13: 978-9956-551-39-2

©John W. Forje 2020 All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, mechanical or electronic, including photocopying and recording, or be stored in any information storage or retrieval system, without written permission from the publisher

Table of Contents Acknowledgements ........................................................... v Foreword ........................................................................... vii Preface ............................................................................... ix Introduction ...................................................................... cv Chapter One Rethinking RARE as the Veritable Strategic Approach to Reconstructing the United States of Africa ...................................................... 1 Chapter Two Unlocking Africa’s Governance System, Migration Policy and Structural Economic Transformation: Challenges and Prospects for the Future.................................................... 35 Chapter Three A Strategic Agenda for Beating Back the Barriers for Women in Politics and Development in Africa ................................................................................. 85 Chapter Four Wrong Education Reinforces Exploitation, Inequality and Strengthens Underdevelopment: What Africa Can Do?......................................................... 133 Chapter Five Identify Values for National/ Continental Reconstruction .............................................. 199 Chapter Six Rethinking The Triumphant Agony and Tragedy of Globalisation and Africa’s Socioeconomic Transformation ....................................... 245

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Chapter Seven Constructing The Africa of Our Dream and Vision -Searching for Common Grounds: Can Africa Recapture Its Lost Glory? ............................... 313 Appendix One China, Africa’s Resources and the Sovereignty of its Countries .............................................. 409 Appendix Two The coming scramble for Africa: China, and Russia to a degree, are ahead of the game, but the USA has the advantage going forward ................. 415 Arthur L. H erman Appendix Three South Views: Strengthening the WTO to Promote Development and Inclusivity ............................. 419

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Acknowledgements Remembrance, Awareness and Responsibility The publication of this book could not have been realised without accumulating a heavy burden of debt to many; both known and unknown to me. I think my greatest debt goes to those writers who have contributed enormously to the vast literature which I have drawn and benefited from in crystallising my ideas as well as those we share different opinions; to friends and colleagues with whom I had the opportunity to discuss some of the issues over the years; to the publishers who have done such a marvellous job in presenting what you are able to browse through and the different publishers I have cited. I am painfully aware of my ignorance beside their deep knowledge and experience, and only hope to have made due acknowledgement of my debt in both the text and references. By and large, everyone I have met as well as all I have read enters into the publication. Those who have had closer and more intimate relations with the pages that follow have my special thanks and these include Prof. Godfrey Forgha Njimanted, Deputy Director Higher Institute of Technology and Logistics, University of Bamenda (UBa), Associate Prof. Henry Kah Jick, Coordinator, HND Programmes, Dr Mrs Njimanted, University of Bamenda (UBa), North West Region, Cameroon, Prof Mammo Muchie, University of Tshwane, Pretoria, South Africa, Dr Funeka April Yazini, Researcher at the Governance and Security Programme of ASIA-HSRC of South Africa, Pretoria. I have been even more influenced by discussions with friends, many of whom have read the manuscript in whole or in part. Although I am deeply grateful to them all, it would be both presumptuous and unfair to list them here. Special thanks to Profs Larry Swaturk (Canada) and Tangi Fonchingong (Cameroon) for their wonderful contributions. Finally, I am very grateful to the publishers for the invaluable work in editing and publishing the book I owe special debt to my family who have all these years been supportive of my research activities. I am appreciative also of the technical assistance given by the publishing house for producing such a beautiful piece of job that remains attractive and educative to the

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reading public. The hope is for us to join and rejoice in the debates in this and other publications so that we carry on and change over time with an emergent consensus in constructing a new Africa. The scale of the problem is multiplying, and we all need to understand the magnitude of the challenges that awaits us. Therefore, the same desire, the same questions, the same uncertainty have troubled perhaps everyone who has tried to write at least a few worlds about the plight and future of the continent. For so much, such a great deal is yet to be understood. Even today, for many people, the subject seems quite implausible. Come join the team of people venturing into addressing the issues underlined here. The past is never dead. It is not even past. It lives with us haunting us in different forms. We need to find the right solutions to free us from the horrendous past. Do not underestimate the significance of your contributions. The tongue can conceal the truth, but the eyes never. Winston Churchill once noted:‘men occasionally stumble over the truth, but most of them pick themselves up and hurry off as if nothing happened.’Do not stay silent. The words of Wladyslaw Bartoszewski;“none of us did enough. No one can say to themselves that they had done enough other than those who died helping others. Only they have done enough,”should ring a bell of action in us. Let us be proactive for a good course. Come and share with us your wonderful ideas. Together we would construct a wonderful and beautiful Africa. And ensure our peaceful co-existence in the global environment of nations. The names listed or not listed must shower the credit for any merits this book may have; as I alone am responsible for its defects. We should not continue to be suffering and smiling but to change and be constantly happy and hopeful for brighter days ahead for all the people.  JWF

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Foreword This study deals with the very important and perennial issue of the predicament of underdevelopment in Africa.Africa, which is not only the birthplace of the humankind but also the cradle of civilization has become the scum of the earth. This is because rather than being developed, or remaining undeveloped, Africa has, since colonial days, become underdeveloped. The obvious Conclusion has been to blame colonialism for Africa’s underdevelopment as aptly articulated by Rodney (1981) in hisHow Europe Underdeveloped Africa. But it was not only Africa that was colonised. Many parts of Asia and all of Latin America were also colonised but they are not as underdeveloped as Africa. In other words, they are far ahead of Africa in terms of development despite the fact that at the dawn of political independence the human and natural resources of Africa were estimated to be greater than those of almost any other continent in the world (Nkrumah 1963:216). In spite of or because of the many development paradigms that have been prescribed and imposed on Africa, its underdevelopment persists, and development prospects remain dismal. Besides the development paradigms that have been prescribed for Africa, there have equally been numerous scholarly studies analysing the problem and prescribing what is thought to be appropriate solutions. Though rich, the literature on Africa wrongly assumes that the causes of underdevelopment andipso factothe obstacles to development such as authoritarianism/centralization, corruption, policy failures, the inability of the African bourgeoisie, colonial legacies, neocolonialism, and the capitalist system among others can be overcome within the present context and mind-set. But this study provides a new perspective of tackling the problem. This new approach is the call for a progressive Afro-centric ideological agenda predicated on the rebirth or renewal of Africa. The beginning of Africa’s rebirth as a continent (based on its past glories) must be a serious soul searching” for all Africans so as to enable the continent to “arise from its current doldrums of destruction and exploitation” (pp.33).

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The importance of the rebirth of Africa based on its past glories as a necessary foundation for eradicating underdevelopment and ensuring its development cannot be overemphasized. The absence of such a rebirth has rendered and will continue to render any development efforts in Africa to be like constructing a building without an appropriate foundation. The result of such a project is anybody’s guess. This explains why though, being the most endowed with natural resources and in spite of the many development paradigms implemented over the years, Africa has remained underdeveloped and the most poverty-stricken continent in the world. But it is also pointed out that Africa cannot renew itself in the present circumstance in which its upper echelons are stooges of the West and parasites on the silent majority enjoying self-endowed mandate to remain in power for perpetuity and ensuring that the African continent reproduces itself as the periphery of the world economy. Consequently, the emergence of an appropriate type of leader and civil society is required. Hence, the author stipulates that the rebirth of Africa and the emergence of a progressive Afro-centric ideological orientation requires a catalytic leadership that is responsible, accountable, relevant and ethical as well as a civil society that is proactive and vibrant (p.77). This type of leadership and civil society will ensure the formulation and implementation of a five-point policy agenda which will facilitate the overcoming of existing pitfalls in the struggle for change, progress and sustainable development in Africa. These include Self-determination and good governance; human capital development; the building of the scientific and technological dynamics; silencing the gun- building a climate of inclusive dialogue, justice, consensus etc; and social power, social potential and social equality (pp. 196-200) These five points constitute the pillars of the book with each chapter being an indepth elucidation of one them. The book is a welcome addition to the literature on African development and given its innovative perspective, it is a must read for policy makers in Africa, researchers, graduate students and, indeed, all persons interested in the welfare of Africa. Tangie Nsoh Fonchingong(PhD) Political Scientist, Bamenda

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Preface The Fragmented Landscape Africa is a fragmented continent and will remain so for an unforeseeable future, unless progressive strategic policy measures and actions plans are put in place by the 54 or more states now to unite and integrate the continent and drastically reduce the ongoing state of inequalities, underdevelopment, foreign oppression, subjugation and exploitation. Why is Africa so fragmented and disunited? Why is the continent underdeveloped? Why are the citizens fleeing from the region? Why are so many challenges haunting us? Why can we not have a democratic society? Why do our leaders want to remain in power for perpetuity? Why is the continent stinking in poverty and swimming in endemic corruption? Why do we refuse to look behind, correct mistakes and move forward holistically as one unit? Do we really understand and know our problems and continent? Why do we continue living in the era of ‘blame’? Why are refusing to be realistic in addressing our problems? The why, why, why’s are just too many. We cannot progress when we cloth ourselves in the ‘whys’ and‘blames’nexus. Why can we not embrace the‘reality’in order to critically‘look behind’to constructively ‘move forward’? Can African countries achieve economic growth and development levels using their own cultural value concepts,batho pele, ujamaa, ubuntu, harambee, vivir bien - which means sharing, living in community, in fraternity and, especially, in complementarities, not competing, but living in harmony among peoples and with nature, producing for our needs protecting the environment to recover the health of Mother Earth etc., (Xavier, 2011; Wolfgang et al (eds. 2011)? African populations with their socio-cultural diversities need to be well understood and fully exploited to improve the living standards of the citizens. Although sustainable development shares a critique not only of state-centred concept of development but also of the modernist conception of the state, the situation is worse in the

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