How slave trade and colonialism contributed to the underdevelopment of Africa

AFRICAN UNDERDEVELOPMENT

BY

BELLO MARK

western Europe and Africa had a relationship which ensured the transfer of wealth from Africa to Europe. The transfer was possible only after trade became truly international; and that takes  one back to the late 15th century when Africa and Europe were drawn into common relations for the first time along with Asia and Americas. For long, European relationship with Africans can be describe as 'parasitic' i. e. Europe benefittin on Africa while Africa gain nothing. In the century before colonial rule, Europe increased it economic capacity by leaps and bounds, while Africa appeared to have been almost static. Africa in the late 19th century could still be described as part communal and part feudal, although western Europe had moved completely from feudalism to capitalism. 

In 1444, the Portuguese sailed to west Africa, it was a huge gap by the time that European robber statesmen sat down in Berlin 440 years later to decide who should steal which parts of  Africa. It was that gap which provided both the necessity and opportunity for Europe to move into the imperialist epoch, and to colonise  and Underdevelop Africa. Throughout the 17th and 18th century, the  exploitation of Africa and African labor continued to be a source for accumulation of capital to be re-invested in western Europe. The Africa contribution to European capitalist growth extended over such vital sectors as shipping, insurance, the formation of companies, capitalist agriculture, technology and the manufacture of machinery. 

The period between 15th and 18th century marked the period of slavery and 18th to 50s, 60s and 70s marked the period of colonialism in Africa. Therefore, the contention here is that over that period Africa helped to develop western Europe in the same proportion as western Europe to Underdeveloped Africa. Thus, slavery and colonialism will be examine to answer the question of European development and African Underdevelopment using Walter Rodney Marxist analysis of "how Europe Underdeveloped Africa". 

1. Slave trade:- Before 15th century Africa was developing at it own pace, but after a need for who to mine the silver and gold in America arised. Since the indigenous red Indians could not withstand European diseases such as small-pox, nor could theyvbearvthe organized toil of slave plantations and slave mines having barely emerged from the hunting stage. At that same time, Europe itself had a very small population and could not afford to release the labor required to tap the wealth of the Americas. Therefore, the turned to the nearest continent, Africa, which incidentally had a population accustomed to settled agriculture and discipline labor in many spheres. 

With the successful introduction of slave trade in Africa, African economic activity was affected both directly and indirectly by population loss. The massive loss to the African labor force was made more critical because it was composed of able-bodied young men and young women. These were the class of people that were industrious, capable for developing Africa but they were sold, developing Europe and America at the expense of Africa. The connection between Africa and Europe from the 15th century onwards served to  spirit of technological innovation both directly and indirectly. 

The European slave trade was a direct block, in removing millions of youth and young adults who are the human agents from whom inventiveness spring. Those who remained in areas badly hit by slave-capturing were preoccupied about their freedom rather than with improvements in production. For instance, Dahomey which in the 16th century was known for exporting food to part of what is now Togo, was suffering from famines in the the 19th century. The present generation of Africa will readily recall that in the colonial period when able-bodied men left their homes as migrant laborers that upset the farming routine in the home districts and often caused famines. Slave trading after all, meant migration of labor in a manner one hundred times more brutal and disruptive. 

Further, captives were shipped outside instead of being utilised within any given africa n community for creating wealth from nature. In any case, slaving prevented the remaining population from effectively engaging in agriculture and industry, and it employed professional slave hunters and warrior to destroy rather than build. Quite apart from the moral aspect and the immense suffering that it caused, the European, slave trade was economically totally irrational from the view point of African development. 

2. International trade:- The element of subordination and dependence is crucial to an understanding of Africa under development today, and its root lie far back in the era of international trade. International trade here mean nothing but the extension overseas of European interest. The strategy behind international trade and the production that supported it was firmly in European hands. They owned and directed the great majority of the world's sea-going vessel and they controlled the financing of the trade between continent Europe had a monopoly of knowledge about the international exchange system as seen as a whole. Europeans uses the superiority of their ships and cannon to gain control of all the world's waters way, starting with western Mediterranean and the Atlantic coast of north Africa. By second half of the 15th century, the Portuguese controlled the Atlantic coast of morocco and used it economic and strategic advantages to prepare for further navigation. Therefore, by control of the sea Europe took the first steps towards transforming the several part of Africa into economic setellites. 

In the first half of 17th century, European engaged in buying cotton cloth in India to exchange for slave in Africa to mine gold in central and south America. Therefore, as far as foreign/international trade was concerned, Africa was dependent on what European were prepared to buy and sell. 

3. Capitalism :- The kind of benefits which Europe derived from it control of world commerce are fairly well know, although it is curious that the recognition of Africans major contribution to European development is usually made in works devoted specially to that subject: while European scholars of Europe often treat the European economy as if it were entirely independent. For instance, J. S. Mill as spokesperson for British capitalism said that as far as England was concerned, 'trade of the west indies is hardly to be considered as external trade but more resembles the traffic between town and country'. By 'trade of the west Indies' Mill meant the commerce between Africa, England and west Indies, because without African labor the west Indies were valueless. 

Karl Marx commented on the way that European capitalist tied Africa, the west Indies and Latin America into the capitalist system; and being the most bitter critic of capitalism Marx went on to point out that what was good for european s was obtained at the expense of untold suffering by Africans and American Indians. Marx noted that 'the discovery of gold and silver in America, the extirpation, enslavement and entombment in mines of aboriginal population, the turning of Africa into a commercial warren for the hunting of black skins signalised the rosy dawn of the era of capitalist production'. 

Europe accumulated capital during slave trade. Besides capital accumulation, Europe's trade with Africa gave numerous stimuli to Europe's growth. Central and south American gold and silver-mined by Africans - played a crucial role in meeting the need for coin in expanding capitalist money economy of western Europe, while African gold was also significant in that respect. African gold helped the Portuguese to finance further navigation around the cape of Good Hope and into Asia ever since the 15th century. African gold was also the main source for the montage of Dutch gold coin in the 17th century; helping Amsterdam to become the financial capital of Europe in that period. 

By the time Africa entered the colonial era, it was concentrating almost entirely on the export of raw cotton and import of manufactured cotton cloth. This was so because of the technological advance in Europe and stagnation of technology in Africa owing to the very trade with Europe. One of the features associated with technological advance is a spirit of scientific inquiry closely related to the process of production. This lead to inventiveness and innovation. However, this spirit was killed by the European capitalism. For instance, African demand for cloth was increasing rapidly in the 15th, 16th, and 17th centuries, so there was a market for all cloth produced locally. In contrast, European cloth industry was able to copy fashionable African patterns and eventually to replace them. Consequently, European traders eventually succeeded in putting and end to the expansion of African cloth manufacture. 

When European cloth became dominant on the Africa market, it meant that African producers were cut off from the increasing demand. The craft producers either abandoned their task in the face of cheap available European cloth or continued on the same hand-worked instruments to create a styles and pieces for localized markets. Therefore, there was 'technological arrest' or stagnation and in some instances actual regression, since people forgot even the simple technique of their forefathers. For instance, the abandonment of traditional iron smelting in mostvparts of Africa. It is important to note that even after independence of African countries, the penetration of foreign capitalism continues in the form of what is called imperialism. 

4. Egocentric :- The spirit of self-centered ness is yet another factor that explains European development and African under development during colonialism. It is apparent that 15th century of slave trade to 19th century of Colonialism has been a period of exploitation of Africa which was solely for the interest of European. It was only as an accidental by-product that in some areas Africans who recruited captives for Europeans realized that they were better off keeping some captives for themselves. 

Africa was the victim of colonization and is still a victim though. In the period of the notorious 'Scramble for Africa',European made a grab for whatever they thought spell profits in Africa, and they even consciously acquired many areas not for immediate exploitation but with an eye to the future. Each European nation that had these short-term and long-term economic interest ran up it own flag in different parts of Africa  and established colonial rule. 

When colonial government seized African lands they achieved two things simultaneously. They satisfied their own citizens and they created the conditions whereby landlords Africans had work to pay taxes. In settler area of European such as Kenya and Rhodesia the colonial government also presented Africans from growing cash crops so that their labor would be available directly for the whites. Wages paid to workers in Europe and North America were much higher than wages paid to African workers in comparable categories. For instance, in the period before the world war, European civil servants into the gold coast receives and average of €40 per month, with quarters and other privileges, while Africans on got an average salary of €4. Also, in one mine, European performed that job for $30 per month, while in another place, Africans did it for $3 per month. All these disperity in the payment of wages and salary among European and Africans was purely for the favor Europe development and Africa under development, because until you earn surplus you cannot even think of investment. 

CONCLUSION 

colonialism has played a significant role in ensuring development in Europe and west Indies through the exploitation of African's natural and human resources that might have been used for the development of Africa. These were discussed under slave trade, international trade, capitalism and egocentric. The two great sequential epoch were responsible for that i. e. Slavery and colonialism. Africans were raided by European exploitation which left a scar of underdevelopment. 

REFERENCES 

Rodney, W. (2009) How Europe Underdeveloped Africa. Abuja: panaf publishing, Inc.