Thank you for this article, it's an interesting read, but I have an issue with a certain narrative that is common amongst African writers who write about Africa to a predominantly western audience and I fear that African affairs are being coloured in the light of American culture war narratives of victim Vs victor, racism etc. an example of this can be found in a point you made which I'll quote below
"As I say in the video below, if you line up 100 Africans on one side and 100 non-Africans on the other, and you ask them, Why is Africa poor?, most Africans (and their allies) will come up with the usual suspects: colonialism, slavery, they’re stealing our natural resources, racism, yada yada yada yada."
The point you made above is so painfully wrong and unimformed that I'm astonished that you would make such a point. If you indeed lined up 100 Africans, colonialism and slavery, would not be in the top 5 reasons, that's if they're mentioned at all. Racism will not even be mentioned. Africans are more likely to blame corruption, bad government, mismanagement and a host of other things you mentioned rather than mentioning colonialism and slavery or racism.
Africans are so past these things that they exhibit a snubbish attitude towards African Americans when they emigrate to the west when things like slavery and racism are mentioned as holding Black people back.
So, why would you write something that's obviously incorrect? I have seen this trend amongst many Black writers writing for a western audience. This narrative of looking at African affairs through a western culture war narrative paints a false picture.
You're more likely to hear complaints like the one you mentioned from Africans living in the diaspora rather than those on the continent, that's because they have also imbibed western culture war narratives as causative factors. Most Africans aren't worried about racism not in the least.
Lastly to answer the question, why is Africa poor, it's due to varied number of factors and yes that includes the ones you mentioned such as corruption, bribery, etc, just as much as it includes the ones you're disputing such as colonialism/neocolonialism, resource exploitation, predatory loans and the setup of the global economy which favours the global North at the expense of the global South, while the points you mentioned are much more obvious, the points you're disagreeing with are much more sinister because there is a tendency to ignore them and paint whoever raises them up as playing the victim, many things can be right at the same time.
This is interesting, focusing on the standpoint of a cultural/economic critic. It's food for thought. But it seems like a bit of a mixed message. You first suggest Africans are largely "over it" in terms of placing blame on the West (or North). But, in your final paragraph, you - who I assume to be African - do not seem to be "over it" at all, but perhaps caught up in the arguments made by those in the woke West. We have a predatory loan problem here in the US - such loans being made mostly to those ignorant of their real cost and maybe some aware of the cost who find no alternative. Or perhaps others who are unable to distinguish between a necessary loan and a desired loan. Education (lack of it) seems to be the biggest problem. Predatory loans on a national or regional scale are surely exacerbated by corrupt players - lenders and borrowers - who are profiting on both ends. Additional development problems for Africa, perhaps, are the paucity of natural deep ports, for a continent with so much shoreline, and the geographical (and maybe political) impediments to continental railways. The post-colonial stuff, whatever it is, surely has to be evaluated in light of the billions sent from the West (North) in the form of aid that, by all appearances, hasn't been put to the best uses.
Good land title records, supported by dependable property rights and enforcement mechanisms, also might be helpful - although the woke would surely describe this as imposing toxic Western (or Northern) culture on pristine tribal systems.
My comment was largely in two parts, the first part dealt with the assumptions made by the author about what Africans think the cause of the continent’s poverty is, for all anyone knows, Africans may be wrong in their analysis of the root problem or they may be partially correct, but as it stands, the narrative that Africans blame colonialism or slavery or racism is non existent. My comment was a criticism of that false assumption, it was not a prescriptive statement on the validity of said position.
The second part of my comment was an answer to the question, why is Africa poor. I find the African narrative blaming corruption and bad leadership insufficient to answer that question, just as much as I find the “woke west’s” narrative of blaming colonialism and resource exploitation to be an insufficient explanation. It's isn't an either or position, it's a mix of both.
So, the African is partially correct when he places the blame on corruption and bad leadership, the “woke west” is partially correct when they say neocolonialism, and resource exploitation is the cause. The truth is, it's a mix of many factors. What I find interesting is that people’s analysis tend to tilt rigidly to either positions to the exclusion of the other.
Finally, you say, I seem not to have gotten over that narrative. But what is there to get over when what I've said is the objective truth? You seem to take my claim of the west’s role in Africa’s poverty as me holding a grudge. I hold no grudges, it’s a matter of objective analysis. A famous saying by right wing Americans is “facts don't care about your feelings” so in this case, my feelings about this—which I didn't express by the way—are irrelevant. The fact remains, both neocolonialism, resource exploitation, corruption, bad leadership, tribalism are all causative factors and I'm not shy of stating them as such. There are those who put the blame solely on the west, they are wrong, there are those who would absolve the west of any culpability, they are just as wrong.
Ok. Your thoughtful clarification makes sense. The discussion of the colonialism problem may reduce to: if all involved do their best in good faith to overcome the problem, how long should it take to reach the point of responsibility for self-determination to devolve fully on the former colonies? Surely, there also will be questions whether the colonial powers left behind anything of value (infrastructure, governmental structure, appropriated goods, etc.), or only bad things (such as dysfunctional, artificial state boundaries, self-loathing/acceptance of deviant colonialist racial views, etc.). No doubt, there will be differing opinions and it is difficult for many to view the problem objectively. Also, inevitably, some on both sides will deny that the other is trying in good faith. And, along the lines of the point you have been making, it is a mistake to assume every resident of a former colony will come to the same conclusions. Likewise, views held by residents of former colonist countries will not be unanimous. There are many analogues to this. The situation of descendants of American slaves is one; a more universal one is the situation of children of dysfunctional parents- when do they become responsible for their own agency and life outcomes? These are fraught discussions, the more so because it's difficult to find an objective perspective.
Wow, what an interesting point of view! I never put corruption in the context of economic unfreedom, but it absolutely makes sense! It was (is) the same in Communist countries, some of the poorest and more corrupt places on earth, and not for lack of resources. Thank you for this article!
Where is Rwanda in this? I know there is still corruption as I was just there and saw the presidents massive “new house” which looked more like an entire compound or small university- but there was good infrastructure and a lot of small businesses and women owned businesses especially in Kigali. Just curious….
I enjoyed reading this piece. While I hesitate to say Africa is over-regulated rather than poorly regulated, I fully agree that starting and running a business in many African countries—Nigeria included—is an extreme sport. I’ve experienced firsthand how bureaucracy, inefficiency, and red tape stifle entrepreneurship. That said, I don’t believe regulation alone explains Africa’s economic struggles. A complex mix of governance, infrastructure, access to capital, and even cultural factors play a role. Economic freedom is key, but it must be paired with strategic investments and policies that support sustainable growth.
Thank you, Magetta Wade for this excellent article that ought to go viral! This is exactly 100% right! How can Africa and its people unleash its vast potential! Overregulation, high taxes and a complex system of rules that are almost impossible to navigate have kept African countries in poverty and kept the best and the brightest in African society from excelling. For those outside the West who care about Africa and it’s people, you need to stop blaming things like slavery, colonialism, neocolonialism, exploitation, etc. for Africa’s problems. Did all those things have negative effects on Africa? Absolutely they did. But they are not the reason for Africa’s current woes. I would urge African leaders, Africans and their allies to stop blaming the white man and weaponizing the past in order to cover for your own failures and to cure an aliment that Africa caught long after the white man left the continent. But I wanted to add a couple more factors. The lack of economic freedom is certainly one factor in one why Africa is poor but there are two other important ones. Those being mismanagement by native leaders and geography. Thomas Sowell talked about this in his famous works. Africa is a continent that suffers from a lack of arable land, impassable rapids, a lack of navigable waterways, cultural fragmentation, flat coastlines, and the Tsetse Fly. To the first point after the European colonists withdrew, power reverted to native elites or that void was filled by Communist and Socialist dictators. I also believe based on my research and weighing the pros and cons, that European colonialism did more good than bad for Africa. I want to preface this by saying that I definitely recognize that European colonialism in Africa came with racism, injustices, atrocities, and exploitation. To be sure European colonialism in Africa could be brutal, had its flaws and has left behind some negative legacies for sure. I’ll use a couple of examples. I’m sure everyone here is familiar with the horrific crimes perpetrated by the Congo Free State run by mad King Leopold II of Belgium who murdered 200,000 people. I would also point to the internment of Kenyans in concentration camps and the rape of native Kenyan women by British and allied Kenyan soldiers during the Mau Mau Uprising from 1952-1960. But overall, I believe European colonialism did great good for Africa and was a very positive thing. Here are some of the reasons I believe this: the abolition of slavery on the continent, bringing peace between warring tribes, competent governance, fair taxation, the building of infrastructure, female rights, enfranchisement of untouchable or historically excluded communities, widened employment opportunities, access to capital, the generation of historical and cultural knowledge, national identity formation, improved public health, expanded education, and improved living standards among other things. The opening of charter cities on the continent by the United States, Europe, Japan, and the Asian Tigers would definitely be a huge boon to the nations of Africa. In addition to massive deregulation, cutting taxes significantly, streamlining and simplifying the process by which one can open a business, increasing the rates of literacy and education for girls and women, anti-corruption legislation and civil service reform, strict term and age limits for African leaders, and the implementation of an African New Deal and starting massive infrastructure projects to put people to work. Everyone go visit Prospera Africa’s website and do whatever you can to support their amazing work!
I agree with you that increased economic freedom would be a good thing for Africa, but do not underestimate the impact that geography has had in holding back development in the region:
Colonialism extracted tons of resources, impoverished communities, created inter-communal hatred (i.e. Hutu/tutsi) then when they pulled out it created power vacuums everywhere and the ambitious/corrupted happily filled the gap just as its happened in the Middle East, Caribbean, South America and wherever Europe has meddled. It’s not only that, the points about corruption/bureaucracy are very valid and would help initiate growth, but the current symptoms of dysfunction isn’t without traceable roots
Interesting. Was there ever a time when such "economic unfreedom" was eased, perhaps during the days of European colonialism? From what I've read native Africans were the bulk of the economic workforce during colonialism with relatively few European executives and Indian managers. How did the economies of, say, (South) Rhodesia, South Africa, and Kenya perform then compared to now (especially on a per capita basis to factor out the massive rise in population since then)?
History is often a useful guide to determine a country's or continent's limitations and possibilities. Can Africa's still recent history help to demonstrate and encourage its future potential?
Thank you for this article, it's an interesting read, but I have an issue with a certain narrative that is common amongst African writers who write about Africa to a predominantly western audience and I fear that African affairs are being coloured in the light of American culture war narratives of victim Vs victor, racism etc. an example of this can be found in a point you made which I'll quote below
"As I say in the video below, if you line up 100 Africans on one side and 100 non-Africans on the other, and you ask them, Why is Africa poor?, most Africans (and their allies) will come up with the usual suspects: colonialism, slavery, they’re stealing our natural resources, racism, yada yada yada yada."
The point you made above is so painfully wrong and unimformed that I'm astonished that you would make such a point. If you indeed lined up 100 Africans, colonialism and slavery, would not be in the top 5 reasons, that's if they're mentioned at all. Racism will not even be mentioned. Africans are more likely to blame corruption, bad government, mismanagement and a host of other things you mentioned rather than mentioning colonialism and slavery or racism.
Africans are so past these things that they exhibit a snubbish attitude towards African Americans when they emigrate to the west when things like slavery and racism are mentioned as holding Black people back.
So, why would you write something that's obviously incorrect? I have seen this trend amongst many Black writers writing for a western audience. This narrative of looking at African affairs through a western culture war narrative paints a false picture.
You're more likely to hear complaints like the one you mentioned from Africans living in the diaspora rather than those on the continent, that's because they have also imbibed western culture war narratives as causative factors. Most Africans aren't worried about racism not in the least.
Lastly to answer the question, why is Africa poor, it's due to varied number of factors and yes that includes the ones you mentioned such as corruption, bribery, etc, just as much as it includes the ones you're disputing such as colonialism/neocolonialism, resource exploitation, predatory loans and the setup of the global economy which favours the global North at the expense of the global South, while the points you mentioned are much more obvious, the points you're disagreeing with are much more sinister because there is a tendency to ignore them and paint whoever raises them up as playing the victim, many things can be right at the same time.
Thank you
This is interesting, focusing on the standpoint of a cultural/economic critic. It's food for thought. But it seems like a bit of a mixed message. You first suggest Africans are largely "over it" in terms of placing blame on the West (or North). But, in your final paragraph, you - who I assume to be African - do not seem to be "over it" at all, but perhaps caught up in the arguments made by those in the woke West. We have a predatory loan problem here in the US - such loans being made mostly to those ignorant of their real cost and maybe some aware of the cost who find no alternative. Or perhaps others who are unable to distinguish between a necessary loan and a desired loan. Education (lack of it) seems to be the biggest problem. Predatory loans on a national or regional scale are surely exacerbated by corrupt players - lenders and borrowers - who are profiting on both ends. Additional development problems for Africa, perhaps, are the paucity of natural deep ports, for a continent with so much shoreline, and the geographical (and maybe political) impediments to continental railways. The post-colonial stuff, whatever it is, surely has to be evaluated in light of the billions sent from the West (North) in the form of aid that, by all appearances, hasn't been put to the best uses.
Good land title records, supported by dependable property rights and enforcement mechanisms, also might be helpful - although the woke would surely describe this as imposing toxic Western (or Northern) culture on pristine tribal systems.
Anyway, good, thought-provoking comment. Thank you.
Quite an interesting comment as well, Smith.
My comment was largely in two parts, the first part dealt with the assumptions made by the author about what Africans think the cause of the continent’s poverty is, for all anyone knows, Africans may be wrong in their analysis of the root problem or they may be partially correct, but as it stands, the narrative that Africans blame colonialism or slavery or racism is non existent. My comment was a criticism of that false assumption, it was not a prescriptive statement on the validity of said position.
The second part of my comment was an answer to the question, why is Africa poor. I find the African narrative blaming corruption and bad leadership insufficient to answer that question, just as much as I find the “woke west’s” narrative of blaming colonialism and resource exploitation to be an insufficient explanation. It's isn't an either or position, it's a mix of both.
So, the African is partially correct when he places the blame on corruption and bad leadership, the “woke west” is partially correct when they say neocolonialism, and resource exploitation is the cause. The truth is, it's a mix of many factors. What I find interesting is that people’s analysis tend to tilt rigidly to either positions to the exclusion of the other.
Finally, you say, I seem not to have gotten over that narrative. But what is there to get over when what I've said is the objective truth? You seem to take my claim of the west’s role in Africa’s poverty as me holding a grudge. I hold no grudges, it’s a matter of objective analysis. A famous saying by right wing Americans is “facts don't care about your feelings” so in this case, my feelings about this—which I didn't express by the way—are irrelevant. The fact remains, both neocolonialism, resource exploitation, corruption, bad leadership, tribalism are all causative factors and I'm not shy of stating them as such. There are those who put the blame solely on the west, they are wrong, there are those who would absolve the west of any culpability, they are just as wrong.
Ok. Your thoughtful clarification makes sense. The discussion of the colonialism problem may reduce to: if all involved do their best in good faith to overcome the problem, how long should it take to reach the point of responsibility for self-determination to devolve fully on the former colonies? Surely, there also will be questions whether the colonial powers left behind anything of value (infrastructure, governmental structure, appropriated goods, etc.), or only bad things (such as dysfunctional, artificial state boundaries, self-loathing/acceptance of deviant colonialist racial views, etc.). No doubt, there will be differing opinions and it is difficult for many to view the problem objectively. Also, inevitably, some on both sides will deny that the other is trying in good faith. And, along the lines of the point you have been making, it is a mistake to assume every resident of a former colony will come to the same conclusions. Likewise, views held by residents of former colonist countries will not be unanimous. There are many analogues to this. The situation of descendants of American slaves is one; a more universal one is the situation of children of dysfunctional parents- when do they become responsible for their own agency and life outcomes? These are fraught discussions, the more so because it's difficult to find an objective perspective.
Wow, what an interesting point of view! I never put corruption in the context of economic unfreedom, but it absolutely makes sense! It was (is) the same in Communist countries, some of the poorest and more corrupt places on earth, and not for lack of resources. Thank you for this article!
Where is Rwanda in this? I know there is still corruption as I was just there and saw the presidents massive “new house” which looked more like an entire compound or small university- but there was good infrastructure and a lot of small businesses and women owned businesses especially in Kigali. Just curious….
I enjoyed reading this piece. While I hesitate to say Africa is over-regulated rather than poorly regulated, I fully agree that starting and running a business in many African countries—Nigeria included—is an extreme sport. I’ve experienced firsthand how bureaucracy, inefficiency, and red tape stifle entrepreneurship. That said, I don’t believe regulation alone explains Africa’s economic struggles. A complex mix of governance, infrastructure, access to capital, and even cultural factors play a role. Economic freedom is key, but it must be paired with strategic investments and policies that support sustainable growth.
Thank you, Magetta Wade for this excellent article that ought to go viral! This is exactly 100% right! How can Africa and its people unleash its vast potential! Overregulation, high taxes and a complex system of rules that are almost impossible to navigate have kept African countries in poverty and kept the best and the brightest in African society from excelling. For those outside the West who care about Africa and it’s people, you need to stop blaming things like slavery, colonialism, neocolonialism, exploitation, etc. for Africa’s problems. Did all those things have negative effects on Africa? Absolutely they did. But they are not the reason for Africa’s current woes. I would urge African leaders, Africans and their allies to stop blaming the white man and weaponizing the past in order to cover for your own failures and to cure an aliment that Africa caught long after the white man left the continent. But I wanted to add a couple more factors. The lack of economic freedom is certainly one factor in one why Africa is poor but there are two other important ones. Those being mismanagement by native leaders and geography. Thomas Sowell talked about this in his famous works. Africa is a continent that suffers from a lack of arable land, impassable rapids, a lack of navigable waterways, cultural fragmentation, flat coastlines, and the Tsetse Fly. To the first point after the European colonists withdrew, power reverted to native elites or that void was filled by Communist and Socialist dictators. I also believe based on my research and weighing the pros and cons, that European colonialism did more good than bad for Africa. I want to preface this by saying that I definitely recognize that European colonialism in Africa came with racism, injustices, atrocities, and exploitation. To be sure European colonialism in Africa could be brutal, had its flaws and has left behind some negative legacies for sure. I’ll use a couple of examples. I’m sure everyone here is familiar with the horrific crimes perpetrated by the Congo Free State run by mad King Leopold II of Belgium who murdered 200,000 people. I would also point to the internment of Kenyans in concentration camps and the rape of native Kenyan women by British and allied Kenyan soldiers during the Mau Mau Uprising from 1952-1960. But overall, I believe European colonialism did great good for Africa and was a very positive thing. Here are some of the reasons I believe this: the abolition of slavery on the continent, bringing peace between warring tribes, competent governance, fair taxation, the building of infrastructure, female rights, enfranchisement of untouchable or historically excluded communities, widened employment opportunities, access to capital, the generation of historical and cultural knowledge, national identity formation, improved public health, expanded education, and improved living standards among other things. The opening of charter cities on the continent by the United States, Europe, Japan, and the Asian Tigers would definitely be a huge boon to the nations of Africa. In addition to massive deregulation, cutting taxes significantly, streamlining and simplifying the process by which one can open a business, increasing the rates of literacy and education for girls and women, anti-corruption legislation and civil service reform, strict term and age limits for African leaders, and the implementation of an African New Deal and starting massive infrastructure projects to put people to work. Everyone go visit Prospera Africa’s website and do whatever you can to support their amazing work!
I agree with you that increased economic freedom would be a good thing for Africa, but do not underestimate the impact that geography has had in holding back development in the region:
https://frompovertytoprogress.substack.com/p/how-geography-constrained-development
Or the importance of high value-added export industries to overcoming these geographical constraints:
https://frompovertytoprogress.substack.com/p/how-developing-nations-can-create
Colonialism extracted tons of resources, impoverished communities, created inter-communal hatred (i.e. Hutu/tutsi) then when they pulled out it created power vacuums everywhere and the ambitious/corrupted happily filled the gap just as its happened in the Middle East, Caribbean, South America and wherever Europe has meddled. It’s not only that, the points about corruption/bureaucracy are very valid and would help initiate growth, but the current symptoms of dysfunction isn’t without traceable roots
Excellent read. Thank you.
Interesting. Was there ever a time when such "economic unfreedom" was eased, perhaps during the days of European colonialism? From what I've read native Africans were the bulk of the economic workforce during colonialism with relatively few European executives and Indian managers. How did the economies of, say, (South) Rhodesia, South Africa, and Kenya perform then compared to now (especially on a per capita basis to factor out the massive rise in population since then)?
History is often a useful guide to determine a country's or continent's limitations and possibilities. Can Africa's still recent history help to demonstrate and encourage its future potential?