Underdevelopment in Africa

     
 The question of development in Africa and by extension in all Third World countries has been subjected to various academic assessments. A number of political-economic scholars have attempted to situate the cause of African economic debacle to different Western and internal inputs. Obviously, the rate of scholarship in Africa has increased since the decolonization period and so is the interest in African persistent underdevelopment. African scholars in their own ways set out to explain and perhaps solve African problem of underdevelopment. there is a saying that in other to solve a problem, one must understand the causes of such problem. it is to that extent that it has become so imperative to attempt a critical analysis as to what is responsible for African underdevelopment in the contemporary global system.
          Well, scholars in the shoes of Kwame Nkrumah, one time Ghanaian leader, assume that underdevelopment remains basically the function of neo-colonialism which has manifested in the continuous subservient position of African countries after they had been granted 'their flag independence'. Scholars in this position are not entirely wrong. We are all witnesses to the reality of the international economic arena; the most exploited region is Africa. In other words, the West in its continuation of what Kwame Nkrumah termed New colonialism has continued to exploit Africa. With specific example to the position of West African francophone countries and their relationship with their former colonial master- France-one would readily concur that these countries are political and economic appendages in the international system. France still somehow maintains colonial hold on these countries. it is even safe3 to argue that 'their resources are not controlled by foreign hand'.
          Without engaging in ridiculous oversimplification, the activities of the Bretton Woods institutions are eyes opener. These institutions have continuously enforce detrimental economic policies on the countries in Africa. The SAP adjustment programme of the 1980s is a familiar example.
         However, European and of course American scholars would situate African persistent underdevelopment within the enclave of internal political dynamics. to them, graft, mismanagement of funds coupled with political instability are basically the reason for African underdevelopment. The inability of African political elites to use resources and enormous funds from their natural resources to establish fundamentally developmental programmes and projects is obviously an African problem. It appears that political instability cannot promote development in the real sense of it. Of course, that is the reality. Corruption and other sociopolitical anomaly are African problems.One can easily make examples of Singapore, Korea, Brazil, Malaysia, among others, who have achieved political stability and purification and hence an estimate of economic development.
         Using the dependency theory, the very basic of African development has been largely riding on their overt dependence on the European. Perhaps, the contemporary international political system has not really favoured the liberation of Africa. Moreover, there seems to be no change in the global status-quo in all arena. For instance, the Western European countries, Japan and America have continued to dominate. This is not to jettison the emergence of the NICS (newly industrialized countries). Notwithstanding, Cardoso in 1973 posited, in his review of economic development, that the estimate of development associated with Western influenced development is 'associated'. In other word, the parameter of economic development in the global system is still very much far from touching down on the third world countries.
         It would not be too unsafe to predict that for the foreseeable future, if the structure of the international system remains as it is and African leaders refuse to do quick political and economic reassessment, the continent would continue to play subservient roles among the comity of states in the international system