Introduction
The continent Africa has been regarded in early literature as among the most illustrious with regards with culture and heritage. Its vast lands represent the rich resources in which other countries valued. Nevertheless, in the recent decades, Africa has been mired by crises after crises from famine, drought, and other epidemics that have shrouded its past splendor. These crises have similarly contributed to the underdevelopment of the countries in the continent. Nevertheless, factors such as colonialism and imperialism have been considered as among the main culprits of this underdevelopment. This perspective has been prevailing in recent works of commentators regarding the said country. However, there is still the issue on whether a closer look should be granted to the actions in which its own African public has acquired as among the major factors that brought about the crises in which the continent encounters. This paper is going to look into the case of Africa’s underdevelopment and analyze whether the African public would be deemed among the main reasons on the underdevelopment of their continent.
Underdevelopment in Africa
One factor that has been considered as among the main precursors of underdevelopment in Africa is its performance in agriculture and industry. A number of commentators credit Africa's pitiable agricultural and industrial accomplishments to structural reliance on the countries in Europe and United States. Consistent with this perspective, European nations influence individual African nations into manufacturing the particular supplies most wanted in Europe to the disadvantage of the general African economy. For example, one nation may possibly be persuaded to focus on selling a certain mineral abroad to the crux of exhaustion, at the same time as another is pent up on manufacturing a certain cash crops. The overall outcome is that the African nation is compelled to bring in all of its other fundamental materials from European nations.
The state of affairs in Africa has gotten worse to the extent that a number of observers imply that it is supposed to be indicated as a bootless errand and that the West is supposed to invest to a different location. To illustrate, the whole liability of Africa, almost 0 billion, is principally the consequence of African reliance on the Western nations for foodstuff equipment, and technology. Furthermore, the immense debt provides nations in Europe as well as the US an uneven influence over the inner dealings of the African states. A number of observers argue that Western countries employs international organizations, such as the International Monetary Fund and World Bank, to compel the African nations to expand along a prearranged economic paradigm as a prerequisite to loaning added funds from the said organizations. This internal interfering by western countries motivates loads of of the most profound sense of humiliation, disappointment, and resentment among African nations.
Furthermore, African nations similarly ascribe their sustained underdevelopment to the yearning by countries in Europe and the US to put in African heads that they could influence effortlessly. The end result is what a lot of Africans labeled as Africa’s leadership catastrophe. A lot of Africans are disenchanted subsequent to several years of takeovers, fraud, mistreatments of power and human rights, and shut-eye reception of counsel from Western countries. The putting in place of scrawny or bungling leaders balances a strategy of dividing the continent into small packs of states which is normally hostile with one another that encourages local disputes and maintains the vulnerability of African nations to the power of other countries. A few commentators propose that the European powers deliberately extend disputes in Africa by supplying weapons, human resources, technical aid, and monetary assistance to attain their individual national programs. Away from the undermining impact of prolonged conflicts, armed struggles are similarly a colossal ditch on the inadequate resources of the continent. Africa use up billions of dollars per year on its armed forces, moreover, there are just about over ten nations caught up in civil conflicts that have created in excess of six million people in exile and millions of displaced Africans. At present, Zaire, Sudan, Angola, Sierra Leone, and Somalia are at or close to a state of disintegration. Several of the nations in Africa have been damaged or overturned with such occurrence and regularity that there are a handful of accurately lawful administrations or institutions to even out the continent.
Education as the Root Cause of Underdevelopment
One of the basic responsibilities that Africa has neglected has been their educational system. That education is essential for the members of a society gearing towards social change, particularly towards development. This claim is stating that education is a critical element for the promotion of growth in a certain country’s economy. In the context of third world countries such as Africa, education is deemed as a primary component to leave the clutches of poverty.
The problem in this setting is that, even before when most of Africa is able to support themselves with the use of their resources like their copper mines, there is a strong showing of discrimination brought about by the concept of apartheid. This is reflected in the discussion of stating that in areas wherein there is a large population of white-settlers, there is an apparent prejudiced educational structure. This is displayed by the availability of opportunities among the black and the white students especially in higher education, this is notwithstanding the fact that the former considerably outnumber the latter.
On the other hand, claimed that higher education actually does play a significant role in the attempt of Africa to step off from its underdevelopment phase. However, they affirmed that the technological potential of Africa would benefit most in this aspect. The problem with this scenario, is the existing barriers of development’s continuing trudge to keep Africa from developing. They added that good governance, openness to trade and debt relief are among the basic requirements for Africa’s educational institutions to have an impact on the overall economy.
Conclusion
The paper has presented a discussion on the several issues on which commentators regard in the context of Africa’s underdevelopment. This paper has presented that western countries are not at all accountable for the circumstances of the African continent. They argue that a lot of the Asian and African colonies grew very swiftly throughout colonial rule, much more so than the self-governing states in the similar region. In addition, the liabilities to be paid by African nations stood for resources that have been furnished to them, frequently complemented with direct grants or aid. Complexities of servicing these liabilities do not show signs of external mistreatment or inauspicious and adverse conditions of trade. They are the consequence of uneconomical employment of the capital granted, or improper economic and financial courses of action. One could deem it in such a way that the key supposition following the notion of Western liability for the shortage in developing nations is that the affluence of people and societies in western nations in general reveals the abuse of other individuals in Africa.
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