After a generation of independence, Africa faces harsh facts and hard choices
Our ancient continent is now on the brink of disaster, hurtling towards the abyss of confrontation, caught in the grip of violence. Gone are the smiles, the joys of life.
—Edem Kodjo, former
Secretary-General of the Organization for
African Unity
A quarter of a century after the nations of sub-Saharan Africa began to gain their independence, that bleak view is shared by increasing numbers of Africans and non-Africans alike. The New Year's Eve coup in Nigeria was only the most recent recurrence of a pattern of failure that has gripped the continent. Black-ruled Africa is suffering today from a political and economic malaise that few could have imagined when British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan spoke eloquently in 1960 of the "wind of change" then sweeping the continent.
Uhuru!, the Swahili clarion call for freedom from the European colonial powers, has brought independence but little liberty for millions of black Africans. The rallying cry "One man, one vote" has been transformed into reality, but it has suffered an ironic distortion. Many Africans now have one vote, but often it can be cast for only one man. Zambia's President Kenneth Kaunda was the sole candidate in his nation's presidential elections last October, when he was elected to a fifth four-year term. In Kenya, long a showplace of African democracy, President Daniel Arap Moi faced no challenger in elections last September.
All too frequently, fledgling African democracies have become hostage to leaders intent solely on gaining and holding power. In the past 25 years, more than 70 leaders in 29 African nations have been deposed by assassination, purges or coups. Among the 41 major independent black African nations, only seven allow opposition political parties. Seventeen are single-party states. Another 17 are ruled by military regimes.
Economically, the picture is no brighter. In nation after nation, independence has been followed by a steady decrease in per capita food production. Such essential government services as education, health care and transportation are in disarray. African countries are so riddled by foreign debt, estimated at a total of $100 billion annually, that they are rescheduling loans by arguing that they are near bankruptcy. In the meantime, sub-Saharan Africa's population of 210 million in 1960 has grown to 393 million. It continues to increase by 2.9% annually, the fastest growth rate in the world.
Almost without exception, African governments have allowed a crucial part of their colonial inheritance—the infrastructure of roads, railways, cities and towns built by Europeans—to deteriorate. In Dar es Salaam, the once attractive capital of Tanzania, years of post-colonial neglect have left their ravages. Pavements are cracked and unrepaired. Manhole covers have disappeared and not been replaced. Buildings are unpainted and grimy. In many areas, garbage is no longer collected; thin wisps of pungent smoke curl up through the palm trees from burning piles of refuse.
Roads built by European engineers are being gradually swallowed up by the bush. When Zaïre, then known as the Belgian Congo, gained its independence in 1960, it had 58,000 miles of good roads; now only 6,200 miles are passable.