review and summary of How Europe Underdeveloped Africa is a book written by Walter Rodney,

INTRODUCTION

How Europe Underdeveloped Africa is a book written by Walter Rodney, which takes the view that Africa was deliberately exploited and underdeveloped by European colonial regimes.This book was groundbreaking in that it was among the first to bring a new perspective to the question of underdevelopment in Africa. Rodney’s analysis went far beyond the heretofore accepted approach in the study of Third World underdevelopment and it was met with heavy criticism.

It is based on the outlined issues sketched above that this book was written. The piece of literature is arranged in chapters from one to six with thought provoking and are stimulating issue at each chapter. A post script as well as a biography of the author is attached at the latter part of the literature. A chapter by chapter method of review have been adopted to do justice to this work for an incisive appreciation.
The conceptualization of the notion of development and underdevelopment took the central stage in the first chapter, as the author attempted a penetrating analysis into the duo concepts in order to demystify their justification of capitalism which myopically conceives economic development with little or no consideration for human social development.

Rodney had determined that the only path to true human development and liberation for the majority of the people of his country was through the transformation of their own lives in a struggle to replace and reshape the neo-colonialist government that dominated their society and prescribed their existence.

Walter Rodney’s How Europe Underdeveloped Africa Part 1-3

In the first chapter of the book, Walter Rodney mainly looks into the concept of development and underdevelopment. Underdevelopment, as presented in Chapter I, is characterized by a number of things. First, Rodney emphasizes the comparative nature of the concept of development. Africa, Asia, and Latin America are only underdeveloped in comparison with Europe, North America, and the few other industrialized nations of the world. Second, underdevelopment does not simply describe the relative economic inequality of different countries or continents; but it also implies a relationship of economic exploitation between two or more countries, the exploiter becoming developed and the exploited becoming underdeveloped.  In the social group dimension it implies an increasing capacity to regulate both internal and external relationships. He further explained that man is not the being that engage in group relations but only man has the ability to embark on a line of unique developmentbecause man has the capacity to make and use tools. The tools with which men work and the way they organize labour are indices of social development. He further explained the various stages of development of Europe as spelt out by Karl Marx. The first major stage after simple bands of hunters was communalism which entails collective ownership of resources, work done in come and goods shared out equally. The next was slavery and then feudalism where agriculture was the principal means of making livelihood but land which was the most important for that was in the hands of a few who always took the  biggest share. There came capitalism in which goods were produced not by agriculture but the use of machines and then another trend of socialism was found in which the principle of equality will be restored as in communalism. All these stages brought about development in different ways. He criticized the explanation of the phenomenon as provided by the Bourgeois. They focused more on economic development which was as a matter of the combination of given factors of production that is, land, population, capital, technology, specialization and large-scale production.

The underdevelopment of the countries of Africa, Asia and Latin America is indicated by many things, including amount of steel used (level of industrialization), agricultural output, amount of protein-food consumed, life expectancy, death rate among children, malnutrition, presence of diseases which are virtually non-existent in developed countries, and illiteracy. Other characteristics of underdevelopment are the inability to concentrate on sectors of the economy which would generate growth, weak or no ties between different sectors of the economy, and the frittering away or expatriation of any savings accumulated.

Chapter two focused mainly on the developed nature of African territories before the coming of the Europeans up to the 15th century. The unique status of African civilization which is characterised by certain peculiarities some of which include the possession of distinct institutions/ideas of government etc as examplified by certain African territories like Egypt, Ethiopia, Nubia, Zimbabwe, the Maghreb, Western Sudan, etc were altered by culture contact which saw the infiltration of European civilization into the African system, though with its attendant consequence.

Africa’s contribution to European capitalist development during the pre-colonial period forced the major emphasis of chapter three. The unequal trade relations which saw the transfer of wealth from Africa to Europe was a direct consequence of trade internationalization which elevated Europe’s status as the dominant section of world wide trade system. By extension, the author argued that Africa’s contribution to the development of beliefs of early capitalists Europe was a confirmation of the dependent status of the European national economies which is in interconnectivity wit the world at large.

Chapter three which is entitle : Africa’s contributions to the capitalist development of Europe-the colonial period.] Here Walter talks about how surplus was drawn from Africa to develop capitalism in the metropolitan sector. “Colonialism was not merely a system of exploitation but one whose essential purpose was to repatriate the profit to the so called mother land” [page 177].It means that the development of Europe as a part of the same dialectical  process which Africa was

Underdeveloped. African labourwas cheap. The employer often required more from the worker but paid him less not even enough to maintain his physical self. This was not the case in Europe when feudalism gave way to capitalism. Employers paid their employees a living wage. Wages paid to workers in Europe and North America was far higher than that of Africans. The Africans were discriminated from occupying official positions and even when they did they were paid less compared to the wages of the European officials. This chapter’s main point is to explain how much greater was the exploitation of African workers.

Walter Rodney’s How Europe Underdeveloped Africa Part 4-6

The fourth chapter is entitled Europe and the Roots of African underdevelopment to

1885. It evaluates the European slave trace as a dominant factor in African underdevelopment, all in the interest of European capitalism. Further, a penetrating discuss on the advancement of Europe technology as against that of Africa which is stagnant (this culminating into a distorted economy) was evaluated.

Again, the continuing political/military development in Africa from about 1500 to 1885 was attributed to the imperialist incursion /scramble were African territories were partitioned in accordance with the sphere of interest of the colonizers with colonialism as a major expression in the entire process. An assessment of African contribution to the capitalist development of Europe during the colonial period was discussed in chapter five. The author argued that the unequal non-monetary proceed to the colonizers asides the conventional monetary rewards.

Chapter five with the title ; colonialism as a system for under developing Africa] talks about how colonialism underdeveloped Africa. Following the encounter Europe had with Africa, some Bourgeois writers agree that the relationship was a two-sided thing. This reasoning can be said to have some sentiments. This two-sided argument said that there was exploitation and oppression on one side and development on the other hand. This is false according to Walter; colonialism was a one-sided affair and favoured only the Europeans. The Europeans did very less for Africa and yet took much and almost all form Africa.Even some of the infrastructures they provided were for their comfort. Workers in the mining jobs were exposed to a lot of diseases and yet no proper health service was provided despite all these, the Europeans for some reasons are praised for bringing Political upliftment in Africa. For example they helped in settling fights between some ethnic groups. They brought Nationalism. Walter argued this by saying Nationalism is a form of unity or oneness in a social group trying to control its environment and said that all these characteristics were present in the African community before the coming of the Europeans. Also it is said that capitalism and colonialization meant greater individual freedom for Africans.This freedom as explained by Walter was narrowed and dictated by the colonialists. Africans were mainly free to participate in the money economy and to pass the European oriented culture at a very low and uncreative level.

    The negative impact of colonialism on Africa can be seen the loss of power by the Africans. According to Walter “power is the ability to defend one’s interest and if necessary to impose one’s will by any means available” [page 271].He further said that “when a society finds itself forced to relinquish power entirely to another society, that itself is a form of underdevelopment.[page 271-272].In the pre-colonial trade, social, political and economic power was retained by some Africans but during colonialism, it went further than trade to Europeans taking control of various social institutions. Political life of Africans was changed. Political power was put in the hands of foreigners. In summary, colonialism brought about the disintegration of the African economy and European technological improvement. This chapter also looked at how Education brought about underdevelopment. Europeans education to Africans was mainly to develop Africans to assists in administrative work. Sometimes, those educated were those close to principal towns and were mainly to occupy positions of junior clerk.

The sixth chapter is on the rationalization of the colonial incursion that is drawing a balance sheet of the effects of the brutal and nasty experience. The author argued contrary to pervasive sentiments displayed by bourgeois scholars who argue in favour of the good side of colonialism outweighing the bad side. Rodney, Opined that this contention is completely false. Colonialism had only one hand- it was a one-armed bandit. (Rodney, 1972: 247). This further saw to the power seizure from Africa which had damaging consequences socially. Economically and politically.

The structure of the colonial education system was not left out in the entire manipulation in consonance with the perpetuation of the existence of colonial dominance.
The last segment of this chapter (Development by contradiction) illustrates ‘white man

in black man skin’, that is the withdrawal of direct control by colonizers with an attendant installation of indigenous incorporated dependent bourgeois compradors (tried and tested puppets in the hands of metropolitan superpowers) whose services are comparable to a conduit perpetuancy of Africa’s underdevelopment.

From the view point of Walter Rodney, and from the way he has been able to approach the cause of underdeveloped Africa today, it is clear that he is a Marxist, because he supports the opinion that Africa became underdeveloped due to the contact of Africa and Europe through the aid of colonialism.

This book is not without criticisms despite its wide range coverage. The author was not ignorant of certain positive features of colonialism rather he opined that they were grossly inconsequential when placed side by side it negative effects. In a much as this is contentious, critics have argued that the author was propelled by a value considered as being extreme in its bias in favour of the periphery. Critiques have further argued that contemporary African territories have come of age after years of independence, it is absurd to hinge underdevelopment issues on the mythology of imperialism and colonialism as underdevelopment and development are both states of mind”.

The sixth chapter attempts a rationalization of the colonial incursion, that is drawing a balance sheet of the effects of the brutal, nasty and obnoxious experience. The author argued contrary to pervasive sentiments displayed by bourgeois scholars who argue in favour of the good side of colonialism outweighing the bad side. Rodney, Opined that this contention is completely false. Colonialism had only one hand- it was a one-armed bandit. (Rodney, 1972: 247). This further saw to the power seizure from Africa which had damaging consequences socially. Economically and politically.

Walter Rodney from all indications can be placed as a Marxian because in the book, he supported the Marxian perspective of why Africa is underdeveloped, he stressed the fact that it is due to European contact which is very exploitative in nature that has left Africa underdeveloped today.

We therefore can support the argument of the author because all men were created equally; no man is more gifted than another and so, the argument of the bourgeoisie school is very false because if Africa was not robbed naked of her resources by Europe,

Africa would have been developed today.

CONCLUSION

How Europe Underdeveloped Africa is a book written by Walter Rodney, which takes the view that Africa was deliberately exploited and underdeveloped by European colonial regimes.

Rodney argues that a combination of power politics and economic exploitation of Africa by Europeans led to the poor state of African political and economic development evident in the late 20th century. In the book’s preface, Rodney praises the state of Tanzania, which had pursued the sort of Marxist political ideology that he advocated.

First published in 1972, the book was enormously influential in the study of African history. In the late 1990s many academics became more sharply critical of the book’s central thesis and argued that the book oversimplifies the complex historical forces surrounding the colonial era.

Sources

Rodney, Walter. How Europe Underdeveloped Africa. Washington, D.C.: Harvard University Press, 1981.