Problems Faced By African Nations Essay

The African nations have faced many serious challenges since their independence. However, the roots of these problems originated from the colonial rule. For example, when the European powers sliced Africa into 50 states, they remapped the continent based on their self-interests without taking significant factors such as languages, cultures and ethnic backgrounds into consideration. As a result, the nations in Africa do not think that they have anything to do with these nations, which have led to constant internal strife and even civil wars. Although the Europeans proudly imposed a democratic political system on the nations, the African leaders of these nations do not actually adopt it when they are in power. Instead, they adopted their favorite one-party system to suit their own political interests. Especially, the military leaders in Africa have played significant roles in African politics. Coups happen in the continent all the time and the military power has been used for political gains. [1]

As the European colonialists exploited the African nations, they took away whatever agricultural raw and mineral resources they could and brought them to Europe, selling their finished products to the Africans. Consequently, the Africans have relied on the outside influence rather than developed their own economies, unable to be economically independent. Additionally, the infrastructure such as transportation system left by the Europeans was designed to fit their own economic needs without long-term perspectives, which seriously has hindered the economic development in Africa. What was worse, to rule effectively, the Europeans did not invest in education at all, leading to the shortage of skilled workers necessary for the progress of Africa. [2] Another problem related to the economic growth has been the growth of population which has increased the unemployment due to the economic recession and social