Essay On Globalisation In Africa

Globalisation and its Impact on Africa

Kgomotso Ramabetha

“If you don’t like someone’s story, write your own”1. In the African context this might be true, however, questions that might arise are: how do we tell our story when it seems like we losing our identity as Africans? How do we develop when our development is not defined the African way, by Africans? How does Africa become a global leader when we have not differentiated ourselves from the rest and how has globalisation contributed to Africa? Joseph Stiglitz defines globalisation as “the closer integration of the countries and peoples of the world which has been brought about by the enormous reduction of costs of transportation and communication, and the breaking down of artificial barriers to the flows of goods, services, capital, knowledge and (to a lesser extent) people across borders”2. As the idea of modernisation becomes more and more familiar we have to ask ourselves about the impact and changes, in African economics, politics and culture, that globalisation has on Africa in the 21st century.

With countries being more interdependent, has economic

Cultural globalisation results in the dilution of culture as we continue to make English the global language of business and communication.12 This is driven by media (The television shows focussing more on a western lifestyle), news (CNN, Skynews, Enews Africa), music (Hip Hop and RnB contributing to globalising the English language), and products (Apple, Microsoft, the internet). Clans (Koi san of Botswana and South Africa) are being suffocated as the youth symbolises western cultures with success. Your culture is your identity and personality, it gives you spiritual, intellectual and emotional distinction from others (M.F Moonzajer), from these words one realises that without African culture we are just living, no African identity, no uniqueness just living to