By Begum Burak
Africa is the second largest continent in the world and has much diversity in terms of geography and climate.The African continent states have experienced a rapid diversification in the context of foreign relations and investments in recent years.
With the arrival of many actors in Africa, a complex network of relationships has emerged. Today, the policies adopted by the USA, Britain, Russia, China and different EU countries towards the African continent are important in world politics.
It is stated that systematic academic studies on the history of the African continent started in the 1960s (Parker and Rathbone, 2007: 92). The trade volume in Africa reaches approximately 1 trillion dollars. Sectors based on underground wealth constitute the part that approaches to almost 80%. (Yıldırım, 2019: 1).
Another noteworthy aspect of the African continent is its rich agricultural potential. While industrial agricultural products such as cocoa, coffee, tea, banana, pineapple, mango, vanilla, cotton and rubber are grown in the continent, flowers are grown in Kenya for export to Europe.
Before discussing the politics of Britain in Africa, it is necessary to touch on the concept of colonialism. African societies had predominantly rural settlements and were governed by the colonial order. On the other hand, the role of the slave trade in African history is known (Bıçakçı, 2018: 64). Africa is known as geography exposed to the slave trade until the 19th century.
Colonialism and Africa
Colonialism occurs when a state seizes overseas territories outside its borders in various ways, especially by military intervention and dominates there and looting all kinds of opportunities for its own benefit by gaining political, economic and cultural superiority over indigenous societies (Kavas, 2009).
African colonialism that began in the late 15th century and lasted until the mid 20th century has a long-term, comprehensive and multi-actor structure. In the African continent, which was called the “Dark Continent” until the middle of the 19th century, until the middle of the 20th century important countries of Europe such as Spain, Britain, Portugal, Belgium, Germany and France have been pioneers. In fact, the process of colonization of African lands was initiated by European states, especially Portuguese, from the early 15th century (Şahin, 2018: 248).
During the Cold War, Africa had an intense competition area between the USA and Soviet Russia. On the other hand, in this period called the “New Colonial Period”, the approximate debt amount of African countries has been around 420 billion dollars and the amount of debt does not change despite African countries paying approximately 33 billion dollars of foreign debt every year (Yıldırım, 2019: 2).
In the history of the African continent, Britain, France and Germany which are the leading European countries and have a colonial past in the continent stand out. As is known, the relations of European states with Africa have been placed in the context of modern colonialism as of the 19th century.
On the other hand, most of the countries established since the 1960s when the independence process spread in Africa have been on the anti-Western front. In Africa, European countries such as Britain continue their old exploitation order with free trade agreements. Countries like Nigeria, Somalia, Congo and Chad are trying to get rid of this chain.
Britain
To understand the relationship between Britain and Africa, it is necessary to look at the history of Britain and its colonial past. The most important reason that led Britain to the Industrial Revolution is known as the gain from the slave trade. (Daban, 2017). Production and consumption increased in Britain which became one of the biggest powers in the world both in terms of land and economy between 1750 and 1900 (Bakır, 2018). On the other hand, the country has an important colonial past. It can be said that Britain started its colonial activities with the 1688 Revolution after the civil war.
On the other hand, the Industrial Revolution has an important place in the history of the country. Britain has been one of the important actors of the Industrial Revolution. The revolution first appeared in Britain and spread throughout Europe. Increasing the role of oil in colonial activities after the First World War caused Britain to completely turn to the Middle East. It is stated that Britain, a colonial country divided the Middle East with France (Saglam, 2014).
Britain became a permanent member of the UN Security Council in 1945. In 1949, it was among the founding members of NATO. Economically, during the Second World War, Britain was in economic trouble due to the loss of a quarter of its national wealth.
On the other hand, it tried to observe the global balances for the stability of the country from the colonial period until 1945. Britain’s goals in foreign policy have been protecting trade and promoting economic development, protecting global interests, and trying to establish strategic partnerships.
Britain’s Politics in Africa from Past to Present
Colonial Years
In the African continent, before the colonial period, the “slave trade” was a system established by the British forces. Britain’s influence in African colonialism was seen in the 19th century. Britain’s biggest rival in African colonialism has been France. Different factors that affect the development of British colonialism in Africa can be mentioned. These elements came to the fore as the factors that shaped and affected colonialism. Among these, there are issues such as competition between colonial powers, the slave trade, natural resources, and the industrial revolution. Britain, which has a long colonial history in Africa left a deep impact on the continent due to the policies in the colonial period.
On the other hand, Britain resorted to various ways against the independence movements that have been felt since the beginning of the 20th century. As a last resort, the country has established the Commonwealth of Nations in order to maintain its relations with its independent colonies. Ghana was the first country in Africa to participate in this network. The liquidation of British colonialism was completed with the establishment of this network.
Decolonization Years and After (1950s-Present)
With the weakening of the colonial empires after the First World War, the national independence struggles in the colonies gradually increased. As a result of this process called decolonization in Asia and Africa, new states emerged and with the spread of independence movements all over the world, new states began to be established in most colonial regions.
The collapse of the British economy after the First World War had an impact on bilateral economic relations. Britain became the most indebted country in the world in 1945 with the loans it obtained from the USA during the war and then turned to its colonies in Africa.
After the acceptance of the independence process Britain, which adopted a stagnant African policy in the 1960s and 1970s due to economic difficulties in general witnessed a decline in African policy with the Conservative Party leader Margaret Thatcher who took office in 1979.
Britain continued to maintain its former influence in the following years through its influence on British settlers, trade networks, investments, military affairs, culture and academia. In the following years, Britain, acting in partnership with the USA, expected to protect its spheres of influence in the African continent. This was seen as a passive policy. After the Cold War, Britain tried to maintain its relations with its former colonies, which gained their independence. The reason for this is the intention to benefit from the colonies which were an important economic resource in the colonial period.
The total trade volume of the Britain with African countries was around 28 billion dollars in 2016. A significant portion of Britain’s imports from the African continent consists of petroleum and precious metals, as well as products such as cocoa, tea and coffee.
On the other hand, although British politicians are rarely seen on the African continent, members of the royal family sometimes organize tours of Africa. Prince Charles and his wife Camilla embarked on a tour of Africa in November 2018, covering the Gambia, Ghana and Nigeria. Even though these tours seem like touristic visits, Prince Charles and Prince Harry were welcomed with official ceremonies during their visit and had bilateral meetings with the heads of states of the countries they visited.
Now, two uncertainties dominate Britain’s relations with African countries: how relations will take shape after Brexit (Britain has already held meetings to make sure that leaving the EU will not negatively affect its relations with the countries) and has signed various agreements with South Africa.countries); how Boris Johnson will strengthen Britain’s image on the continent.
Author: Begum Burak (PhD, Independent Researcher and Author)
(The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of World Geostrategic Insights)