Perhaps the poverty , literacy and disease that most African countries now suffer from is the best evidence of European legacy in Africa

Underdevelopment, exploitation, dependency which all lead to many ills such as poverty in all forms, inequality, vulnerability etc.

With a painful feeling of those fateful days of the 'colonial subjugation', I am writing here what came to my mind after reading your question: A LONGER THAN LONGEST TRAIL OF THE WOUNDS OF THE TYRANNY INFLICTED UPON ONE OF THE MOST INNOCENT PEOPLE ON EARTH BY ONE OF THE MOST "SELF-PROCLAIMED CIVILISED" PEOPLE ON THE PLANET EARTH...

Regards

After centuries of exploitation of their natural, cultural and economic heritage, with the death and enslavement of millions for the enrichment of "civilized" countries, poverty and abandonment remained. It would fit financial retraction for this "legacy".

It has killed african pride, transformed negatively our management culture and vision, create a culture for accepting domination and enduring pain, violence and unfairness to a certain level (much above the average from my perspective).

Today, the crucial fight is to restore our culture, pride and dignity while remaining open to global transformations. Those three elements should be the building-stones of our development pathways.

The widespread establishment of similar formal institutions and structures, many if not most of which in the international context, remaining 'junior partners' or effectively subordinate to those of the former colonial powers?

Education, technology, road and water access increased due to colonialism. Compare the Namibian road infrastructure or the Namibian architecture with any African country who was not colonised. Those countries who were colonised could educate children in English French and Portuguese. They gave us language and knowledge.

An argument can be made that 'education, technology, road and water access increased' in Namibia during the period it was run - occupied? - by the apartheid South African regime, but the skew in that 'access' characterised some of the worst aspects of apartheid; and the argument is thus totally flawed.

An excellent road infrastructure for example, may have facilitated the South African Defence Force in their repression of peoples in northern Namibia, but these people were not themselves free to travel south of the 'police line' without permission! Similarly the installation of water points and provision of diesel for pumps was skewed in the north of the country, on the one hand to encourage people living in the (then) Kavango and Kaokoland regions, east and west respectively, to report on any activity by SWAPO (and its predecessor OPO - Ovambo People's Organisation), and on the other hand, mostly to the exclusion of people in the central Ovambo region. The worst ravages of this skew to the education system was partially offset by the Churches (e.g. Lutheran, Catholic) in Namibia, who collectively provided the main entry point for external funds to the oppressed peoples of Namibia before Independence in 1990. State resources were however totally skewed in favour of the 'White' schools, mostly located in the White areas of Windhoek, Swakopmund etc. This skew was very clearly seen at Independence in the five agricultural colleges, two of which were for Whites, and three for Blacks under the prevailing apartheid system. The White agricultural colleges were well resourced with a good complements of staff. The Black colleges were close to unrecognisable as educational establishments. These skews were present in all sectors. The 'success' of Uranium and Diamond industries (in Namibia and extending to South Africa) for example, relied on a heinous contract labour system based on cheap, migrant labour from the north of Namibia.

I would urge Haileleul Zeleke Woldemariam to read more extensively about the dreadful repression of non-White peoples that was taking place in Namibia prior to Independence, and revise his misconstrued assertions - and hopefully his general opinion on the legacy of colonialism in Africa?

Mike Morris - VSO Country Representative, Namibia, 1990-1995.

Better Education, housing, health care. In short, It opened Africa. Connected to other parts of the world.

European (and American) Colonialism changed as well the colonizer, for better, for worse, who knows? Now it is also a strong bond between former oppressors and oppressed. One of the smartest analyses on the whole issue come from Mbembe.