Why is it that Africas problems still exist..

[stan4]

Originally Posted by antinimby

There are many different black cultures. They all however have one common denominator: poverty and strife.

But let’s not dare talk about race because our current society teaches us that all races are equal. Yeah, just keep believing it.

That may or may not be coincidence, but it can be hard to piece things together after being colonized and enslaved for hundreds of years.

[PCALMike]

Originally Posted by rodentraiser

The Black Death also reached Africa along the trade routes and in some ports. A good book to read about why some cultures advanced and why some didn't is "Guns, Germs, and Steel" by Jared Diamond.



One thing about crops in Africa - don't forget that Central Africa is tropical and that the crops that grow in Europe which can feed Europeans can generally only grow in South Africa. South Africa is about as far south of the equator as Europe is north of the equator, so the climate and growing seasons are similar.

You can't ask people in Africa why the women have so many children because they don't deliberately have that many children. Instead, they just don't practice any kind of birth control except for maybe nursing. And the reason for that is just a cultural preference, in the same way we have a cultural preference for eating cheese (Native Americans couldn't stand the smell or taste of cheese when the Europeans brought it over).

We think it's a no-brainer to us that people who are starving should have fewer kids, but that's not how they see it. Likewise, people who are Muslim and starving won't butcher or eat pork and Hindus won't eat cattle. We can't judge other people by what is familiar and sane to us. Others may look at us and not be able to understand how in the world a family can be a family with only one or two kids. Having more is familiar and sane to them.

The number of children has more to do with religious elites and their preference as well as misogyny than what the poor women actually want though. I think its fair to criticize these power structures.

[PCALMike]

Originally Posted by stan4

That may or may not be coincidence, but it can be hard to piece things together after being colonized and enslaved for hundreds of years.

You are assuming that the people in each country actually has a say in these things. Thats hardly ever the case. Including in America. Its the local economic elites that decide whether development and progress is needed.

Why would religious elites or rural elites want to see a well educated and urbanized society? Makes no sense whatsoever. Religious elites and rural elites will of course use their power to keep their power and prevent these changes from taking place. Same with competitive forces in the marketplace. The elites with monopoly powers have no reason whatsoever to open up for reform and change and see their own power and status dwindle.

[PCALMike]

Originally Posted by Troyfan

What you said and the boundaries imposed by the colonial powers led to much of the conflict seen in Africa over the last few decades. Boundaries divided peoples and combined adversaries. Civil war was the result.

The alternative would be thousands of tiny tribal states with their own piece of land, thousands of countries, most of which would be landlocked and wars would take place as huge swaths of land would be contested between various tribes. Hardly a good alternative. Its the local elites who decide whether wars are beneficial, its not really the people themselves. And these elites will always find ways to divide people up, whether by religion, tribe, race, politics or some other divisive way. Africa was never a continent of ethnically pure states, but a continent of tribal warfare, slavery and poverty, like many parts of the world. Its better now than it has ever been.