Where did Africa come from and where is it heading?

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Periodical article

Title:	Where did Africa come from and where is it heading?
Author:	Mizinga, Flexon M.
Year:	1998
Periodical:	Quest: An International African Journal of Philosophy
Volume:	12
Issue:	1
Period:	June
Pages:	55-60
Language:	English
Notes:	biblio. refs.
Geographic term:	Africa
Subjects:	development political systems political change politics democratization Political development history governance civil society
Abstract:	After presenting the broad outlines of the economic and political dispensation in Africa on the eve of colonial rule, under colonialism, and in the postcolonial period, the author deals in more detail with Africa's current problems. These include civil war and the destructive tendencies of change, especially the short-term negative aspects of capitalism, a near absence of good governance, the debt burden and the dependence on international financial institutions such as the World Bank and the IMF, the failure to recognize that culture is an integral part of development, and technological backwardness. Civil society has a big role to play in a democratic dispensation. As a watchdog, it should exert sufficient pressure so that the State does not divert fom its agenda during the duration of its legitimate mandate. Intellectuals should be provided with an enabling environment so that they can contribute to their fullest potential. Notes, ref.