Abstract: | This paper highlights the salient features of West African economic history in the inter-war years and examines African initiative in the context of British and French administrations. The view presented here is that the colonial economy, based as it was on the exploitation of the subject peoples, did not show any fundamental changes during the inter-war years, but by and large continues to operate on the already existing patterns of human activities in the territories. Much as the colonial authorities wanted to achieve supreme mastery, the practical realities of the situation forced them to let the Africans have considerable initiative in the direction. of economic affairs. Such changes that were introduced into the economy, like rail and road construction, certain export crops, electricity and currency, did the traditional economy some good by strengthening its connections with the world economy, but at the same time made it susceptible to global perils like the depression of the thirties. Ref; tables. |