Johannesburg - African unity was important for the political and economic survival of all African states, said Nontobeko Hlela from the Tricontinental Institute for Social Research.
Hlela was speaking at a dialogue hosted by the African Diaspora Forum. She said political instability on the continent and the scramble for the continent's natural resources were contributing factors to the poor growth of many African states. Africa had also increasing civil and political unrest, which had led to many conflicts on the continent.
"Twenty-twenty has come and gone, and Africa is still riddled with conflicts, from liberation conflicts to a growth in violent extremism, conflicts linked to access to resources and constitutional changes in government, which have been in decline but in recent years increased, all continue to afflict the continent," Hlela said.
She said the continent was failing to deal with the root causes of conflict. The most violent wars in history had taken place in Africa, with some fuelled by tribalism and greed.
"Some fundamental issues that have never been dealt with are the effects that colonialism and the decolonisation process have had on governments. The colonies were formed and demarcated based on artificial boarders that did not reflect the reality of the people," she said.
Hlela said the colonial boarders were problematic for the unity of all African states. She said these boarders reflected a history of divide and rule, instead of the unity of all Africans.
"Colonialism was never meant to allow for democratic formations; the colonial state was there to subjugate the colonial population and keep it subservient. It was also meant to extract as much as possible from the colonised country's wealth and from its people," she said.
Hlela said the post-colonial states had failed to provide for their citizens a secured future and economic prosperity.
"Instead, the political elites have become removed from the population and have failed to provide even the most basic of services. What African leaders have continued to do is extract from their people, much the same as the colonial state, for their own enrichment," she said.
Hlela said that despite Africa being rich in natural resources, governments were still plunging their countries into poverty with poor policies that did not make an impact on the lives of citizens.
At the same event, Ian Beddow, an internationalist and expert on Zimbabwean policies, said he believed that most African countries were entrenched in neocolonial strings from their former colonisers. He said the continent was given political freedom, but was denied economic freedom by the imperial elite.
The Star