Africa behind the world why?

 

Why Africa behind the rest of the world?

How far can we go in terms of development? What do I mean by "development" when it comes to economic growth, poverty reduction, education, health, empowerment, etc.? In my opinion, the answer to this question is clear in your eyes. Not everybody will agree with me... but if you ask any African who has ever been on an airplane or met people from other continents for the first time, they will tell you that Africa is so far behind Europe, North America, Australia, New Zealand, China, Russia, Japan, South Korea, Portugal, France, Turkey, Italy, Switzerland, Poland, South Africa, Sweden, Finland, Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands, Poland, Bulgaria, Romania, etc. And that is only one example out of many. It does not matter what country you see them next to in our image gallery as well. Even those living in poor conditions are able to develop economically, socially, and politically. When a person says that there are "no opportunities", they are right, but what are they referring to? There is no such place in the world for us. To give you another perspective and look at how things have changed over the past decades, think about where all these resources are coming from. Take a closer look at what happens during election season. We’ll get back to why Africa lags behind in terms of development very soon. Keep reading! If you like listening to stories of success, I’m sure you’ll love the podcast. Subscribe now and let’s start.

As you could imagine, elections in Africa are also filled with corruption. For a while, no one knew exactly why there was something called the Election Watch Forum (EWF), which analyzes and reports polling data around the globe as well as locally. They publish their findings for a particular week every month. These figures tell us which nation people voted for based on certain criteria. Nowadays, they make predictions using predictive models based on data from last year. After analyzing the results, they come up with conclusions that include possible outcomes, the likely margin of victory, and even the most likely number of votes won per party. A lot of candidates are worried about their chances as a result of the poll. But the fact is that polls are just one of several methods used by politicians to influence voters. According to EWF’s report (2022), the United States has an average 0.13 percentage points higher than African nations on questions related to policies on crime. This means that people in America think that their vote would translate into a more serious investment in law enforcement. People in Africa do not share much information regarding their welfare and have little knowledge about what the government stands for. Therefore, it is safe to say that American democracy may be less corrupt than others because it works better than ours.

But still, it turns out that countries with high levels of political participation actually tend to have lower rates of electoral fraud. Countries with low levels of political participation tend to have higher rates of electoral fraud. Since 2000, the rate of election-related corruption has dropped significantly in Africa. As for the number of electoral fraud incidents across the continent, Nigeria had 7.5% (2018), India 6.3%, Ghana 5.6%, Uganda 4.9%, Senegal 3.1%, Kenya 2.8%, Tanzania 1.5%, Togo 1.3%, Mauritania 1.2%, Zambia 1.1%, Madagascar 1.1%, Mozambique 1.0%, Malawi 0.9%, Angola 0.8%, Uganda 0.6%, Namibia 0.5%, Lesotho 0.4%, Cameroon 0.3%, and Botswana 0.3%. All of these numbers are quite disturbing and shocking, don’t you think? You’re right. Let’s take a deep look at some of the statistics from EWF:

In 2007, Eritrea had the worst voter turnout in history, with almost 10 million eligible voters casting ballots in a single day. This was done with 100% impunity. More than half of the population was disenfranchised. Less than 10% of those eligible participated in the referendum. However, the ruling party did manage to win by a narrow margin, meaning that if the citizens had turned out in record numbers, the ruling regime wouldn’t have won. In 2006, Egypt experienced similar problems. Its president, Hosni Mubarak, won with roughly 40% of the vote. That wasn’t enough to form the Egyptian National Front (Naf). Though he managed to stay in power, he left behind a large amount of damage since his rule came to an end. Elections in Sudan are currently being contested (see video below). In 2003, Saddam Hussein ran against Omar al-Bashir, the former leader of Iraq, and secured 73 percent of the popular vote. This was achieved through rigging electoral institutions, intimidation, and theft of public funds, bribery, and fraud. Despite having two previous victories, the dictator failed to retain any power before his death. Venezuela is no stranger to violence and unrest. Between 1999 and 2020, its inflation reached 42,000%. During this period, the nation also witnessed numerous coups d’état. Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez won 73% of the popular vote in 2005 and later in 2010, but only 60% in 2016. He was re-elected again in 2018 but lost to opposition candidate Yanez Arreaga. Corruption is rampant in Zimbabwe. From 1989 to 2017, President Robert Mugabe’s regime stole $20 billion from civilians. An additional $10 billion was found stolen from state enterprises. Over 300,000 people died as a result of starvation.

As you can see, Africa is far behind many developed countries in terms of holding elections fairly. If you want proof, let’s look at one particular country in Africa. Those looking for places on Earth who still haven’t visited South Africa can check out one area where corruption is rife. By the way, if you want to understand why, let’s check out the movie Get Rich Quick: The Western Way. It shows the life of a man who wants to live better. On top of that, it is full of scenes of extreme prejudice and brutality towards Africans. One of these scenes involved shooting an unarmed black child alive to show the superiority of white people in South Africa. Another scene showed a police officer beating up a young woman to prove her guilt and innocence. Some people might argue that the film doesn’t reflect real situations in South Africa, and in reality, this kind of behavior is common. Yet the effect on viewers can only be explained by the lack of a functional social justice system. Yes, racism is prevalent, yet there seems to be no effort to address that problem. We, as human beings, are naturally biased toward certain groups and groups in society, and we need to be aware of those biases. Our brain is hardwired to prefer those who belong to our own tribe, religion, race, nationality, and age group. No wonder then those certain ethnicities (i.e., Arabs or Jews) are considered inferior, have a bad reputation among their counterparts, and face discrimination everywhere they go. Although racism is clearly present in some parts of the world (and especially in Africa), people don’t take it seriously. Just look at the situation happening in West Hollywood. Black people regularly face hate crimes, harassment, and inequality everywhere they go. White people have a hard time accepting it, hence their reluctance in addressing it. Moreover, African leaders are afraid of confronting issues of racism. Their fear often leads them down paths of mediocrity. They act like monkeys on fire when faced with the issue of racial violence in areas in which the majority white population resides. Hence, this leads to further segregation, poverty, illiteracy, diseases, unemployment, and limited access to basic services. Imagine a scenario where you find yourself living in a neighborhood with a predominantly white community, and the same situation goes on in the suburbs of your city. Can you really blame President Trump for inciting racist statements and actions?

So, here is the bottom line: no African needs to worry too much. Every African has the same rights to prosper as everyone else, and Africa is home to millions of refugees and immigrants. At least this should give us the motivation to learn to speak and think differently and stand up for ourselves. As long as we keep going in the direction of progress, everything will work fine in the future. Maybe some will disagree with me here and say that the whole idea of equality is not fair at all. Well, that depends on your beliefs and whether you care to change your mind. Or maybe you’re afraid to speak up in favor of equality and simply wish other humans well. If that’s the case, perhaps you should look for help. Here are some ways that I believe people can help make a difference in their own lives and the lives of their family and friends:

Stay informed: know how local news channels cover events, for instance. Look under each channel to find out what is covered because they often miss important developments that happen a few days after the original incident or story. Support organizations fighting hate speech: Donate some money and write letters to local journalists. Do this to raise awareness about discriminatory acts and support organizations working in those fields. Educating children: Teach kids about different types of discrimination based on their appearance. Make the topic interesting, simple, and relevant to the current global circumstances. Ask for opinions about what others are saying about the subject. Seek out constructive criticism on the Internet (especially on Twitter).