35 AFRICA’S RISE After Independence

AFRICA’S RISE

After Independence

by Alpha Bukala Sobowale

From colonial Belgium, Holland, Germany, Britain and France, here we look at how each nation took their independent sovereignty and the legacy left from Colonial rule.

British Colonies:

Ghana was the 1st to take its independence same steps; Nigeria and Somalia became Leone and Tanganyika, which became Uganda became independent in 1962; Zambia (formerly Northern Rhodesia) broke

Kenya’s independence in 1963 came battling colonial rule since 1952.

Botswana and Lesotho took independence 1968; and the Seychelles in 1976. in 1957. After that other nations took the independent in 1960, and in 1961 Sierra Tanzania after it merged with Zanzibar. Malawi, formerly known as Nyasaland and free in 1964; and The Gambia in 1965.

following the Mau Mau war. It has been

1966 followed by Swaziland and Mauritius in

In 1965 Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) proclaimed government), which was not recognised by guerrilla war followed and Zimbabwe finally took her Independence in 1980.

French Colonies:

In a different approach, in 1958 France offered Franco-African Community or becoming for self-rule gaining her independence weeks

However, 14 French colonies broke away in Madagascar, Dahomey (Benin), Niger, Upper Central African Republic, Congo-Brazzaville,

The breakaways were not mutually accepted their nation’s independence. independence (with a minority white Britain or other countries. A long bloody

its colonies a choice between joining a instantly independent. Only Guinea decided later.

1960: Cameroon, Senegal, Togo, Volta (Burkina Faso), Ivory Coast, Chad, Gabon, Mali and Mauritania.

by France and many natives died fighting for

In 1975 the Comoros Islands gained decided to remain part of France. Djibouti independence, except for Mayotte, who followed in 1977.

Belgian Colonies:

Interestingly, the nation of Congo was owned by the Belgian King, Leopold II for 23 years before it became a Belgian colony. It took independence in 1960, but only after riots in Leopoldville, which today we know as Kinshasa. In 1962 the Belgian colonies of Rwanda and Burundi became independent.

Spanish Colonies:

After a period of ‘autonomy’, Equatorial Guinea gained full independence in 1968.

In 1975 Spain surrendered Western Sahara to Morocco and Mauritania, despite opposition from Polisario Front separatists who renamed it as the ‘Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic’ in 1976. Three years later Mauritania gave up its portion of the disputed territory and it was annexed by Morocco. In 1991, after a 16- year war, Morocco and the Polisario agreed a cease-fire, however, it is the only territory on the African continent whose post-colonial status has not been completely resolved.

Portuguese colonies:

Portugal’s dictatorial rule fought the liberation of its territories of Angola, Mozambique, Guinea-Bissau and Cape Verde until the early 1960s. However all 4 nations gained independence after the Portuguese ruler was overthrown in 1974. The nations of Sao Tome and Principe soon followed.

Other cases

South Africa: this was 1 st under Dutch rule and then British. It took independence in 1910, but was ruled from 1948 until 1994 by a white-minority apartheid regime. South Africa then elected its 1 st black President, Nelson Mandela.

South Africa took over Namibia from Germany after World War I and continued to rule even after a U.N. mandate was withdrawn in 1966. After 23-years of trying to free itself Namibia became independent in 1990.

Tourists travel for a number of reasons including learning more about a destinations history. Any destination is what it is today partly due to its history. For good and bad, this history becomes part of a country’s culture, be it through architecture, museums, memorials etc. as well as influences on the indigenous citizens.

When travellers visit once colonised countries, often where the nation’s own history has been repressed, tourists must consider both pre-colonial and post-colonial history when they visit various monuments, museums and historical sites.

Classic examples of this can be seen today; in Singapore, the statue of British statesman Sir Stamford Raffles, founder of modern Singapore, is still seen as a ‘national icon’, whereas, the only remaining statue of Queen Victoria in Bangalore is not seen with such admiration.

Sir Stamford Raffles, Singapore

Ethiopian cuisine

Well documented examples include the Elgin Marbles from Greece; in 1801 a British nobleman Lord Elgin, stripped the Parthenon in Athens of many sculptures and shipped them back to England. They are on display in the British Museum.

In India the Koh-i-Noor diamond, one of the largest cut diamonds in the world, made its way through Indian court intrigues and eventually ended up in the British Crown Jewels.

The Sultanganj Buddha is the largest metal figure of its kind in the world, and has been housed in Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery since 1867. It was discovered during railway construction in the North Indian town of Sultanganj in 1862 and was happily shipped back to England for keeps.

Elgin Marbles, British museum, London, United Kingdom

Indeed, there is quite a list of priceless acquisitions from countries once ruled by others who now house these native treasures in their own museums.

Economic development in many African countries grew dramatically during colonial times with the building of road and rail infrastructures, albeit to strip and ship coffee, tea, cocoa, natural ores, etc. abroad, with questionable little benefit for the African landowners.

Despite decolonising many years ago, the Colonisers still have interests in their excolonies. The French is one of the largest outbound tourist countries in the world, and is the largest source of visitors to Africa, helped by many African nations speaking French following colonisation.

Dahlak islands, Eritrea

The UK through its Commonwealth still has long-standing links to Kenya, South Africa, and The Gambia. It is the No.1 source market in Tanzania and Zambia, among other African nations.

KENYA, Fort Jesus

a Portuguese fort built in 1593 on Mombasa Island. It was used as a barracks and a prison over time and today is a museum and a UNESCO World Heritage Centre.

GHANA, Cape Coast Castle

a former British colony, it was a slave hub along with many along the Ghanaian coastline; the highest concentration of slave forts and castles anywhere in the world. Its design is similar to others like Christiansborg Castle in Accra and the Elmina Castle, with similar narrow hallways, dungeons and network of tunnels. Today, all these slave forts are major tourist sites.

Cape Coast Castle, Ghana SOUTH AFRICA, Cape Town

in 1962, Dutch colonialists established a small colony run by the Dutch East India Company but it soon developed an international flavour. Cape Town saw Dutch architecture styles mixed with local alterations and the Afrikaans, the Dutch dialect developed in Cape Town and other South African cities. Today Cape Town is unlike any other city in South Africa and a very popular tourist destination.

Cape Town, South Africa

Colonialism has impacted both political and economic conditions of modern day Africa. African states adopted the systems of administration of their colonisers, which has helped them to develop quickly into successful independent nations. The legacy of colonialism will always be a controversial part of a country’s past. And although the past cannot be changed, African nations are successfully using their deep rooted native traditions as well as their colonial past to attract thousands of tourists and investment to their shores.

Fort Jesus, Kenya

ZAMBIA, Livingstone Memorial

this plain stone monument, under a simple cross, marks the place where missionary explorer David Livingstone's heart was buried in 1873.

Livingstone Memorial, Zambia

NAMIBIA, Windhoek

once a German colony, today numerous buildings from the colonial time remain. The Alte Feste Fort is the oldest building in Windhoek and was the HQ for German troops. It is now a national museum.

Windhoek, Namibia

Rolls-Royce and Reaction Engines have partnered to develop high-speed aircraft propulsion systems for civil and defence aerospace gas and hybrid-electric engines.

Royals Royce wishes to explore Reaction Engines’ thermal management technology within both its existing and future turbine designs.

Reaction Engines, believes that the cooperation between the two companies can serve in producing a model of more sustainable aviation. The thermal management technology works to deliver better heat transfer capabilities at a lower weight and compact size. This could be huge for aerospace innovation as it would allow new aircraft to shed unnecessary weight while improving engine efficiency.

Rolls-Royce recently announced its partnership with Boom Supersonic and Virgin Galactic.

EMIRATES AIRLINES EXPECTS TO RESUME FLIGHTS TO ‘ALL’ ITS NETWORK BY SUMMER 2021….

… if the travel industry will be back to normal prior to March 2020. Emirates officials believe that by summer 2021, 100% of their network destinations will be operating, serving 143 destinations compared to it 157 destinations before March 2020. Right now, the airline serves 70 destinations.

AIR INDIA GOES PRIVATE

Air India may be bought by Tata Sons, a holding company of Tata Group, and merged with the groups other airline AirAsia India. Tata is the only interested buyer for the whole airline; other potential bidders are only interested in buying it in parts.

Tata Group already owns the majority of the shares in 2 airlines, full-service Vistara and low-cost AirAsia India. Air India was established as Tata Airlines in 1932, but separated in 1946 and nationalised in 1953.

CROATIA AIRLINES TO CANCEL A320NEO ORDER

Croatia Airlines is to cancel the order for 4 A320neo aircraft, despite large upfront payment being made by the airline.

Croatia Airlines initiated negotiations to terminate the deal just before the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic. The airline wants to cancel the whole A320neo order and to divert it to other Airbus services.

This means that the EU and the Member States concerned; France, Spain and Germany, also known as the ‘Airbus Member States’ –agree with the rulings of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in the Airbus case. This removes any grounds for the U.S. to maintain its countermeasures on EU exports and aims to resolve the dispute. The Member States of Airbus believe its in the mutual interest of Airbus and the US to be ruled under the WTO and to stop the implementing of high tariffs which would have burdened the aviation, industries and as well as the agricultural sectors.

URUGUAY

DECIDES TO OPEN ITS AIRSPACE

Uruguay has reopened its airspace, having closed it since 25 March 2020, due to the pandemic. Uruguay is currently the only Ibero-American country that is not vetoed by the European Union and, in the entire American continent; Canada is in the same situation. However, Uruguay still does not allow foreigners to enter its country at this moment.

LONDON HEATHROW FIGURES FOR JULY 2020: DOWN 88% ON TRAVELLERS IN 2019

Over 860,000 passengers travelled through Heathrow in July, down 88% on the previous year. The good news is that is a slight uplift in passenger traffic following the creation of ‘travel corridors’ in July. Over 480,000 passengers headed for European destinations to have a quarantine free vacation (although some got caught out with a change in country status on the UK Government safe list). 60% of Heathrow’s route network remains grounded added to which a 14-day quarantine on arrival policy is in place. Calls for greater airport testing to help boost routes and kickstart the UK’s economic recovery have failed to change government policy so far.

Over 88,000 metric tonnes of cargo travelled through Heathrow in July. A lot of cargo has shifted from freighters to the belly hold of passenger planes. However, 60% is still travelling on cargo only flights compared to 5% prior to the crisis. Cargo volumes are still impacted by the decline of long-haul passenger traffic.

Heathrow has unveiled a range of measures such as UV robots, UV handrail technology, Fly Safe pit stops and Hygiene technicians to reduce the risk of contracting or transmitting COVID-19 at the airport. Domestic carrier, Eastern Airways is to operate from Heathrow for the 1 st time and help strengthen the airport’s domestic route network. The airline will be using the airport’s additional capacity to launch flights between Teesside International Airport and Heathrow from September onwards.

EUROPE AIR PASSENGERS DROP BY 60%

Air passengers numbers in Europe are set to fall by 60% this year due to the coronavirus crisis, with recover forecasts unclear. With more flights operating in the past couple of months, 50% less than normal are flying compared to the same period last year.

With a 2nd wave clearly on the rise, recovery is not expected until well in 2021 and beyond. This places 7 million jobs at risk in aviation and other related sectors like tourism.

With huge funding allocated by the government, the first task will be the acquisition of a new and efficient fleet capable of generating operational profit of at least UK£90 million.

The new Alitalia will get rid of old Airbus A320s, A319s, A321s, A330s and Boeing 777s that comprise its current fleet in favour of brand new A320s for short haul and Boeing 787 Dreamliners for intercontinental routes. The aircraft are expected to be purchased with 50% discount. Talks have begun, but nothing signed as of yet.

The decision to renationalise Alitalia came in March 2020, after no buyer was found for the airline as well as the industry collapse due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

VISTARA - LONG-HAUL 1 ST FLIGHT FROM DELHI - LONDON

Vistara, a joint venture of Tata group and Singapore Airlines has flown its 1 st long-haul flight from Delhi to London Heathrow with a brand-new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner. The airline is operating special, non-stop flights under the bilateral ‘transport bubble’ from 28 August to 24 October 2020 and will fly the route 3 times a week.

Vistara said it marks the growth for the airline and this introduce India’s finest and only

beginning of a new phase of flight was an opportunity to 5* airline to London.

Vistara is India’s highest-rated Tripadvisor and has also been Airline’ awards. In its 5 year operations and service delivery

airline on Skytrax and the winner of several ‘Best history, it has raised the bar for in the Indian aviation industry.

2020 A DEVASTATING YEAR FOR QANTAS

2020 has been a devastating one for the Qantas Group, whose financial results attribute more than half of its almost UK£1.11 billion statutory loss to the depreciation of aircraft value.

Qantas officially joined the long list of airlines that are facing the toughest financial year in aviation history, with losses of UK£1.5 billion) and an UK£2.20 billion, an 82% fall in revenue from April –June 2020.

Qantas expects to have 4,000 of its 6,000 job layoffs confirmed by the end of September 2020 while also continuing to stand down 20,000 of its employees. The airline has also stored 100 aircraft from its fleet in California to save up on maintenance costs.