Conceptualising Development: Neo-Colonialism

Introduction
Background: Colonialism and Decolonialisation
Approaches to Neo- Colonialism
Instruments of Neo-Colonialism
Conclusion

Introduction

Neo-colonialism first came to prominence in the late 20th century as a post-colonial critique of developed countries' excessive involvement in the developing world following World War II, even after these nations had gained political independence and sovereignty. It has been argued that the international economic, political, and cultural arrangements made primarily by the developed world in the name of development and economic prosperity are nothing more than an effort to maintain power and dominance over their former colonies, leading to a new type of imperialism that is largely similar to the classical European colonialism that predominated in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Thus, the term "neo-colonialism" refers to the ongoing unequal economic and power relations that currently exist between former colonies and colonizing nations. The term first appeared and gained popularity in African countries, where some opposition groups and political leaders argued that their nations were still under the influence of their former colonial powers after numerous successful national independence movements. The first person to consider this idea was Kwame Nkrumah, the president of newly independent Ghana, in his 1965 book The Last Stage of Imperialism. Centuries will be required to humanize this world that has been reduced to an animal level by imperial powers, writes Frantz Fanon in his 1963 study The Wretched of the Earth. According to Huggan (1996), the following examples of neo-colonialism are prevalent: US military intervention in the Gulf and the Horn of Africa; structural dependency in the Caribbean and Latin America; ongoing racial oppression and unrest in South Africa, Asia, and the Pacific. Neo-colonialism is therefore the practice of colonialism in a novel way. It essentially represents a new breed of imperialist ideology that emerged during the modern and global eras under the guise of development through the exchange of capital, capital goods, commerce, and culture.

Background: Colonialism and Decolonialisation

For almost three centuries, European nations in Asia and Africa practiced imperialism. The parent state would assert its sovereignty over the colony through the establishment, upkeep, acquisition, and expansion of territories. Due to this, colonialists and indigenous populations came to have unequal relations. It all began during the age of exploration and the industrial revolution, when nations like Spain and Portugal, in the name of discovery, made new discoveries of lands. Over time, these nations began to develop their trade hubs, and by gaining control of them, they were able to grow their borders. By the seventeenth century, France, Britain, and the Netherlands were the most powerful nations, with colonies spread throughout many nations in Asia and Africa. The economies of the powerful nations were destroyed after the First and Second World Wars, and the native populations in the colonies were furious for independence. These colonies were ultimately granted political independence, or decolonisation. Decolonization began in Asia and only recently, in the 1960s, spread to Africa. Thus, in a strict sense, colonialism came to an end. However, it was realized that the imperialistic ideology had persisted despite this political independence, and new means for the former colonial powers to exercise dominance and control—referred to as neocolonialism—had begun to emerge.

Approaches to Neo- Colonialism

Neo-colonialism is the term used to describe the issue of imperialist dominance in new forms. According to post-colonial critics, colonialism has succeeded in various ways as a result of the imperialist powers' various forms of intervention in the countries of the developing world. Mutual security pacts, commercial agreements, agreements on culture and friendship, and other forms of intervention are among the techniques used. These intervention strategies are developed based on the external and internal conditions of the Third World. The following perspectives are used by sociologists to explain neocolonialism:

1. Marxist perspective: According to Marx, capitalism is what causes all forms of exploitation, and according to the Marxian perspective, colonialism and the capitalist system are related and have contributed to uneven development. Marxist historians claim that the native populations of the colonies governed by Western European nations were deprived of opportunities. From a Marxian perspective, former colonies in post-colonial times serve as channels for exploitation of raw materials and new investment opportunities for capital accumulation of the powerful nations.
2. Dependency Theory: This method, based on Marxist theory, blames neocolonialism for the world's poverty. The theory's proponents, who come from both developed and developing countries, contend that there is a center of wealthy states and a periphery of poor states. The resources come from the periphery, but the economic prosperity that results from their extraction originates in the center. Consequently, the nations' rates of development are uneven. According to dependency theory, the underdevelopment of the Global South is a direct result of the growth in the Global North. Federico Brito Figueroa, a historian from Venezuela who has published extensively on the socioeconomic underpinnings of colonialism and neocolonialism, is one of the theory's proponents.
3. Neocolonialism creates unequal economic relations within the global system, according to the world-systems theory. Immanuel Wallerstein, a sociologist, categorizes the world's economies into three groups: core, semi-peripheral, and peripheral countries. The term "core countries" refers to those nations, like the U., that have a strong industrial and urbanization sector and a dominant capitalism. S. like Germany and Japan. Low income, largely agrarian peripheral countries are those that have little industrialization, high unemployment, and low literacy rates. The majority of the African nations fall under the category of peripheral countries because they rely on core nations for financial support. Semi-peripheral nations occupy a middle ground between core and peripheral countries in terms of development levels; they are more advanced than the latter. nations like Brazil, Mexico, Nigeria, Brazil, and India, among others. are examples of semi-peripheral countries.
4. Neocolonialism, according to supporters of the cultural theory, includes cultural elements. They hold that wealthy nations use cultural tools like media, language, religion, and education to exert control in order to gain economic advantage. They contend that the idea that colonial powers' ways and cultural characteristics are superior to those of the indigenous peoples is a legacy they left behind. Therefore, the idea that the developed world is superior encourages these countries to intrude on the less developed countries, interfere with their internal affairs, and market their cultural practices in order to advance their economic goals and assert dominance.

The imperialistic ideology thus prevailed, interfering in the political and economic spheres of weaker nations even after colonialism was eradicated after World War II. Thus, the term used to describe this situation is neo-colonialism. These occurrences, according to academics, are a result of capitalism and the poorer nations' reliance on their former colonies for economic prosperity.

Instruments of Neo-Colonialism

According to Nkrumah (1965), the situation in which the State, which is in theory independent and sovereign, is actually being directed from outside in terms of its economic and political policy is what constitutes the true essence of neo-colonialism. Different economic, political, and cultural levels have different tools for the same purpose:

1. Political interference and the establishment of puppet governments: In the recently established sovereign states, the former imperialist powers have devoted constituencies that have been eager to assume positions of power. These organizations have given the former imperial powers a voice in shaping state policies. In the nations of Africa and Middle Asia, examples of this type are common. The phrase "françafrique" is used to describe the situation in Africa. It alludes to the relationship that exists between some African leaders and the president and senior officials of France, which results in indirect French control. Beti (1972), a Cameroonian author, claimed in her book "Cruel hand on Cameroon, autopsy of decolonization" that all of France's former colonies, including Cameroon, are still subject to its rule and that post-independence political elites encouraged this reliance. Imposing the use of French in countries that have achieved freedom has also been a strategy for maintaining dominance. Also referred to as a neo-colonial political tool, this practice is criticized.
2. Weapons Supply: For all newly emerging states, security (both internal and external threats) has been a problem. In terms of building the security infrastructure, they are largely ineffective. Army equipment is thus imported from developed and powerful countries in order to secure their armed base. They use this reliance on the strong states as a tool to exert control over their former colonies.
3. Financial Aids and Loans: In post-colonial times, the newly emerging states faced economic backwardness, which made them reliant on their former parent states and developed nations for financial support. Additionally, the wealthy nations use it as a tool to influence the policies of the powerful countries. The conditions for obtaining loans and aid from these states include the ability to obtain certain concessions, the ability to influence certain economic changes, the initiation of certain provisions for easy trade for the donor country, the imposition of the way in which funds must be used by the recipient country, and other restrictions. As well as the World Bank, the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and others. developed in post-colonial times to control and regulate global economies are also used as tools for establishing dominance. Rich states have exclusive control over these institutions. These institutions provide aid and loans to third-world countries, allowing the developed countries to exert control and secure favorable economic policy decisions in the underdeveloped states. Neocolonialist critics contend that even the decision to approve or reject loans from these international funding institutions (especially those financing otherwise unpayable Third World debt) belongs to the more powerful countries. It is an additional means of control. They contend that in order to be eligible for these loans and other forms of economic assistance, weaker countries are compelled to make decisions that are detrimental to their own economies while being advantageous to the financial interests of the IMF and World Bank. As a result of these structural changes, poverty in the weaker countries actually gets worse rather than better.
4. Multinational Corporations (MNCs): These corporations from developed countries have networks in less developed nations to control the economic and industrial enterprise on a global scale; this is another form of neo-colonialism. The parent states of these MNCs profit greatly from the countries in which they operate. Additionally, they exploit the enormous natural and human resources in the less developed nations while on the one hand doing well for their own state. Companies from other countries, including IBM, General Motors, GEC, Standard Oil, etc. examples of MNCs that are well-known. According to critics, the majority of the sovereign governments of weak and impoverished states are less powerful than these corporations.
5. Security pacts and treaties: This practice of forging hegemonic superpower relationships also contributes to the development of favorable conditions for influence and dominance. The majority of the time, this is accomplished by the powerful nations signing alliance and defense pacts. The first of its kind was the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), which was established by the U.S. S. 1949 saw an effort to halt Soviet expansion by the A and strong European nations. The Soviet Union criticized NATO and dubbed it a coalition of aggressors for attempting to impose Anglo-American dominance on the world. Since then, there have been numerous other such coalitions, including SEATO (South East Asia Treaty Organization), the 1954 Manila Pact between South East Asian nations, a collective defense treaty, and the Baghdad pact, later known as CENTO (Central Treaty Organisation), a treaty between Middle Eastern nations where America, despite not being a member, has agreed to participate in economic and military activities. The superpowers collectively grow stronger as a result of these pacts and treaties, and they can even exert military control over the less developed countries.
6. Transfer of Technology: Developing countries, which are typically not self-sufficient in this area, have an urgent need for advancing industry and technology. Therefore, the developed world is where the technology is purchased. The developed countries now have another chance to maintain their advantage and superiority. The majority of the technology that developed countries export to developing countries is outdated. According to reports, a significant number of industries lost their productivity after the Second World War. The technology that didn't work for them was sold to the underdeveloped countries at a very high price. In addition, the developed countries' assistance in establishing industries in the developing world is oftentimes only beneficial to the imperialist countries. For instance, industries that use excessive amounts of energy, pollute the environment, mine for raw materials for their own use, produce edibles, use experimental technology that is still in the testing phase, such as pharmaceuticals, drugs, and chemicals, etc. The areas that developed nations favor most for aid to third world countries are those that require a large labor force.
7. Critics of neo-colonialism have also argued that imperialist nations encourage students from developing nations to pursue professional trainings in fields that benefit the needs of the imperialist powers rather than focusing on developing higher educational and research opportunities in the third world. As a result, in their own underdeveloped environment, people who have been trained in Western culture, outlook, and aspirations are ineffective. They become alienated from their own nation and prefer to settle in the nations where they received their training. As a result, there is a brain drain, which is bad for developing nations.

Conclusion:

The world was divided into developed and developing countries following the two world wars. The powerful, economically prosperous, and formerly imperialistic nations make up the developed ones. The newly independent, largely underdeveloped nations that make up the developing world. The developed nations are promoted as the ideal role models for development and prosperity that other nations should adopt. This led to a situation where the newly established independent and sovereign nations were still being guided and influenced by former colonies in various ways. Neocolonialism, a new form of colonialism, is what the critics refer to this current situation as. Imperialist powers only altered their methods of hegemony; their intentions remained unchanged. Political meddling, the installation of puppet governments, security pacts, the provision of technology, industrial infrastructure, the provision of arms, the promotion of brain drain, etc. The tools for establishing control and dominance are used in developing countries. Thus, it is clearly evident that the imperialist ideology has persisted in the post-colonial era despite the countries' departure and the grant of their sovereignty.

References:

Carlos A. & Vela, M, (2001), ‘World System Theory’, downloaded from http://web.mit.edu/esd.83/www/notebook/WorldSystem.pdf
Fanon, F., (1963), The Wretched of the Earth, downloaded from http://spelelearn.spelman.edu/file.php/1/ims_import_1/Fanon_ConcerningViolence_pp95_106.p df
Huggan, Graham (1996), ‘The Neo-Colonialism of Post Colonialism: A Cautionary Note’, file:///C:/Users/rec-03/Downloads/49867-88106-1-PB.pdf
Nkrumah , K, (1965) ‘Neo- Colonialism: The Last Stage of Imperialism: An Introduction’ https://www.marxists.org/subject/africa/nkrumah/neo-colonialism/introduction.htm
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