Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Colonialism; Nigeria'

Boston University. University Professors Program Senior theses.
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2031-01-02

The aim of this final thesis is to evaluate the impact of British colonialism on Nigeria and Kenya, to describe positives and negatives. Attention is paid to relations between countries in the period of colonial rule, the development of nationalist movements, the transition to independence, and contemporary relations between the countries. The aim is also to identify differences in the colonization of Nigeria and Kenya. For each country there are mentioned important factors affecting the development of political and socio-economic relations.

Every year, for the past 50 years, Nigeria’s oil-rich Niger Delta has suffered the same magnitude of oil spill in its rivers and swamps than was spilled in the 2010 Gulf Oil Spill. The damage has devastated the way of life of the Ogoni people who live in the area. They have consistently suffered environmental injustice as a result of Shell’s oil exploration, and the Nigerian government has ignored their cries for help and restitution. In fact, movements to garner support for environmental justice and fare share of oil profits and ownership from Shell and the state have been brutally shut down by the Nigerian government. Could it be that the reason that the state is willing to allow such a grave level of environmental degradation to persist is not only because it is corrupt, but also because the Nigerian government functions as a gatekeeper state guarding its precious oil resources? Following independence, many oil-producing countries turned to spigot economies that allowed whoever controlled access to the tap to collect rent on it. Thus, as a gatekeeper state, it is not in the best interest of the Nigerian government to give up its rent-seeking behaviors with Shell to appease its citizens because it may disrupt its relationship with the outside corporations. As a result, many of the cries for environmental justice by the Ogoni people have been met with resistance from the state since their function has evolved to collect taxes on exports and imports—not to maintain the trust of its citizens.

The concept of understanding one’s origin or existence spans across almost every sphere of social science; despite its popularity, there is still a lack of research exploring identity in the work setting of developing countries. This thesis aims to contribute to understanding identity processes of workers in developing countries through the lenses of social identity and post-colonialism. The rationale for using these areas lies in the perceived nature of identity processes for people in developing countries by taking into account historical and cultural influences; for social identity (Tajfel & Turner, 1979), the “prototype” and “cohesion, solidarity and harmony” and for post-colonialism (Sen, 2006; Ekeh, 1975; Ekanola, 2006; Mizuno & Okazawa, 2009), “power”, the “dialectics of the colonized mind” and “social formations”. This thesis takes a socio-psychological approach, which is based on a qualitative research method; in particular, 47 in-depth interviews with professionals from the oil and gas sector of Nigeria form a key aspect of the research method. Findings reveal that social identity theory can be used to interpret the propensity of Nigerians to identify with groups. The thesis finds that social identity captures the importance attached to group identification through an understanding of the drivers and benefits of harmony to the self-concept in the chosen context. However the thesis also finds that social identity but does not cater for other integral aspects of identity processes, such as power and identity struggle. The thesis finds that by addressing the perception of perpetuated colonialism produced by the persistent domination of foreign workers in senior roles and their interaction with indigenous workers, post-colonial theory adequately covers issues of power and struggle. In summary, the thesis finds that the integration of social identity theory and post-colonial theory facilitates a more holistic interpretation of identity processes in regions like Nigeria. Hence this thesis contributes to the literature on identity processes in the work setting of a developing country.

This paper conducts a comparative case study of how gender discourse in Igbo society has evolved from pre-colonial, colonial to post-colonial periods, more so, how this evolution contributes to the debate on cultural imperialism. It claims that an historical understanding of gender relations in Igbo society could provides an understanding of national cultural imperialism from a political perspective. With the assumptions of cultural imperialism, it reviews how the effect of colonialism contributes to the evolution of gender discourse in Igbo society. According to some earlier researches, gender equality in Igbo society has been on a constant slide from what was obtainable in the pre-colonial era. This trend as it is analyzed, collaborates the assumptions of national cultural imperialism; thereby disentangling the congested concept of cultural imperialism.

Nigeria's petroleum industry is the lynchpin of its economy. While oil has been the source of immense wealth for the nation, that wealth has come at a cost. Nigeria's main oil-producing region of the Niger River Delta has experienced tremendous environmental degradation as a result of decades of oil exploration and production. Although there have been numerous historical works on Nigeria's oil industry, there have been no in-depth analyses of the historical roots of environmental degradation over the full range of time from the colonial period to the present. This thesis contends that the environmental degradation of Nigeria's oil producing region of the Niger Delta is the direct result of the persistent non-implementation of regulatory policies by post-independence Nigerian governments working in collusion with oil multinationals. Additionally, the environmental neglect of Nigeria's primary oil-producing region is directly traceable back to the time of colonial rule. Vital to this argument is the view that the British colonial state created the economic institutions which promoted Nigerian economic dependency after independence was achieved in 1960. The weakness of Nigeria's post-colonial dependent system is exposed presently through the continued neglect of regulatory policies by successive post-colonial Nigerian governments.
M.A.
Masters
History
Arts and Humanities
History; Public History

This thesis aims to explore how a critical reaading of the novel Things Fall Apart (1958) can provide valuable perspective for educators and students when examining socio-economic issues in  a colonial context in the ESL classroom. The main issues being analysed are how the novel reveals and explores socio-economic forms of exploitation under colonialism, and how a critical reading of the novel can be used in teaching to inform and persuade learners about social injustices. To show this, the essay examines the novel from a marxist perspective, and more specifically by drawing on the concept of primitive accumulation to understand and explain the changes brought about by the introduction of colonial rule. The changes in this context include the Igbo community's relation to land, its socio-economic and cultural aspects as well as the introduction of trade. The discussion and analysis of the novel centre on social injustices due to land expropriation, breakdown of traditional values and customs, and economic changes brought about by the arrival of Europeans in the context of colonialism. Expanding on this, the essay also reflects on the pedagogical implications of its arguments by showing how a critical reading of Things Fall Apart might provide an opportunity for teachers to underline issues of social injustice, material, and economic forms of exploitation under colonialism and beyond. This literary analysis also discusses and reflects on the practical challenges and possibilities of teaching such issues in the ESL classroom by using the concept of critical literacy.

This thesis aims to explore how a critical reading of the novel Things Fall Apart (1958) can provide valuable perspective for educators and students when examining socio-economic issues in  a colonial context in the ESL classroom. The main issues being analysed are how the novel reveals and explores socio-economic forms of exploitation under colonialism, and how a critical reading of the novel can be used in teaching to inform and persuade learners about social injustices. To show this, the essay examines the novel from a marxist perspective, and more specifically by drawing on the concept of primitive accumulation to understand and explain the changes brought about by the introduction of colonial rule. The changes in this context include the Igbo community's relation to land, its socio-economic and cultural aspects as well as the introduction of trade. The discussion and analysis of the novel centre on social injustices due to land expropriation, breakdown of traditional values and customs, and economic changes brought about by the arrival of Europeans in the context of colonialism. Expanding on this, the essay also reflects on the pedagogical implications of its arguments by showing how a critical reading of Things Fall Apart might provide an opportunity for teachers to underline issues of social injustice, material, and economic forms of exploitation under colonialism and beyond. This literary analysis also discusses and reflects on the practical challenges and possibilities of teaching such issues in the ESL classroom by using the concept of critical literacy.

Many African Independent Churches emerged during the colonial era in central Kenya and western Nigeria. At times they were opposed by government officials and missionaries. Most scholars have limited the field of enquiry to the flash-points of this encounter, thereby emphasizing the relationship at its most severe. This study questions current assumptions about the encounter which have derived from these studies, arguing that both government and missionary officials in Kenya and Nigeria exhibited a broader range of perspectives and responses to African Independent Churches. To characterize them as mainly hostile to African Independent Churches is inaccurate. This study also explores the various encounters between African Independent Churches and African politicians, clergymen, and local citizens. While some scholars have discussed the positive role of Africans in encouraging the growth of independent Christianity, this study will discuss the history in greater depth and complexity. The investigation will show the importance of understanding the encounter on both a local and national level, and the relationships between the two. It is taken for granted that European officials had authority over African leaders, but in regard to this topic many Africans possessed a largely unrecognized ability to influence and shape European perceptions of new religious movements. Finally, this thesis will discuss how African Independent Churches sometimes provoked negative responses from others through confrontational missionary methods, caustic rhetoric, intimidation and even violence. These three themes resurface throughout the history of the encounter and illustrate how current assumptions can be reinterpreted. This thesis suggests the necessity of expanding the primary scholarly focuses, as well as altering the language and basic assumptions of the previous histories of the encounter.

The thesis aims to contribute to the question of the origins of efficient institutional arrangements, which are regarded essential for economic development and long-term economic growth. In Africa most institutional frameworks were established under colonial rule and then persisted to a large extent. In this sense colonialism offers a "natural experiment" - a phase in which European institutions were transferred to African countries. The thesis investigates the influence of colonial rule on the institutional development of two countries and former British colonies: Botswana and Nigeria. It applies a theoretical model of institutional legitimacy based on the theoretic work of Douglass North and Oliver Williamson. The case studies' findings highlight the persistence of pre-colonial informal institutions grounded in cultural norms and beliefs of the local populations. In addition, pre-existing levels of urbanisation, constraints on political power and integration in colonial labour markets have been factors which influenced the transfer of European institutions. (author's abstract)

The current study is an African-centred critique of the idea of ‘good governance’; which since the 1990s, has been a prescription of the international development institutions for all development challenges facing developing countries. Despite almost two decades of implementation of good governance reforms in Nigeria, poverty, corruption and underdevelopment persist. The analysis showed that the limited involvement of local people in the design of donor-sponsored good governance reforms mainly produced a universal, donor-conceptualized good governance agenda, which did not fully capture local issues. Given this, the main objective of the current study was to develop a cultural, context-specific governance model that shares local citizens’ understanding of governance, as well as, addresses challenges of governance at local levels in Nigeria. However, given the diversity of cultures in Nigeria and the uniqueness of each of them, this study only focused on Southwest Nigeria. Afrocentricity is the theoretical framework for this study. Mainstream development theories have mainly guided the development efforts of African countries but these theories are based on the experience of the European countries and primarily seek their interests. Given the failure of Eurocentric development theories in Nigeria, this study deemed it fit to adopt a theoretical framework that is based on African experience and that seeks African interests. Afrocentricity is the only theory in which the centrality of African interests, principles, and perceptions predominate (Pellebon 2007: 174). In terms of methodology, this study adopted the case study design. The study also used both the qualitative and quantitative methods of data collection. But the study was largely qualitative because it relied on participants’ interpretations. The inclusion of quantitative data was for purposes of expanding and complementing the interpretive information. The study is significant because the findings provide agency to indigenous people in Nigeria by the voicing their perception of governance. The study also identified context-specific issues affecting governance in Nigeria, which were not captured in the donor’s universal good governance agenda. The study proposed how the principles that have enabled the effectiveness of traditional governance systems could be incorporated into formal governance to achieve better government performance. Most importantly, this study offers context-specific and people-centred recommendations to address Nigeria’s governance and development challenges. This study’s Afrocentric approach to the understanding of good governance is an epistemological rupture against the Eurocentric idea of good governance.
Development Studies
PhD (Philosophy)

Although organised Marxist organisations did not emerge in Nigeria until the mid-1940s, leftist ideology had been prevalent among nationalist and labour leaders since the late 1920s. Both official documents and oral histories indicate deep-rooted support for leftism in Nigeria and anxiety among British colonial officials that this support threatened the Colonial Office's own timetable for gradual decolonisation. This study analyses the development of leftist ideology and attempts to establish a nationwide leftist organisation in colonial and post-independent Nigeria. The role of the Zikist movement is retold in light of new evidence, while other leftist organisations are salvaged from the footnotes of Nigeria nationalist history. More importantly, the adaptability of Marxist-Leninist ideology to colonial reality by the different leftist groups in Nigeria is emphasized. The reaction of Anglo-American officials in Lagos and the metropolis towards the Communist Party of Great Britain and other leftist organisations' sponsorship of Marxist groups in Nigeria are discussed. Lastly, the continuity between the departing colonial power and the Balewa administration is addressed to juxtapose the linkage between the two governments. The study thus provides a lucid explanation for the failure of leftist ideology and organisations in Nigeria during the twentieth century. In this eight-chapter thesis I consistently argue, based on official documents from England, Nigeria, and the United States, that the role of Marxists and Soviet Cold War interests in colonial territories are relevant to nationalism and decolonisation in Nigeria; that the issue is not to determine or measure whether or not Anglo-American policies are direct response to Soviet interests; that there are political, economic, and diplomatic policies carried out as part of the transfer of power process; and that the success of these is partly a result of collaboration with local subaltern leaders and official resolve to institutionalise imperial preferences before independence on October 1, 1960.
History
D.Litt. et Phil. (History)

Text in English, abstract in English, Afrikaans and Northern Sotho
This study examines why post-colonial African states are not able to institutionalise the ideal ethical and democratic societies, given their access to international best practices and the abundance of human and natural resources; why the future of democracy in Africa remains uncertain despite the current efforts at democratisation; if western democracy can be implemented in Africa; why the West is able to produce better systems of governance; why leaders and managers find it daunting to create the kind of society that is inspiring, ethical, immune to bureaucracy, and that possesses excellent economic performance; how leaders, members of the community, bureaucrats, corporate executives and managers can contribute to the realisation of the ethical and ideal African state; and the options for alternative democratic order for the African continent. The inability of post-colonial African states to institute systems and strategies that adequately address the needs and expectations of their citizens has created chaos and anarchy that in some states can be likened to Hobbes state of nature where the weak is at the mercy of the strong and life is nasty, brutish and short. While the West has been largely blamed for playing a significant role in Africa’s inability to effectively manage itself, other theorists criticise African leaders and the community members for their inability to conduct themselves ethically and to implement a constructive and effective system of governance. It is imperative that African states devise adequate means of ethically administering their territories in a manner that meets societal expectations and needs, and in order to avoid intractable socio-political and economic complications.
Hierdie studie ondersoek die redes waarom postkoloniale Afrika-lande nie die ideale etiese en demokratiese samelewings instabiliseer nie, gegewe hul toegang tot internasionale beste praktyke en die oorvloed van menslike en natuurlike hulpbronne; waarom die toekoms van demokrasie in Afrika onduidelik bly ten spyte van die huidige pogings vir demokratisering; as westerse demokrasie in Afrika geïmplementeer kan word; waarom die Weste beter stelsels van bestuur kan lewer; hoekom leiers en bestuurders dit skrikwekkend vind om die soort samelewing wat inspirerend, eties, immuun vir burokrasie is, te skep en wat uitstekende ekonomiese prestasie besit; hoe leiers, lede van die gemeenskap, burokrate, korporatiewe bestuurders en bestuurders kan bydra tot die verwesenliking van die etiese en ideale Afrika-staat; en die opsies vir alternatiewe demokratiese orde vir die Afrika-kontinent. Die onvermoë van post-koloniale Afrika-state om stelsels en strategieë in te stel wat die behoeftes en verwagtinge van hul burgers voldoende aanspreek, het chaos en anargie geskep wat in sommige state vergelykbaar kan wees met Hobbes se toestand van die natuur, waar die swakeling aan die genade van die wat sterk is afhanklik is en die lewe ‘n nare, brutaal en kort lewe is. Terwyl die Weste grotendeels die blaam kry in terme van hul groot bydra in Afrika se onvermoë om homself doeltreffend te bestuur, kritiseer ander teoretici Afrika-leiers en die gemeenskapslede vir hul eie onvermoë om eties op te tree en om 'n konstruktiewe en effektiewe bestuurstelsel te implementeer. Dit is noodsaaklik dat Afrika-state voldoende middele voorsien om hul gebiede eties te administreer op 'n wyse wat voldoen aan maatskaplike verwagtinge en behoeftes, en om onwikkelbare sosio-politieke en ekonomiese komplikasies te vermy.
Thuto ye e lekola mabaka a gore ke eng dinaga tša ka morago ga bokoloneale di sa kgone go hloma dipeakanyo tša maswanedi tša maitshwaro le ditšhaba tša temokrasi, tšeo di filwego phihlelelo go ditiro tše kaonekaone tša boditšhabatšhaba le bontši bja methopo ya semotho le tlhago: ke ka lebaka la eng Bodikela bo kgona go tšweletša mekgwa ye kaone ya pušo; ke ka lebaka la eng baetapele le balaodi ba hwetša go le boima go hlama mokgwa wa setšhaba seo se nago le mafolofolo, maitshwaro, se sa huetšwego ke mokgwa wa pušo wo o diphetho di tšewago ke bahlanka ba mmušo bao ba sa kgethwago, gomme ba na le tiro ye kgahlišago ka ikonomi; ka moo baetapele, maloko a setšhaba, batšeasephetho ba mmušo ba sa kgethwago, malokopharephare a dikoporasi le balaodi ba ka aba mo go phihlelelong ya maitshwaro le naga ya maswanedi ya Afrika; le go dikgetho tša peakanyo ye e hlatlolanago ya temokrasi mo kontinenteng ya Afrika. Go se kgone ga dinaga tša ka morago ga bokoloneale go hlama mekgwa le maano ao a maleba a go bolela ka ga dinyakwa le ditetelo tša baagi ba bona di hlotše tlhakatlhakano le tlhokapušo yeo mo go dinaga tše dingwe e ka bapetšwago le naga ya Hobbes ka tlhago moo mofokodi a lego ka fase ga yo maatla gomme bophelo bo se bose, bo le šoro le go ba bjo bokopana. Mola Bodikela bo pharwa molato kudu mo go bapaleng karolo ye e tšweletšego mo go se kgonego ga Afrika go itaola ka tshwanelo, borateori ba bangwe ba solago baetapele ba Afrika le maloko a setšhaba mo go se kgonego go itshwara gabotse le go phethagatša mokgwa wo hlamilwego gabotse wo o šomago wa pušo. A bonagala gore dinaga tša Afrika di loga maano a makaone a go laola ka tshwanelo dinagadilete tša bona ka mokgwa wo o tla fihlelelago ditetelo tša setšhaba le dinyakwa, le gore go thibelwe go se boelemorago ga dipolotiki tša selegae le tlhakatlhakano ya ikonomi.
Philosophy, Practical and Systematic Theology
D. Litt. et Phil. (Philosophy)

Text in English
Through an in-depth analysis of selected texts, this study engages with the ways in which Ogun is reimagined by recent selected Nigerian playwrights. Early writers from this country, influenced by their modernist education, misrepresented Ogun by presenting only his so-called negative attributes. Contemporary writers are reconceptualising him; it is the task of this thesis to demonstrate how they are doing so from a decolonial perspective. These alleged attributes represent Ogun as a wicked, bloodthirsty, arrogant and hot tempered god who only kills and makes no positive contribution to the Yoruba community. The thesis argues that the notion of an African god should be viewed from an Afrocentric perspective, not a Eurocentric one, which might lead to violence or misrepresentation of him. The dialogue in the plays conveys how the playwrights have constructed their main characters as Ogun representatives in their society. For example, Mojagbe and Morontonu present Balogun, the chief warlord of their different community; both characters exhibit Ogun features of defending their community. The chosen plays for this study are selected based on different notions of Ogun, the Yoruba god of iron and war, presented by the playwrights. A closer look at the primary materials this thesis explores suggests Ogun’s strong connection with rituals and cultural festivals. These plays exemplify African ritual theatre. Being a member of the Yoruba ethnic group, I have considerable knowledge of how festivals are performed. The Ogun festival is an annual celebration among the Yoruba, where African idioms of puppetry, masquerading, music, dance, mime, invocation, evocation and several elements of drama are incorporated into the performances. The selected plays critiqued in this thesis are Mojagbe (Ahmed Yerima, 2008), Battles of Pleasure (Peter Omoko, 2009), Hard Choice (Sunnie Ododo, 2011), and Morontonu (Alex Roy-Omoni, 2012). No in-depth exploration has previously been undertaken into the kinds of textual and ideological identities that Ogun adopts, especially in the selected plays. Therefore, using a decolonial epistemic perspective, this study offers a critical examination of how the selected Nigerian playwrights between the years 2008 and 2012 have constructed Ogun, the Yoruba god of iron. Such a perspective assists in delinking interpretations from the modernised notions mentioned above, in which Ogun is sometimes a paradoxical god. Coloniality is responsible for such misinterpretation; the employed theoretical framework is used to interrogate these notions. The research project begins with a general introduction locating Ogun in Yoruba mythology, which forms the background to how the god is being constructed in Yorubaland. Also included iii in this first chapter is a discussion on a decolonial perspective, the principles of coloniality, the aims and objective of the study, and the relevant literature review. Thereafter, chapter two focuses on Battles of Pleasure and argues that the play re-imagines Ogun as a god of peace and harvest as opposed to a god of war and destruction. Chapter three discusses how Ododo’s Hard Choice reconceptualises Ogun as a god of justice, in contrast to him being interpreted as a god who engages in reckless devastation of life. Chapter four explores Ogun’s representation in Yerima’s Mojagbe as a reformer who gives human beings ample time to change from their wayward course to a course that he approves. In chapter five, Ogun’s reconception as a remover of obstacles in Roy-Omoni’s Morontonu is examined. The study concludes with a discussion on how Africans should delink themselves from a modernist Eurocentric perspective and think from an Afrocentric locus of enunciation.
English Studies
D. Litt. et Phil.(English)

Based on the research questions employed in this study, the Nigerian immigrant community first began with student sojourners and is currently more effective within the African-American context. This community would perhaps have been much slower in evolving but for the crisis of institutional instability back in the Nigerian homeland as well as the policies of two American presidents. The major features of the Nigerian immigrant community with varying degrees of influences in America are: the Nigerian offspring, the Nigerian church, the Nigerian community media, the Nigeria women association, the Nigerian attorneys and physicians. The Nigerian offspring represent a conciliatory generation to Black America, the Nigerian homeland, Euro-America, and the most favorable orbit of incorporating Nigerian indices into the American mosaic. Houston, Dallas, and Atlanta exhibit one of the strongest evidences of the Southern typology of Nigerian immigrants in the U.S. Within this same setting, the generational and socio-cultural experiences of Nigerians and African-Americans are closely related. Both in their American agenda as well as aspirations toward the homelands, Nigerians are replaying the generational schemes of Black America. Analyses of the relationships between the generations of forced migration and voluntary migration in the Nigerian-U.S. based community media conform to a greater degree of understanding than misunderstanding. The benefits derived from the two historic migrations of black Africans to the U.S. are lopsided. Predisposed to neither assimilation nor integration, the Nigerian diaspora in particular exhibit a carefully selective pattern of socioeconomic identification which corresponds with segregated incorporation into society. Generally, the incorporation of the African diaspora in America favors a north to-east to-south thrust of the races of Africa. Africans from West and Central Africa, where a majority of the forced migrants were taken, are more likely to occupy an unfavorable orbit of American incorporation. Due mostly to American slavery, the Nigerian-African variable represents the most distinctive phase of reactive-global migration into the U.S. after decolonization. The predicted problem of "color line in the twentieth century" also corresponded with the reactive patterns of cross-cultural migrations particularly of the races of color and mostly at the intersection of the fifth wave of global migration. Sustained exchanges between Nigeria and the U.S. after colonialism therefore began with the fifth wave of reactive global migration. This marks an important new phase in the development and integration of Nigerian-African indices into the modern world.

Dissertação de mestrado em Relações Internacionais
A presente dissertação pretende analisar a relação entre a França e o Níger no século XXI. O objetivo principal é verificar qual o grau de influência que a França dispõe atualmente no século XXI no Níger. Procuramos identificar se após mais de 60 anos das independências formais concedidas às suas ex-colónias, a França mantêm algum tipo de influência em território africano. A investigação pretende analisar os meios que o governo francês dispõe para manter ainda a sua influência na zona francófona em África. Apesar de estarmos num mundo cada vez mais globalizado, o que facilita um maior número de alternativas aos países Africanos, estes continuam a priorizar o seu relacionamento com França. Como iremos ver no decorrer desta investigação, a França exerce a sua influência através dos seus meios (políticos económicos, socioculturais, militares) de que dispõem para beneficiar-se economicamente. Esta situação acontece desde 1960 até aos dias de hoje, no entanto, em menor grau que em décadas passadas. A utilização do Franco CFA – única moeda colonial ainda em circulação - por parte das ex-colónias francesas, limita em vários aspetos os países africanos, principalmente no comércio internacional e sobretudo no desenvolvimento económico da nação. Vigoram determinadas regras desde 1945, por parte do Banco Central francês que os países devem cumprir. Apesar das independências concedidas na década de 60 e de estarmos num mundo mais globalizado, a França exerce ainda hoje, no século XXI, uma considerável influência na zona francófona.
The objective of this essay is to analyse the relation between France and Niger during the XX century. The main goal is to see how many influence France has on Niger nowadays in XXI century. We try to see if after 60 years of formal independence give to their ex colonies France still having any influence in this countries/ in African territories. The investigation pretend to analyse the tools that French government has to maintain their influence in the francophone zone in Africa. Even if we are in a world more and more globalize who facilitates the communication with other countries they still prioritising the relation with France. During this essay we will see France influencing these countries through their tools (economic, political, socio-cultural and military) in order to have economical benefits. This situation occurs since 1960 but nowadays is less important than on the past. The utilization of Franc CFA - the only colonial currency in circulation at this moment - by the ex French colonies is a drawback mainly for the international exchanges and above all for the economic development. Some laws by the French central bank still into effect since 1945 and these countries had to follow them. Even after the independencies given in the 60's and being in a globalize world France still having a non-negligible influence in the francophone zone nowadays.