Ethnic Conflicts & Nation Building in Post-Colonial Africa

The 1950s and 1960s were decades most African countries attained their independence and were expected to usher in Africa’s prosperity and development. However, with over sixty years after the end of the colonial era, Africa remains the continent with the highest rate of poverty, illiteracy, and infant mortality. A major contributory factor to this rating has been the many cases of violent conflicts and civil unrest which hinder the development of many African countries. These conflicts take various forms such as ethnic conflicts, religious conflicts, resource conflicts, labour unrest, and other forms of conflicts. The result of this instability has been the loss of lives and properties, underdevelopment, further distrust among warring parties, disunity, and then more conflict. To stem the tide of incessant conflict and unrest on the African continent, scholars and political leaders advocated for the application of Nation Building in various African countries. This proposed solution resulted from the fact that the African continent is characterized by a diverse demography. How has the nation-building process fared? This and questions on development are analyzed in this study.