This research looks at the famous works and ideas of several philosophers such as Rousseau, Adam Smith, Karl Marx etc. in order to extract perspectives for Africa’s economic and government development. This research draws upon mostly secondary sources including journal articles, published books, academic websites and class readings. This focus seeks to mine the most creative and prevailing perspectives on African economy and government. Through reviewing some of the most esteemed texts, this research highlights the prevailing perspectives and ideas that are shaping the actions of African state governments in the quest for development in Africa. The research concludes by recommending socialism and democracy for Africa.
Keywords: Neo-colonialism,
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Kwame Nkrumah, in Neo-colonialism: the last stage of imperialism stated that neo-colonialism has made Africa and Africans to suffer development setbacks. Nkrumah analysed neo-colonialism in the general theoretical framework of the Russian communist and political theorist, Vladimir Lenin (1870-1924), as an expression of imperialism- monopoly capitalism, export of capital, division and re-division of the world by the big trusts, governments controlled by these trusts establishing political and military domination over exploited areas (Nkrumah, 1966). He shows how imperialist domination deliberately perpetuates African poverty and structural economic backwardness, how American and European imperialists enrich themselves at the expense of the African people and their resources. In more simple terms, Nkrumah views hegemonic menace of imperialism, which arises from neo-colonialism, as the bane of Africa’s economic underdevelopment and dependence. Frantz Fanon and Chinweizo also identified this same notion of neo-colonialism as a setback in the development of the African economy. For Fanon, as analysed by Teodros Kiros, the solution is an African revolution aimed at conquering deficiency of necessities such as food and shelter (Kiros, 2004). Chinweizo wrote painstaking on on black power, for him, like Cheik Anta Diop, he insisted on a black superpower in order to gain economic sovereignty (Chinweizu, 2010). Diop was only a bit more specific; he focused on restoration of political sovereignty, economic sovereignty and psychic autonomy as the key component for an African economic renaissance (Diop,