Until the middle of the 20th century, almost all of Africa was controlled as colonies by the Western powers. However, around 1960, as many as 17 countries gained independence at once, and this year became known as the “Year of Africa.”
The Year of Africa—1960
In 1960, no fewer than 17 countries in Africa gained independence. This resulted from the growing movement for national self-determination after the Second World War combined with the exhaustion of the colonial powers after the war. The countries that became independent included Cameroon, Togo, Mali, Senegal, Nigeria, the Congo (the Belgian Congo), Somalia, and Madagascar. In the Congo, now the Democratic Republic of the Congo, civil war broke out soon after independence, and its first prime minister, Patrice Lumumba, was assassinated. The artificially drawn borders left by the colonial era caused post-independence turmoil through “the division of ethnic groups” and “conflicts over resources.”
1957: Ghana became independent (first president Kwame Nkrumah; first independent country south of the Sahara)
1960: “Year of Africa”—17 countries became independent
1962: Algeria became independent, ending 130 years of French rule
1963: Organization of African Unity (OAU) established → became the African Union (AU) in 2002
1994: Apartheid, a policy of racial segregation, was abolished in the Republic of South Africa; Nelson Mandela became its first Black president
Apartheid and South Africa
Even after independence, South Africa continued to be ruled by the white minority under apartheid, a policy of racial segregation. Black people were discriminated against in housing, movement, voting, and education. Nelson Mandela, a leader of the African National Congress (ANC), continued the struggle despite being imprisoned for 27 years from 1964. As a result of international economic sanctions and domestic resistance movements, the apartheid laws were abolished in 1991. In the 1994 election in which all races participated, Mandela was elected president. Mandela called for “reconciliation rather than hatred” and established the Truth and Reconciliation Commission to address the past.
Practice
- Why was 1960 called the “Year of Africa”?
- Regarding South Africa's apartheid policy, give the year it was abolished and the ANC leader who contributed to its abolition.
- Which African country became the first independent country south of the Sahara in 1957? Who was its first president?