Colonialism, Neo-colonialism, and Environmental Crisis in Sub-Saharan Africa

Abstract: Climate change has severely compromised the livelihoods of people that are overwhelmingly dependent on the natural environment, particularly those in developing countries that are usually the least able to cope with the associated social and environmental risks. Sub-Saharan Africa is the region most vulnerable to climate change since warming will be greater than the global average, and agriculture, mainly rain-fed, is the primary source of subsistence for rural communities. A cursory glance at available literature reveals that several researches have been done on climate change in Africa, but with no clear-cut attention on the consequences of colonialism and neo-colonialism on climate change. This paper, therefore, studies the impact of colonialism and neo-colonialism on Sub-Saharan Africa’s struggle with climate change. It discovers that the colonial period in Africa (1880s-1960s) was marked by the alteration of indigenous methods of mitigating ecological disasters. European powers also extracted natural resources for their economic benefits, often with little regard for the local environment and communities in Africa. With neo-colonialism (1961-2024) changing baton with colonialism, the exploitation of the environment in Sub-Saharan Africa through the activities of former colonial powers and multinational companies still endures. This research tells the story of Sub-Saharan Africa’s experience of climate change in relation to her colonial and neo-colonial relationships. While the historical and hermeneutic methods of inquiry will be used for the analysis and presentation of data, the Igwebuike theoretical framework would be employed in the search for a holistic approach towards environmental sustainability in Sub-Saharan African.

Presenter bio: Ikechukwu Anthony KANU, PhD is a Professor of African Philosophy and Religious Traditions at, the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies, Tansian University, Nigeria; and a Tenured Professor of African Theology at the Faculty of Catholic Theology and Orthodox Studies, The University of America, Temecula, USA. Kanu is the Global President of the Association for the Promotion of African Studies.

Affiliation: Tansian University, Umunya, Nigeria