Role Of Imperialism In African Colonialism
Housing reflects the environment that house is in such as forest vs savannah. They are also custom to culture or to sociopolitical status. By sociopolitical status it would be the size of the house of the King compared to the size of the ordinary man’s compound. This exits between the African sections of land and the white-only sections of land. In areas where there is so much spontaneous growth there is cleavage that separates the most fortunate from the less fortunate. The more fortunate would have walled off villas and elaborate homes while the less fortunate had more modest and open housing.
Belgian Colonialism in the Congo Basin prime motive was in pursuit of European benefit. Their goal was profit-maximization and this shaped their relationship
with the Africans. There sympathetic motives were proved wrong through forced labor, high taxes, low wages, compulsory cultivation requirements, numerous restrictions on independent commercial activities, and other coercive measures employed consistently that reveal their initial aim was an ever-increasing amount of exports produced by African workers. Under these harsh and forced measures, it has been affirmed that African participation in the colonial economy was far more encouraged by fear and intimidation than it was by the “rewards” and incentives. Another significant factor was the natural environment of the Congo basin. The distribution of resources in the forest contributed to and shaped commodity production such as, ivory, rubber, copal, and palm oil became the principal exports because they were procurable. Environmental conditions also determined the success of new cash crops. Cassava and Hevea rubber tree were successfully introduced and utilized in the tropical environment. Meanwhile rice and livestock were less worthy due to climate conditions that were not compatible and also the growing population of the tsetse fly in pasture areas. The epidemic of diseases of the Congo basin also shaped history by making European settlement unattractive, resulting in greater reliance on the African participation in the administration and economy.
Belgian Colonialism in the Congo Basin prime motive was in pursuit of European benefit. Their goal was profit-maximization and this shaped their relationship
with the Africans. There sympathetic motives were proved wrong through forced labor, high taxes, low wages, compulsory cultivation requirements, numerous restrictions on independent commercial activities, and other coercive measures employed consistently that reveal their initial aim was an ever-increasing amount of exports produced by African workers. Under these harsh and forced measures, it has been affirmed that African participation in the colonial economy was far more encouraged by fear and intimidation than it was by the “rewards” and incentives. Another significant factor was the natural environment of the Congo basin. The distribution of resources in the forest contributed to and shaped commodity production such as, ivory, rubber, copal, and palm oil became the principal exports because they were procurable. Environmental conditions also determined the success of new cash crops. Cassava and Hevea rubber tree were successfully introduced and utilized in the tropical environment. Meanwhile rice and livestock were less worthy due to climate conditions that were not compatible and also the growing population of the tsetse fly in pasture areas. The epidemic of diseases of the Congo basin also shaped history by making European settlement unattractive, resulting in greater reliance on the African participation in the administration and economy.