Labor Costs and the Failed Support of Progressive Farmers in Colonial Malawi

The causes and consequences of colonial intervention in rural Africa have received a lot of attention among historians. Environmental and social historians have especially contributed to the debate by analyzing the impact of colonial conservation measures on rural social and agricultural landscapes as well as exploring farmers’ responses and opposition to the interventions. ¹ Environmental historians have shown how the colonial regulation of farming methods required increased labor inputs and the colonial officials commonly assumed that labor was freely available for the peasant farmers. ² Scholars who have studied individual projects have questioned this assumption (see further below). They have shown how labor was not an easily accessible resource. On the contrary, they claim that the high cost of labor often created obstacles for successful outcomes of individual projects. Yet, they fail to explain why labor was not in abundance and it was not possible to exploit at a low cost. This chapter is an economic historian’s attempt to analyze why labor was a scarce and expensive resource. The chapter focuses solely on economic aspects of farming and labor allocation. With this narrow focus, I hope to contribute to the larger debate about changes and continuities in the social, cultural and political landscapes of African farming.