ABSTRACT

This chapter examines the claims made by Kwame Nkrumah and his diagnosis of the strategies and functioning of neo-colonial forms of relations between African polities and external powers. This focuses upon his concerns surrounding role of aid monies and foreign investment in subverting genuine empirical sovereignty. Nkrumah thus viewed neo-colonialism as a two-way relationship between elites in London, Brussels and Washington (and beyond) and their counterparts in certain African capital cities in the era of decolonization and Cold War power politicking. Importantly, diagnosis of neo-colonialism – in keeping with an African socialist critique of decolonization processes – also found expression in the works of Nkrumah’s contemporaries – notably Julius Nyerere and Sekou Touré. Finally, the chapter provides a reiteration of the key claims of Nkrumah regarding operation of neo-colonial forms of North-South relations. It also reflects on Nkrumah’s discussion of the potential solutions to problem of neo-colonialism, namely contemporary possibilities for pan-African strategies aimed at overcoming neo-colonial influence and relationships.