1.2 AFRICAN RENAISSANCE
1.2.1.1 The relationship between Pan-Africanism and African Renaissance
Mahmood Mamdani asks the question: When did the African Renaissance begin, in 1994 or earlier?
(Mamdani,1999: 125). In other words, did the African renaissance begin with Mbeki or it is an age old concept? Mamdani argues that we need to acknowledge "the large idea of which the call for an African Renaissance is a child - the idea of Pan-African ism- and to recognise that it has been pushed forward more through debates than through a chorus" (Mamdani,1999:125).
Prah also reminds us that the idea of a "renewal, an awakening, a reawakening, a resorgimento, a renaissance for Africa is hardly new" (Prah,1999:43). He argues that each generation of African leadership has attempted in its own fashion to give it meaning. He maintains that its origins go back to the nineteenth century. "It emerged out ofthe spirit ofwesternised anti-colonialism; as a reaction ofthe westernised African elite freshly brought into the international capitalist order during the era of free trade which followed the end of slavery" (Prah,1999:43). It is suggested in different ways, by all the principal African nationalist thinkers of the nineteenth century, including Edward Blyden.
In the twentieth century it includes Pixley Isaka Seme, a founder member of the African National Congress in 1912 and later president of the organisation who in 1905 spoke of a "regeneration of Africa" (Prah,1999:43). In that presentation, Seme remarked,
I have chosen to speak on this occasion upon The Regeneration of Africa. I am an African, and set my pride in my race over against a hostile public opinion ... The African recognises his anomalous position and desires a change. The brighter day is rising upon Africa. Already I seem to see her chains dissolved, her desert plains red with harvest, her Abyssinia and her Zululand the seats of science and of religion, reflecting the glory of the rising sun from the spires of their churches and universities. Her Congo and her Gambia whitened with commerce ... Yes, the regeneration of Africa belongs to this new and powerful period. By this term regeneration, I wish to be understood to mean the entrance into a new life, embracing the diverse phases ofa higher, complex existence (Quoted by Prah,1999:43-44).
Thus, the concept of an African Renaissance has deep and diverse historical roots that can be traced from W.E.B. Du Bois, who constantly alluded to an expected resurgence of Africa (Prah,1999:44), and Marcus Garvey's attempts to rally the African diaspora (Khoza, 1999:279; Magubane, 1999: 11).
Marcus Garvey spoke of an "awakened Africa which will not go back to sleep" (Prah,1999:44).
Pan-Africanist solutions (Prah,1999:44). Likewise Julius Nyerere views on the renaissance is captured by his words, when he says, "Total African liberation and total African unity are basic objectives of our party" (Prah,1999:44). Also, Steve Biko's renaissance dream was expressed through the Black Consciousness Movement (Khoza,1999:279). For her part, Nnamdi Azikiwe a Nigerian, pursued the idea of the Renaissance, and evoked the term "renaissant" (Vil-Nkomo and Myburgh,1999:266; Prah,1999:44). Finally, Leopold Sedar Senghor, espoused the notion of the Renaissance using the concept of "negritude" (Vil-Nkomo and Myburgh, 1999:267), a reawakening of the African spirit (Nzongola-Ntalaja, 1999:69).
In addition, other images have been invoked to convey the same idea. Semakula Kiwanuka, who was president of the Uganda National Congress, remarked on 8 January 1959 that "the slumbering lion is now awake. This is due to the new spirit of nationalism which is gaining momentum in Africa"
(Prah, 1999:44). Felix Roland Moumie said, "Every African wants to be free, but the people can only show their strength when they are organised ... The rising in the Congo is a sign of the awakening of the African lion" (Quoted by Prah,1999:44). Smith Hempstone (1961) referred to "the new Africa", lH. Oldham (1955) wrote about "new hope in Africa" and Basil Davidson (1955) described the prospective emergence of independent Africa as "the African awakening" (Prah,1999:44).
And finally, today' s most visible protagonists, Y oweri Museveni of Uganda who speaks about the
"reawakening of Africa" (Khoza,1999:279) and Thabo Mbeki (Khoza,1999:279;
Magubane, 1999: 11) of South Africa (Khoza, 1999:279), who talks of an "African Renaissance". All these figures are in different ways trying to convey the idea of an African historical and social renewal (Prah,1999:44).
From the above analysis we can deduce that the history of the idea of an African awakening dating from the middle of the nineteenth century can be conveniently structured into three phases (Prah, 1999:44). During the first phase, thinkers like Edward Blyden, and Henry Sylvester Williams saw it as an ideal which must end in an accommodative arrangement under Western aegis (Prah,1999:44). This accommodative approach largely died with the end of the First World War (Prah,1999:45). From that time onwards, during the second phase, colonial freedom increasingly
assumed centrality in the formulation ofthe idea of an African awakening (Prah, 1999:45). The third phase, the post-colonial phase, carries contemporary formulations ofthe idea and seeks equality and achievement with the rest of humanity in all areas of human endeavour (Prah,1999:45). Thabo Mbeki belongs to this third category.
So we see here that though Mbeki may be in the forefront today calling for the renewal, rebirth, reconstruction of Africa, the concept itself has been there long before, being expressed in different ways. In a way this makes us realise that the African Renaissance evolved out of the Pan- Africanist ideal. The African Renaissance should not be seen as an alternative concept to Pan- Africanism, rather it should be seen as a continuation of it under new circumstances, where the challenges to be faced are no longer slave trade and colonialism, but the new strategies that will help African people, after independence, to meaningfully address social, political, religious and cultural challenges facing them today. The above analysis of the relationship between the Pan-African congress and an African Renaissance lays the scene, for a brief examination, in the next subsection, of Mbeki' s call for the African Renaissance.
1.2.2 The timin2 ofMbeki's call for an African Renaissance
Mbeki's call for an African Renaissance follows the election of the first democratic government in South Africa. Mbeki sees the democracy of South Africa as a clear sign that the peoples of Africa have achieved their emancipation from colonial and white minority domination (Mbeki,1998:206- 207). Thus, he argues that,
Surely, the historic victory of our continent over colonialism and apartheid has something to do with this. Without that victory an African Renaissance was impossible. Having achieved that success we created the possibility to confront the challenge of the reconstruction and development of our continent anew (Mbeki,1999:xix).
Barney Pityana agrees that Mbeki's call of the African Renaissance has been made possible by the political changes in South Africa,
!t has come ~t a time when the political environment has been conducive to its development
III South Afnca. The events of 1994 and the democratic transition that was ushered in by the release of President Nelson Mandela from prison in 1990 simply confirmed, popularised and
rendered 'acceptable' what was already widely accepted. African renaissance gave philosophical shape and direction to a way of life that was struggling for recognition (Pityana,1999: 138).
The call for the African Renaissance by Mbeki and others today comes from an observation and analysis of the conditions in African countries. In the next section we look at some of these conditions.
1.2.3 The context of the African Renaissance
Apart from the positiveness of the democratic process which is emerging all around us in Africa (Prah,1999:54), we also need to examine some of the issues which the African Renaissance aims to address. So we may ask the following questions: What is the context of the call for the renewal or rebirth of Africa. Or rather, why bother about the African Renaissance?
Mbeki's call for an African Renaissance is a response to the socio-economic and the political conditions of the African continent. Among others we list the following. First, he identifies war6 and violent strife (Mbeki,1998:47). The second issue identified is hunger and poverty (Mbeki,1998:47; cf also Luhabe,1999:290; Prah,1999:56; Gueye,1999:244; Diop,1999:3;
Mazwai,1999:421). Thirdly, he mentions such concepts as racism, ethnicity7, discrimination on the basis of gender and geographic imbalances in terms of distribution of wealth, income and opportunity (Mbeki, 1998 :60-61). Fourthly, he identifies Africa's weak economies (Prah,1999:56).
Mbeki sees these economies as stagnant and malformed, with a national budget locked into minimal capital outlays, being swallowed up mainly by consumption expenditure (Mbeki,1998:60-61).
Fifthly, he observes the lack of democracy, which reveals itself through military rule (Prah, 1999:52- 3), the establishments of one-party state dictators (Mbeki,1998:206-207; Mbeki,1999:vx; See Diop,1999:5; Vil-Nkomo and Myburgh,1999:273; Makgoba, Shope & Mazwai,1999:vi-vii), gross
6 The following scholars (Prah,1999:45-46; Khoza,1999:281; Diop,1999:3) agree that war is one of the challenges facing the African Renaissance.
7 Gueye (1999:246) identifies tribalism, ethnic ism and regionalism.
violations of human rights, and intolerance (Mbeki,1998:233). Mbeki is also concerned about the political instability in Africa which results in the refugee populations and population migration (Mbeki, 1998: 179).
Some of the post-colonial challenges are the scourge of AIDS (Prah,1999:56; Khoza,1999:281);
incompetence (Gueye,1999:246; Khoza,1999:281; Diop,1999:5); corruption (Gueye,1999:246;
Mbeki, 1999:xv-xvi; Khoza, 1999:281; Diop, 1999:5; Mazwai, 1999:421; Makgoba, Shope & Mazwai, 1999:vi-vii); debt burden (Luhabe,1999:297; Mazwai,1999:421), "which keeps us trapped in exorbitant interest payments, high inflation, cost of capital, flight of capital, underutilisation of our human capital, massive social and income inequalities, government over-expenditure which leads to budget deficits, and the vast unemployment and poverty in the continent" (Luhabe,1999:297); a large-scale illiteracy, a lack of skilled people, and a poor infrastructure (Mazwai,1999:421).
Having listed some of the crises that the African Renaissance has to deal with, we may want to briefly address the causes of these issues. What then are the causes ofthe crises in Africa? Walter Rodney elucidates the African development crisis,
The question as to who, and what, is responsible for African underdevelopment can be answered at two levels. Firstly, the answer is that the operation of the imperialist system bears major responsibility for African retardation by draining African wealth and making it impossible to develop more rapidly the resources of the continent. Secondly, one has to deal with those who manipulated the system and those who are either agents or unwilling accomplices of the said system (Quoted by Vil-Nkomo and Myburgh,1999:269).
Walter Rodney further concluded that the above is not intended to exonerate Africans from their crisis because the ultimate responsibility to advance Africa still depends on them. Thus, Africans do not have much of a choice "but to pull their own weight by meeting the most exacting standards in domestic governance and economic competitiveness" (Vil-Nkomo and Myburgh,1999:269).
However, the question is whether in his two reasons given above, Rodney does not exonerate Africans from these crises? Khoza correctly argues that as a prerequisite to tackling problems in Africa, as Africans, we must unconditionally acknowledge and admit her problems, then go on to develop a sufficient understanding of the problems, and ultimately express a desire and exhibit an
unwavering will to solve the problem (Khoza,1999:281). Though we cannot deny that colonialism can be blamed for Africa's woes (Breytenbach, 1999:91), we however also need to acknowledge the role played by African dictators in this mess. Gueye could not agree more when he says,
So let us stop the comfortable but infantile attitude of always blaming others for our irresponsibility and inability to face the objective demands of the historical situation of our continent (Gueye,1999:263).
Khoza also maintains that Africa's major problems are by and large of our making. "It does not benefit us to externalise the causes of our problems. We are a sick continent and we are largely to blame for it" (Khoza,1999:281). He then goes on to identify the root causes of our problems as forms of government in Africa. For him, we compound this problem by "conflating the three key institutions of government, namely the executive, the legislature and the judiciary, wherein all these become the manifest expression of one man's [sic] will, either the President for Life or the Redeemer, hitherto known as a second-rate general in the army" (Khoza,1999:281-2).
Similarly, Laurie Nathan of the Centre for Conflict Resolution in Cape Town argues convincingly that Africa's current crises arise from four structural conditions, namely authoritarian rule; exclusion of minority or majority groups from governance; socio-economic deprivation combined with inequity; and weak states which lack the institutional capacity to manage political and social conflict (Stremlau, 1999: 104). Mbeki' s identification of issues which the African Renaissance has to address seems to acknowledge the role played by our own dictators in compounding the current socio- ecomic crisis in Africa.
Having outlined the crises and its causes we now examine the components of the African Renaissance. This we do in the next section.