The cold war and its trajectory on African philosophy and African politics

Abstract

From scholarly research, Africa's position on the planet and historical constituents especially minerals expropriation and labour made the continent a strategic partner to most world powers. This was understood during the voyages of the Dutch Indian Company to India.  Even during the Cold War, powerful countries were eager to promote multilateral relationships with some countries in Africa and that strongly impacted the war as well as African politics. This practice did not end with the Cold War but continued and presently Africa is still being influenced by the Cold War proceeds. Through a qualitative method of research, the paper highlights the impact of the cold war and ideology its time on African philosophy as well as the shift in African political dynamics. Hence, the paper investigated how these relationships affected African thought and destabilized Africa as a habitat for culture and African norms especially in the midst of the Ukraine-Russian war. Ukraine-Russian war is of paramount importance in revealing how African states maintain their non-alignment stance on either side while being careful to preserve their long rich history with the former Soviet Union. The further paper noted the advantages or disadvantages that the erstwhile Cold War brought to the African worldview. This culminated in the obliteration of culture and other notions like ubuntu which are the cornerstone of Africanism. The paper concludes by bringing out a strategy that can be utilized to restore African thought post-Cold War era.

Keywords: {'name': 'Africanism, cold war, decolonization, Africa’s political system, and African philosophy.'}

Authors & affiliations

Thabang Motswaledi
Affiliation not supplied

Phemelo Marumo
Affiliation not supplied

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