After anguishing years fighting for Social and Political freedom would you agree or dis-agree that Africa's coming generation would be embattled in this new front? and if so, How would you envision this Alliance? Which country could lead us onto this much needed freedom?

There was a post recently “If you had a choice what would you change in Tanzania … and I thought, ‘African Economic Alliance’?
To gauge my conscience I proceeded to answer with a question how we would envision such an undertaking? ”? I went in length to score some books, newspaper articles etc… and I gathered that...

Tanzania and Tanzanians are almost in a lead wagon of change. We are in a bandwagon with our tamed culture from coercive nature of the imperialist who forced us to adapt their social, political, and economic structures that were deemed non-threatening to their protectionist policies. This Changed Us! We had our own Social, Political and Economic structures that were deemed of threat, but threat who?

Tanzania needs a coherent forum of Academicians, Scholars, Politicians, Economists and all Tanzanians in general to come-up with an alliance which will scrutinize these changes and their adverse effect to our country and peoples and serve as a platform for green lighting policy changes and integration to our policy makers before making decisions that can harm us even further. We shall change! There is a similar undertaking elsewhere.

As we gain momentum in our political and social freedom our decisions have become more frantic and desperate as we try to gain economic freedom. This has led to more admittance of foreign ideologies into our society where we have opened our borders and within these borders we have our cultures, our heritage, our own ideologies industries, our livelihood and other social and economic entities which in turn changed us, some changes are good and some bad. We have changed!

“We live in a world where the only constant is change” (source: International Business by Charles Hill) and according to W.T.O and U.N the World is moving even more rapidly toward Integrated and Interdependent global economy which means change or is it Globalization?

Globalization: Freedom of Services, Capital, Labor and what have you

The question still remain how do we cope with change?
Atanaye Kijiko

Atanaye wrote:

“We live in a world where the only constant is change” (source: International Business by Charles Hill) and according to W.T.O and U.N the World is moving even more rapidly toward Integrated and Interdependent global economy which means change or is it Globalization?

Globalization: Freedom of Services, Capital, Labor and what have you

The question still remain how do we cope with change?
Atanaye Kijiko
While it is true that the world is becoming a global village, we (Afrikans) aren't yet fully participants in this globalisation - especially, economically. 'They' are still setting prices for our exports to fatten their pockets, rather than being fair. Of course, imports are an issue as well since we depend on them. They are still controlling loans and aids in a fashion that requires us to submit to their suggested changes which are based on their ideologies and cultures.

'Privatisation' that is being heralded by westerners for countries like ours and few others has simply opened doors of opportunity to westerners to gain the very needs that had made them colonise us in the first place. I am talking about what I see ... gaining raw materials without much auditing and/or equitable compensation to us; ... obtaining cheap labour; ... getting market for oft clearance products. It is, to me, neo-colonism in a controlled and disguised manner.

* So, are we willing participants in this 'globalisation'? I say no. Therefore, It isn't yet 'globalisation' where we are concerned. It is a change. We could become participants if we become aggressive, demanding fair deals, and being pro-active. For crying out loud, I once heard that diamond miners are allowed to ship ore mixed with soil, and then simply report to the govt as to how much was net gain. Do we really expect a business which is solely interested in P&L to be honest? How much of such deals are going on, and can we (wananchi) ultimately be the top beneficiaries off this wealth and many others????

* Per your observation, We have changed. The question is, have majority of us changed with time or simply changed by 'brainwashing' ???

Post edited by: Natty_Bongoman, at: 2007/11/04 00:25

Atanaye wrote:
After anguishing years fighting for Social and Political freedom would you agree or dis-agree that Africa's coming generation would be embattled in this new front? and if so, How would you envision this Alliance? Which country could lead us onto this much needed freedom?
Sadly, I am not sure if our generation, cumulatively, is awaken from brainwashing to be able to distinguish "change" from "being changed". Presently, even in DSM, many youth see themselves as modern and advanced if they buy McDonald burger rather than muhogo, mshikaki, or food from Mama Ntille. Result is, rather than supporting Mama Ntille and maybe affording her to improve her busines, we tend to support foreigner's or foreign standard businesses. As long as we think buying oranges from shop-rite which come from SA, instead of buying our own, is "cool", and furthermore, not having government inject some rules for these businesses to buy locally, then how do we expect this 'change' to benefit and uplift wakulima?? We need to wake up and realise that 'change' doesn't necessarily means copying wazungu, it can be adjusting and compromising our culture with modern economics. For instance, how about instituting 'barter system' for agricultural goods between Afrikan countries??? Surely, some countries could simply barter trade, and thus not always needing hard currency for survival of its wananchi or worse mahindi from Marekani in the form of aid.