The Shackled Continent: Power, Corruption, and African Lives (review)

In this thought-provoking investigation into the heart of Africa, Robert Guest, the Africa editor for The Economist, explores the diverse landscape of sub-Saharan Africa, chronicling the horrors of disease, war, and failures of bureaucracy. Following independence, there were high hopes that the end of colonialism would bring freedom, social regeneration, and rapid economic growth. Unfortunately, Uhuru never materialized. Instead, Africa confronted problems of (inter alia) inefficient, state-centered economic systems, frequent military coups, ethnic strife, and corruption.

While Guest might sound a bit harsh for some, he exposes decades of unfulfilled promises, bad governance, and patrimonial rule. Scrutinizing the incompetent and often malignant leadership of African nations is an important step if the continent is to embark on a more positive trajectory. Guest is right in noting that, since independence, Africa's governments have failed their people. Even a casual glance at recent events in Africa depicts a continent in which for decades, bullets and compulsion, as opposed to ballots and persuasion, have all too often served as the bases for government decision-making and for changes in rulers.

To a large extent, the responsibility for the shackled continent lies squarely with its own leadership. While this assertion could not be made in the early days of independence, forty years of "sovereignty" should have allowed for some genuine progress. Yet Africa continues its painful journey toward maturity. Guest paints quite a bleak picture of the continent: AIDS ravages populations in countries where sex is still a taboo subject, tribal loyalties overwhelm democratic responsibilities, and entire governments succumb to nepotism and incompetence. Rampant corruption has created a continental class of elites who siphon foreign aid to pay for mansions while their populations starve. Unchecked war drains many countries of the sizeable intrinsic wealth they already possess with their vast deposits of precious metals and minerals. On balance, he says, Africa's natural resources have proven more a curse than a blessing.

Obviously, there are good things on the continent; "the kindness of its people; their passion for life; the extraordinary hospitality of the poorest of the poor; the joy of Congolese rumba music; the sunset over the Okavango delta" (2) are only a few examples. However, Guest deliberately paints a negative picture of the state of affairs in Africa and does a brilliant job. Through first-hand experience and economic insight, The Shackled Continent sheds light on "why Africa is poor, so it has to grapple with war, pestilence and presidents who think their office is a license, literally, to print money" (2). Some readers may resent such a pessimistic narrative about the destructiveness of poverty, disease, and underdevelopment. But even Afro-optimists would find that, alongside hopeful beacons such as Angola, South Africa, and Botswana, this book, in its brutal frankness, contributes to the goal of a true renaissance. Although it covers well-tread ground such as agricultural subsidies, the failure of development assistance, and the lack of transparent property rights, Guest's book explains in a unique way why Africa is the only continent to have grown poorer over the last three decades.

Overall, The Shackled Continent is a scathing critique of Africa's governments that argues effectively that the continent remains poor primarily because it is badly governed. The autocrats who largely replaced colonial powers have struggled to keep order rather than create an atmosphere conducive to economic development. This book is a welcome addition to the body of development literature specific to the continent, and scholars, researchers, and students of Africa will find it useful in their quest to help design a new dawn for Africa.