A Critical Analysis of Nyeyere's African Socialism (original) (raw)

The concept of African socialism can be attributed to the emergence, growth and spread of nationalism in Africa which accelerated the continent's independence from the clutches of colonialism. Like most other African countries, Tanzania was not an exception as it got her independence in 1961 with Nyerere as the first President. He introduced the concept of socialism, that is, collective ownership of means of production, distribution and proceeds with an African blend which was termed Ujamaa. Nyerere was highly critical of the social, political, economic and cultural value system imposed on his country during the period of colonization, and he worked relentlessly to go back to the traditional African values. He believed that the Africans should decolonize their minds in order to accept themselves as Africans. He believed that the education system introduced by the British in 1900, when they colonized Tanzania, did not address the needs of the Tanzanian people, therefore Nyerere advocated for education that he believed was more culturally relevant. Nyerere's philosophy of education has had a great impact on many African countries. The paper examines Nyerere's version of socialism, that is, Ujamaa and its impact in Tanzania and Africa at large while espousing its weaknesses and eventual decline by using secondary data.