Why Julius Nyerere's Ujamaa needs a realignment to reinforce its dynamism for African socialism (original) (raw)
Related papers
There is no doubt that African socialism was highly treasured wherever you see Africans before the advent of colonialism and globalization. This was the era in African society that cultural values and practices fundamentally made selfishness, individualism, capitalism, oppression, and injustice unthinkable. The unadulterated African socialism placed a high premium on the recognition of every human being in the society as a person with inviolable dignity that must be respected and protected from any form of injustice and abuse. This concept of African socialism is both ontologically and morally connected to human dignity. Hence, African socialism makes human dignity to be properly defined, justified, promoted, and preserved from any socio-political manipulation. Julius Nyerere was a contemporary of African socio-political thinkers like Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana, Jomo Kenyatta of Kenya, Obafemi Awolowo of Nigeria, and Leopold Senghor of Senegal that tried to establish a structure on which African socialism can function effectively in Africa. Nyerere's Ujaama became the cynosure of eyes for many Africans that long for African form of socialism. Today, the contemporary socio-political realities in Africa make his extraction of African socialism utopic because of the inherent challenges in the socio-political system. Therefore, there is a need for a restructuring of the fundamental principles of Ujaama for it to be more feasible in the African society of our time.
Nyerere’s Socialism and African Politics in Relation to Development
Journal of Advanced Sociology
This paper discusses the Ujamaa philosophy and what it advocated as fostered by Julius Nyerere. The work relates the Ujamaa philosophy with socialism and how the combination of the two can be applied in advancing the African political leadership. The paper further exemplifies on the hindrances of application of Ujamaa and suggests ways through which the philosophy can be advanced.
Ujamaa and the ethics of African socialism. A missiological approach to Nyerere's political theory.
2023
"It is the minority which is well fed, and the minority which has secured control over the world's wealth and over their fellow men. Further, in general that minority is distinguished by the colour of their skins and by their race. And the nations in which the most of that minority of the world's people live have a further distinguishing characteristic-their adoption of the Christian religion". These were the very words of Julius Nyerere at a conference in 1970. Yet, he added; "These things cannot continue, and the Christians, above all others, must refuse to accept them" . A paper presented at the 2nd Mega-Conference of the International Orthodox Theological Association (IOTA) at Volos (11-15 January 2023, Volos, Greece).
Julius Nyerere’s Understanding of African Socialism, Human Rights and Equality
2020
Julius Kambarage Nyerere, African philosopher, anti-colonial leader, first president of the United Republic of Tanzania, and respected international statesman, served as president of the newly independent Tanzania from 1964 through 1985., after which he remained politically active in Tanzania and on the global stage. Trying to steer a post-colonial course of self-reliance, he developed and implemented African Socialism in Tanzania, articulated in the Arusha Declaration in 1967. As an anti-colonial leader, Nyerere referred to international human rights standards such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and maintained a commitment to human rights as president and afterwards. In this essay we look at Nyerere’s program of African Socialism, and his understanding of the interrelated concepts of socialism, human rights, and equality. We close with a discussion of Nyerere’s controversial human rights violations as president, and a reflection on his legacy. Introduction Julius Kam...
Nyerere’s African Socialism: Up Against a Conflicting Hegemony
Academia Letters, 2021
Julius Nyerere's seminal text, Ujamaa-essays on socialism (1968), is an impassioned work which urges a more profound understanding of Africans' collective history. Ujamaa was written as a nostalgic call for an Africa before the arrival of Europeans and their perceived morally bankrupt ways. Nyerere argued that 'traditional' Africans were in a way proto-socialists, that is, putting the socialist philosophy into practice unconsciously, without the awareness of its political implications. In turn, the Europeans' introduced mercantilism, which out-performed the traditional barter economy and eventually became the global hegemonic system of capitalism. As Nyerere's argument would suggest, increased interactions with European traders through African intermediaries ended up disrupting and permanently changing the traditional subsistence economy which was common practice on the continent for hundreds of years. The aim of this work will be to examine the merits and flaws of Nyerere's main argument of Ujamaa. This will be done through several means, most importantly through historical analysis, which will be employed to assess the accuracy of the picture that Nyerere paints of the traditional African past. Introducing historical data to analyze the theory will help us see what holds true from his perspective and what needs work, especially through the economic and political case studies. Furthermore, it will be crucial to critically examine the notions of 'development' in the context of the African continent and where Africa fits in the global socioeconomic order in the contemporary age of International Relations.
A Critical Analysis of Nyeyere's African Socialism
Lafia Journal of History and International Development , 2018
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.
Julius Nyerere’s Vision of Epistemic Revival and Liberation: Implications for Contemporary Africa
The International Journal of Critical Cultural Studies , 2023
Julius Nyerere was one of the founding fathers of an independent African state, namely, Tanzania (formerly Tanganyika). Like other African leaders of new African states, such as Patrice Lumumba, Kwame Nkrumah, and Kenneth Kaunda, he worked tirelessly to transform his country and obliterate colonial vestiges. Furthermore, like his contemporaries, he dreamed of bringing forth a new Africa that would reflect the Pan-African ideals that he cherished. This conceptual article revisits Nyerere's philosophy and examines its relevance to Africa today. In the past decade, there have been continuous debates in South Africa as to how institutions can be decolonized, and Nyerere was among the first to talk about decolonization of higher education institutions in Tanganyika, as well as Africanization of public services. The article examines how his philosophy draws from Pan Africanism, education, African socialism, and African Renaissance. As the article examines these, it reveals how a transforming Africa can glean from Nyerere's principles. The article's conclusions demonstrate that there is still much that can be extracted from Nyerere's philosophy; the unity he talked about, as a strategy of uniting Africa by utilizing his Pan Africanist ideals; the critical consciousness in education; the idea of community in society; as well as a need for Africanizing public institutions for better service. More than five decades after he first raised this philosophy, the decolonial debates resonate with his ideas. In fact, all African states should explore how they could revive Julius Nyerere by living his philosophy. His philosophy embraced strategies of not only building a new society but living and preparing for an African Renaissance.