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4. The consequences of decolonization.

  • The consequences of the decolonizing process can be analysed from the double perspective of the colonizing countries and the territories that reached independence.
  • In the European metropolis, the loss of the colonies produced serious tensions, with significant economic, social and political repercussions. Europe's decline had already begun, but the decolonization and consequent winding-up of colonial empires meant the definitive loss of its hegemonic role for Europe.
    • On the other hand, the political map of the world became more complex with the emergence of the new Afro states, and the structure of the international organizations was altered due to the entry of new partners, which modified the correlation of existing forces up to that moment.
  • In the former colonial territories, independence did not mean the end of the problems.
    • From an economic point of view, the new States continued depending on the old metropolises or fell under the dependence of other powers, which provoked a new neocolonialism in which the economy was controlled and subordinated to foreign interests . For years, financial aid in the form of loans, granted by international agencies (IMF, World Bank, etc.) or by private banks, was an injection of resources for these countries, but they have also strengthened their dependence by having to return the money received plus the interest. The debt contracted, has been increased, moreover, by the mismanagement of the governments of the African and Asian countries, and it has prevented to the new States of overcoming their situation of poverty and underdevelopment, and they remain setting up the Third World.
    • Politically, inestability has been a constant and there have been continual conflicts and wars caused by border delimitations or ethnic or tribal disputes. The absence of democratic regimes and the prevalence of authoritarian and dictatorial governments, together with continuous military coups and civil wars, have aggravated the political situation in these countries, where the civilian population has always suffered the worst consequences.
    • From a social point of view, the new states have been dominated by the tension and the social imbalance, produced by the harsh conditions of life, the shortage of food to attend to the basic necessities of the population and the misery, which has originated conflicts between the traditional ethnicities and the new social groups emerged with the colonization and modernization of the country.
      Culturally, illiteracy prevails everywhere, and the attempt to preserve tradition against Western culture and the new values introduced by Europe has created profound internal contradictions.