Chapter 22

It is interesting to read about the different struggles that were experienced when countries received their independence.  One would think that a country who is under the control of another country would easily transition into their own independence.  Interesting to me was the differences between Africa and India's receipt independence.  India transition to independence was smooth.  India knew they were going to receive independence to they had time plan and prepare.  Most importantly, they
had time to understand what this independence meant for them.  Different from India, Africa did not experience a smooth transition.  The European settlers (white minorities) were still leaders, which is
what we know today as the apartheid.  This long-standing separation between whites and Africans was made it difficult for the Africans to see their own independence.

Some of the challenges that these countries experienced became known as the experience in economic development.  The challenges were based on how to establish their economies.  These countries were faced with what they will do with their global economies.  They explored ideas about going back to their traditional ways or stay in the same way the global economies were running under.  The challenge this idea presented was who profited.  Staying with the current way the economies run meant that collaborators and global elite profited from these economies.  I assumed that when colonizers left, these countries would just pick right up and run as if the colonizers never came; almost like a sigh of relief.  I did not consider the kind of planning and preparation someone would need to accomplish such a transition.