INTERROGATING AFRICA'S PLACE IN A GLOBALIZED WORLD: ISSUES AND CHALLENGES

Abstract

This paper explores the position of Africa in a globalized world and the concomitant issues and challenges posed by globalization to the continent. It does this by examining how globalization affects Africa’s economic base, and the continents ability to compete in the global market place on the one hand as well as the socio-political super-structures that make up the African continent as a whole on the other hand. The paper further goes on to shed light on the impact of globalization on Africa's cultural identity and the challenges that arise from the homogenizing effect of globalization on Africa's vast cultural diversity. Overall, this paper is an attempt to provide a concise overview of the complexities of Africa's place in a globalized world. The paper therefore seeks to examine the position and place of Africa in the global economy and to highlight key sustainable approaches which African countries can adopt if it is to benefit from the phenomenon of globalization. The Dependency Theory was adopted as a theoretical framework. The study is a qualitative one where data was gotten from secondary sources such as books, academic journals, newspaper articles, and Internet sources. Finally, the data generated was analyzed through a combination of discourse and qualitative methods.