The Development of Money and the Monetary System in Africa: Pre-Colonial to Contemporally Period

Abstract

The development of money and the monetary system in Africa has been one of the important aspects of African history. This development has seen the rise of Africa and the trends of her interactions beginning from the pre-colonial, imperial, colonial and contemporary periods. Based upon the trajectory of African history, debates have been held as to the fact that the various developments of money and the monetary system in Africa was catalytic to the ultimate subjugation of the continent especially in the period of European imperialism and colonialism in the 19th and 20th centuries. This development and trend of events in the growth, expansion and varied dimension of money in Africa has also formed the subject matter of this paper. The paper found that the contemporary monetary and currency crises in Africa’s history came about as a result of the imperial and colonial experience under Europe and which ultimately led to the overall social, economic and political relegation of the continent to the back waters of world affairs. Therefore, the paper has advanced the argument that the Africans must intensify efforts to achieve a union system, economic and regional integration and the forging of a common currency for more internal interdependence and international trade relations in order to pull itself out of the quagmire of European and American imperial exploitation. This paper
has used the historical research method, the multidisciplinary approach, intellectual perspectives of economic and imperial history, and secondary sources to achieve the objectives of its focal point.