Many historians asserted that the beginning of Globalization goes back to the outcomes of the first voyage of Christopher Columbus that brought him, on October 1492, to the shore of an island in the Caribbean sea. It was the starting point of a brutal and bloody intervention of European sea powers in the history of American peoples, a region of the world that had, unto then, remained insulated from regular relationships with Europe, Africa and Asia.
True, for thousands of years before that year, there were intermittent contacts between distant parts of the world. But continuous, rather than very occasional, direct human interaction across continents began with the European exploration of the oceans from the 1400s onward. That’s not a Eurocentric world view. That’s a historic fact.
The arrival of Columbus in America thus provides the decisive punctuation mark in that evolving process. It is the day when globalization actually began. The event was really remarkable. All human progress and mutual knowledge accumulated since that time is largely due to this journey. This process involved marvellous things, the merely good ones, the bad and the real evil ones.
Ira Straus, Chairman of Center for War/Peace Studies and United States Coordinator, Committee on Eastern Europe and Russia in NATO stated that there is a tendency today to focus on the evils, along with plenty of moralizing against explorers and, yes, colonizers. But throughout the developing world, the downsides of the interchange with the West are, in the aggregate, far outweighed by the benefits. According to Ira Straus, the only thing that could reverse this would be the self-destruction of humanity, wilful or not, by means of new technologies. Such self-destruction is unfortunately a realistic prospect.
Everything that has happened with globalization in the half millennium since 1492 can be summed up in one sentence: Global interchange has continued at an ever-accelerating pace, despite intermittent setbacks. Oceanic exploration and trade soon covered all regions of the globe, while starting out strongest in the transatlantic dimension connecting Europe and the Americas. The global trade routes out of Europe passed through the Atlantic as the home area, dwarfing the old trade routes of the Mediterranean and the Silk Road, turning the Atlantic into the center of the emerging world economy for the coming centuries.
Global interchange accelerated with every advance in science and technology, from the steamship and industrial revolution onward to the present. It continued in the 1900s, despite some long-lasting setbacks such as communism, fascism and world wars. Interchange was renewed and buttressed after 1945, in response to these setbacks, by international institutions. The UN system, the Bretton Woods system, and the Euro-Atlantic system all served to rebuild, stabilize and increase the interchange. True as well that the deregulation of financial flows which commenced in the 1980s increased the interchange greatly, while engendering risks of another major setback. This seems to have been the starting point of the popular use of the term “globalization.”
Interchange was further accelerated by the abandonment of the largest protectionist and socialist barriers to it in the 1990s in China, India and the former Soviet space. China and India lifted themselves out of their self-imposed stagnation and began a phase of remarkable progress. Jack Turner, a Rhodes Scholar and MacArthur Foundation Junior Research Fellow stated that the flip side of that has been that Western workers are no longer shielded from the competition from Chinese workers in goods production and Indian workers in services. In addition, Western workers have suffered a reduction in the wage gains they would have otherwise been enjoying.
According to Jack Turner, the resulting risk of social destabilization has triggered an understandable reaction against globalization. At the same time, when one looks at a global balance sheet, there is no denying that hundreds of millions of truly poor workers in the world have gained dramatically in income and welfare, thanks to the intensification of globalization. All of this has finally brought some wage equalization on the global level, after several centuries in which the West had rushed ahead thanks to its science and technology.
The internet has added yet another dimension of globalization. It has meant an acceleration of interchange that is explosive in more than one sense of the word. It has accelerated the spread of information at a geometrical, even exponential, pace. Discussion and organizing have mushroomed across borders for all purposes – love and culture, scholarship and science, telecommuting and outsourcing, money laundering and terrorism.
Ira Straus noted that the question of how humanity can organize itself to better manage the consequences of this explosion of interchange – to better, to buttress, to channel, to regulate and to restrain it – will involve more globalization. With the benefit of hindsight, we will see that social media are but a crude interim step in that evolving process.
As Jack Turner argued, the future cannot be predicted in detail. What can be predicted is that the central developments of the future, whichever way they go, will go global. The train of globalization left the station when Columbus reached the Americas. It will never go back.
The Day the Process of Globalization Begins
Adding Value to the African Service Sector through the Creation of a Coalition for the Creative Cultural Industries
Thank you for this opportunity to bring a much misunderstood and under estimated, yet important service sector in Africa to the table of the African Union Trade and Industry Commission, AU Member States, experts and colleagues in Africa and the Diaspora, likewise. The sector to which I am referring is the Creative and Cultural Industry (CCI), the life blood and ultimate expressions of African’s frustrations and tribulations, hopes and aspirations; and in the context of goods and service, the daily bread which feeds millions of Africans while simultaneously feeding the minds, hearts and souls of African and worldwide consumers. Art, crafts, music, fashion, photography, film, literature and more are portions of CCI, which we all use and benefit from in daily life. Yet do we know the value? Are we ready to nurture, develop, protect and leverage the proverbial “bird in hand” verses focusing on the “two birds in the bush”?
“The notion of culture is often disconnected from the economic dimension…” states Ernst & Young in the First Global Map of CCI, published in December 2015 with the cooperation and guidance of over 150 international renown artists and CCI experts including Beninise singer Angelique Kidjo and Senegalese sculptor Ousmane Sow. The Ernst & Young report on CCI revenues state the figures surpass even telecom services worldwide, placing CCI estimated revenues at US$2,250billion providing 28.5m jobs. The top earner in this study was television, second was visual art and third newspapers/magazines. Visual art earnings were valued at US$391b and positioned as the number one employer of over 6.70m people worldwide. Keeping in mind, that these numbers don’t properly reflect the informal CCI economy, estimated at another US$33b delivering 1.2 million jobs.
Ernst & Young’s report, specifically on Africa and the Middle East, state a combined generated income of US$13.1billion dollars providing over 350,000 jobs in 2013. So what do all these numbers mean for Africa as we try to protect and preserve the historic component of our artistic expressions and promote contemporary creations; while balancing the immense opportunities for Africans to organize and leverage our CCI, changing the course of the “commodification” of culture… to Africa’s benefit?
Allow me to reflect, for a moment, on the European Renaissance, 14th–17th Centuries, that set the trajectory for the current robust trillion dollar CCI with institutional infrastructure from early childhood education to museums and more positioning them as leaders in art and culture to date. Ironically, many African treasures are amongst in their vast collections, but that’s another discussion. Visual or fine art, a significant component of the Renaissance Period, was reserved primarily for the elite; juxtaposed to the African relationship with visual art. Continental creativity, a language of sorts, had profound meaning to creators and society alike, with myriad symbolic and substantial relevance and use. Intrinsic value was placed on amulets, ceremonial masks and sculptures etc. stemming from ancestral, spiritual and/or social norms. Much like modern art, the traditional creations also memorialized time, space and circumstance, but woven into everyday life; unlike western modern art.
The relationship with visual art in Africa began its slow and steady change in the post-colonial era, barely a few decades ago. But value or economic systems have still not been developed to ensure the development, protection and promotion of CCI from Intellectual Property protection to publishing and other essential areas. The focus over the past several decades was placed on art education, on a limited basis. For instance Ethiopia, on July 23, 1958 HIM Emperor Haile Selassie I opened the first ‘By African For African’ art institution on the continent with founder and namesake, Artist Alle Felege Selam, stating, “We have established this institution because We consider it a matter of great importance to revise and develop fine arts in our country… . If Ethiopian paintings and other works of art attain such a high standard that they can… hold their own amidst exhibits from other countries, they can certainly help in the efforts to make Ethiopia known more widely as a nation fully participating in the spirit and substance of modern civilization.” Eight years later in April 1966, Senegal President Leopold Sedar Senghor, hosted the Pan African driven WORLD FESTIVAL OF BLACK ARTS in Senegal promoting worldwide black culture. The poet president Senghor unapologetically stated, “The civilization of the twentieth century cannot be universal except by being a dynamic synthesis of all the cultural values of all civilizations. It will be monstrous unless seasoned with the salt of negri-tude for it will be the savior of humanity.”
Let us move forward to 2014, to the Pan African island state of Jamaica, my birth country and one of the most popular countries in the world, based not on our beaches but our culture. The former Prime Minister, Portia Simpson, created a National Cultural and Creative Industries Commission supported by a technical working group with Members drawn from across relevant government ministries and agencies and representatives of the CCI for policy development to help drive the creative industry. The intention is to significantly increase economic and development opportunities, while positioning Jamaica, enhancing its leverage, and finally facilitating and empowering ‘creative practitioners’. This is the most poignant point of my presentation, in that our continent can take a page from Jamaica’s book, our African Diaspora, in order to help us better understand the potential and process for the development of services, protection and promotion of culture and not just relegated to sub-committees in Ministries of Culture or Social Affairs, but Trade, Industry, Finance etc. So again, we thank the AU Commission for this inclusion.
So though Ethiopia, Nigeria, and Senegal amongst many other African nations realized the value of culture, the arts were contextualized socially and strong value chains were not put in place to ensure participation in the emerging economy of art. Was this oversight influenced by our historic relationship with art or was it our natural desire to develop based on the mainstays of agriculture and other industries? Maybe both. However, I propose the delay in creating a system for CCI in general has put us on the rear side of a well-established art industry that decides our value for us. Take for instance, Sotheby’s auction house. Is it fair or even fathomable that the famous auction house estimated the value of the iconic 16th century – 22 cm tall ivory mask, looted from Benin by the British, at over US$6m? And Christie’s auction house, sold Ethiopian-American Julie Mehretu’s 2013 painting for over US$4.6m; making her the number 7 top selling living female visual artist in the world! How the value determined was and I pose to this august body, couldn’t these pieces have been worth even more if our value was factored in? A value system would also increase potential income and opportunities for related service providers in or related to CCI such as insurance, security, technology, transportation, media, manufacturing and more.
Allow me to share two prevalent moments in CCI on the continent that buttress my point. In 2005, as Managing Director of the Bob Marley Foundation, we coordinated the Bob Marley 60th Birthday under the auspices of Nana Rita Marley and with the support of then AU Chairman Alpha Konare, under the theme Africa Unite. The month long event of music, art, dance, and symposium attracted over 200,000 local and international visitors and over 300 international journalists. Coming forward to this past July; my firm co-sponsored a multi-million dollar collection for Julie Meheretu in Addis Ababa at the Gebre Kristos Desta Contemporary Art Center. In both instances we were faced with challenges that could have caused cancellations but worst, the economic impact, just on insurance, transportation, technical support etc benefitted the West, monetarily, more so than those on the continent. Had we as Africans, created a CCI network or coalition, millions could have rolled into continental based businesses in the above mentioned areas.
The time is perfect for us to stake our claim to African creativity for the benefit of the artists and all stakeholders or face being further disenfranchised and worst wiped out of the market by cheap reproductions from Asia. We propose the creation of a CCI Coalition for the continent under the MBA brand – Made By Africans – which may facilitate the:
Protection of our intellectual property through out and across all member states and internationally through integrated systems created and implemented by and for us,
Unencumbered movement of goods and services from the African CCI sector throughout the continent through harmonized immigration laws,
Provide a standard for CCI which ensures quality, consistency with concern for the environment and use of readily available local raw and manufactured materials,
Emphasize the creation and capacity building of our women and youth, the main ones impacted by and/or involved in CCI,
Organize the sector on the continent as a united force to deter low quality reproductions of our goods; be it cloth, kitsch or other products;
Brand MBA to ensure the domestic (continental) and international market are conscious and sensitized to the products or services under this brand, created by a CCI continental coalition, which ensure not only quality products and services but in support of indigenous knowledge and creativity and strong economic and value systems, and finally the coalition would
Provide various levels of support and opportunities to CCI sector, ensuring innovation, networking, resource sharing and more for all CCI service stakeholders.
In closing, I wonder what does the future hold for Africa in regards to CCI? My answer, based on the efforts of several AU member states, including Burkino Faso, Ethiopia, Kenya, Ghana, Senegal, Zambia amongst others are evaluating re-thinking of the potential of CCI. The arts are an inherent component of culture and tourism, and Africa’s substantial inventory and access to ancient and fine art, alike, make the continent a powerful place for such a coalition. In closing I share the following quotes, AUC Director for Trade and Industry, Madame Treasure Maphanga says, “Arts and culture are more than our heritage, they represent a key vehicle for Africa’s structural transformation and economic emancipation.”
According to Bob Marley’s song, though Marcus Garvey’s message, “Emancipate yourself from mental slavery, none but ourselves can free our minds…” And finally on behalf of the Pan African Diaspora who loves and stands in solidarity with Africa, I quote the Hon. Kwame Nkrumah, “I am not African because I was born in Africa, but because Africa was born in me.” Thank you, Betam amaseganalu.
This article was first published in September 2016
Cultural artifacts the British Empire took from other nations, from the Maqdala Manuscripts to the Koh-i-Noor diamond
Throughout history, Britain has reckoned with its imperial roots. The country is facing mounting pressure by other nations and activists to repatriate objects they allege were stolen by the British Empire.
From the late 16th century to the 20th century, the British Empire established colonies, dominions, and protectorates across the globe, asserting itself as the largest empire in history at its peak. Although British rule brought with it some aspects of modernization to the nations it colonized, it also stood in the way of self-governance, democracy, and equality for all under the law.
“The Empire itself was a very paradoxical phenomenon that claimed to bring so-called civilization to the colonized people, but at the same time established institutions that were antithetical to modernity,” Chika Okeke-Agulu, an art historian and professor at Princeton University, said.
Many cultural artifacts now on display at museums in Britain were looted from the colonized people, according to repatriation activists. The British Museum, which houses more than 8 million artifacts like the Benin Bronzes and the Parthenon Marbles, possesses the most number of stolen goods, human rights lawyer Geoffrey Robertson argued.
“All the institutions associated with the emergence of the European middle class, like museums, depended on the extraction of cultural heritage and artifacts from all corners of the empire,” Okeke-Agulu told Insider. “These museums were established in the age of Empire as bragging spaces where they showed off their collections from their imperial holdings.”
Benin Bronzes
The Kingdom of Benin, now modern-day Nigeria, proudly boasted several thousand bronze sculptures that adorned the royal palace, dating back to the 13th century. But in 1897, the British Empire sent troops on a punitive expedition to punish Benin rebels who retaliated against imperial power. The Empire’s soldiers sacked and looted the city, bringing an end to the Kingdom of Benin.
More than 900 historic objects from the former kingdom including more than 200 bronze plaques ended up in the British Museum, now part of its collection of “contested objects.”
Since gaining independence in 1960, Nigeria has sought the return of the bronzes on several occasions. Although the British Museum has agreed to loan the Benin Bronzes to Nigeria, it has not gone so far as to agree to fully return them.
“The Museum is committed to active engagement with Nigerian institutions concerning the Benin Bronzes, including pursuing and supporting new initiatives developed in collaboration with Nigerian partners and colleagues,” the British Museum wrote on its website.
Koh-i-Noor
Sitting at the top of the velvet-and-platinum crown of the Queen of England is the Koh-i-Noor, one of the largest cut diamonds in the world.
Meaning the “mountain of light,” the jewel originally adorned the Mughal Peacock Throne. It changed hands several times among warring factions until it was ultimately handed over to Queen Victoria after the British annexation of India in 1849.
Because its bloody history involves much fighting between men, the Koh-i-Noor has become wreathed in superstition that it’s a jinx for men, and so is only passed on to the women in the British royal family.
Today, the diamond is on display at the Tower of London’s Jewel House. Though the governments of India, Pakistan, Iran, and Afghanistan have all claimed ownership of the Koh-i-Noor and have demanded its return since India gained independence in 1947, the British government has rejected these claims, arguing that the gem was legally obtained.
Maqdala Manuscripts
The Maqdala Manuscripts are religious texts that were taken from Ethiopians by the British after the Battle of Maqdala. In 1868, a British expeditionary force laid siege to the mountain-top fortress of Maqdala, resulting in the capture of more than a thousand predominantly religious manuscripts that were carried on the backs of 15 elephants and hundreds of mules back to Britain, according to Atlas Obscura. 350 of those manuscripts ended up in the British Library.
Yet many of these manuscripts are not readily available to the public.
“You could think of them as imprisoned, with very little access to the outside world. Why do they keep these objects they can’t even display, when that’s the primary mandate of museums?” Okeke-Agulu said. “There is no intellectual reason why these objects should remain in Britain, when these are objects of great cultural significance and have powerful functions in Ethiopian Christian religious rituals.”
In 1999, the Association For the Return of the Maqdala Ethiopian Treasures (AFROMET) was formed with the mission of returning looted items back to Ethiopia. The organization has been successful in retrieving some objects, though its campaign continues.
Wubetu Abate handed two years contract extension
Even before the start of the 2023 African Cup of Nations, Ethiopian national soccer team Head Coach Wubetu Abate has proven enough to earn a two-year contract extension to remain in the national hot seat through 2024.
Steering Waliya-Ibex back in to the Nations Cup final after eight years followed by yet another surprise of helping the side into CHAN Cup final after six years and the miraculous 2-0 victory over Egypt (the first win in 33 years), the Ethiopian Football Federation handed Webetu a two year contract extension making him the recent time first ever national boss to stay on course for consecutive four years.
Webetu joined the national squad in 2020 after previously managing popular side Ethiopia Bunna, Fasil Ketema and Sebeta Ketema. He made a name when helping Bunna to its first and last ever Ethiopian Premier League title in the past six years.
Of course, the real challenge starts in January where he will try to help Waliya-Ibex a deep run at the 33rd African Cup of nations final. Ethiopia is drawn into a tricky group (A) with hosts Cameroon, Burkina Faso and group black sheep Cape Verde.
However many Football fans believe Wubetu’s achievement brought about a huge inspiration in the country’s football. A hard to believe 2-0 victory over Egypt and introducing young talents the likes of Abubaker Naser currently with South African giant Sundown, Wubetu’s best is believed to come yet.
