The Lasting Impacts of the Transatlantic Slave Trade on West Africa
By Ju-Juanna Perkins
The United States of America has a moral obligation to help West African countries to continue to develop. The Transatlantic Slave Trade took place from the 16th to the 19th century and in that time between 10 and 12 million African slaves were brought to the Americas. The majority of the slaves were taken from West Africa. Despite the fact that the transatlantic slave trade ended in the 19th century, the impact that it has had on West Africa has lasted until present day.
For countries to thrive it requires that there are citizens there to help grow and maintain that country. However, when several millions of citizens are taken from a country, some by trade and others by theft, it has a negative impact on the economy. Thus, the leading harm is the depopulation of the country. The people taken into slavery were of the working class, the largest contributor to these countries’ economies. Essentially, the countries of West Africa were trading away their most valuable resource to be taken to the Americas where they would become even more valuable because the work performed by slaves was at a full profit. For example, slavery in the United States helped to build the country, in fact for a good portion of the 19th century raw cotton was the leading export, this cotton was almost exclusively grown by African slaves. In addition to loss of the working class, it can only be imagined the kind of innovation the African slaves would have brought to West Africa. This is imaginable when looking at the contributions that African Americans have made to the United States.
Today, the gross domestic product (GDP) of countries in West Africa such as Senegal, Gambia, and Guinea all have a GDP under $25 million. In fact, only one out of the sixteen countries has a GDP over $100 million (Nigeria). However, the GDP per capita for all of the countries is below $10,000. These economies are substantially smaller than the United States.
It is important to acknowledge damage to the prosperity of West African countries has also largely come from European colonization throughout the entire continent of Africa and exploitation of the continent’s natural resources. Nonetheless, the Transatlantic Slave Trade allowed the United States a large benefit while stripping benefits from West Africa. Slavery has been deemed as a crime against humanity, however simply because the slave trade ended does not mean that everything is repaired. As West African countries continue to develop and try to recover from the slave trade, the United States should have an obligation to assist in anyway deemed necessary.
Sources
https://www.ghanabusinessnews.com/2008/12/06/how-the-slave-trade-stifled-africas-economy/
https://schoolworkhelper.net/effect-of-the-slave-trade-on-africa/
https://www.britannica.com/topic/transatlantic-slave-trade
https://countryeconomy.com/countries/groups/economic-community-west-african-states
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