← All questionsGS1 · 2016 · History ·Western-educated Elite in West African Nationalism
MAINS 2016
GS1
12.5 marks

The anti-colonial struggles in West Africa were led by the new elite of Western-educated Africans. Examine.

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9 min
200 words
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What the examiner wants

Examine the role of the Western-educated elite in West African anti-colonial movements and whether others also shaped them.

ExamineGo into the details, test each point against evidence, and conclude on what it shows.

Demand-wise check

  1. 1Elite leaders: Kwame Nkrumah (Gold Coast), Nnamdi Azikiwe (Nigeria), Leopold Senghor (Senegal, Negritude), Houphouet-Boigny (Ivory Coast)≈35 words
  2. 2Why elite: exposure to liberal ideas, Pan-Africanism, newspapers, parties, ability to negotiate with colonisers≈35 words
  3. 3Limits of the claim: mass base of ex-servicemen, trade unions, farmers, market women; 1948 Accra riots; strikes≈35 words
  4. 4Outcome: Ghana 1957, wave of 1960 independence≈35 words

Open in about 30 words and close in about 30.

Answer plan

ContextElite leaders and methodsMass contributionBalanceConclusion

Where marks usually go

  • Writing on South Africa or East Africa instead of West Africa
  • Accepting the statement without examining mass participation

Draw this

  • Map of West Africa marking Ghana 1957, Guinea 1958, Nigeria and Senegal 1960

Value addition

  • EventFifth Pan-African Congress at Manchester (1945) brought Nkrumah and others together and demanded independence.Pan-African Congress, 1945
  • ExampleNkrumah's Convention People's Party (1949) used 'positive action' strikes and boycotts; Ghana became independent in 1957.Gold Coast history