How Africa Is Shaking The Lingering Influence Of Its French Colonizers

Colonialization has been a black mark on the histories of many Western nations — including France, which has maintained a presence across Africa since it established colonies on the continent.

Slowly but surely, however, that influence is fading.

The Nigerian uprising

A forceful coup in Niger late last month resulted in the capture of the nation’s president at the hands of his own guards. It’s worth noting that Mohamed Bazoum was a key ally of France and had helped maintain Niger’s ongoing cooperative relationship with the European nation.

While the coup threw the entire country’s future into upheaval, there was one clear message delivered by those who supported the overthrow of Bazoum’s regime.

In a message delivered via state media following the incident, a uniformed soldier addressed the country to confirm that Niger would no longer be cooperating with France.

That anti-French sentiment was evidence elsewhere … most notably in the mass protests that resulted in an attack on the country’s French embassy.

The latest in a trend

Niger isn’t the first African nation to put its opposition to France on full display. In fact, similar uprisings have taken place in two other former French colonies: Burkina Faso and Mali.

French President Emmanuel Macron appeared to address this growing discord when he entered office in 2017, promising that he would work to repair the rift between his country and the African continent.

Critics far and wide have asserted that he hasn’t made any real improvements, however, and the Nigerian coup is the latest evidence of that continuing disillusionment.

To be sure, Niger has gone through periods of turmoil before — but the fact that this one was so clearly focused on France seems to highlight an underlying issue with international consequences.

And now the world is waiting to see what happens next.

Chris Agee August 7th, 2023

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