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The Resource Imperialism and development : the East African groundnut scheme and its legacy, Nicholas Westcott

Imperialism and development : the East African groundnut scheme and its legacy, Nicholas Westcott

Creator
Author
Summary
"As colonial development took off after the Second World War, in the context of national food shortages, Britain's Labour Government initiated the Groundnut Scheme, an extraordinarily ambitious project to convert 3 million acres of bush in Tanganyika into the largest mechanized groundnut farm in the world. It was to prove the largest, most expensive and most disastrous development scheme ever undertaken by the British Government. Never previously analysed in depth, the author draws on a wide range of sources to discuss the political dynamics that drove the Groundnut Scheme forward, despite the gravest doubts of agriculturalists and economists, why it went wrong, and what its impact has been since on the practice of economic development. Initially employing the United Africa Company as agent, the government set up an Overseas Food Corporation to manage the Groundnut Scheme as an example of socialist development in Africa. Army surplus kit and demobbed soldiers poured into the country and were sent up the railway line to Kongwa to beat the bush. By the time the effort was abandoned in 1950, costs had risen to a colossal 36 million - equivalent to over 1 billion today - and yet almost no groundnuts had been exported. The prototype of many large-scale, government-run, high-cost development projects that failed to deliver, the Groundnut Scheme was perhaps the first major failure of agricultural development in Africa, and its legacy in development practice still with us today. Nicholas Westcott is Director of the Royal African Society and Research Associate at the School of Oriental and African Studies, London. His previous posts include Managing Director, Middle East and North Africa, and prior to that Managing Director for Africa, European External Action Service (EU), Brussels. "--Publisher description
Language
eng
Work
Publication
Extent
1 online resource.
Contents
  • Austerity
  • A Scheme is Born
  • 'The Poison of the Official Pen...'
  • The Groundnut Army
  • Beating about the Bush
  • The Overseas Food Corporation
  • 1949: The Crisis
  • The Last Chance
  • A Sudden Death
  • Legacy and Lessons
Isbn
9781787449336
Instance
Label
Imperialism and development : the East African groundnut scheme and its legacy
Title
Imperialism and development
Title remainder
the East African groundnut scheme and its legacy
Statement of responsibility
Nicholas Westcott
Creator
Author
Subject
Genre
Language
eng
Summary
"As colonial development took off after the Second World War, in the context of national food shortages, Britain's Labour Government initiated the Groundnut Scheme, an extraordinarily ambitious project to convert 3 million acres of bush in Tanganyika into the largest mechanized groundnut farm in the world. It was to prove the largest, most expensive and most disastrous development scheme ever undertaken by the British Government. Never previously analysed in depth, the author draws on a wide range of sources to discuss the political dynamics that drove the Groundnut Scheme forward, despite the gravest doubts of agriculturalists and economists, why it went wrong, and what its impact has been since on the practice of economic development. Initially employing the United Africa Company as agent, the government set up an Overseas Food Corporation to manage the Groundnut Scheme as an example of socialist development in Africa. Army surplus kit and demobbed soldiers poured into the country and were sent up the railway line to Kongwa to beat the bush. By the time the effort was abandoned in 1950, costs had risen to a colossal 36 million - equivalent to over 1 billion today - and yet almost no groundnuts had been exported. The prototype of many large-scale, government-run, high-cost development projects that failed to deliver, the Groundnut Scheme was perhaps the first major failure of agricultural development in Africa, and its legacy in development practice still with us today. Nicholas Westcott is Director of the Royal African Society and Research Associate at the School of Oriental and African Studies, London. His previous posts include Managing Director, Middle East and North Africa, and prior to that Managing Director for Africa, European External Action Service (EU), Brussels. "--Publisher description
Member of
Cataloging source
JSTOR
http://library.link/vocab/creatorName
Westcott, Nicholas
Dewey number
338.9678
Index
index present
LC call number
HC885.Z9
LC item number
E44 2020
Literary form
non fiction
Nature of contents
  • dictionaries
  • bibliography
Series statement
Eastern Africa series
http://library.link/vocab/subjectName
  • Economic development projects
  • Peanut industry
  • Development studies
  • Colonialism & imperialism
  • SOCIAL SCIENCE / Developing & Emerging Countries
  • POLITICAL SCIENCE / Imperialism
  • Economic development projects
  • Peanut industry
  • Tanzania
Label
Imperialism and development : the East African groundnut scheme and its legacy, Nicholas Westcott
Instantiates
Publication
Copyright
Antecedent source
unknown
Bibliography note
Includes bibliographical references (pages 221-230) and index
Carrier category
online resource
Carrier category code
  • cr
Carrier MARC source
rdacarrier
Color
multicolored
Content category
text
Content type code
  • txt
Content type MARC source
rdacontent
Contents
Austerity -- A Scheme is Born -- 'The Poison of the Official Pen...' -- The Groundnut Army -- Beating about the Bush -- The Overseas Food Corporation -- 1949: The Crisis -- The Last Chance -- A Sudden Death -- Legacy and Lessons
Dimensions
unknown
Extent
1 online resource.
File format
unknown
Form of item
online
Isbn
9781787449336
Level of compression
unknown
Media category
computer
Media MARC source
rdamedia
Media type code
  • c
http://library.link/vocab/ext/overdrive/overdriveId
22573/ctvxjxrhw
Quality assurance targets
not applicable
Reformatting quality
unknown
Sound
unknown sound
Specific material designation
remote
System control number
  • on1157286117
  • (OCoLC)1157286117
Label
Imperialism and development : the East African groundnut scheme and its legacy, Nicholas Westcott
Publication
Copyright
Antecedent source
unknown
Bibliography note
Includes bibliographical references (pages 221-230) and index
Carrier category
online resource
Carrier category code
  • cr
Carrier MARC source
rdacarrier
Color
multicolored
Content category
text
Content type code
  • txt
Content type MARC source
rdacontent
Contents
Austerity -- A Scheme is Born -- 'The Poison of the Official Pen...' -- The Groundnut Army -- Beating about the Bush -- The Overseas Food Corporation -- 1949: The Crisis -- The Last Chance -- A Sudden Death -- Legacy and Lessons
Dimensions
unknown
Extent
1 online resource.
File format
unknown
Form of item
online
Isbn
9781787449336
Level of compression
unknown
Media category
computer
Media MARC source
rdamedia
Media type code
  • c
http://library.link/vocab/ext/overdrive/overdriveId
22573/ctvxjxrhw
Quality assurance targets
not applicable
Reformatting quality
unknown
Sound
unknown sound
Specific material designation
remote
System control number
  • on1157286117
  • (OCoLC)1157286117

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