Historical Significances on Economic Development

History has profoundly influenced the state’s operations, tracing back to antiquity. Some historical events, such as colonization, early industrialization, and establishing trade roots, have played pivotal roles in shaping long-lasting advancement paths for countries. These historical periods or events left an indelible mark that manifests the state’s economy to date. Some historical events have contributed immensely to the dilapidated economy of some nations. For instance, the slavery trade still haunts some African countries because of the decline of the population, mainly in West African nations where enslaved people were captured and sold into slavery. Despite most nations developing new policies to address this predicament, most of their interventions still need to live up to the expectations. Therefore, this paper aims to demonstrate how states are prisoners of development regarding development. The paper will explore the influence of contemporary policies and market intervention concerning solving compounded dilemmas. Further, it showcases the significance of governance quality and political institutions in tackling historical heritages while citing practical examples of the impact of historical legacies on modern economic performance.

The statement that states are prisoners of history with tiny agencies regarding development implies that the formation of states called for war-making. For instance, European countries wedged to ensure they expanded their territories by colonizing other countries (Lecture notes 03. n.d, 24). War-making led to massive loss of lives and destruction of properties. Therefore, some of these detrimental impacts interfere with the development of the most affected counties. For example, the slavery trade was mainly triggered by expeditions along oceans. It opened the African continent with the spirit of adventure, prompting Western nations to stream in large numbers to colonize Africa (Lecture notes 03. n.d, 25). The idea infers that the quest of European powers to extend their territories and rule over Africans led to war battles, which rendered some of the colonies unrecovered from the impacts of those wars. The ruthless actions of European powers can still be witnessed through the depletion of major minerals in African nations. For example, some European powers applied brutal force to extort precious minerals from colonies and used them to develop their mother nations (Kohli, 2004, 378). Ideally, some of the conies have yet to fully recover from the European powers’ extortion of treasured minerals.

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Moreover, the state’s makings through the extension of territories enabled the European powers to resort to acquiring enslaved people from West Africa and other parts of the world to use them for their own good. Some enslaved people were recruited to join the military, mainly deployed to deal with external threats and expand territories (Lecture notes 03. n.d, 24). Besides, some were recruited to participate in World War I and World War II. The damaging impact of acquiring enslaved people from different parts of the world was still eminent in the regions that were predominantly affected. Based on the lecture notes, “estimates suggest that by 1800, Africa’s population was half what it would have been without the slave trade” (Lecture notes 03, n.d, 25). The idea signifies that the slave trade led to a diametric decline in the African population that still manifests its enduring effect in terms of economic performance (Lecture notes 03, n.d, 25). Besides, there was a shift in gender roles in most parts of Africa where the slave trade mainly occurred, and women assumed male roles because males were captured in large numbers and sold out as enslaved people.

Diminished social trust is another historical legacy still manifest in contemporary society. Portuguese in the Kongo Kingdom is a practical example of this instance of diminished social trust (Lecture notes 03. n.d 26). As denoted in the lecture notes “growing demand for slaves, growth in numbers of private slave traders and merchants, competition for the throne led to a surge in slave captures and raiding” (Lecture notes 03. n.d 26). The concept indicates that due to the increased need for enslaved people, many people were kidnapped and forced into slavery. The numbers of slave traders escalated rapidly, making several people targets for slavery, even the noble and affluent families (Lecture notes 03. n.d 26). The impact of diminished social trust manifests itself in modern society through the current slavery of human trafficking. Where the victims of these inhuman activities have become vulnerable to such dangerous actions in a similar way that the enslaved peop