Industrialization as an Act of Decolonization: A Productive Capability Approach

The European colonial project of the nineteenth century has had long-lasting effects on the colonized. Although the transfer of political power from colonial to independent governments (political decolonization) was in most countries accomplished during the post-World War II era, economic decolonization has remained an incomplete project in many countries. Current patterns of production and export specialization in most former colonies, especially on the African continent, are a clear example of an incomplete decolonization project. Both the structure of the economy and economic activities have continued to be shaped by colonial and neocolonial power relations, which are evident in former colonized countries continued of supplying raw materials to the global economy. As the data presented in this article show, this has thwarted most efforts of former colonies (the Global South) to industrialize by building adequate productive capabilities. It is argued in this article that to the extent that the building of productive capabilities undermines the colonial and neocolonial economic relations and logic, it constitutes a fundamental act of decolonization. Industrialization in this sense is an act of decolonization because it enables countries to reduce various types of dependence on which the colonial and neocolonial project is anchored.