The New Imposition Complex in Africa: A Creolizing Exploration

The concepts “neoimperialism,” “neocolonialism,” “postcoloniality,” and “decoloniality” have long shaped scholarly debates on domination and exploitation in Africa. These signifiers have provided critical tools for analyzing the residues of colonial legacies, but they now strain to explain the evolving dynamics of global hegemonies. While globalization can be viewed as neocolonialist, the framework often fails to capture the multiplicity of contemporary exertions, such as China’s Belt and Road Initiative or the influence of external religious ideologies. Similarly, decoloniality, focused on mental and structural legacies, struggles to encompass the intersection of older and newer forms of domination. This chapter therefore calls for a shift from the preceding traditional concepts to a more comprehensive framework: i.e. the “New Imposition Complex.” This term reflects the hybridization of historical mechanisms of domination, such as neocolonialism, with contemporary trends involving global economic, political, and ideological forces. For instance, China’s infrastructural projects and trade dominance represent fast-moving phenomena that are morphing into strictures that reshape African agency in new ways. These developments demand updated conceptual tools capable of addressing their unique complexities.