Africa having gone through colonization, experienced the anti-colonial wave followed by the emergence of a ‘post-colonial’ Africa has seen numerous efforts being made to hurriedly advance a historically subjugated, abused and battered continent and to alleviate the multifaceted plights of the African peoples.

One such effort is the push to for development and modernity to allow Africa and thus her people to be able to interact with the global village more relevantly, efficiently and directly. Industrialization and suburban growth being tied to development and modernity provides citizens of African access to improved qualities of living and an improved market for employment. South Africa can be noted as one such state that has made great efforts to hyper develop and modernize, characterized by the the upgrading of various infrastructures to include the ‘previously marginalized’ in the provision of utilities, facilities and social services needed to live a comfortable, modern life. In cases where none such infrastructure existed efforts have been made to erect and build the relevant infrastructure.

However, it seems that in exchange for rapid growth and industrialization African states have placed aspects of societal integrity at risk, one such aspect being that of ‘culture’ or ‘cultural identity’. The argument here simply, is whether the increase of modernity in African states is causing the erosion of culture and if so, is this an inevitable outcome of modernization. ‘Culture’ as a concept can be defined as the acts, arts and other manifestations of human intellectual achievement regarded collectively, or the ideas customs and social behaviors of a particular people or society. Culture can be understood as the whole complex of traditional behavior that has been developed by human groupings and that is successively learned by each generation. It can also be articulated as the customary beliefs and characteristic features of everyday existence shared by a people in a particulate space and time. By time I refer to the time period that culture exists in, for example the 1900’s or early 2000’s, and space being the geographical location. For the argument purpose of the argument it must be states that it is important not to confuse the ideas or concepts of culture with that or tradition.

Tradition can be defined as the cultural continuity of inherited established customary practices, beliefs, social attitudes, customs and cultural-communal institutions. Whereas culture is manifest and defined by in the particular space and time it is located in, tradition is continued collection of actions/ behaviorisms and beliefs as fed and past down historically from previous generations. Having explained the difference between culture and tradition the main argument can be given. 

The African continent must and has, in a bid to induce overall growth and development for each state and therefore its citizens as well as actively allow itself to take part in the global economy and international trade, been involved in heavy bouts of modernization and industrialization to whatever extent capable by the respective state. However, it is noted that the model of modernization followed or made use of is largely influenced by Westernization. The reasons for I propose of the Western modes of modernization are: -Due to the imperialistic nature of colonialism although African states are free from first form colonialism many if not all are still held captive by coloniality and thus colonial culture. -The uniform nature of human development outside of development would see similar methods of modernization and industrialization being used (despite differences in the regional aesthetic displayed) 

We understand that modernity, and in it modernization, is tied to coloniality meaning bound to Westernization and that the more the continent is to modernize would presumably mean the more Westernized it becomes and the more perpetuated coloniality becomes, right? And thus, the more Westernized a state becomes the faster and more permanent the erosion of culture takes place, right? I argue no. The increase in modernity does not necessarily mean in increase in Westernization, also meaning that increasing modernization does not correlate to the quickened erosion of local cultures. Why? Firstly, because due to the elasticity of culture as not only a concept but a collection of ideologies/practices that are dependent or manifest of a set time. What I mean by this is that seeing as culture can be and is influenced on the time and space it finds itself in, that set culture can adapt or evolve to survive modernity while still being able to retain its core tenants/ principles as fed by tradition.

The reason in my opinion it would seem to many ‘culturalists’ that the above is not possible is the continued confusion and misuse of culture for tradition. Tradition by definition is comprised of already historically well-established practices/beliefs and customs which are then further codified by being passed down to successor generations feeding into the culture of that generation. In many cases, tradition is, due to its verification and being assented to for centuries immensely difficult to alter and as a result unable to survive ‘modernity’ without taking shelter in tradition bastions which vary from long standing traditional practices, to the power granted to a king or monarch to small ‘village’ communities located on the peripheries of modernization and development, or the seemingly old-fashioned livelihoods of the people settled in these village communities.

Secondly, because unlike modernization, which has more to with the building of infrastructure and institutions to enable them to function in a manner that’s period relevant to the state, the cultures or cultural growth of a state’s populous is depended on the social understanding and maturity of its people. Meaning, for me, a people that are aware of the historical, social realities and conversations as well as allowed time to grow and evolve in tandem with the developing state without the coercive influence of other states or cultures would be able to collectively and healthily redefine their cultural identities while retaining positive, progressive healthy aspects of those respective cultures. 

Although currently I cannot image a modernity that is not reminiscent of coloniality or fully akin to Westernization I still believe it possible for the healthy adaption and survival of cultures and the traditions that feed them and that they feed into. This however happens only with a thorough accurate historical education provided on not only the culture as a whole, but the practices and beliefs that it is comprised and informed by. This in relation to the time periods in which the cultures of that particular people either formed or adopted new practices in order to fully understand that peoples culture and traditional heritage allowing that people to evolve themselves culturally and their tradition in a collectively healthy manner. This I believe should be the approach of all African states wanting to develop and modernize at a rate that allows for sufficient growth but also at a pace that lets its people’s traditional identities evolve with them as to take full advantage of this modernization. 

However ,the role for the state should go beyond growing at a pace that lets its people healthy follow, the role should extend into the state actively encouraging its collective society to enter conversations around the various traditions and cultural identities that stem from them. The aim should not be to create a fracture between a developed modern state and a people caught between adopting new historically or culturally inaccurate identities that allows them to fully thrive in a modernized society and peoples unable to fully integrate their traditional heritage and thus identities because these identities are seen as either outdated or archaic.   

Neo Sithole MA Candidate Politics and International Relations (UJ) BA Hons Politics and International Relations  (UJ) BA Politics (UJ)