African Resistance and Decolonization in the Global Context: Historical Narratives and Contemporary Implications
Keywords:
Decolonial Practice, Global Context, Historical Narratives, Decolonization, African ResistanceAbstract
This research explores African resistance and decolonization within a global historical framework, examining both past struggles and their ongoing relevance in shaping contemporary socio-political realities. Specifically, the study investigated how African societies resisted colonial rule through political, cultural, and armed strategies, and how these movements have been remembered, interpreted, and instrumentalized in post-colonial nation-building processes. The research aimed to uncover and centre African agency in historical and present contexts, highlighting the enduring legacy of resistance movements on current issues such as identity politics, governance, and global power dynamics. Employing a qualitative methodology that includes archival analysis, oral histories, and critical discourse analysis. It further analyses contemporary implications, especially in light of global movements for racial justice and heritage restitution. The outcome showed a nuanced understanding of African resistance that contributes to both academic scholarship and decolonial practice, challenging Eurocentric paradigms and fostering a more equitable representation of African histories and futures. The study demonstrates that African resistance and decolonization are not merely historical episodes but enduring forces that continue to shape contemporary identities, governance structures, and global power relations. It is therefore recommended that scholars, policymakers, and educators more deliberately centre African perspectives in research, curricula, and heritage practices to advance decolonial knowledge production and social justice.Downloads
References
Achebe, C. (1958). Things fall apart. Heinemann.
Achebe, C. (1987). Anthills of the Savannah. Heinemann.
Adeyanju, A. (2020). The #EndSARS movement and its impact on Nigerian politics. Journal of African Political Science, 14(1), 75-85.
Adi, H., & Sherwood, M. (2003). Pan-African history: Political figures from Africa and the diaspora since 1787. Routledge.
AfDB. (2017). African economic outlook 2017: Entrepreneurship and industrialisation. African Development Bank Group.
Anderson, D. (2005). Histories of the hanged: The dirty war in Kenya and the end of empire. Weidenfeld & Nicolson.
Anstey, R. (1975). The United Nations and the decolonization of Africa. Oxford University Press.
Appiah, K. A. (1992). In my father's house: Africa in the philosophy of culture. Oxford University Press.
Asante, M. K. (1990). Afrocentricity: The theory of social change. Temple University Press.
Ayeni, Q. O. (2026). Nationalism and the Struggle for Decolonization in Nigeria: the Role of Political Movements, Intellectuals, and Cultural Identity, 1900– 1960. In History & Nation Building: Essays in Honour of Senator Professor Sandy Ojang Onoh (Eds.) David L. Imbua & Yakubu A. Ochefu. 88-106.
Ayeni, Q. O. & Y. Ousmanou. (2025). Neo-colonial Influences on African Democracy: Assessing the Impact of External Powers on Governance and Sovereignty in the 21st Century. Wukari International Studies Journal, 9(2), 46-56.
Ayeni, Q. O. (2025). Les Relations entre la France et l'Afrique de l'Ouest: La Françafrique et la France-Afrique”. Cascades, Journal of the Department of French and International Studies. 3(2), 100 -107.
Ayeni, Q. O., Okey, K. I. & Ndifon, M. M. (2026) Empire Colonial français: Base du Néocolonialisme en Afrique francophone Contemporain. CogNexus, 1(1), 1-18.
Ayeni, Queen Olubukola & Ellah Timothy Ogbang. (2026). Cross-Border Dynamics and Territorial Reconfiguration in West Africa. Global Journal of History of International Relations & Diplomacy (GJOHIRD), 1(1), 99-109.
Ayeni, Q. O. & Ben, A. O. (2025). A “Her-Storical” Conceptualization of the Umuada” Traditional Institution of Eastern Nigeria. Gender Truth Journal (GTJ). 2(1), 153-180.
Ayeni, Q. O. et al. (2026a) Ethnicity and Democracy in Nigeria: 2015-2025. International Journal of Interdisciplinary Cultural Studies. 21(1). 128-146
Ayeni, Q. O., Ben, A. O. & Oshie, M. A. (2025). From Fragmentation To Inclusion: Redefining Governance And Citizenship In The Context Of West Africa'S Ethno-Religious Diversity. Book of Proceedings for the 1st National Sociological Conference 2025, pp. 150-165.
Ayeni, Queen Olubukola et al., (2026b). Integrating Nigerian Indigenous Languages into Climate Education: Bridging Knowledge Systems for Sustainable Development. International Journal of Advanced Research (IJAR), 14(5), 1062-1070.
Ayeni, Queen. O. & Gloria Mayen Umukoro (2025a). Echoes of the Past: The Impact of Colonialism on Contemporary African Cultural Identity and Expression. Journal of Studies in Humanities (JOSIH, TASFUED), 15(1), 52- 64.
Ayeni, Queen Olubukola & Gloria Mayen Umukoro (2025b). Enjeux de l'Étude des Cultures et Civilisations Francophones au Milieu Anglophones: La Perspective Numérique. (Unpublished article), 1-16.
Bhabha, H. (1994). The location of culture. Routledge.
Boahen, A. A. (1987). African perspectives on colonialism. The Johns Hopkins University Press.
Bretton, J. (1968). The end of empire in Africa: A comparative history. Macmillan.
Breytenbach, J. (2016). Language revitalization in post-colonial Zimbabwe. Language and Society, 17(3), 74-85.
Chabal, P. (2002). A history of postcolonial Lusophone Africa. Indiana University Press.
Chinweizu. (1987). The west and the rest of us: White predatory capitalism and the dawn of the African millennium. NOK Publishers.
Cohen, R. (2006). Globalization and the politics of resistance. The University of Chicago Press.
Cooper, F. (2005). Colonialism in question: Theory, knowledge, history. University of California Press.
Crowder, M. (1968). West Africa under colonial rule. Northwestern University Press.
Davidson, B. (1992). The Black man's burden: Africa and the curse of the nation-state. James Currey.
Diop, C. A. (1974). The African origin of civilization: Myth or reality. Lawrence Hill & Co.
Ehret, C. (2002). The civilizations of Africa: A history to 1800. University of Virginia Press.
Fagbemiro, A. (2014). Africa’s place in the global order: UN diplomacy and pan- Africanism. African Studies Review, 18(3), 135-153.
Falola, T., & Njoku, R. C. (2010). War and peace in Africa. Carolina Academic Press.
Fanon, F. (1961). The wretched of the earth. Grove Press.
Fanon, F. (1963). The Wretched of the Earth (C. Farrington, Trans.). Grove Press.
Getz, T. R., & Streets-Salter, H. (2011). Modern imperialism and colonialism: A global perspective. Pearson.
Gifford, P. (2000). The decolonization of Africa: Political and social implications. Oxford University Press.
Herbst, J. (2000). States and power in Africa: Comparative lessons in authority and control. Princeton University Press.
Horne, A. (1977). A savage war of peace: Algeria 1954–1962. Macmillan.
Howard, P. N., & Parks, M. R. (2012). The digital origins of dictatorship and democracy: Information technology and political Islam. Oxford University Press.
IEA. (2019). Africa energy outlook 2019: The role of renewable energy. International Energy Agency.
Iliffe, J. (1979). A modern history of Tanganyika. Cambridge University Press.
Iliffe, J. (2007). Africans: The history of a continent (2nd ed.). Cambridge University Press.
Jack, W., & Suri, T. (2011). Risk sharing and transactions costs: Evidence from Kenya’s mobile money revolution. The American Economic Review, 101(7), 3062-3087.
Kende-Robb, J. (2016). Youth in Africa: Leveraging technology for socio-political mobilisation. African Studies Quarterly, 17(3), 57-69.
Lemarchand, R. (1972). Cold War politics in Africa: Superpower rivalry and African liberation. University of California Press.
Lodge, T. (1983). Black politics in South Africa since 1945. Longman.
Lodge, T. (2002). Politics in South Africa: From Mandela to Mbeki. David Philip Publishers.
Mamdani, M. (1996). Citizen and subject: Contemporary Africa and the legacy of late colonialism. Princeton University Press.
Marcus, H. G. (2002). A history of Ethiopia. University of California Press.
Mazrui, A. A. (1986). The Africans: A triple heritage. BBC Publications.
Mazrui, A. A. (2007). Africa's renaissance: A challenge to the West. University Press.
Mbembe, A. (2001). On the Postcolony. University of California Press.
Mbembe, A. (2017). Decolonizing the mind and the digital: The emergence of African intellectuals in cyberspace. The African Review, 44(2), 79-90.
Meredith, M. (2005). The state of Africa: A history of fifty years of independence. Free Press.
Mkandawire, T. (2001). The African state and economic development: The political economy of Africa's growth. Cambridge University Press.
Mudimbe, V. Y. (1988). The invention of Africa: Gnosis, philosophy, and the order of knowledge. Indiana University Press.
Ndlovu-Gatsheni, S. J. (2013). Coloniality of power in postcolonial Africa: Myths of decolonization. CODESRIA.
Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o. (1986). Decolonizing the mind: The politics of language in African literature. James Currey.
Nkrumah, K. (1961). I speak of freedom: A statement of African ideology. Heinemann.
Nkrumah, K. (1963). Africa must unite. Heinemann.
Nkrumah, K. (1965). Neo-colonialism: The last stage of imperialism. Thomas Nelson & Sons.
Nzongola-Ntalaja, G. (2002). The Congo: From Leopold to Kabila: A people's history. Zed Books.
Okafor, N. (2020). The digital revolution in African cultural identity. African Cultural Studies, 38(1), 110-125.
Okeke-Agulu, C. (2015). El Anatsui: Art and design in Africa. University of California Press.
Okey, K. I. et al. (2026). Rhythms of influence: The impact of African Cultures on Global Popular Culture. Interculturality 1(1), 1-13.
Pakenham, T. (1991). The scramble for Africa: 1876–1912. Abacus.
Panjabi, R. (2019). Technology and human rights advocacy in Africa: New media in practice. African Journal of Human Rights, 26(1), 58-68.
Netherlands Institute of International Relations 'Clingendael'.
Rodney, W. (1972). How Europe underdeveloped Africa. Bogle-L’Ouverture Publications.
Smith, R. (1992). The Soviet Union and the end of empire in Africa. Cambridge University Press.
Soyinka, W. (1960). A dance of the forests. Oxford University Press.
Tavares, R. (2021). The African Continental Free Trade Area: A catalyst for African economic integration. African Development Review, 33(1), 42-56.
Tufekci, Z. (2017). Twitter and tear gas: The power and fragility of networked protest. Yale University Press.
UNECA. (2020). The African continental free trade area: A game changer for intra- Africa trade. United Nations Economic Commission for Africa.
Vansina, J. (1985). Oral Tradition as History. University of Wisconsin Press.
Vickery, M. (2017). World War II and African soldiers: The colonial legacy. African Historical Review, 29(2), 41-59.
Wolfe, P. (2019). Settler colonialism and the elimination of the native. Oxford University Press.
Young, C. (2004). The end of the post-colonial state in Africa? Reflections on changing African political dynamics. African Affairs, 103(410), 23–49.
Zhao, Y. (2017). The power of technology in African resistance movements. Journal of Global Politics, 23(2), 187-200.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Global Nexus Journal Of Multidisciplinary Research

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Global Nexus Journal of Multidisciplinary Research (GNJMR) operates under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC 4.0), allowing others to share and adapt the work non-commercially, as long as they credit the original creation. This policy fosters collaboration and accessibility, encouraging wider dissemination of research while respecting authors' rights.

