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Title The Failure of Cotton Imperialism in Africa: Seasonal Constraints and Contrasting Outcomes in French West Africa and British Uganda
Full text https://library.wur.nl/WebQuery/wurpubs/593311
Date 2021
Author(s) Haas, Michiel, de
Abstract Cash-crop diffusion in colonial Africa was uneven and defied colonizers' expectations and efforts, especially for cotton. This study investigates how agricultural seasonality affected African farmers' cotton adoption, circa 1900'1960. A contrast between British Uganda and the interior of French West Africa demonstrates that a short rainy season and the resulting short farming cycles generated seasonal labor bottlenecks and food security concerns, limiting cotton output. Agricultural seasonality also shaped colonial coercion, investment, and African income-earning strategies. A labor productivity breakthrough in post-colonial Francophone West Africa mitigated the seasonality constraint, facilitating impressive cotton production post-1960.
Subject(s) WASS; WASS; Leerstoelgroep Agrarische en Milieugeschiedenis; Rural and Environmental History; Agrarische en Milieugeschiedenis; Rural and Environmental History
Publisher Wageningen University
Relation https://edepot.wur.nl/563420
Type of publication Dataset
Format text/html
Rights Wageningen University & Research
Identifier 10.3886/E149401
Repository Wageningen - University of Wageningen
Added to C-A: 2022-01-31;09:51:50