HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT
FORM 2
SIMPLIFIED NOTES
New Syllabus
CHAPTER 1
Trade is the exchange of goods or services for money or other commodities for mutual benefits. It is basically the buying and selling of goods.
Trade originated during the New Stone Age. During this period, man began a settled lifestyle. He became specialised in various activities such as weaving, pottery and livestock keeping. This specialisation made some people to produce certain items which others did not produce. The need of satisfying various essential material needs therefore led to emergence of trade.
History Paper 1 Topic By Topic Questions And Answers
HISTORY NOTES FORM 2: NEW SYLLABUS SIMPLIFIED NOTES
HISTORY NOTES FORM 3: NEW SYLLABUS SIMPLIFIED NOTES
History & Government notes and exams for forms 1, 2, 3 and 4 free downloads
HISTORY NOTES FORM 4: NEW SYLLABUS SIMPLIFIED NOTES
HISTORY NOTES FORM ONE: NEW SYLLABUS SIMPLIFIED NOTES
HISTORY NOTES FORM 1-4: COMPLETE HISTORY NOTES
History Paper 2 Topic By Topic Questions And Answers (All Topics)
History and Government free lesson plans for all topics (Form one to four)
Barter trade and currency trade are the two existing forms of trade in the world.
Barter trade.
Barter trade is the oldest method of trade in the world. It existed even during the Old Testament time. Barter trade exists even today. This occurs when people exchange goods for other goods. In this case no established medium of exchange is used. In certain occasions, services are exchanged for goods. The goods may also be exchanged for services.
Barter system was very popular before the introduction of money. For instance a cow could be exchanged for a number of goats. A basket of millet could be exchanged for a basket of maize or beans.
The people of ancient Ghana exchanged their gold with the people of North Africa for salt.
This form of trade did not succeed very well where there was language barrier. Barter trade exists even today. In Kenya, certain commodities e.g. agricultural products are exchanged for machinery and oil.
Advantages of barter trade were:
This method of trade involves the use of money as a medium of exchange. The medium of exchange must be acceptable and convenient to people.
Money may be used to purchase commodities or to pay for services. Money is also used a measure of value. Today, people value their property in terms of money. Objects which have ever been used as money before the introduction of modern currencies are cowrie shells, iron bars, bronze, salt, gold and silver.
The major world currencies are:
Types of trade
There are three types of trade namely: local trade, regional trade and international trade.
Local trade is the exchange of goods within the same community at the village level. It may also involve the neighbouring communities or people who share a common boundary.
People who conducted local trade established markets on the community boundaries or in a central place where people from a number of villages met to exchange goods. People exchanged goods they had for the things they did not have. This type of trade exists in Kenya even today where local county councils have established markets in certain trading centres. Local trade covers a small area.
The origin of local trade
Local trade originated from the time early man began a settled lifestyle. It was facilitated by the need to acquire what one did not have from those who had. The environmental differences also contributed the emergence of this type of trade.
The development of local trade
Local trade developed as human population increased. The increase in population led to demand for various items such as food, clothing, pots and ornaments. Some people became specialised in making iron tools, others in making items such as pots, baskets and bark-cloth while others became pastoralists and kept cattle, sheep and goats.
The blacksmith obtained meat from the pastoralists and grains from the cultivators. The pastoralists needed knives and spears from the blacksmiths. The cultivators needed iron hoes; knives for harvesting; millet, sorghum and axes for clearing fields for cultivation. The demand for goods therefore encouraged local trade to develop and markets were established where people met to buy and sell things.
The organisation of local trade
People established markets at the most convenient places for all. They set market days when they would meet to exchange goods. At the beginning, the form of trade was mainly barter. Later there was introduction of money (currency) which acted as a medium of exchange.
During this trade, people transported their commodities on their heads and backs. Some communities such as the Maasai used donkeys to carry their goods to the markets while the Somali and the Boran used camels.
People who traded were provided with security by local leaders.
Some established local merchants bought the items and resold them to other traders far away beyond the local boundaries. For example ivory was sometimes bought from the local markets in Samburu and Baringo and then transported to the coast where it was bought and shipped to Asia.
The impact of the local trade
Local trade led to intermarriages between people of different villages and people of neighbouring communities.
It contributed to the unity of family members who constituted a community. This is because the interaction of people in the markets united them. Local trade enabled people to acquire what they did not have from those who had.
It laid the basis for other types of trade such as the regional and the international trade because some of the goods sold at regional and international levels were bought from local markets by the traders and eventually sold far away from the sources.
Local trade enabled some people such as Chief Kivoi of Ukambani to acquire skills in trade thereafter becoming experienced long distance traders. Where members of one community traded with members of another community there was development of languages through word borrowing as well as cultural exchange.
In this case members of each community would borrow some cultural practices which became known to them as they interacted in the markets.
Regional Trade
Regional trade is the exchange of goods within a specified part of a continent or region. It can be trade between different communities in a region who are living apart.
This trade involves a bigger geographical area than the one covered by local trade. It also involves more traders. An example of regional trade is the Trans-Saharan trade.
The origin of the Trans-Saharan trade
It is not known exactly the time this trade started but it was going on between 1000AD and 1500AD. The people of West Africa and those from North Africa exchanged goods from very early times even before the Sahara dried up into a desert. The desert trade was later revolutionised by the introduction of the camel in the first century AD.
The development of the Trans-Saharan trade
The Trans-Saharan trade began developing after the introduction of the camel which replaced the use of oxen and horses which were used by traders before the Sahara turned into a desert.
The people involved in this trade were the local inhabitants of West Africa such as the people of ancient Ghana, Mali and Songhai. There were also desert communities like the Tuaregs, the Berbers and the Arabs from North Africa. Later Europeans and Jewish traders who had settled along the North African coast became engaged in this lucrative trade.
The people of West Africa (Western Sudan) sold Gold, ivory, slaves, gum, ostrich feathers, colanuts and hides and skins to the people of North Africa and in return obtained horses, silk cloth, beads, cotton cloth, spices, mirrors, needles, dried fruits and salt from the North African traders. The salt sold was obtained from Targhaza, Taodeni and Ghadames while the gold brought for sale was obtained from Wangara, Bure and Budu mines.
The main trade routes were that which connected Fez and Sijilmasa in Morocco with Audaghost in West Africa and passed through Targhaza. The other started from Tunis in Tunisia through Ghadames, Ghat and Agades in the Sahara desert to Hausaland. Another one ran from Sijilmasa through Tuat, Gao and reached Timbuktu. The other one started from Tripoli and went past Fezzan to Bornu via Bilma. There were several other minor ones which made the trade routes to resemble a cobweb. All these routes touched the salt mines in the desert as salt was a commodity of trade very much needed by the people of western Sudan.
Some Trans-Saharan trade routes and sources of goods
The Trans-Saharan trade developed due to the following reasons:
The development of the Trans-Saharan trade was hampered by some of the obstacles traders encountered as they conducted their business across the desert. Some of these obstacles were:
iii) The organisation of the Trans-Saharan trade
The Trans-Saharan trade was conducted by the people of western Sudan and the people of North Africa. The traders from North Africa crossed the Sahara desert by use of camels. The traders travelled in large caravans some with about 1000 camels and hundreds of people for security reasons.
The Tuaregs and Berbers were recruited to act as guides (takshifs) to the traders. These guides provided the traders with security. It took about three months to cross the desert. For this reason the traders had stopping places at the oases where they bought food and water for themselves and for their camels. It is the Tuaregs who maintained the oasis and acted as interpreters. When the traders reached western Sudan, they sometimes gave their goods to the local agents on credit. The form of trade was mainly barter.
The rulers of West Africa controlled the trade and provided security to traders. In return the traders paid taxes to the rulers. The main items of trade included gold, salt, horses, hides and skins, beads and cloth. When the time to travel back to North Africa reached, the North Africa traders employed people to be left trading on their behalf. The merchants stored goods in specific gathering points which acted as distribution centres. They mainly travelled one way in a year.
The Trans-Saharan traders faced a lot of problems as they carried out their business. The traders travelled long distances across the Sahara desert. Their journeys were tiresome and they had insufficient food and water. Sometimes the trade goods became exhausted.
The traders were frequently interrupted by hostile desert communities who wanted to steal their goods and by dangerous sandstorms which blocked their way. Traders lost direction and they were sometimes attacked by dangerous desert creatures. There were frequent shifts of trade routes. Traders were sometimes robed by desert dwellers.
The Trans-Saharan trade had several consequences:
The Trans-Saharan trade began to decline in the 15th century and disintegrated completely in the 19th century following colonisation of West Africa by the Europeans. The factors which contributed to its decline were as follows:
International trade refers to trade between nations. In modern international trade, nations within the same continent are included. The international trade of the period before the mid 20th century which is our main concern involved nations particularly those in different continents and which were not part of one geographical region.
This ancient international trade developed as a result of the improvement in water transport. This was achieved mainly through the construction of strong ships and acquisition of better knowledge of navigation which enabled sailors to explore and acquire knowledge about foreign lands overseas. An example of the international trade was the Trans-Atlantic trade.
The Trans-Atlantic trade began after the Portuguese explored the West African coast in the 15th century and after the Spanish sailor, Christopher Columbus sailed to Americas.
In the 16th century the Americas became colonised by the Portuguese and the Spanish. These two nations began to open up and develop their acquired territories through mining and establishment of sugar plantations. Attempts to use the Red Indians as labourers eventually failed. There was need to import Africans to supply labour in the mines and sugar plantations. This attempt marked the beginning of the Trans-Atlantic slave trade. The increased demand for sugar, tobacco and cotton in the European countries led to the establishment and growth of more and more plantations in Americas. A lot of labourers were therefore needed to work in the growing plantations.
Africans were more suited to plantation farming because they were handy and could work effectively in hot climates. They were used to tropical diseases and could survive longer. The Africans were also used to physical strains and hardships. All these made Africans to be regarded as the most potential suppliers of labour in the American plantations.
iii) The development of Trans-Atlantic trade
The first African slaves were the twenty people who were captured and taken to Henry the Navigator in 1442. By 1510 a large number of African slaves from Guinea were exported by the Portuguese to the Spanish colonies. Later slaves were transported directly form Guinea coast to the West Indies.
At first the Portuguese were the leading slave exporters. In the 17th century, the Dutch took the leading role as more Europeans settled in Americas and increased the demand for slave labour.
The French and the British involved themselves in this lucrative trade. The British captured the leading role from the Dutch and they dominated the Trans-Atlantic slave trade in the 18th century.
The increased demand for precious stones, sugar, cotton and tobacco in the European markets and the demand for fire arms, cloth, alcoholics, tobacco, utensils, glassware ornaments, sugar, sweets and iron bars in West Africa accelerated trade.
The Trans-Atlantic trade developed and grew rapidly due to the following factors:
iii) The organisation of Trans-Atlantic trade
The Trans-Atlantic trade was well organised inform of a triangle which connected Europe, Africa and America. It involved European traders, African middlemen and American plantation owners.
Ships loaded with European manufactured goods such as fire arms, cloth, wines and spirits, cigarettes, iron bars, utensils, glassware, ornaments and sweets left Europe and anchored along the West African coast. Slaves captured in the interior of West Africa were marched along the coast. There were established places where the slaves were kept while awaiting shipment.
The ships from Europe were unloaded and the European manufactured goods exchanged for slaves, colanuts, precious stones, hides and skins. The ships were once more loaded with the West African commodities which were shipped across the Atlantic ocean to Americas.
In Americas, the slaves were sold through auction. The ships were then filled with indigo, cotton, tobacco, rum, sugar, rice, timber and the precious stones like gold and silver. They were then shipped to European markets.
The Trans-Atlantic trade declined in the 19th century because of a number of factors. The industrial revolution in USA led to use of machines to work in the farms. Slave labour was no longer necessary.
There emerged the humanitarian movement and the Christian Missionaries in Britain who considered slave trade and slavery as unjust and inhuman. A typical example of humanitarians was Sir William Wilberforce who presented the issue of slave trade and slavery to the British parliament. Dr. Livingstone also advocated slave trade to be abolished.
Some economists and scholars were of the feeling that free labour was more paying and productive than slave labour. Some of them argued that mass migration of the Africans should be discouraged to ensure retention of the markets for the European manufactured goods. The decline of plantation economy in America and the Carribeans reduced the demand for slaves for use in the farms. Also the slaves in the Carribeans and America resisted because they wanted to be left free from being enslaved.
Lastly, some Europeans felt that it was necessary to retain Africans in their motherland so that they could produce raw materials needed in the European industries. In order to achieve this, it was necessary to abolish the Trans-Atlantic slave trade which was draining Africa of its labour force.
Review Questions
iii) Local trade
Trans-Saharan trade.
3 a) Describe the role of Takshifs during the Trans-Saharan trade.
4 a) what problems did the traders encountered during Trans-Saharan
trade?
5 a) What factors contributed to the development of the Trans-Atlantic
trade.
iii) Political impact
6 Why did the Trans-Atlantic trade decline in the 19th century?
Students’ Activities
CHAPTER 2
Transport is the movement of people and goods from one place to another. Communication is the transmission of information in form of news, messages and ideas over some distances. It includes sending and receiving of information.
The early forms of transport included land transport, water transport, human transport and animal transport. Human transport involved carrying goods from one place to another on one’s back, head and shoulders. Animals were also used to carry goods and people on their backs from one place to the other.
The earliest forms of communication were smoke signals, drum beats, messengers, horn blowing and written messages on scrolls and stone tablets.
This form of transport involved movement of people and goods on land. They either walked or they were transported by use of tamed animals which pulled carts and wagons.
Land transport developed mainly because of the invention of the wheel. The invention of the wheel made transport easier because at first it was used to move war chariots and carts which carried agricultural produce. This also encouraged the development of trade and wars. The invention of the wheel therefore eased transportation of bulky loads and speeded transportation of people to various destinations. It also facilitated travel over long distances within a limited period of time. Wheeled vehicles were pulled by horses, donkey and oxen. The invention of the wheel was followed by the development of roads.
Human transport involved carrying of goods from one place to the other on the backs, shoulders and heads. Sometimes people used shoulder poles to transport goods. The slave traders in East Africa captured slaves and forced them to carry ivory from the interior to the East African coast.
Human transport exists even today. It is common to see Kenyan women carrying firewood, coffee, picked tea and cattle feed either on their heads or back.
Porters
After man domesticated animals, he learnt that some could be used to transport goods from one place to the other. These animals carried loads on their backs and they also pulled wheeled vehicles such as carts and wagons.
The beasts of burden such as camels, oxen, horses and donkeys were also referred to as pack animals. Donkeys were commonly used in Kenya by the Maasai and the Kamba to fetch water. In many other places, donkeys carried trade goods to the markets. Oxen transported people and goods from one place to the other. They were also used for ploughing.
Oxen drawn carts
Horses were used to transport soldiers during war times. The soldiers sometimes fought on horseback. Horses also pulled chariots which transported soldiers to battle fields.
A camel was a very efficient beast of burden in the desert because it could stay for a long time without water or food. This is because it has a store of fat in its hump. Camels were used to transport goods during the Trans-Saharan trade.
Other animals which are used for transport are elephants, water buffaloes, dogs and Llamas.
Water transport began due to the need to cross rivers and lakes to look for food on the other side.
Man’s first boat like vessel was made of a tree trunk. It was later improved by hollowing it to make a dug-out canoe.
Man also discovered that he could make rafts with animal skins or from bundles of reeds tied together. The canoes and rafts were used to move across the shallow waters.
The Phoenicians, the Egyptians and the Greeks made the earliest ships many years before the birth of Christ. These ships were used in seas and oceans. The Arabs made dhows that were driven by wind.
A dhow
Modern means of transport involves road transport, railway transport, water transport, air transport and space exploration by use of rockets.
The Romans were the first to introduce good quality roads which were of very high standards. This occurred before the birth of Christ. Roman roads survived for hundreds of years because they were well drained and durable. These roads were used by carts chariots and wagons which were pulled by horses, donkeys and oxen.
In the 17th and 18th century, British engineers began constructing better roads and bridges. Some of these engineers were George Wade, John Macadam and Thomas Telford. These engineers brought about the construction of high quality roads that were durable and well drained.
By the close of the 19th century various modes of modern transport such as bicycles and motor vehicles had been invented and were in use especially in Europe. The invention of the pneumatic tyres by Dunlop to replace the solid ones and the invention of steam power engines revolutionised land transport. Etienne Lenoir from France invented the first internal combustion engine.
A German citizen, Nicholas Otto, invented the four-stroke compression engine. Later in 1883 Gottliep Daimler of Germany came up with an efficient and portable petrol engine which he used to make the first motorcycle and later petrol driven car which was the first ever made.
Others who joined in the league of manufacturing vehicles were Karl Benz of Germany and Henry Ford of USA who founded Ford motor company in USA and began manufacturing cars for sale.
The vehicle industry since then has been greatly improved. Vehicles that move at very high speed have been introduced. This has resulted to many accidents. As a result of this, in January 2004, Kenya government took the following measures to reduce the increasing number of accidents on the Kenyan
Roads and to make travel comfortable and enjoyable:
Modern cars
There are millions of motor vehicles in the world today. The number is still increasing each day because they are manufactured in thousands each day in the world.
Railway transport
The idea of making railway lines came earlier than the invention of the locomotive engines. For instance the Germans used wooden rails for their trucks. The trucks were pulled by horses and donkeys. Later iron rails replaced the wooden rails.
The first steam engine that could be mounted on a truck was made by Richard Trevithick but it was slow and heavy. It was George Stephenson, a coal miner in England who came up with the best and powerful steam locomotive which was called the Rocket. Later diesel and electric engines were designed. A German called Rudolh Diesel designed a diesel engine. The Siemens brothers designed the electric locomotives in Britain.
After these inventions the railway transport spread to other parts of the world. The European colonialists developed the railway transport in Africa in the 19th century and 20th century.
Water transport
The first sailing ships were propelled by wind. These ships were made of wood. When steam power was discovered, ships began being propelled by steam engines.
A ship of the 17th century
A Scottish engineer known as William Symington built a steamship which was driven by a paddle wheel. An American called Robert Fulton built a steamship called Clermont that was used to carry passengers between Albany and New York. Some years later, internal combustion engines were invented. Since then oil replaced the power from coal in driving engines.
From 1881 iron and steel ships began replacing wooden ships. From 1840s, fast moving ships were developed when propellers or screws replaced paddle wheels. Between 1953 and 1962, the Americans were able to make war ships called submarines which used nuclear power.
The ships of today are propelled by very powerful engines and are resistant to strong waves.
Air transport
The first person to fly used a balloon. The use of balloons was followed by the introduction of airships that carried passengers within the first half of the 20th century. The airships used hydrogen gas that caused accidents because it was highly flammable. The Wright brothers made the first aeroplane that used a petrol engine. Their findings helped to develop aeroplanes that were used in the First World War.
Further improvements of engines brought about the development of jet planes that carry many passengers and travel at supersonic speed.
An aeroplane
Space Exploration
The first satellite was launched into orbit round the earth by the Soviet Union in 1957. The USA also sent satellites into orbit round the earth in 1961. Yuri Gagarin from Soviet Union became the first man in space.
The USA sent the first man, Neil Armstrong, to the moon in 1969. Since then a number of countries have engaged themselves in space exploration. The USA for example have a programme called Space Shuttle which helps to promote space exploration.
Impact of modern means of transport
The development of modern means of transport has positive and negative impact in the world.
Positive impact
The development of water transport, railway transport, road transport and air transport has improved trade between nations because it has quickened movement of business people and urgent documents and messages relating to trade.
Goods are quickly and easily transported from one place to another. Job opportunities have been created in the transport sector. For example people have taken careers such as driving, mechanics, engineering and piloting.
Industries for manufacturing engines, spare parts and other accessories have been established. Air transport has encouraged international co-operation and facilitated quicker and easier movement of perishable items such as fruits and meat. It has also enabled pests such as locusts to be sprayed from the air. It has enabled countries to conduct student exchange programmes.
Air transport has encouraged space exploration by use of satellites. Geologists have used aeroplanes to explore and map oil pools. Geographers have used aeroplanes when conducting aerial survey.
Water transport has provided cheaper means of bulky goods across seas and oceans for example the transportation of crude oil, machinery, agricultural products and chemical fertilizers. It has also promoted the fishing industry.
In addition railway transport encouraged settlers to settle in the colonies acquired by their mother countries. It also encouraged migration of people to other places and enhanced colonisation. Railway transport encouraged urbanisation on railway junctions. It encouraged mining and farming as it opened up remote areas during the colonial rule in Africa.
Road transport has helped to link communities leading to rapid cultural interaction. Road transport has also enabled many countries to have effective administration through quick transportation of administrators and police to the areas they are needed.
Negative impact
Modern means of transport have encouraged pollution of environment. Trains and vehicles emit fumes while aeroplanes produce a lot of noise. When ships carrying oil or mercury wreck, they contaminate the ocean waters and cause destruction of marine life.
Modern means of transport have led to loss of life of many people due to accidents. Plane and vehicle hijacking has increased. There is piracy in seas and oceans. International terrorism has been encouraged through air transport. Modern transport has encouraged wars because ships, vehicles, trains and aeroplanes transport soldiers and weapons during wars.
Traditional forms of communication
The traditional forms of communication involve smoke signals, drum beats, messengers, horn blowing and written messages on scrolls and stone tablets. Communities used these forms of communication to make their members informed of what was happening and what was expected of them. The messages were sent quickly and easily over considerable distances.
The traditional forms of communication alerted people of impending dangers in times of war. For instance warriors used them in times of crisis to inform others of the approaching enemies. Lastly they enabled relatives who were living apart to keep in touch with each other.
Smoke signals
Fire was lit in the areas that were visible for example on hills. The smoke produced was used to convey certain information. The smoke signals reached people very fast. It was a convenient method because firewood was readily available and therefore making it easy to make fire.
The method was disadvantageous in the sense that smoke signals could not be sent at night because smoke could not be visible. Smoke signals could not be used during cloudy and foggy weather.
For the message to reach, people had to be on lookout. It was not possible to use this method to communicate with people who were blind. It was difficult to make fire during the rainy season on hilltops. Strong winds also hampered lighting of fire. Sometimes the receiver could wrongly interpret the message signalled. The message was also never recorded or stored for future reference. Confidential messages could not be transmitted without being revealed to people.
Many communities used drum beats as means of communication. People made special drums for communicating. The drums were made in such a way that they produced different sounds. Messages were conveyed through the sounds. The Buganda people used drums for communicating. The Ibos of Nigeria used talking drums to communicate matters concerning deaths and festivals. Sounds from drums were heard by people who were several kilometres away.
This method was advantageous because messages were sent quickly. Sending the messages was not tiresome. People knew the meaning of the sounds produced by the drums so communication was easy.
The method however had some disadvantages. The drums could not be heard by people who were separated by hills because of echoes. Sometimes people could interpret the sounds wrongly.
Drumbeats required specialists to send accurate sounds for accurate interpretations. Deaf people could not communicate using the method.
Messengers were people who were sent to deliver messages by word of mouth. They travelled on foot for some distances before they conveyed the messages to other messengers who also conveyed the messages to others. This continued until the message reached the recipient. These organised groups of messengers were known as runners. The messengers relayed the information and sometimes brought the feedback. They made people of a community to keep in touch with one another and to be aware of what was happening. Messengers informed rulers of the approaching enemies.
The disadvantages of this method were as follows:
The messengers sometimes gave wrong information in case they forgot the message. Sometimes the message could be distorted. Messengers were at times attacked by wild animals and killed. This resulted to the failure to deliver messages.
Sometimes messengers delayed the information in cases of sickness or an accident. Messengers delivered limited ranges of messages because of the problems of memory. The information relayed could not be easily kept confidential.
The relay method was tiresome because one had to run for considerable distances.
Horn blowing
Horn blowing was a method which was widely used among the African communities to send important messages. Sometimes horn blowing was used to call people for urgent meetings. It gathered warriors together in times of war. Special horns were blown to call hunters together especially among the Ameru people of Kenya.
Horns were also blown to alert people about important ceremonies such as circumcision among the Chuka people who are part of the Meru communities. Use of this method was advantageous in the sense that horn blowing could be used successfully at any time of both day and night except when it was raining heavily accompanied by thunderstorms because people could not hear.
Horns relayed specific messages and could be used in all seasons. They spread messages very fast without delay. Horns were obtained from domesticated animals such as cows and goats and from wild animals such as antelopes and gazelles.
The disadvantage of this method is that people who were specialised in blowing horns to produce meaningful sounds were required. Sometimes the messages could be wrongly interpreted if the horns were not accurately blown.
People who were deaf could not get the message. People could not use the method to communicate with others if they were separated from them by mountain ranges and hills. This is because the hills acted as a barrier and reflected the sound back.
Written messages on scrolls and stones tablets
A scroll was a roll of paper which was rolled round a piece of wood for writing on. Scrolls were used in Egypt, Greece, China and Japan.
Before the introduction of papers, the Egyptians used several sheets of papyrus to make a long sheet, which was known as a Scroll. They wrote messages on the scrolls. Part of the Old Testament Bible was written on scroll.
Stones were also shaped and messages written on them. These were called stone tablets. The Ten Commandments in the Bible were at first written on stone tablets. These stone tablets are sometimes called clay tablets. Writing was done on wet clay which later dried and left permanent marks. In Mesopotamia this type of writing was called cuneiform.
Developments in modern means of communication
The modern means of communication are Telephones, Televisions, Radios, Telegraphs, Electronic mails, Facsimile transreceivers, Telex, Pager, Internet as well as the print media which includes newspapers, magazines, journals and periodicals. All these send messages over long distances. They also keep people informed of what is happening and enable them to keep in touch with one another.
Telephone
The first telephone was invented in 1875 by Alexander Graham Bell. It enabled speech to be transmitted along wire. The following year it became possible to send the first telephone messages after Thomas Edison made improvements on the initial model.
At one end speech sound was converted into electric vibrations while at the other end the vibrations were converted into original speech. The telephone provides a very quick means of communication that enables the caller to get immediate feedback. Today, the telephone is competing stiffly with mobile phones.
Modern Telephone
The Cellphone
Cellphones are the so called mobile phones. They are manufactured by a number of companies and they use radio waves for transmitting messages.
Mobile phone service providers in Kenya such as Safaricom and Kencell companies have established transmitter-receivers which detect radio signals sent by cellphones. The transmitter-receivers then send the signals back to the phones.
Cellphones
Cellphones vary in sizes and they are convenient as means of communication. They can be used anywhere so long as there is the network.
The only disadvantages of cellphones is that they are easily stolen. Some phones have poor reception while others are very delicate and can get damaged easily. cellphones cannot be used in places where there are no sources of electrical power because their batteries require continuous charging. They are expensive to buy and also to maintain.
The invention of the cathode ray tube in USA enabled the development of the modern television to take place.
This enabled people to receive news through sound while seeing pictures on screen. The televisions also became educational and entertainment facilities. The first televisions showed black and white pictures. Later colour televisions were introduced.
Today televisions are important because they entertain people, provide educative programmes and provide local and international news. However, the televisions are expensive to buy and require power from electricity or batteries which are expensive to buy and maintain. It is only the middle and upper class people who can afford to purchase and maintain televisions.
Radio
The first wireless messages were sent in form of electromagnetic signals through frequencies by Guglielimo Marconi. The wireless telegraphy became popular and more experiments were carried out which led to the transmission of speech by radio waves.
During the First World War, more experiments were carried out. In 1920 the first radio broadcast was made in Britain by the Marconi Company. The same year the Westinghouse Company also begun sending out regular radio broadcasts in America.
The British Broadcasting Company (B.B.C) began its regular transmissions in 1922. The first BBC radio broadcast was transmitted in Kenya in 1928. Later during the Second World War English and Kiswahili programmes were introduced in Kenya. The radio transmitted local and foreign news.
Radio
Today the radio has become a very useful means of communication. It sends messages to distant places in the shortest possible time. The radio transmits educative programmes in form of Radio broadcast to schools as well as local and foreign news.
It also provides programmes to the general public, which give them awareness on HIV/AIDS, good morals, need for unity and how to become good law abiding citizens.
The radio serves a large number of people at the same time and it is cheaper to use than many other means of communication. It plays a big role in promoting trade through advertisement.
Lastly the radio entertains many people with songs and plays. This is possible because anybody can listen to the appropriate radio programme transmitted in a language he or she understands best.
Telegraph
Two scientists namely, Charles Wheatstone and William Coke invented the electric telegraph in 1837. The initial telephone wires were laid along railway lines in Britain inorder to alert railway officials about the movement of the locomotives.
Later an American scientist called Samuel Morse improved the telegraph communication by inventing one which never used needles but used a code of dots and dashes. This new device came to be known as Morse Code. It was used to send telegrams to many parts of the world. In Kenya the telegraph wires were laid down during the construction of the Kenya-Uganda railway.
Electronic Mail (E-mail)
Electronic mail sometimes called E-mail is a device which allows computer users locally and internationally to exchange messages. The E-mail allows distribution of messages (mails) to and from computers in a network. Each user of the E-mail has a mailbox address to which messages are sent. Messages sent through e-mail arrive within a very short period irrespective of the distance the sender is. Messages sent merely take seconds to reach.
The E-mail has some advantages when used as a means of communication:
Facsimile transreceivers (Fax)
This is a machine which enables transmission of written information like drawings, diagrams and maps in their exact form. Messages to be transmitted are fed into the machine which is connected by a telegraphic or telephone wire to a similar machine elsewhere which produces the message in photographic detail.
The sender makes first contact by telephone and then presses a button at the sending point. Both the sending machine and the receiving machine have drums with photographic papers. When the drums on both sides start to revolve, the facsimile copy is produced at the receiving end. The facsimile copy produced is exactly the same as the original copy at the sending end. It is transmitted in about half a minute.
Fax
This method of sending information is advantageous in that actual information is transmitted within a very short time.
One disadvantage is that it is more expensive to send messages using facsimile transreceiver compared with some other means of communication such as e-mail and telephone over short distances. However, the method is cheaper when used to transmit messages over long distances.
Telex uses a teleprinter which prints messages and send them to the other places instantly. Telex machines are switched on the whole day. The telex subscribers have numbers which must be typed and the exchange operator advises when the connection is made so as to start typing the messages.
When information is typed on a teleprinter, it is automatically typed and reproduced the same time by the machine at the receiving end in typescript. Today teleprinters are used all over the world to send urgent messages.
Pager
This is a device which enables the where about of a person to be located so that the person can be brought on telephone to hear a message and perhaps also reply to it immediately. It involves sending a signal that is received by a particular person who is alerted by the beeping of the pager.
It is common where people do not sit in offices but move from one place to another within a specified area. Its disadvantages are that it only receives a signal and one cannot send back the reply using the machine. It operates within a specified area where the signals can reach.
Internet
This is a computer network made up of thousands of networks world-wide. Millions of world computers are connected to the Internet and the number is still increasing at alarming rate.
There is no single individual, organisation or government which may claim ownership of the Internet. However, some organisations develop technical aspects of the Internet network and set standards for creating applications on it, but no single governing body is in control.
The backbone through which the Internet traffic flows is owned by private companies. All computers on the Internet communicate with one another using the transmission control protocol.
An Internet user has access to a wide variety of services which include shopping opportunities, real-time broadcasting, interactive collaboration, file transfer and electronic mail.
Users of Internet can search and find information of interest aided by special software and data stored in ready usable formats. This is called information browsing. Individuals are able to gain access to a wide range of information topics.
The Internet allows a person to use electronic mail and to transfer data in form of files across the Internet from one side to the other. The Internet also allows people to use other computers across the network. The use of computers is becoming popular in Kenya today. Many people and organisations are trying to connect their computers to the Internet so that they can interact with the rest of the world.
The impact of modern means of telecommunication
Print media
The print media includes communication through Newspapers, Magazines, Journals and Periodicals.
These are written messages containing local and foreign events. Before the introduction of regular newspapers, messages reached people through word of mouth and short letters posted to them or pinned on the notice boards for anyone to read.
The Germans were the first to introduce the newspaper system following the invention of the printing press by Johann Gutenberg in 1440. By the close of the 18th century almost all the countries in Europe except Britain had regular newspapers.
Britain however introduced the first newspaper entitled the Daily Courant in 1702. More and more publications followed in Britain after 1861 when printing of newspapers was legally allowed. Newspaper printing and circulation then spread to the rest of the world.
Newspapers are printed on daily or weekly basis. They contain news, advertisements and various articles on many fields.
In Kenya for example, we have daily newspapers such as the Daily Nation, The East African Standard, Kenya Times, The People, Taifa Leo, and weekly newspapers such as Sunday Nation, Sunday Standard and Taifa Weekly.
Magazines resemble newspapers except the fact that they are not published frequently. They may be published after a week, after a fortnight or after a month or even three months. Magazines cover articles, stories and announcements.
During the colonial rule Jomo Kenyatta was the editor of a magazine entitled, “Muigwithania”. Since independence, we have had magazines like the Kenya Gazette, Parents, Today, Weekly Review and Finance among others.
These are newspapers which deal with certain specialised subjects for instance they may deal with trade, medicine, education, science and specific topics in history. They are published at certain intervals.
We may therefore have titles such as ‘The Journal of African History’, The Medicine Journal and The Scientific Journal but each of them covering a specific area in a specified field.
These are magazines or other publications published at regular intervals for instance on weekly or monthly basis.
Disadvantages of print media
Review Questions
1 a) Define transport and communication.
2 a) Outline the impact of the invention of the wheel.
Students’ Activities
1 In groups discuss the problems of various means of transport and communication.
CHAPTER 3
Development of Industry
Industrialisation is the process of producing goods from raw materials. Before the Industrial Revolution of the 19th century, wood, wind and water were the major sources of energy in the world.
Before the 19th century wood was an important source of energy. Wood was used for cooking, boiling water and warming houses in winter. In the early 19th century, it was also used for making charcoal that was used for smelting iron. Wood was also used to heat water to prepare the steam power for driving steam engines and steam ships.
Energy from wind was used for pumping water from mines and wells. It was used to separate grains from husks (winnowing). Wind energy was used for driving ships and boats for instance the Arab dhows. Wind energy was also used to operate windmills used for grinding grains into flour. The balloons also used wind energy to fly.
Water provided energy for operating spinning and weaving machines. It operated water mills for grinding flour. Water also provided energy for operating water pumps. It was heated to produce steam power.
Uses of metals in Africa
Bronze is a mixture (alloy) of copper and tin. Bronze was used to make weapons such as daggers, arrowheads, swords, axes and spears. It was used to make tools which included chisels and hoes. It was used to make ornaments and utensils.
Bronze was also used to make containers, bronze sculptures and musical instruments such as flutes.
Lastly, bronze was used for making stones for constructing pyramids in Egypt and also for decorating king’s palaces.
Gold is an attractive metal that was used by rulers to decorate their palaces. It acted as a sign of wealth. The rulers of the Asante Kingdom in West Africa regarded gold as their sole property. Anyone who obtained a gold nugget had to hand it over to the king.
Gold was used to make golden ornaments and sculptures. It was an important commodity of trade among the people of the Mwene Mtapa Kingdom and the city-state of Kilwa that minted gold coins. Gold was also used to make knife handles, utensils and containers.
Copper was found in many parts of Africa such as Egypt, Zaire and Zambia. Copper was used to make ornaments such as bangles. It was used to make tools such as needles and to mint copper coins that acted as a sign of wealth and medium of exchange.
Copper utensils were also made from it. It was also used for decorating the kings’ palaces and for making brass and bronze alloys. Copper was used to make water pipes in Egypt. Lastly it was used for making weapons.
There were several early iron working centres in Africa such as Meroe, Nok, Taruga, Axum, Korotoro, Kwale and Kavirondo gulf. These early iron-working centres were famous for making a variety of iron tools such as hoes, knives and axes. In some places cattle bells and jingles for festivities were made.
Iron was widely used for making high quality weapons of the time such as daggers, swords, spearheads, arrowheads and stabbing knives.
Gold sculptures which represented people were made in West Africa in Nok and Taruga iron working sites. The Bantu are associated with the spread of iron working technology in Africa.
The spread of iron working technology had the following impact:
Uses of various sources of energy during the Industrial Revolution in Europe
Coal was the main source of energy in the 19th century. It heated water to very high temperatures to produce steam which drove water pumps for removing water in the coal mines. Coal was used to produce steam for driving steamships and the locomotives. It was also used for heating and lighting houses.
Today, coal is used for generating electricity and providing power for industries.
The use of petroleum became popular during the industrial revolution. At first oil was used to light lamps which were used in houses and streets.
When the first internal combustion engine which used petrol was invented by Gottlieb Daimler, petroleum began being used for driving motor vehicles. Petroleum was also used for lubricating machines in factories and for generating thermal – electricity. Petroleum was used as medicine by the Chinese and the Indians. Today petroleum products are used in industries to make drugs, synthetics, plastics and fertilisers.
It is expensive to mine. Once extracted and exhausted it cannot be renewed. Lastly it pollutes the environment.
Steam was produced by heating water to very high temperatures. When steam was produced it was used as follows:
Steam locomotive
There are two forms of electricity, Hydro-electricity and Thermal electricity. Hydro-electricity is produced by converting the energy of moving water to electrical energy. Thermal electricity is produced by burning oil or coal to provide heat which is used to produce steam which turn steam turbines and hence generate electricity.
The electrical power was used and is still used as follows:
The smelting of iron started very early when communities started separating it from rock. In the 18th and 19th centuries new iron smelting techniques were discovered. This came about because iron was very much in demand during the Industrial Revolution especially in the transport sector where it was used for making ships, trains, rails and bridges. Iron was also used to make textile machines, water pipes and ploughs.
In the mid 19th century, Henry Bessemer discovered the method of converting iron into steel. There after, steel replaced iron in the making of many equipment required in the transport industry. For instance rail bars, trains, ships and bridges were made by use of steel because it is stronger than iron. Later steel was used for reinforcing concrete during construction of permanent buildings.
Steel producing plant
Today steel has a wide range of uses for instance it is used in the motor vehicle industries, ship building industries, in the industries for making trains and also in the industries which make building materials such as iron sheets, roofing bars, nuts and bolts. Steel is therefore widely used to make many kinds of tools and machinery.
Britain was the first European nation to industrialise. During the first half of the 19th century, it was the leading industrialised nation in the world. It manufactured textiles and a variety of items made of iron.
Britain had rich coal mines which provided enough coal for industrial power. The surplus was exported. This made Britain to be the leading trading nation during the first half of the 19th century.
The other European countries and USA borrowed the industrial technology from Britain. By 1870s Britain ceased to be the world’s leading industrialised nation.
The last half of the 19th century was associated with many scientific inventions and discoveries which promoted industrialisation not only in Britain but also in other nations like USA, France and Germany. Britain became the first nation to industrialise because of the following factors which contributed to the development of industries:
The effects of the industrialisation in Britain in the 19th century
Industrialisation in continental Europe
It is necessary to note that industrialisation technology spread to other countries of Europe from Britain in the second half of the 19th century. Countries such as Germany, France and Belgium which had abundant deposits of coal, iron and steel as well as the supply of both skilled and unskilled labour became industrialised next.
To achieve this, industrial research was carried out. The discovery of the method of converting iron into steel by Henry Bessemer revolutionised the industrial sector. Electricity and petroleum were also discovered and they became important sources of energy for the industries.
The rapid industrialisation of continental Europe was characterised by the following:
The USA has led in industrialisation for a long period. Before it became industrialised the Americans were largely agricultural people. The Britons who migrated from Britain to America are the one who stimulated industrialisation in the USA.
Many factors however contributed to the success of the industrialisation in the USA. These factors are as follows:
Germany began being industrialised in the 19th century. By 1900 it was second to USA in industrialisation.
Several factors facilitated the industrial development in Germany. These were as follows:
Industrialisation of Japan began in the second half of the 19th century after the USA made treaties with Japan aimed at creating trade partnership. The introduction of compulsory primary and secondary education and the establishment of universities and other colleges followed this. Many students were sponsored abroad where they acquired education.
Japan was engaged in wars with China and Russia between 1894 and 1905. It also fought on one side with Britain, France and Russia during the First World War against Germany and her allies.
During the Second World War, Japan attacked the American naval base at Pearl Harbour in the Hawaiian Islands. The USA responded by bombing the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945. This act affected the economy of Japan but there was economic recovery and continued industrialisation in the later years.
Industrialisation in Japan was promote by the following factors:
The effects of industrialisation in Japan
People.
Industrialisation in the third world
Brazil
Industrialisation in Brazil began in the last quarter of the 19th century. The country’s industrial process later developed tremendously because of the following factors.
Industrialisation of Brazil has not been smooth A number of factors have undermined Brazilian effort to industrialise. These are:
Impact of the industrial growth in Brazil
South Africa
South Africa first started as an agricultural country but later there was the discovery of gold and diamonds that promoted the industrialisation of the country.
The industries which developed in South Africa, included textile industries, iron and steel industries, chemical industries, cement industries and locomotive industries among others.
The factors which contributed to the industrialisation of South Africa:
Factors that hindered industrialisation in South Africa
India
India was colonised by Britain and it supplied the colonial master with cotton. It attained independence in 1947 and since then it engaged itself in industrial development.
A number of factors enabled India to industrialise. These are:
|
Plastic buckets and shoes
Scientific revolution refers to the period when man made many inventions and discoveries as a result of his improvement in knowledge and the interest to find out new thing about the universe. The scientific inventions began before the birth of Christ. A number of scientific discoveries and inventions were made in agriculture, industry and medicine. These discoveries and inventions improved man’s conditions of living after he indetified various ways of solving his problems.
The early civilizations for example in Greece, India, Iraq, Egypt and China influenced the development of early science. The Greeks and the Egyptians were great mathematicians. The Greek mathematician called Pythagoras came up with the right-angled triangle. The Egyptians used mathematical skills to construct pyramids. They also came up with Geometry and used it in farms.
The Chinese also contributed to scientific knowledge in that they discovered the way of making silk cloth, gunpowder and paper.
The Indians introduced ‘Zero’ in mathematics and also use of the decimal points.
The Iraq people were in ancient times called the Sumerians or the Mesopotamians. Their scientific inventions were mainly in the fields of medicine, architecture, mathematics and astronomy. During ‘Renaissance’, scientific knowledge spread to many countries especially in Europe. This was followed by Agrarian Revolution and Industrial Revolution.
Individual scientists contributed a lot to the scientific inventions as from the 15th century. Some of these notable scientists were:
He learnt that the earth went round the sun within a period of one year. He also discovered that the earth rotated on its own axis.
He agreed with the theory of Copernicus that the earth and the remaining planets moved round the sun in one year after using a telescope to observe the universe.
He discovered the force of gravity and the spectrum.
He found that air is composed of hydrogen and oxygen elements.
He came up with the ‘Atomic Theory’ and also discovered colour blindness.
He discovered electricity. This enabled him to make a dynamo which gave out electricity.
He came up with electric lamp.
He formulated the evolution theory which stated that all living things developed from simple life forms to complex ones over millions of years.
He came up with the vaccine for small pox
He found that diseases and decay were caused by microbes. He introduced pasteurisation as a method of conserving liquid foods.
He invented the telephone.
He invented the steam locomotive.
They invented the first aeroplane.
He invented seed drill which was used to plant seeds in rows and a horse drawn hoe.
He found out that the quality of animals could be improved through cross breeding. Using the method, he came up with quality sheep.
He came up with a mechanical thresher.
He came up with the modern fertiliser industry. In his experiments, he found that plants obtain nitrogen phosphorus and salt from the soil.
He invented the reaper which could be used for harvesting.
He began a super phosphate factory for making fertiliser.
He invented the spinning jenny which prepared large amount of cotton threads.
He invented the power loom which facilitated weaving.
iii) Samuel Crompton
He invented the spinning mule. This machine produced high quality threads.
He invented the flying shuttle.
He made a cylindrical calico printing machine.
He invented the cotton gin which removed seeds from cotton fibre.
He discovered electricity and he made a dynamo for generating electricity.
He proved that lightning was a form of electricity.
iii) Otto Hahn and Stressman
They discovered nuclear energy.
He made the locomotive which was called ‘The Rocket’.
He invented the steam engine
He discovered he use of carbonic acid as an antiseptic to sterilise surgical apparatus. Then he developed an antiseptic spray for making the air clean during operations. He also discovered the use of carbonic acid for destroying microbes around the wound after an operation.
He discovered the use of chloroform sometimes refered to as carbonic acid during surgery.
He invented the first vaccine for controlling smallpox.
He discovered that certain bacteria caused certain disease. He discovered that heat could kill bacteria. He therefore discovered that food could be preserved through the method he called pasteurisation. This is heating food to a certain temperature and then making it maintain the same temperature for a specific period of time before it is cooled quickly. He also came up with cures for anthrax and rabies.
He found out that the anopheles mosquitoes carried parasites that caused malaria. He also discovered that proper drainage systems could prevent the breeding of mosquitoes and therefore reduce malaria infections.
He discovered the x-ray radiation which later enabled doctors to observe the internal organs of man and his bony framework..
He discovered penicillin, which was an antibiotic capable for curing coughs, pneumonia, sore throat and wounds.
He introduced the method of transplanting the heart of a death person to a body of a living patient with heart problem.
Factors influencing scientific inventions in Africa and other developing nations
1 a) Identify the early sources of energy.
of the developed countries?
Students’ Activities
CHAPTER 4
Urbanisation is the process of people’s migration from rural areas to live in towns or cities. It can also imply the establishment of towns or cities. It can also be defined as the concentration of people in settlements usually referred to as urban centres. An urban centre according to the United Nations is a settlement with a population of 20,000 people and above.
A modern town
Early urbanisation began in Africa before the birth of Christ. Early urban centres which declined such as Meroe and Aksum are suitable example of such towns.
Several factors led to the establishment of the early urban centres before the establishment of the colonial rule. These are:
Modern Cairo is situated at the delta of River Nile where some earlier settlements had been established about 2000 years ago. Egypt was invaded by the Fatimids who established a walled town. By mid 14th century Egypt had grown into a big city with many mosques and palaces. It served as an early religious centre.
The town had narrow streets, bazaars, shops and crowded living quarters. There was a market where people sold their produce.
The Ottoman Turks took control of Egypt in 1517 and remained under their control until 1798 when Napoleon Bonaparte of France captured it from the Turks. Three years later in 1801 the French were driven out of Cairo and it was thereafter made the capital of Egypt by the then ruler, Mohammed Ali.
During the reign of Ismaili, Egypt was first modernised. Later it expanded as more buildings reflecting the European style were constructed. Today it is the largest town in Egypt. It has a modern international airport and a railway network which links Cairo with the other towns. Cairo has many entertainment facilities and museums. It is an important religious centre.
Meroe is an ancient city in Africa that emerged in an iron working site North of modern Khartoum. The inhabitants of Meroe developed the style of building in brick and plaster during the first century BC. They white-washed the outer walls of palaces and also decorated them with glowing mural-paintings. The inner walls were also painted and decorated with ornaments.
Meroe started expanding when it was made the capital of Kush instead of the former capital, Napata because the people of Kush had learnt the knowledge of iron working from the Assyrians and they also traded with the Greeks by exporting ivory, slaves, animal skins, ostrich feathers, timber and gold which provided them with income to expand the town.
The city of Meroe declined during the first century AD mainly due to trade rivalry from the growing kingdom of Axum in Ethiopia. When Meroe began becoming weak, the King of Axum known as Ezana attacked Meroe, burnt it and took everything of value. Ezana destroyed their stores of corn and cotton and the statues in their temples. This marked the decline of the great city of Meroe.
Kilwa
The origin of Kilwa is associated with the Persian immigrants who established settlements on the Indian Ocean coast. At the beginning of the 13th century Kilwa began expanding due to wealth obtained from the gold trade. From the end of the 13th century, it was the most important trading town on the East Coast of Africa.
It controlled the coastal settlement in the North as far as Pemba Island. Kilwa was a walled town which minted its own coins. It controlled the gold trade with Sofala and Zimbabwe. The inhabitants were mainly Muslims.
The town of Kilwa had beautiful buildings such as the Great Mosque and the large palace known as Husuni Kubwa. The town began declining first in the second hand of the 14th century. The fine buildings were ruined. Between 1420 and 1440 the mosque was renovated. The town of Kilwa lost its glory and prosperity and declined completely almost at the close of the 15th century because of the following reasons:
Early urbanisation in Europe
London
London is the capital city of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. It is in the continent of Europe. The city is situated in South East England.
The town of London originated before the first century AD. When the Romans occupied Britain in the 1st century AD, London was already a town of considerable importance.
The Romans expanded the town and made it an important religious centre. They also established Christianity which became the dominant religion in England.
London continued to expand even after it was burnt in the first century AD. When the Romans left England, London had already been established with a large population.
The withdrawal of the Romans did not affect the growth of London because what they did in Britain perished after they left.
In the 9th century, King Alfred made London the capital of his kingdom. Later King William I established himself in England and developed the town of London. He built the Tower of London and also rebuilt the London bridge. Initially it was built of wood but he rebuilt it using stone.
Throughout the Middle Ages the growth of London was slow as a result of wars, epidemics and commercial crisis.
When Queen Elizabeth I opened the Royal exchange in 1566 AD, the city of London grew into an important city of the world. By 1580 AD Queen Elizabeth I issued a proclamation which prohibited construction of any new buildings within a radius of about 4 kilometres outside the city gates.
In 1665 AD London was affected by plague. The following year a great fire burnt the city.
In 1667 the rebuilding act was enacted. It stipulated that all buildings be of stone and brick. In the 1760s the walls and gates of old medieval city of London were demolished. During the 19th century, London was modernised through the construction of many suburbs, rebuilding of bridges and through lighting of city streets. By the close of the century, London had grown into a beautiful city served by a well developed networked of transport and communication.
During the First World War, London became the German target. London was heavily bombed. The Tower of London and the British Museum were destroyed. Many other buildings were also damaged.
After the war, the British government reconstructed the war damage. Many tall storey buildings were constructed such as the Museum Radio Tower of the General Post Office building. This was followed by construction of shops, residential houses, school, hotels and cultural centres.
The city of London got most of its water from river Thames. There were several city markets which provided people with food, meat, fruits and flowers. Today the city of London is under the control of the local government headed by mayors.
Several factors contributed to the growth of the city of London. These were:
Modern international airports such as Heathrow airport were also established. London was connected to the rest of the world with telegraphs, telephones and radio transmissions.
The success of their businesses made them wealthy and they settled permanently. As this process continued, the town also continued to expand.
The growth and prosperity of Athens is based on trade and commerce. The land surrounding Athens was rocky. It could not support a large population. The people of Athens depended mainly on imported food that they exchanged with olive oil, wine and wool.
Athens was a famous centre of learning. The city state provided education in such fields as philosophy, architecture, drama, science and medicine. The democracy that is enjoyed in the world today originated in Athens where it was actually practised.
Athens was surrounded by a protective wall for security purposes because of constant wars with the other city states. The town itself looked clumsy. The streets were merely narrow earth roads that became dusty during the dry spell and muddy during the rainy season.
Some houses were made of unbaked brick while others were made of mud. A few beautiful and well-built buildings such as Parthenon temple and the temple of Athena Nike existed.
There was a market place in the centre of the town which also acted as a meeting place for people and also the place where people assembled for debates. On top of the high cliff was the Acropolis (Fortress) which provided protection for the village below.
The biggest problem of Athens was that it had inadequate sanitary facilities for disposing human waste and refuse. Due to this the town was exposed to very bad smell from rotting garbage.
Athens weakened and lost its glory between 430 BC and 335 BC due to the following reasons:
There are many urban centres in Africa that began when the Europeans acquired colonies and settled there. Such towns never existed in Africa before the coming of the Europeans.
Some of them began as administrative centres for the colonial authority. Some emerged as mining towns, others as commercial centres some as agricultural centres or farming centres while others began as industrial centres.
The Europeans at first settled in those places and established administrative and commercial buildings. The emerging settlements attracted rural people who also migrated there to look for employment, start business and seek for other fortunes. Examples of the modern urban centres in Africa are Nairobi and Johannesburg.
Nairobi began in 1899 during the construction of the Uganda railway. It first started as a depot for storing the railway equipment before approaching the steep rift valley escarpment.
The place looked suitable for a depot and for resting because of its mild climate that was preferable by Europeans. There was also the Nairobi River which provided water to the railway builders. The site was somehow flat for construction compared to the land ahead of them before they reached the Rift Valley. At the same time Nairobi was the midpoint between Mombasa and Lake Victoria.
In 1907 the Imperial British East Africa (IBEA) company transferred its capital from Mombasa to Nairobi. During the colonial period the Europeans and Asians dominated the town.
Migration of Africans to Nairobi was restricted but quite a number went there to work as labourers.
The town was associated with racial discrimination in employment, commerce and housing.
Today Nairobi lies at the heart of Kenya’s rail and road network. It has a modern international airport known as Kenyatta International Airport. It has several other small airports such as Eastleigh, Embakasi and Wilson airports.
Nairobi is the seat of the government and the commercial centre of Kenya. Nairobi is also industrial, cultural, educational, communication and transport centre.
It has modern buildings that are used as offices, hotels and shopping centres. The city attracts Kenyan citizens from all parts of the country and also foreigners who include tourists from many countries of the world. However, Nairobi City is facing a number of problems as below:
Johannesburg is a city of the Republic of South Africa, in Transvaal province.
The discovery of minerals during the second half of the 19th century was largely responsible for the emergence of a number of towns in South Africa.
|
Johannesburg mushroomed after large gold deposits were discovered in Witwatersrand in September 1886. This was followed by a gold rush. At first Johannesburg began with a very small population. Within a very short time people flocked to Johannesburg on the Witwatersrand in great numbers from Britain, America, Australia and other countries of Europe.
At first the early settlements were mere shanties made of galvanised iron. These shanties were the basis of a miraculous growth of the city of Johannesburg. Within a decade, the town had a population of about 100,000 people.
Other factors that contributed to the growth of Johannesburg are:
Today, Johannesburg is the largest city of the Republic of South Africa and the industrial and commercial centre. It is the centre of the country’s gold mining industries and the site of the Johannesburg stock exchange.
It is a strategic rail, road and air hub with an international airport. It is a mining as well as an industrial centre whose industries include manufacture of mining and railway equipment, automobile parts, chemicals, textiles, electrical and communication equipment.
Johannesburg is a cultural and educational centre of South Africa. It has a number of museums, theatres, a symphony, orchestra and an opera company. It has schools and universities.
Review Questions
1 a) What is urbanisation?
Students’ Activities
CHAPTER 5
SOCIAL, ECONOMIC AND POLITICAL ORGANISATION OF AFRICAN SOCIETIES IN THE 19TH CENTURY
Buganda
The Buganda Kingdom was one of the Kingdoms in Uganda. During the 19th century Buganda expanded to become the largest and most powerful kingdoms in Uganda. Several factors brought about the rise of Buganda. These were:
Buganda at its peak in the 19th Century
Social organisation of Buganda
The social organisation of the Baganda was based on clans made up of members of several related families.
There were also social classes with members of the loyal family on top followed by local chief and then below were the commoners followed by slaves.
The Kabaka existed who played social roles such as presiding on various ceremonies and rituals, being the chief priest and therefore being in charge of all religious activities.
The Kabaka’s power was symbolised by his loyal regalia that included the royal drums, the stools and the spears.
The Baganda worshipped a god entitled Katonda. They believed in the spirits of the dead ancestors. They thought that the death affected the affairs of the living people.
They had a traditional religion they called Lubaale. They consulted the spirits of the dead through prophets. The mediums who consulted the spirits were usually given gifts. The Baganda had medicinemen and sorcerers.
They conducted marriage and initiation ceremonies. During the reign of Kabaka Mwanga, same people of Buganda were converted to Christianity while others were converted to Islam. After the arrival of many Christian Missionaries, Christianity took the dominance that was followed by rivalry between various religious groups.
Buganda Kingdom was located on the northern shores of Lake Victoria. The Kingdom’s geographical location, the nature of its environment and climate influenced the economic activities of the Baganda.
The Baganda were mainly cultivators. They grew bananas, millet and sorghum. Bananas (matoke) were the staple food of the Baganda. The high rainfall and fertile soils enabled them to cultivate. The Baganda kept livestock such as cattle, sheep, goats and chickens. They also conducted raids and captured slaves and cattle from the neighbouring weaker communities such as Bunyoro and Busoga.
The Baganda benefited by fishing due to their proximity to Lake Victoria that had a lot of fish. This supplemented their diet. The Baganda like many other Bantu communities in Uganda had acquired the skills of iron working from the Abachwezi. They conducted raids that exposed them to the iron-bearing field in the neighbouring lands. The iron obtained was used for making iron hoes, spear heads, arrowheads and a variety of other tools.
The Baganda also manufactured bark-cloth, weaved and built canoes for use in Lake Victoria for fishing and for the navy that was used to conquer people living in the islands of Lake Victoria such as the people of Sese Island.
Some of the Baganda hunted animals such as buffaloes and antelopes for meat. They also gathered fruits and roots that they used as food. The Baganda conducted local trade which involved exchange of goods within themselves or with their immediate neighbours. For example trade in salt existed with people around Lake Victoria.
The Baganda engaged themselves in the long distance trade mainly in the 19th century after the Arab and Swahili merchants from the coast penetrated into kingdom. This trade expanded rapidly during the era of Kabaka Mtesa I. Slaves and ivory were the main commodities the Arab and Swahili traders demanded. They in turn brought ammunitions, cloth, beads and swords that were demanded by the Baganda.
Baganda is believed to have originally been a section of the Chwezi State. It is not known clearly whether it is Kintu or Kimera who established the early kingdom of Buganda.
What is clear is that Buganda was a centralised kingdom controlled by a ruler entitled Kabaka whose authority in those early days was limited by the power of the clan heads each entitled Bataka.
In the later years, the Kabakas assumed a lot of power because they played the following roles:
The Kabaka was assisted to administer the kingdom by a Prime Minister entitled Katikiro.
In the Kabakas court, their existed the Chief Justice entitled Omulamuzi and the treasurer entitled Omuwanika, all appointed by the Kabaka. Together with the Katikiro, they formed the Kabakas advisory body.
There existed a legislature assembly called Lukiko, which acted like the modern day parliament. It discussed important issues affecting Buganda kingdom such as issues pertaining to external attacks, relations with foreigners, trade regulations and the ways to deal with the citizens.
The kingdom was split into counties each called Saza. Each county was headed by a Saza chief.
Counties were further split into sub-counties each entitled Gombolola. Each Gombolola was under the leadership of a Gombolola chief whose duty was to collect the taxes and remit to Kabaka as well to maintain law and order in his area of Jurisdiction.
Each Gombolola was further split into a small division called Miluka headed by Miluka chief.
Buganda had a strong standing army and navy. The army defended the kingdom while the navy controlled Buganda’s possessions in Lake Victoria such as Sese Island.
Leadership among the Baganda was hereditary (passed from father to son) at first but later the Kabaka could appoint a minor chief from the citizens who was royal to him.
The Kabaka strengthened the loyalty bestowed on him by all the people in the kingdom by marrying from all popular clans and accepting sons of popular people from various families to come and work in his court.
Shona
The Shona settled in central Africa south of River Zambezi in the present day Zimbabwe. It is believed that they migrated to the region from the Congo basin and they are related to the Kalanga.
Social organisation of the Shona
The Shona worshipped a god who was believed to be all-powerful. They called their god Mwari. The Shona had priest who presided over religious functions for instance during the time of offering sacrifices to the supreme being.
The priests also conducted rituals to appease their gods. The Rozwi clan provided the shona community with priests. Worship was conducted in shrines.
The shona believed in the existence of the ancestral spirits they referred to as clan spirit, Mhondoro, and the family spirits, Vadzimu. The spirits communicated through intermediaries referred to as Svikiro. The Shona communicated with the spirits through mediums.
They conducted a number of ceremonies and festivals. The shona were socially organised into families, several of which made a clan. The clan elders were highly respected. Polygamy was a very common practice among the Shona. It was common to find men with very many wives. This was one way of ensuring that the community had enough warriors and was provided with sufficient labour force.
The Economic Organisation of the Shona
The Shona grew a variety of subsistence crops such as beans, millets and vegetables. They also kept livestock such as cattle, sheep and goats, which provided them with milk and meat.
The Shona made iron tools such as spears, hoes and knives. They also weaved and made back cloth.
The Shona supplied the people of Sofala with gold. In return the Shona obtained cloth, glassware, and firearms obtained from the Portuguese.
The political Organisation of the Shona
An emperor who was the head of state and government controlled the Shona kingdom. When the emperor died, his son took over leadership. This implies that leadership among the Shona was hereditary.
The emperor administered the empire with the assistance of his immediate relatives and leading officials. These were queen’s mother, his principal wives, his sister, the head drummer, the chancellor, the supreme cook, the chief door keeper and the commander of his army.
The emperor was the overall military leader and for this reason he acted as the commander in chief of the standing army which not only defended the kingdom but also tried to conquer other neighbouring communities in order to expand it.
The Shona kingdom was divided into smaller divisions that were under the control of lesser kings who were answerable to the emperor.
The lesser kings ensured that trade was promoted. The emperor was the sole controller of the entire trade. The profit from trade maintained the army and also sustained the kingdom. Vassal states were made to pay tribute to the emperor.
The Shona priest played political roles in that they acted as the emperor’s spies. The priests also linked the people with the emperor. In so doing religion was used to create political unity among the Shona.
Asante (Ashanti)
The Asante is one of the Akan or Twi speaking peoples of the present day Ghana. The Asante kingdom is believed to have been established as a result of a number of states which united together and settled at a place called Asantemanso.
From Asantemanso they dispersed in clans and family groups to new settlements such as Bekwai, Tafo, Nsuta, Mampong, Amakom and Kwaman. Later in the 17th century these settlements united under the leadership of the Oyoko clan.
All the Asante states were established surrounding modern Kumasi in an area referred to as Kwaman forest. By the middle of the 18th century, the Asante had become a very large empire as a result of the efforts of Osei Tutu who introduced the golden stool, which became the symbol of Asante union. The Asante rulers were entitled Asantehene.
Factors that led to the rise and expansion of the Asante kingdom
We have already seen that the Asante kingdom rose from a number of clans and families who migrated and then settled together at Asantemanso. Those settlements later united into states.
The rise of the kingdom was therefore as a result of the unity of those states. The Asante emerged and expanded into a mighty kingdom because of the following reasons:
In the early beginning the Asante lived in separate clans and family groups. When the family and groups migrated from Asantemanso, they went to places where they lived in settlements. At first the settlements were not united but later they joined together into states.
An Akwamu priest named Okomfo Anokye together with Osei Tutu introduced the golden stool as a symbol of unity, which had religious symbolism. It united all the states not only politically but also socially.
The Asante introduced the national festival called Odwira that united the whole of Asante by making state rulers to be royal to the Asantehene. The Asante were polytheistic. They worshipped gods and goddesses. The Asantehene played both political and religious roles. He acted like a religious leader and presided over religious ceremonies.
The Asante people worshipped their gods through their ancestors. The ancestors acted as intermediaries between gods and the people. The Asante people sacrificed to their gods. They believed in life after death and in punishment of wrong doers and reward for those who did well.
By the first half of the 19th century, the Asante had embraced Islam. The Asante Muslim converts therefore adopted Islamic culture and law (sharia). This became the beginning of the Islamic influence in Asante.
Economic organisation of Asante
The Asante lived in the forest region in the west of River Volta. The land they occupied received heavy rainfall which enabled them to grow crops such as vegetables, kolanuts and grains.
The Asante also kept few livestock. They hunted and gathered fruits and red kolanuts from Kwaman forest for sale. The Asante also participated in the local trade. They traded with the Ga and the people of Benin.
They exchanged commodities such as salt, cloth and fish. Later they traded with the Europeans who had settled along the West African coast in settlements such as Accra, Anomabo, Cape Coast, Winneba and Elmina. The Asante traders gave Europeans ivory, slaves, gold and colanuts in exchange for firearms, cloth and ironware.
The Asante mined gold in the Kwaman forest and practised iron working. They used iron to manufacture tools, bangles, hoes and arrowheads. They practised traditional crafts such as cloth making, basketry, pottery and sculpture making. The Asante hunted elephants to obtain ivory. They also gathered fruits and edible roots.
The Asante Empire was centralised and divided into three parts. The first part was the metropolitan or Nucleus State that consisted of the Kumasi State that was directly under the Asantehehe.
The second part was the Amatoo or the states within a radius of about 30 to 40 miles of modern Kumasi. These states were outside Kumasi and they recognised the Golden stool as the symbol of unity of the Asante. Some of them were Dwaben, Adansi, Bekwai, Nsuta, Mampon and Kokofu.
The third part was the conquered states or provincial Asante states that consisted of all the outer circle of states which had earlier been conquered and controlled by the Asante. Examples of them are Akwamu, Akyem, Twifu, Wassa, Denkyira, Sefwi, Akwapem, Assin, Gonja, Dagomba, Gyaman and Takyiman.
Gonja Dagomba
Takyiman
Kumasi
Sefwi Akwamu
Denkyira
Asante Kingdom in the 19th century
The Asante kingdom was ruled by kings entitled Asantehene. The Asantehene was the supreme ruler of the kingdom. He had direct control over Kumasi State. The Asantehene was the conmmander in – chief of the army. He presided over political and religious festivals and he acted as the final court of appeal because he was the supreme judge. Leadership among the Asante was hereditary.
The Asantehene ruled with the advice of the state rulers who formed the union of rulers. The conquered states were administered by their kings but they were regarded as the provinces of the Asante kingdom .A representative who was an appointee of the Asantehene was posted in each province where he acted as the eyes and ears of the Asantehene. He also levied taxes, supervised trade and mining of gold nuggets.
Each Asante State was under the rule of Omanhene who took the oath of allegiance to demonstrate loyalty to the Asantehene. The Omanhene represented the Asantehene in the provinces but they were required to pay tribute to the Asantehene and also to provide soldiers in times of conflicts.
The Asante states were all bound together by the golden stool which was the symbol of unity of the Asante. This stool was preserved in the capital, Kumasi. Every state ruler was presented with a symbolic black stool to signify unity of the provinces.
There was a national festival organised particularly for state rulers to pay allegiance to the Asantehene. This festival was known as Odwira festival.
The Asante had a strong standing army consisting of an infantry and a calvary wing. The Asante army was divided into four segments which included the left wing, the right wing the van and the rear. Every king of a state was given a position within the wings. This position was taken by the army he controlled in his state a thing which made him remain powerful.
At its peak, the Asante kingdom consisted of the area surrounding Kumasi which was directly under the Asantehene, the states outside Kumasi which were part of the original Asante union and lay about 90 kilometre radius of present day Kumasi and the vassal or conquered states.
The Asante government finally collapsed due to the following reasons:
Empire.
Students’ Activities
CHAPTER 6
A constitution is a set of fundamental principals and laws established to govern and regulate the behaviour of citizens of a particular state as they relate to each other in their daily activities as well as regulating the conduct of the people who are entrusted with the responsibility of managing the affairs of the state.
A constitution therefore clarifies the duties and rights of the citizens as well as the duties, rights and responsibilities of the rulers.
The constitution regulates the powers of government by controlling the way it behaves as it manages the country’s affairs. The constitution also regulates the relationship between the government and the citizens of the state.
A country’s constitution has the following functions:
There are various kinds of constitutions in the world. Some of them are democratic constitutions, others are undemocratic constitutions. There are also unitary or federal constitutions. We also have two other types of constitutions. These are written constitutions and unwritten constitutions.
A written constitution is the one in which the basic principles and laws are written down and are therefore available in a formal document. Examples of the countries with written constitutions are Kenya, USA and France.
The following are the characteristics of a written constitution:
The following are the advantages of a written constitution:
An unwritten constitution is one which does not exist in a single formal official document. Britain is an example of a country with unwritten constitution. The sources of the British constitution are the Act of Parliament, British conventions, the Hansard, Legal publications by reputable authorities, decisions made by the British law courts from time to time and Royal prerogatives of the King or Queen to declare war or make treaties of peace.
The first constitution in Kenya was established during the British colonial rule. This may be referred to as the colonial constitution. The colonial constitution discriminated against the Africans while it favoured the whites.
As the Africans continued to be aware of their rights they appealed to the colonial government to grant them their rights. Due to political pressure from the Africans, the colonial government unwillingly tried to change the constitution.
In 1960 and 1962, constitutional conferences were held in London. African representatives attended. The Lancaster House conference held in London in 1962 concluded the constitution for independent Kenya. The date for independence was also set. The constitution made is the one we are calling the independence constitution.
The conference was attended by representatives of the African political parties such as Kenya African National Union (KANU), Kenya African Democratic Union (KADU) and African People’s Party (APP). KANU and KADU differed in the structure of government they wanted.
KANU preferred a strong unitary constitution while KADU wanted a majimbo or Federal constitution. KADU was in favour of majimbo constitution because it feared that smaller communities would be dominated by large ones such as the Luo and the Kikuyu. KANU believed that a unitary government would protect the interests of the smaller communities.
The outcome of the 1962 conference was a federal form of constitution. This was followed by the formation of a coalition government between KANU and KADU.
Provisions of the independence constitution
The independence constitution provided a regional (majimbo) government. The country (Kenya) was therefore split into six regions each with its own regional government and assembly with full legislative powers.
There was a central government consisting of two chamber national assembly namely the senate and the House of Representatives. The central government was headed by a Prime Minister from the party with majority seats. Nairobi was the headquarters of the central government.
The Queen remained as the head of state. She was represented by the Governor General whose duties were to approve legislation, to ensure there was internal security, to deal with all foreign affairs and to give assent to bills to become laws.
The independent constitution recommended a multi-party system of government. The party with the majority was to form the government. It recommended a Bill of Rights whose role was to protect the fundamental interests of the individuals.
It also recommended formation of a Central Land Board for dealing with all issues concerning land and an independent public Service Commission for appointing, disciplining and firing civil servants.
The independence constitution recommended the setting up of an independent electoral commission for setting constitutional boundaries and conducting elections.
An electoral commission was established. It was made up of the speakers of both the House of Representatives and the Senate, nominated representatives of each region and a nominated representative of the Prime Minister.
The independence constitution provided an independent judiciary that showed complete impartiality when judging cases. No one was allowed to influence the decisions of judges and they enjoyed security of tenure.
Lastly, the independence constitution organised for the protection of the minority rights. This was mainly to ensure that the European and Asian minorities were protected and their properties were safeguarded.
The Kenya Constitution
Kenya is governed by a democratic constitution. A democratic constitution recognises and protects human rights for instance the right to acquire and own property, right to life and the rights safeguarding the individual’s freedom of expression, association, conscience, movement and assembly. It also recognises the freedom of worship, belief and opinion.
The Kenya constitution ensures that people have full and equal enjoyment of all rights and freedoms.
It also ensures that all people are equal before the law. An individual has right to equal protection and equal benefit of the law. He has the right to a fair trial. According to the Kenya constitution, no person may be required to perform forced labour or be held in slavery.
Constitution making can take place in a number of ways as follows:
Constitutions are therefore made through established procedures that are agreed upon by the majority. In Kenya the constitutional making process is as follows:
People are then requested to give their views on various aspects of the constitution. A commission is set to visit all the constituencies in Kenya to listen and record the views of the public.
All the views obtained from the constituencies of Kenya are compiled together. The wishes of the majority are isolated and used to prepare a draft constitution which is forwarded for further discussion.
Some of the recommendations may be rejected. Other recommendations are accepted while some are amended. The National Constitution conference members may reject some recommendations and replace them with their own.
Due to the wishes and ambitions of the people since Kenya attained independence, the country has developed a democratic constitution based on the principles of separation of powers between the Judiciary, the Legislature and the Executive. This is aimed at reducing conflicts between the three arms of government. The arms of government are therefore required to work independently without excessive interference from each other.
Kenya is established on the principles of the supremacy of the constitution and the rule of law. It is governed in accordance with the constitution that acts as the supreme law that binds all authorities and individuals throughout the country.
However, the rule of the law emphasises on handling all legal matters in accordance with the Kenyan laws. Every individual suspects is supposed to be given an opportunity for self-defence before a competent court of law after being arrested. The prosecution is supposed to prove the defendant guilty within a specific period and until the victim is proved guilty beyond reasonable doubt, he should be presumed innocent.
The Kenya constitution accommodates this distinctive characteristic in order to preserve the dignity of individuals and communities, to promote the realisations of the potential of all the people and also to promote social justice. The rights and freedom of the individuals are contained in the Bill of Rights.
It is unlawful to establish a system of government that is contrary to the constitution.
Kenya attained internal self-government on 1st June 1963. The constitution which the country adopted in 1963 was the independence constitution.
The Kenya electoral commission commissioners were increased while certain oppressive laws were either amended or repealed. Such laws were:
Review Questions
CHAPTER 7
Democracy is a Greek term derived from the Greek words demos, which means people and Kratia signifies power or rule.
The word democracy may mean people’s rule. It may also imply a system of government where the people of a country take part in decision making through elected representatives. Abraham Lincoln defined democracy as ‘a government of the people, for the people and by the people.’
His definition is very popular and easy to comprehend. Any country with a true democratic system of government allows the people to enjoy the rights and freedoms such as rights to life, right to liberty and freedom of speech, freedom of political opinion and freedom of religion. It handles legal matters in accordance with the law. All people in the country are regarded as equal before the law irrespective of their status, race or religion.
In a democratic country, people’s opinions are taken very seriously because the government has to live to people’s expectations. A country which does not honour the opinions of the people (public opinion) becomes unpopular and it is disowned by the majority who later vote it out of power.
From the above explanation we may summarise the main features of democracy as below:
The two common types of democracy are:
A direct democracy is one which people in a country are allowed to participate directly in all decision making. It is sometimes called pure democracy. This kind of decision making was very common among the Bushmen of South Africa and the people of the Greek city states.
Unfortunately direct democracy cannot work in countries with large populations because all the people cannot be consulted before decisions are made. It therefore succeeds in countries or communities with very few people where the opinion of every person is considered to be very useful before final decisions on various issues are made. What is agreed upon by all is accepted by all of them without any question.
Direct democracy principles have been applied in Kenya in the attempt to allow people to exercise their democratic rights. Kenyans for example have been consulted to give their opinion concerning the constitutional review.
Incase some issues are not agreed upon by members of the constitutional conference, a referendum has to be used so as to act according to the will of the people.
This is sometimes referred to as representative democracy.
In this case, people do not participate directly in decision making. They normally use their representatives. The people by way of voting elect the representatives and they specifically express people’s feelings on public issues. Indirect democracy is practical in large modern states because there are huge in size and population.
The disadvantages of this method are that the people who are elected can easily ignore the people who elected them. They can also fail to consult the electorate in order to be able to air their views in the parliament.
There are two types of representative democracy. These are:
Parliamentary democracy
Here people cast votes to elect their representatives. Those who are elected choose one person to take leadership as Prime Minister.
The one who is chosen appoints the other ministers from among the members of parliament. Those appointed forms the cabinet. The Prime Minister can be forced to resign if the other legislators cast a vote of no confidence on him. If this is done, another Prime Minister is elected to form the government.
Presidential Democracy
Here the President and other members of Parliament are elected directly by the electorate. They then form a government that lasts for a specified period of time. In the Kenyan case, it is 5 years. Non of the two arms of the government, executive and legislature has full control over the other in this type of democracy. They only act as checks and balances therefore ensuring that non of them tries to overshadow the other.
Democratic principles are the moral professional standards that are necessary in a democracy.
They play the role of showing whether a country is democratic or not. The principles of democracy are found in the Bill of Rights that is the framework for the adoption of social, economic and cultural policies.
The principles of democracy are:
This implies that there must be equality before the law. All people in a country are subject to the same law. People must obey the law. Those who violate the established laws are prosecuted and punished if found guilty. The law should apply to all people equally without any discrimination on the basis of gender, race, ethnicity, religion, political affiliation, colour, disability, social status and other physical or social characteristics.
In a democratic country, people should participate in the governing of their country. They should be involved in the decision-making processes.
A person can participate in government by getting involved in voting to elect the most responsible representative of the people in the country’s parliament. A person can also contest for a parliamentary or civic post.
One can be a member of a non-governmental organisation or association that is free to hold discussions on matters affecting the country e.g. Maendeleo ya Wanawake. Such an organisation can help to control the activities of the government inorder to prevent it from abusing its powers.
Democratic governments allow their citizens to have freedom of action, choice and decision when dealing with issues pertaining to their economic status. This may be achieved through allowing privatisation of business partners, and market for selling one’s goods. All this gives individuals lawful authority to genuinely attain and control their own wealth.
Human rights should be respected and protected because they are essential aspects of democracy which promote the respect for human life and dignity. Human rights are recognised and protected to preserve the dignity of individuals and communities and to promote social justice and the realisation of the potential of all human beings.
Elections should be held every time after an agreed period of time. In Kenya elections are held after every five years. Elections should not involve some unfair practices such as corruption, intimidation and rigging.
In a democratic country, the opinions of political opponents should never be dismissed.
The opinions of political opponents should help those in control to streamline or even adjust their actions.
Every democratic country should have a Bill of Rights, which contain the rights and freedoms of all the citizens and the limitations of these rights and freedoms.
There should be no discrimination based on colour, race, gender, political position or ethnic group.
All people should be regarded as equal before the law and therefore be provided with equal opportunities and privileges.
Any country which claims to be democratic must operate in such a way that the citizens are aware of what the government is doing and what it is intending to do. There should be high degree of openness on the side of the government. The government should listen to and respect the views of its citizens and otherwise act accordingly.
Transparency and accountability may be achieved through constant meetings of the authorities with the people and through advertisements done through the mass media and print media.
NB: The process of building a democracy is referred to as democratisation. The agents of democratisation are interest groups, political parties, civil society, the mass media and state institutions such as Judiciary, Parliament, the civil service and other state sponsored bodies such as human rights commission and anti-corruption authorities
Human rights
Human rights can be defined as set of basic rules of justice to which each human being is entitled. They can also be defined as things that any individual is allowed to do or have by the law. One is legally allowed to do or have those things irrespective of race, religion, political opinion, creed, sex, language, place of origin, age, one’s tribe, colour or other local connections.
In Kenya, every person is guaranteed freedom of speech, religion, association and movement. He or she is also guaranteed the right to life, right to own property and right to personal liberty. Governments do not give these rights. They are the rights needed to live a human life.
As one enjoys these fundamental rights, he or she should follow the law. He or she should not interfere with other people’s rights or with the functioning of the government or the whole society’s enjoyment of rights. The rights of the individuals are contained in chapter five of the constitution. The functions of Human Rights are:
Features of human rights
The main features of human rights are:
Violation of human rights
In order to ensure that human rights are not violated, the government of Kenya set up a standing committee on human rights aimed at providing citizens with a way they can report abuses of human rights. The role of this committee is to receive complaints on human rights abuses from the public. It then makes reports and suggestions to the government on the action to be taken against those who violate the rights. The Kenyan Human Rights Commission also draws attention to human rights abuses.
Other groups that observe and report issues on the abuse of human rights are religious groups, police, newspaper journalists, judges, educators, lawyers, trade unionists and the civil society organisations.
The Bill of Rights
The Bill of Rights is a statement of human or civil rights in a constitution. It explains and guarantees the rights of the individuals. It also clarifies the circumstances which may force the government to deny an individual his rights and freedoms.
The Bill of rights in the Kenya constitution is derived from the International Bill of Rights that is found in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
Some of the provisions of the International Bill of rights are:
The Bill of Rights was included in the constitution of many democratic states that include Kenya. However the Bill of Rights in Kenya had a number of limitations in connection to the constitution in use from independent up to 2003. These are:
The UN charter on human rights
The United Nations Organisation (UNO) sometimes referred to as UN was established after the Second World War to promote international co-operation by encouraging the respect for human rights and freedoms.
The Charter of the UN was signed on 26th June 1945 and came into force on 24th October 1945. It provided the constitutional basis for establishing international peace and security.
The need to have international peace and security arose as a result of people’s concern due to the damages caused by the first world war and the second world war. During these two world wars, many people were killed and property worth millions of shillings destroyed.
To prevent such damages occurring again, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was written.
The Declaration of Human Rights states that, “all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights”.
The General Assembly of the United Nations adopted this declaration. It declares:
The aliens are protected from expulsion. People are prevented from being forced to testify against themselves or confess their guilt. It also provides for a right to be compensated in case of misuse or error of justice. There is prohibition of racial or religious hatred and ban of wars. Lastly, protection of ethnic, religious or different language minorities is provided.
The rights included here are the right to work, the right to education, the right to form trade unions, the right to strike, the right to participate in cultural life, the right to have an adequate standard of living, the right to social security, the right to fair and favourable conditions of work and the rights of minorities.
Kenyans enjoying the right to education
Some of the human rights contained in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights document
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights document is important because:
The rights of the child
Children like any other human beings are entitled to certain rights that provide special protection to them. Children differ from adults in that they have limited capabilities. For this reason they require protection and support of adults.
The rights of children are contained in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.
The Children’s Act in Kenya was passed by Parliament in the year 2002. It contained a number of rights for children. Some of them are as below:
Every child is entitled to the right to life. The parents and the government should therefore ensure that the children grow up without any obstacles that may affect their lives.
Children have a right to be educated. The parents must therefore ensure that their children obtain basic primary education that is now free. The government is ensuring that successful primary school pupils acquire secondary school education by providing bursary funds to students from poor families.
Children can easily be exploited as cheap labour. There should be regulations that protect children against exploitation. Children should not be forced to do any work that is likely to negatively affect them morally, physically and mentally.
Children should be protected against various kinds of discrimination such as being discriminated on the bases of colour, race, religion, sex and many others.
Parents and the government should ensure that children are provided with medical care. For instance they can be vaccinated against certain diseases. Specialists for treating children should also be available.
The parents should guide their children on how to practice their religion and also instruct them on religious matters.
Children should be protected from rape and from being given money in exchange for sex by adults.
Children have a right to be provided with food, shelter and clothing by their parents. In times of famine, the government should provide children with food if their parents are not able to do so.
The government has put in place guidelines on the way adoption should be done.
Children should be allowed to play. It is when they play that they make discoveries and also settle their minds. Playing also enables them to socialise with others.
Children socialising
Classification of human rights
Human rights may be categorised as follows:
Political and civil rights
Political and civil rights are generally referred to as “Civil rights” or “Fundamental rights, freedoms and protections”.
They enable individuals to follow their values and interests. They provide individuals with basic freedoms. Examples of civil rights are:
Social and cultural rights
They provide people with social freedom and basic needs such as education and health. They also provide people with the right to take part in cultural activities. They encourage fair treatment of all citizens and discourage inhuman treatment and interference with one’s body, premises or private life therefore ensuring security to the people. Examples of social and cultural rights are:
These provide people with economic freedom. They enable people to take part in the economic activities freely without harassment. Economic rights provide people with the right to own and use property and the chance to work and provide for their livelihood. They also provide people with the right to freedom from forced labour and slavery. Examples of economic rights are:
Developmental and group rights
These help people to have better life. One of the ways of having a better life is living in a clean environment which is free from all forms of pollution for instance excessive noise, excessive fumes and smoke, bad smell from rotting objects and contaminated water due to careless dumping of pollutants. Group rights represent a specific group of people. Examples of development and group rights are:
In conclusion, it is vital to note that the new government which took over leadership after 2002 immediately began addressing itself to the issue of discrimination against women and other minorities which is an important issue on human rights. For decades women and women’s groups have been disadvantaged yet they contribute greatly to the economy of the country.
There were also other groups that are marginalised on the basis of gender, disability, age, customs and traditions.
The new government responded positively after power was handed over by the previous regime by taking Affirmative action (measures to accelerate equality and reverse discrimination) which resulted to nomination of more women to parliament after the general election.
It is hoped that the government will continue to encourage fairness to both genders in the assignment of responsibilities and leadership roles as well as making opportunities available for the marginalised groups. By so doing, there will be fair sharing, distribution and allocation of jobs and resources for everyone’s benefit and also for the good of everyone in the country.
When this is achieved all Kenyans will begin thinking, talking, trying and acting to achieve all the goals set by the practical democratic leaders of our country.
Review Questions
Get the latest Mwalimu National Sacco BOSA Loans Application Form {Free Download}, here. PDF Latest…
Here is the revised and latest Mwalimu National Sacco FOSA Salary Advance Application Form {Free…
Here is the latest Mwalimu National Sacco FOSA Instant Loan Application Form {Free Download}. Download…
The landscape of digital gambling has shifted toward high-octane mechanics that prioritize volatility and massive…
The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) has advertised 170 job vacancies across, covering senior, mid‑level, and…
Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale has ordered immediate changes to the Social Health Authority (SHA)…
