Summary: The article Climate change: how Senegal’s colonial history made it more vulnerable discusses how peanut farms in Senegal are susceptible to climate change due to the poor conditions set up during colonization. When Senegal was colonized by the French in the mid-1800s, they were introduced to a new crop - the peanut. This crop drove the economy until Senegal gained independence in the 1950s, and is still a part of Senegal today. Peanuts require a lot of water to grow, and due to droughts caused by climate change, the economy has been suffering. Furthermore, many peanut farms don’t have any irrigation systems, so that leads to a loss of income. Farmers are heavily reliant on loans from large trading firms, which are paid back during the harvest season, giving even less income for the farmers, who already have small salaries. All of this - the single-crop economy, the trading system, low wages - was set up by the French.
Analysis: The article reminded me of so many other single crop/material economies in Africa due to the effects of imperialism. Since the colonies were set up as extensions of European territories, they only planted crops they couldn’t grow in their native lands. I found it interesting that climate change was worse in Senegal because of the conditions set up by the French. It's a trickle down effect that you don't really notice unless you really think about it. I think these types of stories should be spread, because we are often told a single story - that African people are poor. But not everyone is told why some parts of Africa have economic struggles and I think this is one piece that could help spread awareness of what is causing mass poverty, and what people can do to help.
Discussion Question: Why do you think the Senegal peanut farming system is still broken? What would you do to fix it as yourself, a peanut farmer, or a French government official, both in the past and present?
I think that their system is broken because if something happens to the peanuts, their entire economy will crash and that will be a problem. I would expand the economy, diversifying it so that if something happens to the peanuts, things would be mostly fine. It would also boost senegal's economy.
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