◆ SpookStack

) eaaatele oA: ia PTT POLO ; Ss ba! Neo beatae! < on AN Aba MM Son Lae <— oe merican FRIENDS SERVICE COMmPPMmITTE! 166 North Fittee nth Street, Phoiadetphia 2, Pennsyivant From Paul &B. Johnson, Geneva, Switzerland December 1952 Vol. IIIT, No. 14 vical NOT FOR QUOTATION ( OR GENERAL CIRCULATION A VISITCR'S VIEW OF WEST AFRICA iany intelligent and world-minded West Africans are hurt by what seems to then the quite inexpiicable Lack of Ancrican interest in Frenchespeaking Africa. Over the past fev months I have visited 17 West African countrics, 12 of which are French speahing. Most Americaac know the names of the two larger English-speaking countries, higeria and Ghane, and some could even add Sierra Leone and Liberia; very few, how- ever, could name the countries freed from French colonial status in 1958 and 1959 which reacved full independence in 1960 and 1961, Yet, French-sneating Africa is almost five times as Large as the English-creaking ares and has, according to 1960 population estimates, 30 million pcople, as com: with the 44 million in the English-speaking area, It is true that Niperia secme to the ordinary American observer to be the single most important state Jn West Africae. It ds the most populous and may have 50 million people by 1970, In Nigeria right now is beinp decided the fate of almost the last exléting two-party parliamentary gystem of democracy, es we know it, in that part of the world. One would be unwary to predict the results of the present strugsle in Nigeria, but IT have a hunch that here, as in all other countries ef that area, the system imperted whele from Eurepean experience -- in this case complete with the Par- liamentary mace and the judses!' rebes and wips -- is poing to sive way to somethin: new anda more suitaticv to African conditions. We may not immediately recoynine it as democracy; if we dou't, we had better give it a lone and careful look fo see whether it or our oom parechial view of proper danoecratic fomss is, in fact, at favit. It ics equally tree that Ghana mokes more noise than any other country in Africa, with the exception of the Conswo, which IT omit for various reasons. Much of this neise relates te President Neroman's continuing efforts to solve the problems of tribsliss in Ghona -- preblerms which, of courae, plarnue to some deprec each of the new stetes in Africa, and which draw typically different reactions from tie severul heads of state. But beneath these probleris in Ghana, and much less appsrent to the visiter, are i i ’ eone fascinating experiments, Let mie cite twa, beth in the broad field of education and social eevelopnens. One ds the systun of “Feoples' Universities," which wili es we : ploy the experience both of the Danish Folk Oecbrek and of our Apricultural Extension Service in ti serics of institutiens desicned to provice brief, residential, collere- level experience fer adults. ‘to be released freely oy covernncnt and other enmpicyers { w &E ploy , thece pooste will feod back fist ordinary social, peavernnient and bustness life e scctiK- Peo; nal dnflvence without counterpart dn any country Tohono of. A second Ghancvian experi- ment ds in rural celi-heip. Jo read repert after report of the fichd workers, ali brief, Published by the Minisery of Social Ueltare. Ko-cy of these reported failure, They said, in effect, "This fa what we tricd to do. We failed tere, and here, and