The Fourth Industrial Revolution and the Recolonisation of Africa

The Coloniality of Data

By Prof. Everisto Benyera

Chapter 8: Africa's eunuch condition and the omnipresent footprints of the four industrial revolutions

Page 149

This chapter examines Africa's disempowered position through the lens of all four industrial revolutions and their continuing impact. It provides a comprehensive analysis of Africa's historical and contemporary challenges in technological development.

Key Points

  • Analysis of Africa's "eunuch condition" as a metaphor for disempowerment
  • Examination of how each industrial revolution has affected Africa
  • Discussion of the cumulative impact of technological change on African societies
  • Exploration of possibilities for overcoming historical patterns of exploitation

The chapter uses the metaphor of the "eunuch condition" to describe Africa's position in the global technological order—present but disempowered, visible but without agency. Prof. Benyera traces how each of the four industrial revolutions has left its "footprints" on Africa, creating patterns of dependency and exploitation that persist into the digital age.

By examining these historical continuities, the chapter provides a powerful conclusion to the book's argument about the recolonization of Africa through data extraction. It calls for a fundamental rethinking of Africa's relationship with technology and global powers, emphasizing the need for African agency and sovereignty in shaping technological futures that benefit African peoples.

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