The rapid succession in which independence or a large measure of self-government has been achieved by dependent territories in Africa has been one of the more striking political phenomena of the postwar period. It would be rash indeed to prophesy the total eclipse of colonialism in the modern world, for the situations obtaining in Eastern Europe and Southeast Asia, as well as the fears expressed by the Ashanti in the Gold Coast and the southern tribesmen in the Sudan regarding the shape of the independent state, can be indications that political dependency can be reasserted in new forms. Nevertheless, the brand of Western colonialism which reached its zenith prior to World War I appears to be drawing to a close, and in a number of instances the metropolitan power concerned is actually planning the liquidation of its empire.

The causes of this vaporization of colonialism in Africa are complex. In some cases the significant factor is rooted in international politics, as in the military defeat of Italy or the encouragement given by Arab and Asian states to rising nationalist groups. In other instances the financial position of the metropolitan country or the anti-colonial policy of a major political party has been the crucial factor.