Neo-mercantilism as development ideology: a conceptual approach to rethink the space economy in Africa

Abstract

Since the mid-15th century, the space economy in Africa has assumed an imperial outlook under the influence of European mercantilism. It was the era that unfettered capitalism prevailed as economic orthodoxy for control of regional economies. At the inception of fettered capitalism in the mid-20th century, an imperial structure that served western interests under colonial rule was further entrenched in many African countries. At the turn of the 21st century, neoliberalism emerged as global economic orthodoxy, and free-trade relations implemented to manage Euro-American and Chinese mercantilism worldwide. This unleashed epistemological ideologies that ushered in urban productivity decline in the African space economy. As an entry point to address this urban development challenge in new regionalism, this article makes a case for neo-mercantilism as an alternative development ideology for Africa