The captive state: post independence Zimbabwe 1980-1986

Abstract

Much of post-colonial Africa has been subjec- ted to the stresses and strains of coping with internal economic and social struggles and crises. These are problems which embrace external relations and conditions governed by the international division of labour and by the super-powers of both the eastern and western blocs (Makamure, 1985). The essence of the productive systems of many post- colonial societies ties them into inter- national price structures and marketing systems of international raw materials producers. To a great extent the capacity of the state to operate in this context success- fully within almost all parts of the political spectrum has been affected by these crises. State action is influenced by recurrent fiscal problems, cyclical recessions both inside and outside the nation state with additional pressure coming from the restrictions placed by international funding and aid agencies on planning policy and the ever present trauma of natural hazards such as droughts. This paper seeks to explain the role of the state in crisis periods and its relationship to changes in the economic geography of countries in Africa. Two aspects are high- lighted: exogenous forces impinging on state action from internal and external economic and political crises and constraints; and endog- enous forces within the state itself derived from social class linkages and the articula- tion of policies, ideology and development plans. The paper explores the concept of the state and then analyses specific changes in state-sector relations (Mandaza, 1986). paper is premised on the ultimate importance of the state in post-colonial and post- independent countries. It is seen not only as an engine of development but also the crucible of class forces from which development plans are generated and relationships with internal and external capital formed (Bradbury, 1981). No comparisons are made with the state in the developing and the developed worlds because First World models are often only a crude The parody of reality and have little meaning for the fluid and often unique socio-economic and class structure of the post-independence African state.