The Medicine Man Deserves His Due

Greetings. The Ugandan medical professionals went on strike last week, a practice they have done countless number of times. The health sector, just like education, is a cornerstone of human capital development that will deliver the government's desired middle-income status. You can't be productive when your health is found wanting, and it's partly through skilled medical personnel (as well as their availability) that our longevity can be secured. With a country whose life expectancy is at 63, the government is so casual about the guardians of our health system going on strike.

The current crop of medical doctors at the age of 30 years have been practicing for approximately 4 years. Revisiting their HSC class set up a decade ago can help understand their demands for an increment in remuneration.

PCB/Maths

Back in 2011, there were four medical schools in the country, with government scholarships only available at Makerere University, Gulu University and Mbarara University of Science and Technology (students at Kampala International University, a privately-owned institution, are not eligible for government scholarships). The essential subjects for an admission to a medicine program are Chemistry and Biology. Therefore, for students preparing for the Higher School Certificate with an eye on a career in the medical field, their subject combination must include these two. The most common combination at the time was Physics, Chemistry, Biology and Mathematics, colloquially known as kalamba (full set).

It is in the Mathematics classes that PCB/M brigade rubbed shoulders with students whose career paths are targeted outside the life sciences of Medicine, Pharmacy and Dentistry. Students interested in Engineering could opt for PCM/Economics or PEM (while stroking Fine Art or Technical Drawing), whereas for those interested in Quantitative Economics and Statistics anything with Mathematics was good enough.

For students who didn't pursue the path of sciences, the options in Humanities included History, Christian Religious Education (Divinity), Islamic Religious Education, and Geography. Subjects like Economics, Fine Art and the languages (French, German, Luganda) were open to both science and humanities specialists. The kalamba for humanities was HEG/D. University courses for humanities students included the law, social sciences, history, mass communication, business administration, and languages. Whereas Medicine was only available at three universities, Architecture at only Makerere and Engineering restricted to Makerere, Kyambogo and Ndejje, humanities courses were available at all 31 universities in the country at the time. With limited university vacancies available, the race to become a doctor was more competitive than the other career paths.

Upon reaching the university, Medicine - which comprised of two undergraduate degrees (Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery) - has a duration of five years. Architecture is the only other undergraduate course that requires five years of study. Of the Humanities courses, the longest duration is reserved for the Bachelor of Laws (4 years), with the rest of the courses having a three year duration. 

Therefore, as the medical student commences his/her fourth year of study,  majority of his/her HSC classmates that opted for a path in the Humanities are commencing their job hunt. It is during the second semester of this year (sometimes the year before) that the big four audit firms reach out to university students that are likely interested in a career in accounting/auditing. These firms have an inclination to hire people with a background in Engineering, Economics, Mathematics and Statistics, believing that the quantitative background in these courses gives them a leg up when completing the chartered courses in accounting. 

For a student fresh out of campus, the audit firm presents a very enticing career starter. The net salary ranges between UGX 700,000 and UGX 1,000,000/=, along with health insurance and a scholarship to study the chartered  accounting course. For the class that joined university in 2011, by the time the doctors signed their first professional contract their counterparts in the auditing career path already had two years of experience and were on track to complete their professional courses. 

As the years progress, the gap between the doctor and the rest only grows wider. Considering that the individuals in the audit path can opt for careers in financial management as well, the humanities career paths advancement is often not that quick. One has to obtain a postgraduate education to become more competitive in the job market and this comes with its costs as well. However, for those that don't choose that path the option of a side hustle can bring their monthly earnings to a respectable level. The time available for people in this line of work is not accorded to the doctors. A doctor has to establish their reputation and specialisation in their formative years before they can branch out and establish their own practice, which is often a very expensive venture.

The Medicine Man and the King

The government's treatment of the medical professionals, and the health system for that matter, leaves a lot to be desired. The 2018 decision to hire doctors from Cuba rather than raise the Ugandan doctors remuneration,  was a major slap in the face to the medical profession. Along with the police's aggressive efforts to quell the doctors' demonstrations, these events are reminiscent of the ancient arrangement between the witch doctor and the king. The excerpt below from Matthias S.M. Kiwanuka's book sheds light on the relationship between the medicine man and the king:

"The relationship between the king and the medicine men depended very much on the character and personality of the former. If vexed, a man of a violent nature treated them violently. King Tebandeke, for instance, executed very many of them, burned down all their temples, and looted their estates with impunity. During the eighteenth-century King Kyabaggu treated them in the same fashion."

The medicine men doubled as diviners and physicians. Like their modern successors, they spent their apprenticeships at the temple learning the skills necessary from the old guard. However, in contrast to their modern successors, the ancient medicine man determined what he charged for his services. One had the liberty of charging ten bulls for treating the king's boil whereas charging the peasant a domestic fowl for treating a more serious ailment. 

Perhaps our doctors that have chosen to pursue a career abroad can charge the President's acolytes - considering they get their treatment outside these borders - exorbitantly when they seek treatment. But our president is easily vexed. And the equivalent of an academic temple (read Makerere's Ivory Tower) already burnt down a few years ago. The looting of the doctors' meagre earnings will long continue.

Ceteris. Paribus.

MILESTONE: This is the 40th article posted on this blog. In commemoration, we should all remember to wish the medical professionals a happy festive season because majority of them will be on call.

References

Abet, T., (22nd December 2021). "Medical interns, doctors call off strike," The Daily Monitor.

Aboneka, J., (15th May 2018). "Cubans won't fix our healthcare," The Daily Monitor.

Kiwanuka, M. S. (1972). A History of Buganda from the Foundation of the Kingdom to 1900. Holmes & Meier Pub. pp 178.

Rigby, P. (1975). Prophets, Diviners, and Prophetism: The Recent History of Kiganda Religion. Journal of Anthropological Research, 31(2), 116-148.

When Robert Seguya Refused To Conform

"When you have the will to do something good, nothing can stop you."

 [LONG READ ALERT]

Greetings. A few days ago, Robert Seguya passed away. An icon of the game of rugby, the 42-year-old succumbed after a year-long battle with leukaemia. He will be remembered for his long service to the game. Since 1992, he has played and coached at school, club and national level. It is in one of his coaching roles that the full measure of his impact has not been fully appreciated. Seguya's coaching tenure at Hana Mixed School needs to be studied more closely for the impact it did in the social outlook of the game.

The Game Before Seguya

Robert Seguya began his sports journey at Namilyango. At the time of his admission, boxing was no longer the venerated sport from the 1960s. The pugilists were disposed to the youthful avarices of smoking, drinking and bullying the young ones. In a few years of his admission the sport was scrapped from the College's cocurricular offering. However, Seguya had already taken an interest in rugby.

Rugby at Namilyango was introduced in 1964. Places like Namilyango and Nsambya TTC provided a platform for native Ugandans to try their hand at the sport. The 1958 Ugandan team that played in an international against Kenya had no native Ugandan on it, despite Sepiriya Mukasa being a member of the Kampala Rugby Football Club at the time. A photo of the Kenya Schools' XV that toured Uganda in 1964 is an all-white line-up. Considering native participation in other sports, boxing in Uganda had registered two commonwealth Games medals (F. Nyangweso and T. Kawere) at the time, and there were thriving local football tournaments including the Kabaka's Cup, with the topflight league to be formed before the end of the 1960s. Rugby's race problem in Africa was not only confined to apartheid era South Africa.

The sport of rugby peaked at the college in the 1970s, but it went on the wane in the following decade, only being revived in the early 1990s. Interhouse fixtures were regularly contested. In the absence of a schools' competition, Namilyango played in the nascent Ugandan League, contesting against teams like Heathens, KOBs, Makerere Impis and ANC.

For much of its history, rugby has been an amateur sport. The game only went professional in 1996 and this birthed the urgency to grow the game beyond its traditional hinterlands. Uganda joined the International Rugby Board (the forerunner to World Rugby) the following year, and an inter-school competition was introduced that same year. By the time Seguya left Namilyango, the Schools' Championship had been split between Namilyango and King's College, Budo.

Since the creation of the Uganda Rugby Union, Namilyango, Budo and St. Mary's College Kisubi have dominated the sport of rugby, both on and off the field. The institutions have provided all past presidents of the URU, the current head of the referees' society, the two most recent Head Coaches of the Rugby Cranes, several club chairmen, the founders of Pirates RFC and Eagles RFC, sports columnists at both leading papers of the country, as well as the brains behind Kratos rugby media. Six starters of the 2007 Africa Rugby Cup final were from Namilyango, with a further two on the bench. The position of Chairman of Uganda Schools Rugby alternated between the rugby patrons of Namilyango, Budo and Kisubi.

Not by some conspiracy has this dominance been manufactured. It rests solely on the merit tradition and availability of resources at the institutions. Despite Namilyango being the only school with a dedicated rugby pitch, the other two schools have each converted one of their many football pitches towards rugby purposes. From their early years, as the pioneer schools in the country, the trio competed for academic supremacy and this moved into the sports arena as well.

The Typical Namilyango Rugby Player

Namilyango has horned a reputation as "the rugby school". A good number of the students have partaken in rugby in one way or another, despite the fact that new students rarely have rugby experience from their previous primary schools. It is from watching the evening training and the interschool games that they garner their interest, and the absence of rugby balls has never deterred them. Former Cranes flyhalf Edmond Tumusiime, who joined Namilyango in Seguya's final year, described how he and his classmates in Form One finished "our Quencher bottles, slopped down the pitch and used them as rugby balls."[1] The drive in these thirteen-year-olds never goes unnoticed and the Form Three class is tasked with teaching them the rules of the game, preparing them for their maiden game.

At its peak, each class boasted of a first XV and a second XV. In the early 21^st century it was tradition for the incoming Form One class to participate in their first official rugby game against the second XV of Form Two. When they reach Form Two, they will contest a game against the Form Three class. When one reached Form Three, training to the Anchors was open to them and one had a chance to prove oneself. The very ambitious would begin Anchors' training while still in Form Two.

Playing for the Anchors is the ultimate honour of a school rugby player in Uganda. Every team wants to beat them – so often falling short. Partly due to the exploits of the likes of Seguya, Tumusiime did the Anchors build their winning reputation. The efforts of the rugby patrons at the College, Monsieur Valence Bizimana and Mr. Kakembo as well as the coaching staff played a role.

Upon leaving Namilyango, these students – those who opted to continue with the game – would play for one of three teams. Namilyango has been a feeder for Kampala Old Boys (KOBs) since the advent of the Schools' Championship, with majority of Namilyango alumni playing for KOBS and its understudy side, Boks. The third club that alumni have significantly played for is Makerere Impis, especially those that secured government scholarships to study at the University. The pattern of the Namilyango rugby player was to have their peak in their mid to late twenties while playing club rugby or for the national team, after which the reality of advancing their career at their daytime job took precedence over rugby. Tumusiime has admitted to not reaching his peak due to "mixing rugby with school and my professional career."

It is understandable why they would opt to grow their daytime jobs. The sports budgets in the country are dismal, and the crowds are few which hinders the growth of the professional game.

In contrast to this Namilyango pattern, Seguya's club rugby career was spent at Nile RFC (present day Jinja Hippos), Heathens RFC and Buffaloes RFC, playing club rugby for more than 15 seasons. He pursued entrepreneurship and private business, rather than a daytime job. And to commence his coaching career, he opted for Hana Mixed School, with no rugby history – or sports history for that matter.

Hana's Hegemony

As Namilyango celebrated its centennial year, Hana Mixed School was still in its first year of operation. Football was the main sports program offered at the new school. The school decided to switch their attention towards rugby. The Games Master formulated an agreement with Robert Seguya. Seguya focused on fitness, and he enlisted Lady Cranes' Christine Kizito to handle the fitness and conditioning of the team. Initially, the school struggled to gain promotion to the Premier Schools division, losing to Comboni College (2007) and Lango College (2008).

To build the program to his desired level, Seguya played a bigger role in the recruitment of players to Hana. Aware of youths from Naguru who had trained with Heathens junior sides, Seguya proposed the establishment of a scholarship program at Hana. Four of the first five beneficiaries of this scheme were Naguru-bred youths, including Alfred Bijik, Philip Wokorach, Kevin Keremundu and Ronnie Musoke. In 2010[MK1] , Hana's first year in the Schools' League, Seguya's team lost at the semi-final stage to eventual winners Budo. In October, at the annual Independence 7s tournament, Hana triumphed over Namilyango in the final. The following season, Hana lifted the Schools' League, becoming the second school outside the ancient trio to be crowned school champions (after Kyambogo in 2003). Hana swept all school rugby trophies on the domestic scene, and in August that year they were crowned East Africa champions.

Seguya's blueprint at Hana proved that the Big Three of schools' rugby could be trounced. Kololo SS adopted this system, establishing bursaries for Naguru-based teenagers. Between 2011 and 2015, the Schools' League title went to Hana on three occasions, Kololo took the 2014 title, with SMACK the only one of the Big Three to secure a championship (2015). The 2014 final was the first time in Schools League history that neither Namilyango, SMACK nor Budo played in the final. Some sections of the media and fans interpreted this as a shift in the balance of power.

Back to Normal Service

The Hana-Kololo hegemony didn’t last long. After 2016, Hana Mixed School reversed its scholarship policy, in a move that saw the school move away from the UNEB system towards the costlier International Baccalaureate curriculum. And with these changes, the rugby scholarship program ceased. Even in the absence of scholarships, five years had proven to be a short time to establish the kind of culture that prompts a thirteen-year-old to cultivate his rugby skills with an empty Quencher bottle.  In 2016, normal service resumed as Namilyango won the first of three Schools' League titles, only to be stopped by SMACK in 2019.

The game of rugby expanded to more schools, but they were more of the ilk of Namilyango-SMACK-Budo. Rugby programs were started at Mbarara High School and Ntare School, and the Makerere College School rugby program was revived.

In the years that followed, Seguya completed his World Rugby coaching certificate (Level 3), and returned to Heathens RFC as Head Coach, leading them to the Uganda Cup. He later took up coaching roles at Jinja Hippos and the Rugby Cranes (first as assistant, then as Head Coach).

Having learnt the game he loved through the merit-based system of Namilyango, Seguya believed in competition. And he believed competition was essential to growing the game of rugby. Rather than the norm of going back to Namilyango and helping coach the Anchors, he sought to provide better competition to the Big Three schools. He helped show the rest of the rugby fraternity that anyone could rise to the top if they got an opportunity to prove themselves. As a lasting testament to him, the greatest rugby player of the current generation might end up being a kid from Naguru who spent his school days at Hana.

Ceteris. Paribus.

 

References

Bugembe, D., (27th December 2014), “I was constantly insulted by fans when I quit – Edu,” in The Daily Monitor.

Campbell, M. and Cohen, E.J. (1960) Rugby Football in East Africa, 1909–1959. Published by the Rugby Football Union of East Africa

Collins, T. (2009). "Chapter 1: The Schoolboy's Game," A Social History of English Rugby Union. Routledge. 

Collins, T. (2009). "Chapter 7: The Imperial Game," A Social History of English Rugby Union. Routledge.

Kigongo, Ismail D., (26^th May 2021). "Seguya: Uganda's best ever rugger," The Daily Monitor.

Muziransa, M., (03^rd June 2016). "Battle-hardened Seguya mellows in search of rugby stars' affection," The Daily Monitor.

---

[1] Deus Bugembe (27th December 2014), “I was constantly insulted by fans when I quit – Edu,” in The Daily Monitor

 

Obufilosofi bwa Mzei Kintu

Greetings. It's fifty-nine years since the country got independence, and we've had some ups and downs over the years. Independence in Africa has become an annual ritual where we meet to blame the white man for our problems, and put forward some solutions as to how we can best move forward our society.

Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi uses her writings to propose a way forward. Her book, Kintu - which has been recommended on this blog as part of The Great Books Program for an Afrocentric awakening - posits some solutions. One of the central characters, Miisi Kintu has attempted to suppress the privileges arising from his education and the village folk resent him for that. Nevertheless he continues to publish a weekly column in the Bukedde newspaper titled Obufilosofi bwa Mzei Kintu. One such article for the column is titled Africanstein: Ekisode, a play on Frankenstein's monster from Mary Shelley's novel. Missi posits that despite colonialism making monsters of African states, the Africans must learn to adopt and thrive using the western values and systems imposed upon them.

AFRICANSTEIN: EKISODE

[B]Uganda, unlike the rest of Africa, was sweet-talked onto the operating table with praises and promises. Protectorate was the plastic surgery to set the sluggish African body on a faster route to maturity. But once under chloroform, the surgeon was at liberty and did as he pleased. First, he severed the hands then cut off the legs and he put the black limbs into a bin bag and disposed of them. Then he got European limbs and set upon grafting them on the black torso. When the African woke up, the European had moved into his house.

Though the African was too weak to get up, he still said to the European, “I don’t like what you are doing, my friend. Please get out of my house.” But the European replied, “I am only trying to help, brother. You are still too weak and drowsy to look after your house. I will take charge in the meantime. When you’re fully recovered, I promise you will work and run twice as fast as I do.”

But the African body rejected the European body parts. Africa says that they are incompatible. The surgeons say that Africa discharged itself too soon from hospital—that is why it is hemorrhaging. It needs a lot more continual blood and water pumped intravenously. Africa says the blood and water are too expensive. The surgeons say, “Nonsense, we did the same to India, see how fast it’s running.”

When Africa looked in the mirror, it saw that it was hideous. Africa looked in others’ eyes to see how they saw it: there was revulsion. That gave Africa permission to self-harm and self-hate. Sometimes, when the world is not looking, the surgeons poke Africa in the wounds. When it falls down the surgeons say, “You see, we told you they were not ready.”

We cannot go back to the operating table and ask for the African limbs, Africa must learn to walk on European legs and work with European arms. As time goes by, children will be born with evolved bodies and in time, Africa will evolve according to ekisode’s nature and come to its best form. But it will be neither African nor European. Then the pain will settle down.

In the novel, Miisi shared the draft of the article with the village folk and even entertained a Q&A.

Q1: “If, because of this ripping, grafting, and stitching, societies like ours are of ekisode nature, should we just sit back and wait until evolution smoothens things out?”

Miisi: “No, not sitting back: we must manage the pain. However, whatever we will do or can do, will be within the scope of ekisode. It’s important for us to realize that we’re operating under a different nature so that we do not compare ourselves unfavorably to others or hold grand expectations.”

Q2: “How do we manage the pain?”

Miisi: “Swallow the painkillers as prescribed by the surgeons, keep using our own herbs and do all those things that will not exacerbate the wounds; but all that is just to soothe. Evolution is perfect at perfecting even mistakes.”

Kaleebu: “In which world are we going to evolve? I am not pouring water on your fire, Miisi, but the whole thing sounds too neat for me.”

Miisi: “It’s hope though, isn’t it?”

Kaleebu: “In a perfect world maybe, where all other continents are asleep and would not interfere.”

Ssekito: “Miisi, I say this with a raw mind. But if Europeans outwitted us, no matter how despicable their tactics were—isn’t it time we came up with a strategy for our own survival rather than sitting here crying look what they have done to us?”

Kaleebu: “That is for politicians, Ssekito. This discussion is intellectual: we’re merely thinking aloud, suggesting possibilities.”

Despite Kaleebu’s cynicism, Miisi was satisfied. At least the residents did not exchange worried looks this time.

Ceteris. Paribus.

References

Makumbi, Jennifer Nansubuga, (2014). Kintu, pp. 241-242

Division Of Labour At The Olympics

"Kenyans win every race. Did you ever see a marathon? A Kenyan wins every time. If you got on a plane for Vegas right now, and I got on a Kenyan, I'd beat you."

- Chris Rock, October 2008

Greetings. As the games of the thirty-second Olympiad begin this weekend in Tokyo, Japan, the pandemic and its after-effects have overshadowed the event. Uganda, fielding a team for the 16th time (the most of any East African nation), has been thrust in the limelight due to the disappearance of weightlifter Julius Sekitoleko. It's easy for one to sympathise with the young lad's plight; he's from a poor background with the financial burden of his family weighing on his shoulders. He took the free transportation the government accorded him to the second largest economy in the world and 'sought greener pastures' whilst there. 

The Olympics has on occasion served as a connotation for income disparities; there's a correlation between the largest economies by GDP and the all-time Olympic medal overhaul. At the 2016 edition, 8 of the top 10 countries also boasted of the highest GDP. The United States has led the medals table at seventeen of the twenty-eight Olympic Games' editions held. Large economic resources do guarantee a bigger sports budget and with that comes better facilitation and superior facilities for athletes. With that correlation in mind, is it possible to attain success with less economic resources and can we predict which African country could collect the most medals at the Tokyo Olympics?

Len Taunyane and Jan Mashiani at the 1904 Olympics

The modern Olympics date back to 1896, and at the third edition eight years later South Africa fielded a team of eight athletes. Two Setswana – Len Taunyane and Jan Mashiani – were part of this team. On 30th August 1904, the duo became the first black Africans to compete at the Olympics, finishing 9th and 12th respectively; Taunyane could have finished higher had he not been veered off course by a dog that pursued him midway the race. 

More than a century after Taunyane and Mashiani's milestone, each African nation has sent representatives to the Olympics, with varying success. 27 of the 54 African countries are yet to win a medal at the quadrennial showpiece. As with the overall table of Olympic medals, the African countries with the highest medal tally fall in the ten richest economies on the continent. Kenya has secured 103 medals (including 31 gold medals) from the 14 Olympics editions in which they have fielded athletes, making them the most successful African country at the games. The rest of the top 10 includes South Africa, Ethiopia, Egypt, Nigeria, Algeria, Tunisia, Zimbabwe, Uganda and Cameroon; of which only Zimbabwe ranks outside the fifteen largest economies on the continent.

Meagre resources in any competition call for strategy. The easiest course of action is specialisation; focusing one's resources on a singular activity and subsequently attaining superior technique at said activity. Kenya, despite being wealthy on its home continent, is surpassed on the global stage when it comes to economic wealth. Austria, with a population of less than 9 million, dwarfs the Kenyan economy; on income per capita Kenya is 21 times smaller! The East Africans have more medals despite participating in 13 fewer editions than the Austrians. Kenyan medals however have come from only two categories (Athletics and Boxing), whereas the Austrians have taken medals from 16 different categories. 

Country	2016 Medals	All Time Medals	All Time Editions	Medal/Edition
Nigeria	1	25	16	1.5625
Egypt	3	32	22	1.454545
South Africa	10	86	19	4.526316
Algeria	2	17	13	1.307692
Morocco	1	23	14	1.642857
Ethiopia	8	54	13	4.153846
Kenya	13	103	14	7.357143
Ghana	0	4	14	0.285714
Tanzania	0	2	13	0.153846
Angola	0	0	9	0
Uganda	0	7	15	0.466667

The rational economic man instinct comes into play here; resources should be focused on the activities that bring in the most medals. Kenya has only managed medals in Athletics dating back to 1992; their last boxing medal came in 1988. It is only fair that investment in sports concentrates on athletics. 

Talent and differences in natural landscape (altitude factor) notwithstanding, economic resources have a role to play in sporting achievement. Nevertheless, the less endowed nations can choose to focus on specific sporting disciplines. Kenya no doubt will lead the African medal haul; they've been averaging seven medals per Olympic edition. If a one Cheptegei secures double gold in Tokyo, Uganda with two golds could finish ahead of some better endowed European nations. The lack of sports specialisation and funding in Uganda however will be a subject for another day.

Ceteris. Paribus.

References

Kasujja, A, (19th July, 2021) Will Africa triumph at the Tokyo Olympics? [BBC Africa Daily Podcast]. 19th July 2021.

Kigongo, I.D., (01st February, 2021). "Sports needs a lot from its legislators". The Daily Monitor.

O’Toole, S., (07th July, 2016). "Story of South Africa's first black Olympians keeps us guessing". Mail & Guardian Online

A Re-Education In Colonialism

Greetings. The European Football Championships came to an end on Sunday night, with Italy emerging victorious over the English team. I rooted for Italy not out of a sense of loyalty to them over the years. Schadenfreude has guided my choice of rooting for England's opposition; there's a certain pleasure I derive from the comments section of a BBC HYS (Have Your Say) whenever they are on the wrong end of a sports result. This carries on into rugby (I root against the All Blacks and Springboks) and cricket (England, again). In a way, I also admire the way they've utilised their infrastructure to build a dominant position, because I believe you can't learn from a weak opponent.

However, there were several reasons other corners were up in arms against the English: silencing them, the anti-Brexit brigade and the colonial past of the British empire. It is the latter that I shall address, as irony was raised to a whole new level with the celebration of the Italian team's victory as a "defeat of colonialism". 

"500 Years of European Colonialism", Source: Vox

England is a constituent nation in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The other constituents are Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Before expanding their empire beyond the seas, the first conquests were made within their own land mass. Between 1542 and 1801 the four nations were united by various means to form the United Kingdom. 

At its height, the British Empire covered a quarter of the World's land mass – with the modern state of Uganda engulfed in that area as a protectorate. The difference between a protectorate and a colony lies in the fact that there was less land grabbing in the former than in the later, but the humiliation of the pre-existing systems was a constant. 

The English provided the bulk of the manpower that governed the Empire. Of the twelve colonial Governors of Uganda, Sir Walter Coutts – a Scot – was the sole non-Englishman. It is for this reason that any negative memory from colonialism levelled at the British Empire is usually focused at the English more than their counterparts in the British Empire building exercise.

However, Britain wasn't without competition in this pursuit of imperialism. Over 20,000 African societies were reorganised into less than fifty states under the heel of Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Portugal and Belgium. The South American continent was under the domain of Spain and Portugal. The Dutch and the British even had some domains in the Caribbean and Asia. 

The colonialists' sins are well documented and have been the impetus behind recent drives to reform the education system, rename significant landmarks as well as compensation for past ills done to the African natives. In this matter the British, the Italians, the Germans, Portuguese, Spaniards, French, Dutch and Belgians alike are all guilty. The semi-final line up of Euro 2020 was a reading of past colonial powers. If you're thinking Denmark was innocent in all this you should read up on Erik Gobel's 2006 book, Danish Slave Trade and its Abolition. The Danes occupied present-day Accra in 1658, and only sold it to the British in 1850.

The wider world remembers Britain's participation in colonialism since they were the most successful nation at it. The 1997 handover of the island of Hong Kong to Chinese authorities marked the end of British colonial hegemony after 500 years. On the other hand, the role of Italy and Germany is forgotten owing to the two World Wars. At the beginning of the first World War Germany had four colonies in Africa as well as a series of islands in the Pacific. When the Germans were defeated in the War, their colonies were partitioned among the British and the French and with the passing of time, Tanganyika came to remember more the British occupation than the German occupation.

The German and Italian participation in World War II masked their colonial record further. For one the second world war was the deadliest in history, with the casualty count ranging between 50-80 million. Secondly, the Axis powers (Germany, Italy and Japan) were motivated by racial purification, seeking to eliminate other races they considered inferior to their own. Imperial backlash has been directed towards the British and French, while the Italians and Germans seem to have swapped their colonial sins for their holocaust sins. The Belgian sins in the Congo are even much more suppressed owing to their limited significance in international relations. Had they been playing the final, they could have drummed up more support from Uganda, yet occupants in the land to the West of Uganda's borders still bear scars of King Leopold's atrocities.

It's good we point out the ills of colonialism. However, we should be consistent in our denouncement. England was not the only culprit in this. Every winning nation of the preceding Euro and World Cup dating back to 2004 played a part in colonialism, both the benefits and the demerits that came with it. 

Ceteris. Paribus.

Further Reading

Fanon, F. (2008). Black Skin, White Masks. Grove Press.

Ferguson, N. (2012). Empire: How Britain Made the Modern World. Penguin UK.

Giordani, P (1916). The German Colonial Empire–Its Beginning and Ending, translated by Mrs. Gustavus W. Hamilton, G. Bell and Sons, London.

Gøbel, E. (2016). The Danish Slave Trade And Its Abolition. Brill.

Kohn, M., & Reddy, K. (2006). "Colonialism". In Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.

Weisbord, R. G. (2003). The King, the Cardinal and the Pope: Leopold II's Genocide in the Congo and the Vatican. Journal of Genocide Research, 5(1), 35-45.

The Triumph Of Europe

"Civilisations are complex things. For centuries they can flourish in a sweet spot of power and prosperity. But then, often quite suddenly, they can tip over the edge into chaos."

Niall Ferguson, 2012

Greetings. The dry (some of you call it summer) season of 2021 is set to serve up a platter of sports festivities. The postponed European Football Championships, the 2021 Copa America, the Tokyo Olympics, as well as the annual events from the tennis, golf, formula 1 and MotoGP calendars that occur during this period. 

UEFA's quadrennial showpiece has hogged the majority of the media attention. By contrast, little attention has been paid to the on-going Copa America, the holy grail of South American football taking place in Brazil. the final games for both events take place on Sunday, featuring nations that have won the World Cup a combined 12 times! Arguably one of the best football payers of all time will feature in the Copa America, but media attention will mainly focus on Wembley for the European showpiece. This follows the precedent set by European club football, which has dwarfed the club tournaments from other corners of the world. Does this period herald the triumph of European football over the rest (and in particular the South Americans)? And where does this leave Africa?

Early Years

Prior to 1930, the football competition at the Olympics was the sport's biggest prize. Despite the Europeans winning four of the first five tournaments, the South Americans dominated the last two events before the inaugural World Cup; with Uruguay winning back-to-back gold in 1924 and 1928, including an all-South American final in the latter.

In 1928, FIFA decided to host an international football tournament. Given that Europe was severely hit by the Great Depression, the organisation sought to host the tournament on another continent. Uruguay, which had won the Olympic gold in football twice and was planning to celebrate its independence centennial, was chosen as the maiden host. Travelling to Uruguay at the time was only possible by sea, and several European clubs were unwilling to release their players for the two-month sojourn. Only four European countries committed to partake in the tournament. In a repeat of the Olympic final from two years earlier, Uruguay triumphed over Argentina.

International travel again limited the participation of South American teams at the 1934 tournament, held in Italy. With the reigning champions boycotting the tournament, Argentina, Brazil and Egypt – Africa's first ever representative – were the only non-European participants in the 16-team event. Italy emerged victorious, and successfully defended their title four years later in France.

The political and economic turmoil caused by the second World War meant the tournament took a hiatus during the 1940s, only returning in 1950 hosted by Brazil and won by Uruguay, and four years later West Germany won their first title in Switzerland. At this point European teams had won 3 out of 3 tournaments held on European soil, and the Uruguayans had won both tournaments held on South American soil. At the 1958 showpiece hosted in Sweden, Brazil became the first non-European team to win the tournament on European soil, spurred on by a young Pele. In the four tournaments held between 1958 and 1970, Brazil won three across three different continents (Sweden '58, Chile '62 and Mexico '70), their sole blemish being the 1966 event won by the English on home soil. The South American nations had entrenched their brand of football as the finest in the World, even dominating their European counterparts in the annual Intercontinental Cup. The tournament played between the club football champions of Europe and South America saw the clubs from the latter win 6 of the first 10 editions.

At the 2002 World Cup, hosted in Japan and South Korea, Brazil emerged victorious on Asian soil, claiming their fifth tournament win and the fourth different continent on which they had won football's greatest showpiece. The tally of tournament victories stood at 9-8, advantage to the South American nations over their European rivals. Unbeknownst to the South Americans, this would be the last time a team from Europe would fail to lift the Jules Rimet trophy.

The Rise of Europe

Being on the backfoot is an all too familiar scenario for European cultures. Proponents of Afrocentrism and Oriental Philosophy always point out the superiority of their ancient cultures over the European systems. What we forget to explore is Europe's persistence in overcoming its disadvantageous position and surpassing its superior rivals. Fortunately, Niall Ferguson, the self-proclaimed "international man of history" chronicles the rise of Western Civilisation – with Europe at the centre – towards global dominance, in his 2006 book, Civilisation.

Ferguson does acknowledge that Europe 500 years ago was a "miserable backwater … plagued by bad sanitation and seemingly incessant war." By comparison, the Ottoman Empire and the Chinese kingdom were far better. He posits that Europe advanced on the back of six factors, key among these being competition. The European nation states were trapped in constant war with one another as well as internal civil strife. This perennial state of conflict provide benefits in the form of innovation in military technology, and the fact that rival states grew progressively better at raising revenue for their campaigns. 

To apply this to the state of national team football, there are ten countries in South America compared to over fifty in Europe. The Copa America is usually a 12-team tournament, meaning there is no need for a qualifying session as the confederation is always tasked with inviting two foreign teams to partake in the tournament. By comparison, the European competition in it's 60-year history, accepted only 8 teams in the finals tournament for 9 of the 16 editions it has been running for. The limited number of slots has fostered competition amongst the nations. The Europeans have had to be innovative in raising revenue for their football systems, investing in youth academies, revolutionising coaching and investing in stadium infrastructure. Absence of competition has stifled football innovation in South America, and the lack of revenue has meant their best players have had to ply their trade in Europe. 

In economic terms, four of the seven largest economies in the world (G7) are located in Europe, and three of these four have gone on to lift the World Cup on three of the last four tournaments. The four World Cups held after the 2002 showpiece have all been won by European countries, having been hosted in Europe on two occasions (2006 and 2018), South America (2014) and Africa (2010). This run has included a first-time winner (Spain in 2010), three all-European finals (2006, 2010 and 2018) and two occasions where all four semi-finalists were European sides (2006 and 2018). In the same period, the South Americans have only managed one runner's up spot (2014) and on two occasions the continent had no representative at the semi-final stage of the competition (2006 and 2018).

Whither Africa?

Of the 21 editions held for the World Cup, Africa has had at least a representative on 14 occasions, and for the 6 tournaments held from 1998 onwards the continent was guaranteed 5 qualifying spots (in 2010 South Africa took the sixth slot as hosts). The 5 slots available are competed for by the 53 countries. 

In contrast with the benefits of competition in Europe, the African nations have never progressed beyond the Quarterfinal stage. At every World Cup between 1986 and 2014, an African nation made the second round, with three of those occasions producing a quarterfinal representative. However, in 2018 there was no African nation in the knockout stage, despite fielding Senegal (quarterfinalists in 2002), Nigeria (who've made the knockouts on 3 previous occasions), Morocco (who made the knockouts in 1986), Tunisia and Egypt (seven-time winners of the African Cup).

In terms of resources and stadium infrastructure, Africa lags behind the European and South American counterparts. However, in terms of sports administration, the African and Latin American teams are in the same boat. In the political arena, the two continents have been marred by leaders who stay-in-power for long while overseeing patronage and corruption, and often power changes by military means if not dynastic succession. The football governing bodies on the two continents are not that different. Just last month the football governing body in Uganda okayed the incumbent president to contest for a third term in office, despite being involved in the 2014 World Cup ticket scandal. The 2015 FBI investigation snared 13 officials from South American football bodies, more than any other continent. Other scandals involving football administrators on both continents have involved sexual misconduct and player trafficking!

Football governors in the two continents are motivated by personal interests at the expense of the players' welfare. There is limited facilitation available to these players compared to their European counterparts, and the huge salaries and endorsement deals accrued playing in Europe raises the opportunity cost of opting for national duty.

Irrespective of how skilled the players are in Africa and South America, as long as their incomes are meagre and their sports governance lags behind, Europe will always emerge victorious. It seems the European football civilisation will not "tip over the edge into chaos", in contrast to Ferguson's opening quote. 

The Euro has proven to be a good indicator of which nation will win the next World Cup; the four most recent World Cup winners had made it to the semi-final stage of the most recent Euro. Perhaps England, with the sport's richest football league, richest national federation, and being part of the fourth largest economy in the world (UK), can continue dreaming after making this year's Euro final.

Ceteris. Paribus.

Further Reading

Federation of International Football Associations, 2010. "FIFA World Cup Origin", FIFA.

Ferguson, N. (2012). Civilization: The West and the Rest. Penguin. Chapter 1: Competition

Kigongo, I.D., (June 2021). "FUFA EC declares Magogo unopposed," The Daily Monitor.

McDougall, D., (January 2008). "The scandal of Africa's trafficked players," The Guardian.

Reuters, (June 2019). "FIFA to take over the running of African football," Reuters.

Sargeant, P., (June 2015). "Football corruption: Who bought the Copa America?" BBC.

Schmidt, S. (November 2017). "Former Argentine official throws himself under train hours after being accused in FIFA soccer scandal," The Washington Post.

Varcoe, Fred (19 May 2002). "Taming the 'bulldog'". The Japan Times Online.

Vickery, T. (2008). "European game puts South America in shade." BBC

Voice of America, (December 2015). "South America, a 'Breeding Ground' for Soccer Corruption?" VOA