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Jutta Bolt . Photo

Jutta Bolt

Senior lecturer

Jutta Bolt . Photo

How Africans Shaped British Colonial Institutions : Evidence from Local Taxation

Author

  • Jutta Bolt
  • Leigh Gardner

Summary, in English

The institutions that governed most of the rural population in British colonial Africa have been neglected in the literature on colonialism. We use new data on local governments, or "Native Authorities,"to present the first quantitative comparison of African institutions under indirect rule in four colonies in 1948: Nigeria, the Gold Coast, Nyasaland, and Kenya. Tax data show that Native Authorities' capacity varied within and between colonies, due to both underlying economic inequalities and African elites' relations with the colonial government. Our findings suggest that Africans had a bigger hand in shaping British colonial institutions than often acknowledged.

Department/s

  • Economic development of the Global South

Publishing year

2020

Language

English

Pages

1189-1223

Publication/Series

Journal of Economic History

Volume

80

Issue

4

Document type

Journal article

Publisher

Cambridge University Press

Topic

  • Economic History

Status

Published

ISBN/ISSN/Other

  • ISSN: 0022-0507