While Africans toiled and suffered under colonialism, the West prospered, leaving a debt that is yet to be reconciled. With new Western policies geared towards exploiting Africans, it raises the question: Have they forgotten that they owe us?
On 4 October 2023, the UK Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, announced the rise in the cost of student and visiting visas by 600 per cent. This happened three months after he announced that immigrants would pay for the increase in wages of teachers and health workers. This development has sparked a vital discussion on the disparity and imbalance between Africa and the West. African immigrants continue to be a significant percentage of the UK immigration population, with Nigeria ranking second for the nationalities of migrants in the UK as of June 2023. This new policy serves as an unwanted reminder and further proof that the historical exploitation endured by Africans still prevails today. The new immigration policy announced is one of the latest ways the West capitalizes on the global power imbalance. However, what are the consequences of these exploitations for the continent?
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