LThe eighth and final volume of UNESCO's General History of Africa studies the period from 1935 to the present day. It traces the political, economic and cultural evolution of the continent as it gradually frees itself from the colonial yoke.
For Africa, 1935 marked the start of the Second World War, with the invasion of Ethiopia by Mussolini. The world conflict dominates the first part of this volume, which describes the consequences of the crisis in the Horn of Africa, in North Africa and in other regions under the domination of the European powers. The next three chapters deal with the continent-wide struggles for political sovereignty, from 1945 to independence, underdevelopment and the struggle for economic independence, the evolution of structures, political values. linked to the building of national states.