(a) Outline three activities of the National Congress of British West Africa (NCBWA). (b) State three effects of the activities highlighted in (a) above.

Answer Details

(a) Three activities of the National Congress of British West Africa (NCBWA)

The NCBWA was formed in 1920 under the leadership of Casely Hayford to press for reforms in the four British West African colonies (Nigeria, Gold Coast, Sierra Leone and the Gambia). Its activities included:

1. Sending a delegation and petitions to Britain: In 1920 the Congress sent a delegation to London to present petitions to the Colonial Secretary and the King demanding constitutional and political reforms.
2. Demand for elective principle and African representation: It agitated for the introduction of the elective principle so that Africans could elect their own representatives into the legislative councils, and for greater African participation in government.
3. Demand for other reforms: It campaigned for the establishment of a West African university, the appointment of Africans into higher positions in the civil service, judicial reform including the appointment of Africans as judges, and control of the press and municipal government by Africans.

(b) Three effects of the activities

1. Introduction of the elective principle: The agitation contributed to the granting of the Clifford Constitution of 1922 in Nigeria, which introduced the elective principle for the first time in British West Africa.
2. Growth of nationalism and political awareness: The activities awakened and stimulated political consciousness and nationalist feeling among West Africans, paving the way for later, more radical nationalist movements.
3. Emergence of political parties: The elective principle it helped to secure led directly to the formation of political parties such as the Nigerian National Democratic Party (NNDP) in 1923 to contest elections.
4. Increased African participation in government: It opened the way for greater involvement of educated Africans in the legislative councils and administration.