Name _____________________________ Class _______________________ Date ____________

The Colonies Become New Nations

Lesson 3

New Nations in Africa

Key Terms and People
Negritude movement African movement after World War II to celebrate African
culture, heritage, and values
Kwame Nkrumah leader in the Gold Coast independence movement
Jomo Kenyatta nationalist who helped lead Kenya to independence
Ahmed Ben Bella leader of the Algerian National Liberation Front who became
the first president and prime minister of Algeria
Mobutu Sese Seko ruler who took control of the Congo in 1965 and renamed
it Zaire

Before You Read

In the last lesson, you read about the struggle for self-rule in
Southeast Asian colonies.
In this lesson, you will read about new nations in Africa.

As You Read
Use a chart to list problems and reforms that followed independence
in Ghana, Kenya, Zaire, Algeria, and Angola.

ACHIEVING INDEPENDENCE GHANA LEADS THE WAY;

Why did independence movements
increase after World War II?
During World War II, Africans
fought as soldiers along with Europeans.
After the war, Africans wanted
independence. Many Africans took part
in the Negritude movement. The purpose
of this movement was to celebrate
African culture, heritage, and values.
1. What was the Negritude movement?
FIGHTING FOR FREEDOM
What challenges did newly
independent nations face?
The British gave Africans a greater
part in the colonial government of its
Gold Coast colony. Kwame Nkrumah led
a movement to push Britain to act more
quickly. The effort succeeded. In 1957,
the Gold Coast colony became
independent. The new nation took the
name Ghana.
Nkrumah had big plans for building
the economy of Ghana. But these plans
were very expensive. Opposition grew.
Finally, the army seized power in 1966.
Since then, Ghana has shifted between

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Guided Reading Workbook

Name _____________________________ Class _______________________ Date ____________
Lesson 3, continued
civilian and military rulers. There have
been many economic problems. In 2000,
there were open elections in Ghana for
the first time, and these have continued.
The strong leadership of nationalist
Jomo Kenyatta helped Kenya achieve
independence in 1963. An uprising of
Africans called Mau Mau also helped.
Mau Mau aimed at frightening the
British settlers to leave. Kenyatta
became president of the new nation. He
tried to unite the many different people
in his country.
Ethnic conflicts and election disputes
have often led to violence in Kenya.
After a presidential election in 2007,
more than 1,000 people were killed. In
recent years, an Islamic militant group
called al-Shababb has attacked Kenya.
There have been democratic reforms,
however, in Kenya. The current
president is Uhuru Kenyatta, Jomo
Kenyatta’s son.
A bloody conflict for independence
took place in Algeria. About 1 million
French settlers lived there. They were
unwilling to give up their property or
their control of the colonial
government.
Violence broke out in 1945 and
continued for many years. In 1954, the
Algerian National Liberation Front, or
FLN, announced its intention to fight
for independence. In 1962, the French
finally granted independence to Algeria.
Ahmed Ben Bella, a leader of the
FLN, was the first prime minister and
then the first president of Algeria. From
1965 until 1988, Algerians tried to
modernize their country. These
efforts failed.
An Islamic party won elections in
1991. But the government rejected the
vote. Fighting between Islamic militants
and the government continues
in Algeria.
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2. What problems did the new nations
of Ghana and Kenya face?
CIVIL WAR IN CONGO AND
ANGOLA
What happened in the Congo after
independence?
The Congo won its independence
from Belgium in 1960, but quickly fell
into civil war.
In 1965, Mobutu Sese Seko took
control. He renamed the country Zaire.
Zaire had rich mineral resources. But
Mobutu’s harsh and corrupt rule made
the country poor. He was overthrown in
a coup in 1997. The country’s name was
changed back to the Congo. Since then,
there have been elections and a new
constitution, and even a peace
agreement among rebel leaders. But
ethnic fighting and corruption in the
government also remain.
The colonies of Portugal were the last
to gain their independence. After an
independence movement broke out in
Angola in the 1960s, Portugal sent in
50,000 troops. By the 1970s, the heavy
cost of fighting had created opposition
in Portugal to the war. The Portuguese
left Angolia in 1975.
Angolans then fought a long civil war,
which ended in 2002. The war left
millions of people homeless and disease
killed many others. Since the civil war,
elected governments have worked to
rebuild the country and keep the peace.
3. How did Mobutu rule the Congo?
Guided Reading Workbook
Name _____________________________ Class _______________________ Date ____________

Lesson 3, continued

As you read this lesson, write notes about each African nation.
Describe how each nation gained independence and the reforms and
problems that followed independence.

1. Ghana Nkrumah’s reforms: Problems:

Tactics used by Nkrumah:

2. Kenya Kenyatta’s reforms: Problems:

Tactics used by Mau Mau:

3. Zaire Mobutu’s rule: Problems:

How independence
gained:

4. Algeria Ben Bella’s program: Problems:

How independence
gained:

5. Angola Causes of civil war: Other problems:

How independence
gained:

© Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company

Guided Reading Workbook