Shifting Authority in West Africa

The article Rives a survey of the political and economic development during 1965 in West Africa. A combined emphasis upon political authority and economic austerity perhaps best summarizes the trends in that year. The author concludes that the difficulties were more evident than the optimistic prospects. Nation-building is a long-termproject, requiring economic growth and the development of stable political patterns. In 1966 further gravitation of power into military hands may be hard to avoid, as long as the legitimate exercise of political authority remains in question.