The Missionary factor in Africa

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The missionaries were a group of European humanitarian evangelists who came to Africa
duringcentury with a lot of open aims like spreading Christianity. Civilization,
Stopping slave trade, Promote legitimate trade, open up Afnca for benefits of commerce to fight poverty ignorance and diseases.
Missionary workers in Africa has been accused of having accelerated the colonization of the African continent as it prepared the ground socially, economically and politically. The colonizers exploited that aspect e.g. missionaties built schools, roads, health centres and ITilSS10n stations all of which helped in the settlement of colonizers This dismisses the above idea where missionaries claimed that they had come to Africa for purely humanitarian reasons. This is why about missionaries in Afnca, professor Roland Oliver says that;
"The flag followed the cross" or "Missionaries had a bible in one hand and a sword in the other."
Missionary work in Africa was mainly as a result of men like Stanel. Dr David LIvingstone, John Speke, Rebman and Krapf. These explorers during the 19 C in Africa witnessed havoc, which was created by slave trade and saw the economic potentials of Africa, which they became interested in to exploit to European advantage.
It's agamst this background that following the impact of the industrial revolution and the information of these explorers on the African continent, that missionaries had to be funded by European capitalists to come to Africa and secure a ground for the supply of raw materials, market for European manufactured goods, land for settlement of slaves, in claim of humanitarian reasons
In Furope, industrialists realtsed the necessity for the abohtion of slave trade, create a room for use of machines reduce the level of redundant labour force in Europe by enslaving Africans on their own land, equip them with some skills of agnculture and produce raw materials that were heavily needed in European industries.
The explorers after taking home the reports about the nature of Africa, Europeans saw an immediate need for missionary work on the African continent through the following medias:
I . Better communication systems were improved and the industrialization led to increased opportunity for overseas missionary work since the means of communication to Africa from Europe were solved by invention of a steam engine and other sea going vessels that were discovered by scientists during the industrial revolution era.
" Increased wealth; The industrial revolution led to increased wealth such that industrialists could now spare some funds to sponsor missionary activities world wide Moreover if industrialists sponsored missionaries, it became clear that they had to open up Africa as a market for European manufactured goods and a source of raw materials for industries in Europe.
Provision of home support- Due to the usefulness of evangelical movement, missionaries were now assured of domestic military support and sufficient finance that they bribed African chiefs by giving them grants and gifts to allow their missionary enterprises or activities in the interior of Africa.
Besides that; the determination of Europeans to exterminate slavery and slave trade worldwide was I;l0W on its peak and this greatly facilitated missionary enterprises in africa. Moreover, some Africans who were victims of this inhuman trade cooperated with European Christian missionaries to avert/stop this problem.
Following the industrial revolution; health conditions in Africa that were affecting Europeans became improved e.g. the drug for malaria which was the most killer disease of .. the time especially in West Africa where Europeans had flamed the region "A white man's grave" was discovered. The discovery of Quinine during the industrial revolution reduced the number of white men who were dying in Africa annually.