Perceptions of the effects of the use of �colonial languages� in Africa: experiences from Ghana and Tanzania, 2002

This study examines the use of European languages in Africa as the vehicle of communication in various aspects of nation building, principally in formal education, social interaction, national identity, and national cohesion. The study focuses on experiences in Ghana with Tanzania as a background, in the post-independence period (1957-2002). The study was based on the premise that using European languages as the major tool of communication in the conduct of national affairs, in an official capacity, is pernicious to nation building in African countries, which possess their own languages. Data were gathered from primary and secondary sources. The former consisted of questionnaire distributed to a sample population in Accra, Ghana, and a series of interviews with citizens of Tanzania. The researcher found that in Ghana, where English is the only official language, there were fewer impediments to education, national cohesion, social discourse and interaction, and national identity, than in Tanzania where the European language is used alongside an indigenous language in the conduct of national affairs. The conclusions drawn from the findings suggest that unquestionably, using a foreign language retards the processes that foster nation building and general progress, to some measure. However, the benefits of adopting a neutral language in a multilingual environment exceed the limiting effects of employing a borrowed tongue as the language of state. English is the leading, universal language of communication on the global scene today. As such, its retention as the official language, or language of wider communication, remains imperative in Africa. The beneficial effects proffered by its usage, outweigh the prejudicial consequences. Various recommendations were offered to address the language issue in Ghana and Tanzania, and by extension, sub-Saharan Africa