Ujamaa

I’m sure most of the people who have taken the time to read this blog so far have wondered what ‘ujamaa’ means. Literally the word means family ties, or relationships, but it has also come to refer to African socialism, as a result of its use by Tanzania’s first President, Julius Nyerere.  In 1967 Nyerere used the concept as the foundation for his social and economic development policies, which were laid out in a document known as the Arusha Declaration. This declaration – without getting into too much detail – emphasized the importance of an African model for development, and sought to develop a model that would be uniquely African. Unlike traditional European socialism, it did not emphasize class struggle, instead focusing on the importance and harmony of the extended family. Nyerere explained in 1966 that ujamaa:

“is opposed to capitalism, which seeks to build a happy society on the basis of the exploitation of man by man; and it is equally opposed to doctrinaire socialism which seeks to build its happy society on a philosophy of inevitable conflict between man and man. We, in Africa, have no more need of being “converted” to socialism than we have of being “taught” democracy. Both are rooted in our own past – in the traditional society which produced us.”

While most independent observers have argued that the model Nyerere helped to develop was largely unsuccessful in promoting economic development, it did help make major advances in education and health.

Still, that does not entirely answer the question of why I picked this word as the title of this blog, though as you may have guessed, I am interested in the idea. Ujamaa is also connected to another Swahli word ‘utu,’ which means humanity, or humanness. This concept is found across the Bantu language group, which is the largest language group in Southern Africa, and might be more familiar to some Americans as ‘ubuntu,’ a concept that was most famously used in South Africa by Nelson Mandela and Desmond Tutu.

Ubuntu – like ujamaa – is a word that transcends any simple translation, but is explained by Tutu as the essence of being human. He says further that “Ubuntu speaks particularly about the fact that you can’t exist as a human being in isolation. It speaks about our interconnectedness. You can’t be human all by yourself, and when you have this quality – Ubuntu – you are known for your generosity.” Ubuntu as a concept seems to represent a break with Western philosophical thought that is premised on our existence as individualistic rational beings. The concept is in line with Hannah Arendt’s thought that “to live an entirely private life means above all to be deprived of things essential to a truly human life: to be deprived of the reality that comes with being seen and heard by others.” To follow from Arendt, this means that in the modern world – especially in the West – we fail to truly engage with the people around us and act in concert with those around us. Ubuntu puts forward a different way of thinking about the world and the people around us.

Ujamaa seems to speak to a similar idea, and I am interested to see whether there is truth to the notion that Tanzanians believe in the importance of extended community. In a few words, I am looking forward to living in a different society with different values, and beginning to understand how Tanzanians relate to their families, extended families, and society as a whole.