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The collapse of the gold standard in Africa: money and colonialism in the interwar period

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  • Gardner, Leigh

Abstract

Research on Africa’s monetary history has tended to focus on the imposition of colonial currencies while neglecting the monetary upheavals which faced the colonial powers after the collapse of the gold standard during World War I. Gardner profiles three crises—in The Gambia, Kenya, and Liberia—resulting from shifting exchange rates between European currencies during the 1920s and 1930s. These three cases illustrate the degree to which colonial policies struggled to keep up with the economic turmoil affecting metropolitan states and bring Africa into the story of global monetary instability during the interwar period, which is often told only from a European perspective.

Suggested Citation

  • Gardner, Leigh, 2022. "The collapse of the gold standard in Africa: money and colonialism in the interwar period," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 116665, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    • Handle: RePEc:ehl:lserod:116665
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    File URL: http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/116665/
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    gold standard; colonialism; exchange rates; The Gambia; Liberia; Kenya;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • N17 - Economic History - - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics; Industrial Structure; Growth; Fluctuations - - - Africa; Oceania
    • F54 - International Economics - - International Relations, National Security, and International Political Economy - - - Colonialism; Imperialism; Postcolonialism

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