Establishing control: the Krio elite and the transformation of labour relations in colonial Sierra Leone, 1868-1919

Abstract

This thesis examines the efforts by the Krio elite in Sierra Leone to control the colony’s economic and political system by establishing control over the nascent wage labour force in the period between 1868 and 1919. The main argument is that control over labour Krio elite was indispensable to the ambition of the Krio elite to turn Sierra Leone into a self-governing or even a politically independent entity. As the Krio elite itself lacked the capital to independently hire and control large numbers of wage workers, it depended on the colonial government. After consolidating a measure of influence within the colonial system by the 1860s, the Krio elite was increasingly excluded from positions of power within the colonial hierarchy. The cultural nationalism that emerged in response to the exclusion of the Krio was accompanied by attempts to create an economic base for an independent Sierra Leone. The colonial government proved unable to enact largescale reforms of labour relations. The demand for wage workers grew, both in Freetown and abroad, creating a demand for migrant labour from Sierra Leone. This provided workers with the means to evade government control over their labour.