An Economic History of Land, Labour, and Capital as Factors of Production in Pre-Colonial Anioma Society

 An Economic History of Land, Labour, and Capital as Factors of Production in Pre-Colonial Anioma Society

By Emeka Esogbue

Anioma is blessed with a geographical environment that favours agricultural growth which helped to promote interaction among the communities that form the region. It was as a result of this development that they fed on the ecological advantages of the area. Like in other West African societies, a good number of food crops were introduced to the area which was wild until they were domesticated for safe consumption. However, it is not to be claimed in this article that any such domestication occurred within the Aniomaland since it took place long before the iron age, at the period, no one will verifiably claim that Anioma communities were in existence. What is of importance to this historical article is that since agriculture thrived, the people interacted and there was traffic on the land and waters.  

In the pre-colonial history of the Anioma people, the economy of the communities thrived. For one, agriculture was the mainstay of the economy in the region within this region and the people depended on it completely. Whether Aniocha, Oshimili, Ika, or Ndokwa/Ukwuani, the Anioma subgroups, agriculture occupationally engaged about 90% of the population of the people of the area hence the various communities engaged in inter-trade and depended on agriculture for subsistence and commerce. There were also trade routes as the communities had managed to develop economic relations with one another depending on articles involved for exchange. Besides the frequent wars between Akwukwu-Igbo and Onicha-Olona, both communities also traded together in which commodities were exchanged. 

It must be stated very clearly that it was not all about trade between Anioma communities as some of the communities identified their kinsmen outside the immediate region and traveled afar to relate with them economically. One such community was Ibusa, located today in Oshimili North Local Government Area of Delta State. In 1882, some natives traveled to the other side of the River Niger for transactions. It was during one of these voyages, on their return that their boat capsized inside the River Niger, killing all Ibusa traders onboard. The incident is retained in the local calendar of the people as “Author Mmili Li Umuaka Igbuzo.” One of the notable Ibusa figures that died in this expedition was Obi Itenu who was the father of Obi Chigbue Ajie from Isieke in Umuekea Quarters of the community. The relic of the event is captioned in a misshapen boat statue that still memorably stands today at the Isieke-Umueze Junction in the community.   

Within the Benin hinterland, the Ukwuani, another Anioma subgroup, interacted with Benin, Urhobo, Itsekiri, Isoko, and other Niger Delta communities. Aboh, which at the time was not a part of Ndokwa or Ukwuani was described by Prof Obaro Ikime as entering the 19th century, a rich and powerful trading state. Aboh was highly organized with a sovereign ruler that knew diplomacy. It was at this time, the most successful of the states within the Benin hinterland and as such controlled the area. According to Prof Ikime, she had by the 1820s, built up a virtual monopoly of the trade of the Niger valley because of the strength of her war canoes with which she was not only able to hold Ijo pirates in check, but also protect her long-distance trade. 

“It is not always realized how far-flung were Aboh’s commercial links. She had trading relations with Onitsha, Asaba, the Igala Kingdom, the Ukwuani, and the Isoko, not to speak of neighbouring delta states,” Prof Obaro Ikime wrote.   

At this point, it is essential to consider the factors that aided production in the pre-colonial Anioma society. These factors as organized by the people served them before the arrival of the Europeans who were to change the course of the arrangements to suit the western pattern.

Land as a Factor of Production in Anioma

The land is the area on the ground but in economic terms, it does not only mean the surface part of the earth but also rivers, lakes, and lagoons. The land has always been held precious by Africans and in pre-colonial times, it was in abundance. The possession of land in Anioma with its use was guided by customary laws, depending on the particular community. Ownership of land was mostly by inheritance and it was generationally handed. This was known as land tenure – the right to own land as a hierarchical system. With time, one could acquire it either within his family or community. Although communities such as Asaba had long opened up to foreigners due to the presence of the River Niger that attracted European explorers, it wasn’t until in the late 1970s that the Ibusa community, lying about 6 miles from her generally started to sell land to foreigners against the age-long forbiddance.  

Another feature of the traditional system is that land could not be sold to any member of the family without the consent of others and it is still in practice in some parts of Anioma today. In contrast to sales, anyone that needed land for production or other use approached the family head who oversees the distribution. The head would invite other members of the family and in their presence, apportion a piece to him. This was so because the land was communally owned and the custodian was either the family or the community. In some communities where monarchy was practiced as a system of administration, the Obi (monarch) was the custodian of the entire land.  In the republican system, the traditional right of custodianship of land was conferred on the Diokpa who was the oldest living man in the gerontocracy practiced by them.

The land tenure system did not forbid non-indigenes from owning lands in any Anioma community. Outsiders that needed land for cultivation or other use, approached the family or community head who with the permission of the family or community could give out the portion to him. However, he was expected to pay rent sometimes in form of proceeds for the use of the land. What is important to note is that since the discourse involved a pre-literate society, there were no formal agreements to detail the contracts and the land did not possess official documents but trust existed among the people. The rent was shared by the community or members of the family. 

The African Land Law served Africans usefully, yielding production to the individual, family, or communities. Families did not starve as they fed on the land occupationally, through farming and fishing essentially. Nevertheless, the system was criticized by the Europeans that arrived at Aniomaland. The following criticisms were raised by the earlier European travelers to Anioma:

The African land system was an encouragement of fragmentation

The African land system prevented large-scale production of crops

The African land system was a drawback to the people’s economy

The African land system constrained the economy to remain at the subsistence level

Despite the criticisms above, it could be argued that land tenure as practiced by the Anioma people served them advantageously. For instance, it allowed a free-flow economy from which the people benefitted immensely. It made farming easy for the people since it ensured that land was readily available for interested members of the family. Furthermore, food was adequate for the family and only the lazy ones would become unable to feed themselves when the land was in abundance to serve their economic need. One could therefore argue that there was an adequate supply of food.   

Labour as a Factor of Production in Anioma

Labour was an essential factor of production in pre-colonial West Africa, which includes the Anioma society. It is defined by Wordweb as “productive work especially done for wages.” As one of the factors of production, it is the efforts of labour on the land, using capital that creates production, which in economic terms is the growth of something. Without labour, production becomes incomplete so that it cannot be attained. Like most West African societies, the Anioma people of Nigeria had before the invasion of their territory by the Europeans developed and perfected a precise labour organization with which they perfect agricultural production, which is topically the essence of this article.  

It is to be noted that agriculture in this sense and within this period is not only about farming but the totality of fishing and hunting. To this end, agriculture was about farming, fishing, and hunting. Farming considered the practice of cultivation of the land and rearing of stock was a way of life or occupation by which the people fed themselves and also survived. Several Anioma communities were before the arrival of the European, farming societies. Cultivation of land was mostly done within their communities but they sometimes set up temporary living quarters in places, outskirt of their communities where a group of people lived together.  

The Ibusa people were known to have established several camps with people mostly from the Southeast of the country coming to reside. By this time too, the people of Issele-Uku, Ogwashi-Uku, and Ubulu-Uku had also established camps outside their immediate communities, some of which are tending to assume a distinct community status today and have their ownership in contention by different communities today. In terms of fishing, which is another kind of agriculture, the Anioma people also throve. One may agree that fishing was generally practiced wherever bodies of water existed, but the Anioma riverine communities such as the Ndokwa were known to have depended on fishing to make a living.

In raising stock, the Anioma people almost concentrated on some particular variety of domesticated animals within a species. For the highlanders, sub-ethnically called “Enuani,” the people concentrated mostly on the rearing of goats and chickens which was common to them as the people almost would not have to visit the market to purchase these animals. The Aniocha people of Ogwashi-Uku were known to commonly breed goats. It was from the Ogwashi-Uku Main Market called “Ashia Ogwashi” that several other neighbouring communities often visited to buy goats other than Onitsha, another Anioma community but geographically found in the Southeast.

Since goats were required to complete funeral ceremonies of Obi and Mkpalor title holders, goats were inevitable for the Enuani people of Anioma and were relatively in high demand. Chickens were reared in the homes of most families. They were either consumed or taken to the market to be sold for the generation of capital which could be spent on other means of life.     

Types of Labour Organization in Anioma

Within the period under discussion, there were 4 types of labour organization:

Household labour

The household labor consisted of the wife, children, and relatives of the farmer. During this period, the Anioma people believed that there was strength in the number of wives to be married and also the number of children to be borne. This was because of the number of wives and children who could help out in raising abundant harvest. Since cassava and yam were major articles for the people, it was common to honour individuals who did well in farming with chieftaincy titles. Hence in some Enuani parts of Anioma, names associated with farming or crops were named children. While it is common today to hear children bear “Ugbo,” which implies “farm” in the people’s language, “Junior” is a popular masculine name in several communities especially Akwukwu-Igbo, a community in Oshimili North Local Government Area of the state. For the riverine communities such as Aboh, household labour was based on fishing and farming for others or just farming depending on the occupation of any such community. The head of the family provided food and shelter for his household and never remunerated them in cash but in kind, since they were seen as members of the same family. Usually, they were known to engage in tilling the ground, planting, and harvesting. The wife and children are used for the marketing of the products within and outside the community. Beyond this, the family is also used to transport the farm produce to areas where they are either stored or to the market where they are sold. Another characteristics of the household labour type of labour organization associated with the Anioma people is that all responsibilities are mandatory as no family member had the right to reject any work assigned to him. The general conception that the household members live with is that it is for the well-being of the family. 

Communal Labour

This type of labour organization was often used by the head of the community to actualize communal development. It entails a commonality in achieving a common purpose for the community. There are several Anioma communities where market places, community halls, roads, local bridges and houses were constructed through the efforts of communal labor. In this type of organized labour, there was also no remuneration in cash but kind. In some instances, drinks were provided on the completion of such assignments with which the labourers were saluted for a job well done. 

Age Group Labour Organization

The Age Group Labour Organization was common among Anioma communities. This group is called “Ogbor” in general Anioma parlance. The groups were named after important events that happened in the community and were headed by the eldest of the age-grade members. It was common among men and women of the same age group who organized themselves to assist a member of that group to achieve a worthy purpose. The Age Group also helped to facilitate out some forms of labour in the community such as the burning of bushes, sanitation exercises, the burial arrangement of me,mber, and the provision of security in the society.        

Capital as a factor of Production in Anioma  

Capital as used in this discourse can be defined as assets available for use in the production of further production. This is as defined by Wordweb Dictionary. It is therefore the implementation of production or the capital input necessary for reaching implementation for production to occur. For the Anioma people, some of the capital put to use were hoes, cutlasses, and others for farming; canoes, finishing nets, hooks, and others for fishing and guns, and cutlasses for hunting among others. In farming, the Anioma people depended on cutlasses, which was short heavy sword with one edge. Cutlasses were used by Anioma farming communities for the weeding and felling of trees.

Although the use of a net was not common except in riverine areas of Ukwuani and Ndokwa, a hook was more commonly used for fishing. Hooks were often fastened to long sticks with baits to lure fish into danger so that they could be caught. Such baits could be worms that attracted fish but it was the net that caught more fish and was more useful for commercial purposes. 

As noted earlier, these factors of production served the Anioma societies to some extent but they became modernized with certain introductions made by the Europeans. The era of the arrival of the Europeans saw the Anioma people giving out large portions of land to foreigners for development. Starting with the Europeans, lands were grudgingly given out to the same Europeans for the establishment of educational and worship centers within the communities that they sought. In other instances, trading centers were also built by the Europeans. Labourers could then be hired and paid for. There was also the use of forced labour, supervised by the Europeans to build some structures for the use of the Europeans. With some implements introduced to the region, families no longer depended on the size of the family for production. Laborers could be hired and paid for quick and effective production.  

There was also the opportunity to trade with the Europeans who provided better arrangements. white-collar occupations for professional workers who were mostly clerks, interpreters,and teachers were introduced with Anioma people moving away gradually but steadily from farming and fishing to engage in the white-collar jobs. This practice commercialized the society of the Anioma people, moving them away from the dependency on the pre-colonial forms of factors of production and launching them into colonial modernity.