Impact of Globalization on Traditional African Religion and Cultural Conflict

This paper aims to discuss the impact of the paradigm of global culture on African tradition particularly on the role of African traditional women in conflict prevention and resolution. Global culture, a part of globalization, has not only transported the good side of the economic and social development across the globe but has also changed in the culture of host communities. Some changes include the mode of production and the way things are done, whileothers include the symbolic interaction or the appreciation ofhow social facts are to be seen and appreciated. For example, the change from collectivism social structure that characterizes African society to individualism structure that characterizes the market-oriented culture of western society. This change is without doubt that “Globalization is one of the most important and developed theories of the twentieth century” (Ritzer, 2008: 230). However, one aspect that justifies the importance of this development is the culture (termed civilization in other areas) that the application of this concept transports from one location to another. This cultural aspect may be economic, marketing oriented, or just a change in rationale behavior of consumption and production. Nevertheless, this change questions the static existence of rapport, the role that traditional culture plays in the life of African communities, and the impact traditional religions still have on the essence of African culture.