Social Science (087) — AI-generated practice question

African Workers (Rinderpest):
Africa had abundant land and livestock, so Africans had little reason to work for wages. Europeans imposed heavy taxes payable only in wages, and changed inheritance laws to displace peasants from land. When rinderpest arrived in the late 1880s, it swept across the continent killing 90% of cattle. This destroyed African livelihoods entirely. European planters and mine owners then monopolised the remaining scarce cattle, forcing Africans — who had lost their independent economic base — into wage labour on plantations and mines.

Indian Indentured Labourers:
In mid-nineteenth century India, cottage industries declined, land rents rose, and lands were cleared for mines and plantations. Poor peasants — mainly from eastern UP, Bihar, central India, and Tamil Nadu — fell into debt and could not pay rents. Desperate, they were recruited through agents who used false promises and sometimes force, binding them under indenture contracts to work for five years. Conditions proved harsh with few legal rights — described as a "new system of slavery."

Key Difference: Africans lost independence through a natural disaster (rinderpest) that was then exploited by colonisers; Indians lost it through economic displacement caused by colonial policies, driving them into contractual bondage abroad.

Source: The Making of a Global World, Sections 2.4 (Rinderpest) and 2.4 (Indentured Labour)

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• The examiner expects a direct comparison, so structure your answer around both groups clearly — either side-by-side or one after the other with a concluding comparison line.
• Key facts to include: rinderpest killing 90% cattle, taxes + inheritance laws in Africa; cottage industry decline, rising rents, debt, false recruitment in India.
• The phrase "new system of slavery" is a textbook quote — using it shows precise reading.
• The comparison point (different mechanisms) is what earns the final mark in a 5-mark question, so don't skip it.