Which colonial administration in West Africa sought to integrate her colonies with their home country?

Analyze the question: It asks which colonial power aimed to integrate its colonies with the home country. This is about colonial policy: assimilation versus indirect rule.

Explain the concept:

• British policy: Indirect Rule. The British governed through existing traditional rulers (e.g., Lord Lugard in Northern Nigeria). Colonies stayed administratively separate, and the aim was not to make Africans British.
• French policy: Assimilation (and association). The French wanted colonial subjects to adopt French language, culture, and law, and so become "Frenchmen." Colonies were treated as overseas extensions of France. For example, the four communes of Senegal (Dakar, Saint-Louis, Gorée, Rufisque) had citizens who could elect a deputy to the French National Assembly in Paris. Under the Fourth Republic, the colonies became part of the "French Union" with representation in the French parliament.
• Dutch and Danes: These were mainly traders on the Gold Coast (present-day Ghana) and had no policy of integrating their territories into their home countries. They sold their forts to Britain (the Danes in 1850, the Dutch in 1872).

Solution:

1. Integration into the home country means assimilation.
2. Assimilation was the hallmark of French colonial policy.
3. British rule was indirect, and the Dutch and Danes had only small trading posts.

Answer: The French administration, which is option C.

Exam tip: Remember "British = Indirect Rule, French = Assimilation." If a question uses words like assimilate, integrate, or make citizens of France, think French. If it uses traditional rulers or chiefs, think British.