Final answer:
The factors that contributed to the increased importation of Africans to the American colonies were an agricultural-based economy, the need for cheap labor, and the economic policy of mercantilism.
Step-by-step explanation:
The factors that contributed to the increased importation of Africans to the American colonies were:
- The establishment of an agricultural-based economy in the South.
- The desire for a cheap labor source on tobacco plantations.
- The economic policy of mercantilism.
The growing availability of English indentured servants did not contribute to the increased importation of Africans.
The factor that did not contribute to the increased importation of Africans to the American colonies is the growing availability of English indentured servants, as their numbers were actually declining.
All of the following are factors that contributed to the increased importation of Africans to the American colonies EXCEPT the growing availability of English indentured servants. In fact, the opposite was true; there was a scarcity of English indentured servants willing to work in the harsh conditions of the New World plantations. This shortage contributed to the increase in the African slave trade.
The agricultural-based economy of the South, the desire for a cheap labor source on tobacco plantations, and the economic policy of mercantilism all played significant roles in fostering the importation of enslaved Africans. However, the growing availability of English indentured servants is not an accurate reason as, over time, fewer Europeans were willing or able to survive the conditions they faced in the colonies, which shifted the focus to the slave trade to meet labor demands.