a.mean() takes an axis argument:
In [1]: import numpy as np
In [2]: a = np.array([[40, 10], [50, 11]])
In [3]: a.mean(axis=1) # to take the mean of each row
Out[3]: array([ 25. , 30.5])
In [4]: a.mean(axis=0) # to take the mean of each col
Out[4]: array([ 45. , 10.5])
Or, as a standalone function:
In [5]: np.mean(a, axis=1)
Out[5]: array([ 25. , 30.5])
The reason your slicing wasn't working is because this is the syntax for slicing:
In [6]: a[:,0].mean() # first column
Out[6]: 45.0
In [7]: a[:,1].mean() # second column
Out[7]: 10.5