[PDF] The Quality Of Democracy In Africa eBook

Author : Jonathan van Eerd
Publisher : Springer
Page : 289 pages
File Size : 46,20 MB
Release : 2017-04-07
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 3319508385

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This book shows that democratization in sub-Saharan Africa can be successful, even if the government remains dominated by one major political party. If an institutionalized and strong opposition party – even when too weak to take power – challenges the dominant government party, the quality of democracy improves substantially. The comparative study demonstrates that competitive opposition parties in dominant party systems are rooted in the historical legacy of political cleavages related to de-colonization that precede the third wave of democratization of the 1990s and have survived the instability of post-independence political developments to the present day. The study covers 19 African countries and 55 elections overall, including four in-depth case studies of Botswana, Lesotho, Ghana and Mali. It offers scholars and practitioners of electoral democracies and competitive authoritarian regimes a novel view on the role of party systems in processes of democratization. It makes an important contribution to the general literature on state building intertwined with democratization and representation in old and new democracies.

Author : Nic Cheeseman
Publisher : Cambridge University Press
Page : 269 pages
File Size : 33,53 MB
Release : 2015-05-12
Category : History
ISBN : 1316239489

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This book provides the first comprehensive overview of the history of democracy in Africa and explains why the continent's democratic experiments have so often failed, as well as how they could succeed. Nic Cheeseman grapples with some of the most important questions facing Africa and democracy today, including whether international actors should try and promote democracy abroad, how to design political systems that manage ethnic diversity, and why democratic governments often make bad policy decisions. Beginning in the colonial period with the introduction of multi-party elections and ending in 2013 with the collapse of democracy in Mali and South Sudan, the book describes the rise of authoritarian states in the 1970s; the attempts of trade unions and some religious groups to check the abuse of power in the 1980s; the remarkable return of multiparty politics in the 1990s; and finally, the tragic tendency for elections to exacerbate corruption and violence.

Author : Staffan I. Lindberg
Publisher : JHU Press
Page : 256 pages
File Size : 13,78 MB
Release : 2006-09-11
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 9780801883323

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Author : Larry Diamond
Publisher : JHU Press
Page : 338 pages
File Size : 24,78 MB
Release : 2005-11-25
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 9780801882869

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Publisher description

Author : Nic Cheeseman
Publisher : Cambridge University Press
Page : 399 pages
File Size : 22,7 MB
Release : 2018-02-22
Category : History
ISBN : 1107148243

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Offers new research on the vital importance of institutions, such as presidential term-limits in the African democratisation processes.

Author : Emmanuel Gyimah-Boadi
Publisher : Lynne Rienner Publishers
Page : 364 pages
File Size : 27,38 MB
Release : 2004
Category : Business & Economics
ISBN : 9781588262462

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After more than a decade of reform efforts in Africa, much of the optimism over the continent's prospects has been replaced by widespread Afropessimism. But to what extent is either view well founded? Democratic Reform in Africa plumbs the key issues in the contemporary African experience - including intrastate conflict, corruption, and the development of civil society - highlighting the challenges and evaluating the progress of political and economic change. Case studies of Botswana, Mozambique, Nigeria, and South Africa complement the thematic chapters, exploring the interactions between democracy and development.

Author : National Research Council
Publisher : National Academies Press
Page : 94 pages
File Size : 50,30 MB
Release : 1992-02-01
Category : Social Science
ISBN : 0309047978

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The global movement toward democracy, spurred in part by the ending of the cold war, has created opportunities for democratization not only in Europe and the former Soviet Union, but also in Africa. This book is based on workshops held in Benin, Ethiopia, and Namibia to better understand the dynamics of contemporary democratic movements in Africa. Key issues in the democratization process range from its institutional and political requirements to specific problems such as ethnic conflict, corruption, and role of donors in promoting democracy. By focusing on the opinion and views of African intellectuals, academics, writers, and political activists and observers, the book provides a unique perspective regarding the dynamics and problems of democratization in Africa.

Author : Karin Alexander
Publisher : African Books Collective
Page : 120 pages
File Size : 50,70 MB
Release : 2012-04-24
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 1920409858

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This inaugural Democracy Index for Botswana is intended to set a benchmark for democracy to be measured against. The tool, developed and honed by Idasa over many years, assesses the depth of democracy in a country through five focus areas: participation, elections, accountability, political rights, and human dignity. The research relies on expert analysis to answer a set of questions that interrogate how closely, in practice, democracy meets the broad ideal of self-representative government. More specifically, to what extent can citizens control elected officials and government appointees who make decisions about public affairs? And how equal are citizens to one another in this accountability process? The purpose of the scores is to assist citizens in making their own judgements, based on the information made available, to stimulate national debate and to provide democracy promoters with a tool for identifying issues and needs that can be addressed by education, advocacy, training, institution building and policy revision. Idasas Democracy Index initially developed for South Africa is being expanded into Southern Africa in an effort to broaden the capacity of individuals and organisations monitoring and supporting democratic governance efforts in the region.

Author : Muna Ndulo
Publisher :
Page : 0 pages
File Size : 32,41 MB
Release : 2016
Category : Africa south of Sahara
ISBN : 9781443885478

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Revisiting the Study of Governance / Göran Hyden -- Democratisation in Africa : Achievements and Agenda / Mamoudou Gazibo -- The Expansion of Judicial Power in Africa and Democratic Consolidation : Opportunities, Challenges and Future Prospects / Charles M. Fombad -- Constitution-Making in Anglophone Africa : We the People? / Coel Kirkby and Christina Murray -- Measuring the Persuasive Effects of Electoral Campaigns in Africa / Jeffrey Conroy-Krutz -- Subnational Elections and Accountability : A Study of Political Decentralization and Democratic Governance / Rachel Beatty Riedl and J. Tyler Dickovick -- Slippery Citizenship : Nationalism, Democracy and the State in Africa / Jennifer Riggan -- Federal Developments and Accountable Government Structures in East Africa / Jan Amilcar Schmidt -- Hereditary Rule in Democratic Africa : Reconciling Citizens and Chiefs / Kate Baldwin -- Critical Reflections on Social Accountability and Local Government in Ghana / Cyril K. Daddieh -- "Emerging" Africa : Long-term Perspectives on Growth and Democracy / Antoinette Handley -- A Legal Framework for Combating Corruption : Case Study from Zambia / Muna Ndulo -- Two-and-a-Half Cheers for Democracy in Africa / Nicolas van de Walle.

Author : Said Adejumobi
Publisher : Routledge
Page : 248 pages
File Size : 49,41 MB
Release : 2017-08-16
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 131718405X

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Africa has made notable progress in its nascent democracy but with uneven performance across countries. However, across the board, challenges abound. Central to Africa’s checkered democratic narrative is the weakness of its democratic institutions, participatory mechanisms and accountability platforms. This book interrogates these elements with the role and capacity of the parliament, political parties, media, freedom of information law, trade union movements, gender empowerment mechanisms and accountability methods and processes all under examination. The weakness of democratic institutions has had a corrosive effect on political accountability and limits the scope for popular participation in governance. In many countries, innovative practices, and new social and political encounters are emerging that challenge old institutional cultures, promote reforms and demand accountability from the governing elite. The book captures these varied, innovative patterns of democratic change. With first hand knowledge and expertise of the continent, the contributors analyze the issues, trends, problems and challenges in these critical areas of Africa’s democratic growth. The conclusion is that strengthening democratic institutions, opening up the political space for enhanced political participation and ensuring political accountability will determine the course, prospects and quality of Africa’s budding democracy.