Is Democracy the Right System of Government for Africans? : Deteriorating Democracy?

Gyimah, Akosua (2020) Is Democracy the Right System of Government for Africans? : Deteriorating Democracy? Private Law Consulting Firm, United Kingdom.

Abstract

Since the end of the colonial rule in Africa, democracy, multiparty systems and neoliberal economic reforms have been promoted by western countries and international donor organisations including the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund as the main development strategy for Africa’s political, social and economic progress (Transconflict, 2015). African countries have been told that good governance, constitutionalism, accountability, respect for human rights and the rule of law are the continent’s answer to realizing peace, security and sustainable economic growth and development (Mbaku, 2020). The African Union (AU) and many Africans including former United Nations Secretary General, Kofi Annan, a Ghanaian native, also embraced democracy and good governance as the main vehicle for development and poverty alleviation (Ibid). After more than 25 years of democratization, most African countries have not been able to achieve the necessary economic progress, reforms or vibrant private sectors to prevent corruption, impunity, and unresponsive and autocratic governance (Mbaku, 2020; Temin and Linzer, 2020). The failure of Africa’s democratic experiments is not necessarily due to African culture and traditions per se; rather, analysts say, it is due to multiple factors including Africa’s colonial legacy, lack of integration of African culture and traditions in the implementation of western democracies and the absence of the necessary prerequisites for establishing strong and stable democracies at the time of implementation.