Is Africa going backwards on democracy?

More and more elections are being held in Africa however analysts dismiss many as being “lawful but illegitimate”. Although studies show that a majority of Africans still want to live in democracies, an increasing number are looking to alternative, autocratic models, reports the BBC’s Dickens Olewe.

In the last three years African countries have registered an overall decline in the quality of political participation and rule of law, analysts say.

“Today there are almost the same number of defective democracies (15) as there are hard-line autocracies (16), among the continent’s 54 states,” Nic Cheeseman, Professor of Democracy at Birmingham University, concludes from his analysis of the last three years.

Nigeria, which will hold its postponed election on Saturday, is among those listed as a “defective democracy”.

Despite the challenges, at least 68% of Africans prefer to live in open and freer societies, according to a recent poll conducted by Afrobarometer in 34 countries.

That figure, however, is down slightly from 72% in 2012.

“[Africans] just want more dividends from democracy. They want less corruption, more transparency, less impunity, more economic opportunity,” Emmanuel Gyimah-Boadi, executive director and co-founder of Afrobarometer, says.

“It is in the interest of external partners to push for and to support this quest – lest non-liberal democratic models of national development become more alluring,” he adds.

Malian music legend Salif Keita has, however, given up on democracy. He recently suggested that the continent needs a “benevolent dictator like China”.

“To have a democracy, people have to understand democracy, and how can people understand when 85% of the people in the country cannot read or write,” he asks.

‘I love Trump’

The US, which has traditionally been a major influence in promoting democracy in Africa, has had a seemingly hands-off approach since President Donald Trump came to office in 2017.

When his administration’s long-delayed policy on Africa was finally unveiled at the close of 2018, many observers of the continent were quick to point out that it did not include the favoured American staples: promotion of democracy, free and fair elections, political and civil rights.

These elements were key policy components of previous administrations.

The policy instead focused on the war on terror, slashing spending on the United Nations missions on the continent, and lambasting the activities of Russia and China.

“If [African leaders] see leaders like Trump. who seems very happy to shake hands with autocrats, it gives them the signal that they can manipulate elections and not face consequences,” Mr Cheeseman says.

Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni, who plans to run for a sixth term in 2021, has been notably effusive in his praise of the American president, once declaring, “I love Trump,” who he described as the best president the US has had.

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