Just concluded general elections in Guinea, Ivory Coast and Tanzania had stirred controversies in various degrees and decibels. Hopefully, the passage of time would help eclipsing the hard lines drawn by the opposing political parties. Significantly, the elections to various political offices are round the corner in various other countries, such as in Ethiopia, South Sudan, Morocco, Cape Verdean, Libyan Constitutional Referendum, Zambia, Gambia etc. While the world is looking very closely at these elections to adjudge the progress of democracy in Africa, delightfully there is a realization that democracy is the only way forward for the 54 –countries in the region to break the bonds from the past. Undeniably, there is also an overwhelming opinion that the democratic process has to take strong roots in the continent to keep the citizens faith in the system.
To wish away the violence, unrest and claims and counterclaims evidenced in the countries, which had completed the election process as transitional hiccups of democracy is like ostrich burying its head in sand. It will not take the continent forward. Critical analysis of the democratic process is required across the countries in the region to mark in precise terms the level of progress. However laudable the concept of democracy may be, if it is devoid of an enabling ecosystem to flourish, the transition stage will continue in perpetuity. What decides the ecosystem for democracy? Many elements go into the making of a vibrant democracy. Foremost is the free flow of information that catalyze political debates, accompanied by primacy of the rule of law, accountability, prevention of abuse of power and corruption, subjugation and indignation and above all people’s participation.
The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) published the 2019 edition of its democracy index of 50 African countries (except Seychelles, South Sudan, Somalia, and Sao Tome and Principe). The index is nothing to cheer for the continent. In 2019, the democracy index declined on the African continent and more particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. The average score for the region fell from 4.36 in 2018 to 4.26 in 2019, the worst score since 2010.
Some of the high points of the findings of EIU may have to be emphasized . Only Mauritius ranks in the “Full Democracy” category, ahead of France and the United States. Sixteen African countries have improved their score, which is a redeeming feature, while 24 have recorded a decline in their performance. The EIU blames deterioration on account of the faulty electoral process and political pluralism in many sub-Saharan African countries. It also bodes well that countries like Algeria moved from the category of “authoritarian regime” to the category of “hybrid democracy. Benin is one of the countries that recorded the biggest drop in their scores. With a score of 5.09, the country now occupies 97th position, a fall from 81st position in 2018. This is mainly due to the 2019 legislative elections without opposition participation, which led to violence, a rare occurrence in this West African country. Another West African country, Senegal registered a fall of nine places and is now ranked 82nd in the world moving it down from the category of “flawed democracies” to that of “hybrid” democracies.
This analysis may have their own inherent weaknesses since some of the elements that go into calculation of the index may be subjective or may be hit by flawed collation of data. But it gives the trend and unmistakably the challenges ahead. The tenets of democracy cannot be permeated through a top down process. It should start from the base. Every institution has to follow democratic norms –from grassroots to the top- to shore up the confidence of the people in the system. Tweaking the structure here or there to give semblance of a democracy will be a zero sum game. There will be only losers and no winners in the game. That way, Africa as a region, has to go a long way in absorbing the spirit of democracy.
