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Democratic renewal in Africa : trends and discourses
From the late 1980s to the early years of the twenty-first century, African politics were defined by a concerted struggle for democratization and the clamor for good governance. Motivated and legitimized by the bitter experiences of structural adjustment programs and entrenched, repressive regimes, these democratic struggles triggered constitutional reforms, elections, new civil freedoms, and a variety of other forms of political progress. Yet the scope and success of these reforms have varied widely among different nations, and some scholars have even argued that responsible governance and democratic progress have even contracted in the intervening two decades. This comprehensive volume provides both retrospective and forward-looking perspectives on the current state of democracy and governance across the African continent. Synthesizing the latest research the various nation-level democratization initiatives, it offers an invaluable survey of this latest chapter in Africa's postcolonial history. -- Amazon.
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Routledge Handbook of Democratization in Africa
This volume explores the issues and debates surrounding the ongoing processes of democratization in sub-Saharan Africa, illuminating the central dynamics characterizing Africa's democratic experiments, and considering the connections between democratization and economic, social, and cultural developments on the continent.
Reflecting the diverse and rich nature of this field of study, the Handbook of Democratization in Africa features more than thirty contributions structured into six thematic sections:
The politics and paths of regime development
Institutional dynamics
Political mobilization and voting dynamics
The politics of identity
Social forces from below
The consequences of democracy.
Chapters offer overviews of the key scholarship on particular topics, including central insights from the latest research, and provide suggestions for those interested in further inquiry. The material includes attention to broad cross-continental patterns, for example with respect to public opinion, political violence, or the role of different institutions and actors. It also includes rich case material, drawing on and highlighting the experiences of a diverse collection of countries.
Encouraging a comprehensive view of key concerns and enhancing understanding of particular issues, the Handbook of Democratization in Africa represents a critical resource for experts and students of African politics, democratization, and African studies.
eBook
Democracy works : turning politics to Africa's advantage
\"Democracy Works asks how we can learn to nurture, deepen and consolidate democracy in Africa. By analysing transitions within and beyond the continent, the authors identify a 'democratic playbook' robust enough to withstand threats to free and fair elections. However, substantive democracy demands more than just regular polls. It is fundamentally about the inner workings of institutions, the rule of law, separation of powers, checks and balances, and leadership in government and civil society. It is also about values and the welfare and well-being of its citizens, and demands local leadership with a plan for the country beyond simply winning the popular vote. This volume addresses the political, economic and extreme demographic challenges that African countries face. It is intended as a resource for members of civil society and as a guide for all who seek to enjoy the political and development benefits of democracy in the world's poorest continent. Finally, it is for donors and external actors who have to face critical decision - especially after ill-fated electoral interventions such as Kenya 2017 - about the future of observer missions and aid promoting democracy and good governance\"--Inside front flap.
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Women's Organizations and Democracy in South Africa
The transition to democracy in South Africa was one of the defining events in twentieth-century political history. The South African women’s movement is one of the most celebrated on the African continent. Shireen Hassim examines interactions between the two as she explores the gendered nature of liberation and regime change. Her work reveals how women’s political organizations both shaped and were shaped by the broader democratic movement. Alternately asserting their political independence and giving precedence to the democratic movement as a whole, women activists proved flexible and remarkably successful in influencing policy. At the same time, their feminism was profoundly shaped by the context of democratic and nationalist ideologies. In reading the last twenty-five years of South African history through a feminist framework, Hassim offers fresh insights into the interactions between civil society, political parties, and the state.
Hassim boldly confronts sensitive issues such as the tensions between autonomy and political dependency in feminists’ engagement with the African National Congress (ANC) and other democratic movements, and black-white relations within women’s organizations. She offers a historically informed discussion of the challenges facing feminist activists during a time of nationalist struggle and democratization.
Winner, Victoria Schuck Award for best book on women and politics, American Political Science Association “An exceptional study, based on extensive research. . . . Highly recommended.”—
Choice “A rich history of women’s organizations in South African . . . . [Hassim] had observed at first hand, and often participated in, much of what she described. She had access to the informants and private archives that so enliven the narrative and enrich the analysis. She provides a finely balanced assessment.”—Gretchen Bauer,
African Studies Review
eBook
Democracy and elections in Africa
Outstanding Academic Title for 2007, Choice Magazine
This volume studies elections as a core institution of liberal democracy in the context of newly democratizing countries. Political scientist Staffan I. Lindberg gathers data from every nationally contested election in Africa from 1989 to 2003, covering 232 elections in 44 countries. He argues that democratizing nations learn to become democratic through repeated democratic behavior, even if their elections are often flawed.
Refuting a number of established hypotheses, Lindberg finds no general negative trend in either the frequency or the quality of African elections. Rather, elections in Africa, based on his findings, are more than just the goal of a transition toward democracy or merely a formal procedure. The inception of multiparty elections usually initiates liberalization, and repeated electoral activities create incentives for political actors, fostering the expansion and deepening of democratic values. In addition to improving the democratic qualities of political regimes, a sequence of elections tends to expand and solidify de facto civil liberties in society.
Drawing on a wealth of data, Lindberg makes the case that repetitive elections are an important causal factor in the development of democracy. He thus extends Rustow's (1970) theory that democratic behavior produces democratic values.
eBook
Power in action : democracy, citizenship and social justice
\"'What are democracies meant to do? And how does one know when one is a democratic state?' These incisive questions and more underlie this robust enquiry into what democracy means for South Africa post 1994. Power in Action persuasively argues that democracies can only work when every adult has an equal say in the public decisions that affect them. Democracy is achieved not by adopting idealised models derived from other societies, especially from the global North, but rather, it is the product of collective action. Citizens' rights to be heard should not only be through public protest action but also through the conscious exercise of influence on public and private power holders. In this way, more citizens can claim a say over more decisions in society. This is an essential read for all those interested in the future of democracy in Africa as well as the world\"--Back cover.
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Democracy and the rise of women's movements in Sub-Saharan Africa
Despite a late and fitful start, democracy in Africa, Latin America, and Eastern Europe has recently shown promising growth. Kathleen M. Fallon discusses the role of women and women's advocacy groups in furthering the democratic transformation of formerly autocratic states.
Using Ghana as a case study, Fallon examines the specific processes women are using to bring about political change. She assesses information gathered from interviews and surveys conducted in Ghana and assays the existing literature to provide a focused look at how women have become involved in the democratization of sub-Saharan nations. The narrative traces the history of democratic institutions in the region—from the imposition of male-dominated mechanisms by western states to latter-day reforms that reflect the active resurgence of women's political power within many African cultures—to show how women have made significant recent political gains in Ghana and other emerging democracies.
Fallon attributes these advances to a combination of forces, including the decline of the authoritarian state and its attendant state-run women's organizations, newly formed constitutions, and newfound access to good-governance funding. She draws the study into the larger debate over gendered networks and democratic reform by exploring how gender roles affect and are affected by the state in Africa, Latin America, and Eastern Europe.
In demonstrating how women's activism is evolving with and shaping democratization across the region, Democracy and the Rise of Women's Movements in Sub-Saharan Africa reveals how women's social movements are challenging the barriers created by colonization and dictatorships in Africa and beyond.
eBook
Is non-Western democracy possible? : a russian perspective
\"This book, with theoretical and practical analyses of comparative political systems of Eastern countries (Asia and Africa), their political process and political cultures, describes and analyses the influence of political culture on political process in the Eastern world. It gives readers an opportunity to make a comparative appraisal of maturity of civil society in these countries as well as their specifics in political interactions and internal political competition seen through the eyes of a group of distinguished Russian researchers. The book concentrates also on specifics of political-economic and political modernization in the East, and assesses the prospects of an emergence of a Western as well as a non-Western democracy in the framework of Eastern political transformations. It also explains why the one-dimensional spread of democracy -- completely negating or neglecting regional political-cultural specifics -- may lead to war among civilizations instead of the formation of a more just and fair system of democratic governance\"-- Provided by publisher.
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Routledge Handbook of Citizenship in the Middle East and North Africa
This comprehensive Handbook gives an overview of the political, social, economic and legal dimensions of citizenship in the Middle East and North Africa from the nineteenth century to the present.
The terms citizen and citizenship are mostly used by researchers in an off-hand, self-evident manner. A citizen is assumed to have standard rights and duties that everyone enjoys. However, citizenship is a complex legal, social, economic, cultural, ethical and religious concept and practice. Since the rise of the modern bureaucratic state, in each country of the Middle East and North Africa, citizenship has developed differently. In addition, rights are highly differentiated within one country, ranging from privileged, underprivileged and discriminated citizens to non-citizens. Through its dual nature as instrument of state control, as well as a source of citizen rights and entitlements, citizenship provides crucial insights into state-citizen relations and the services the state provides, as well as the way citizens respond to these actions.
This volume focuses on five themes that cover the crucial dimensions of citizenship in the region:
Historical trajectory of citizenship since the nineteenth century until independence
Creation of citizenship from above by the state
Different discourses of rights and forms of contestation developed by social movements and society
Mechanisms of inclusion and exclusion
Politics of citizenship, nationality and migration
Covering the main dimensions of citizenship, this multidisciplinary book is a key resource for students and scholars interested in citizenship, politics, economics, history, migration and refugees in the Middle East and North Africa.
eBook