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The Role of Civil Society in Africa’s Quest for Democratization

  • Book
  • © 2015

Overview

Authors:
  1. Abadir M. Ibrahim

    1. St. Thomas University School of Law, Miami Gardens, USA

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  • Provides the first extensive study on civil society and democratization in Africa
  • Compares the laws, policies and political upheavals experienced by six African nations in different stages of the democratization process
  • Evaluates the effect that civil society organizations can have on a country’s democratic trajectory

Part of the book series: Advances in African Economic, Social and Political Development (AAESPD, volume 5)

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Table of contents (9 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-xv
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  2. Introduction and Background

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 1-1
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    2. Introduction: A Continent in Transition

      • Abadir M. Ibrahim
      Pages 3-15

    3. Conceptualizing Democracy and Democratization

      • Abadir M. Ibrahim
      Pages 17-44

    4. Civil Society and Democratization

      • Abadir M. Ibrahim
      Pages 45-63

  3. Case Studies

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 65-65
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    2. The Beautiful Ones Are Born: Consolidation of Democracy in South Africa and Ghana

      • Abadir M. Ibrahim
      Pages 67-99

    3. The Case of Nigeria: A State Stuck in Transition

      • Abadir M. Ibrahim
      Pages 101-120

    4. Ethiopia: A State Regressing from Democracy

      • Abadir M. Ibrahim
      Pages 121-146

    5. Some Unfinished Business in North Africa

      • Abadir M. Ibrahim
      Pages 147-168

  4. Comparative Analysis

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 169-169
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    2. Civil Society in Transition, Consolidation, and Regression: A Comparative Analysis

      • Abadir M. Ibrahim
      Pages 171-191

    3. Civil Society in Africa: Some Specific Themes

      • Abadir M. Ibrahim
      Pages 193-209

  5. Back Matter

    Pages 211-213
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Keywords

About this book

This book tests many of the assumptions, hypotheses, and conclusions connected with the presumed role of civil society organizations in the democratization of African countries. Taking a comparative approach, it looks at countries that have successfully democratized, those that are stuck between progress and regression, those that have regressed into dictatorship, and those that are currently in transitional flux and evaluates what role, if any, civil society has played in each instance. The countries discussed—South Africa, Ghana, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Egypt and Tunisia—represent a diverse set of social and political circumstances and different levels of democratic achievement, providing a rich set of case studies. Each sample state also offers an internal comparison, as each has historically experienced different stages of democratization. Along the course of each case study, the book also considers the effect that other traditionally studied factors, such as culture, colonization, economic development and foreign aid, may have had on individual attempts at democratization. The first extensive work on civil society and democratization in Africa, the book adds new insights to the applicability of democratization theory in a non-Western context, both filling a gap in and adding to the existing universal scholarship. This book will be useful for scholars of political science, economics, sociology and African studies, as well as human rights activists and policy makers in the relevant geographical areas.

Authors and Affiliations

  • St. Thomas University School of Law, Miami Gardens, USA

    Abadir M. Ibrahim

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