Democracy in Sub-Saharan Africa : where did it come from? Can it be supported?

On the whole, the recent introduction or reintroduction of multiparty systems in Africa has not produced economic recovery and it may not have produced the purely political results which reformers had hoped for. Of paramount importance in Africa is the way in which foreign and local pressures and interests combine in the formation of institutions, including the new political institutions of democracy. This paper begins with a brief account of democratization in Africa and shows how it marks both a rupture and a continuity with older traditions. It then tries to isolate those factors which may not figure in classical definitions of democracy, but which are important for the success or failure of democracy as part of a system able to produce stable government, social justice and material prosperity. The author briefly assesses the democratization experience of some African countries before considering what donors have contributed and what actions they might anticipate in the future