Africa can make important contributions to the issues on the agenda: defending against authoritarianism; fighting corruption; and respect for human rights.
The 2021 local government elections signals widespread disillusionment with representative democracy that only a sea change in service delivery can fix.
Allegations that World Bank officials manipulated country rankings in its much-used ease of doing business index highlight a deeper problem with these types of rankings.
President Alpha Condé’s pursuit of mining interests during the Ebola crisis may have foreshadowed his demise as he tightened his grip over power and plundered the state’s wealth.
Politics with Michelle Grattan: Former judge Stephen Charles slams government’s integrity commission model
Michelle Grattan speaks with Former Victorian judge Stephen Charles as he attacks the weakness of the Morrison Governments model for an integrity commission
The judge responsible for authorising the covert monitoring of communications has found that claims by journalists that they were being spied on were credible.
Gary Sturgess, Australia and New Zealand School of Government (ANZSOG)
The New South Wales ICAC’s remit has changed over the years to investigate more minor breaches by public officials. This can caused confusion and will undermine its effectiveness.
South Australia has shown other Australian jurisdictions what not to do with their anti-corruption bodies, especially the proposed federal integrity commission.
The extent of democracy capture varies markedly between countries. It’s much higher in states such as Zimbabwe, where the government has never changed hands.
South Africa’s political parties would do well to learn from Ireland, where the three largest political parties negotiated a coalition treaty that stipulated mechanisms for conflict resolution.
The ANC did not create most of the patterns for which it is blamed. But it has done far too little to change them and often seems happy simply to live with them.