Cecilia Atim Ogwal (1946-2024).
Anam Hilda/Wikimedia Commons
Ogwal’s experiences as an opposition politician are emblematic of the challenges faced by political opponents of the regime in Uganda.
Representatives of Rainbows Across Borders take part in the Pride in London parade on 1 July 2023 in London, United Kingdom.
Mark Kerrison/In Pictures via Getty Images
The World Bank’s funding freeze reflects a shift from policy imposition to indirect ways of controlling client nations.
Gabon President Ali Bongo Ondimba speaks during a trade conference in London in 2018.
Chris Jackson/Getty Images
Gabon is resource rich, but the Bongo family’s continuous rule has been bad news for the country of 2.3 million people.
Clashes erupted in Senegal following the sentencing of opposition leader Ousmane Sonko to two years in prison for “corrupting the youth” in June 2023.
Annika Hammerschlag/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
President Macky Sall’s previous ambiguity on a third-term bid, perception of a weaponised justice system and arbitrary detention of opposition are the drivers of political violence in Senegal.
An armed soldier at a polling station during the counting of votes in March 2018 in Freetown.
Issouf Sanogo/AFP via Getty Images
Though public opinion surveys offer some hope, there are several concerns for democracy’s consolidation in West Africa.
President William Ruto inspects a guard of honour in Nairobi, Kenya in September 2022.
Simon Maina/AFP via Getty Images
The purpose of term limits is to minimise corruption and open the government to new ideas that could solve national problems.
People wait in line outside their voting station in the popular neighbourhood of Ngor in Dakar on July 31, 2022.
Photo by JOHN WESSELS/AFP via Getty Images
The 2024 presidential election is shaping up to give Senegalese a significant and competitive election, leaving voters in the driver’s seat.
Graffiti in Ouagadougou reads “Compaore, you’re the thug!” It appeared a few days after President Blaise Compaore stepped down.
Photo by Sia Kambou/AFP via Getty Images
The events of the past seven years point to a strong democratric urge among the Burkinabe.
Zanzibar’s anti-riot police officers stand guard over protesters cornered during opposition protests in Stone Town, Zanzibar.
Photo by Marco Longari/AFP via Getty Images
The emerging partisan politics and the polarisation it creates is a new threat for Tanzania.
Franklin Delano Roosevelt, standing at center and facing left just above the eagle, takes the presidential oath of office for the third time in 1941.
FDR Presidential Library and Museum via Flickr
Only one president has done so – Franklin Delano Roosevelt – but others considered it, and even tried.
President John Magufuli has closed down all the reliable means to evaluate allegations of foul play.
Getty Images
As key opposition members lose seats in their strongholds, it is clear that Tanzania’s ruling party is set to establish a super-majority that will institute a deeper authoritarian agenda.
President Alassane Ouattara of Ivory Coast.
Horacio Villalobos/Corbis via Getty Images
President Alassane Ouattara (78) has been blowing hot and cold on whether he’ll be seeking a third term.
Moves are afoot to ensure 25% of Egyptian MPs are women.
EPA-EFE/Khaled Elfiqi
Opening up positions of political power to women will lead to effective and better implemented development policies.
Cameroonian President Paul Biya votes in the presidential elections in the capital Yaounde. He has been in power for 36 years.
EFE/EPA/Nic Bothma
President Paul Biya’s credibility and legitimacy are increasingly being tarnished, amid growing support for opposition candidates.
President Yoweri Museveni has been given the legal go-ahead to run for the presidency again.
Mike Hutchings/Pool/EPA
Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni has been given the green light to run for another term. He should be happy, but he’s not.
A Togolese opposition supporter during protests over alleged electoral fraud in 2005.
EPA/Nic Bothma
Togo illustrates the difficulty of moving away from personalised politics.
President Kabila’s time in government has shown an inability to bring together the various ethnic groups.
EPA/Michael Kappeler
African leaders need to acknowledge the gravity of the Congo crisis and apply pressure on Kabila.
Burundi’s Pierre Nkurunziza is one of many authoritarian African leaders.
AMISOM Public Information/Flickr
More leaders in more African countries will abolish term limits unless organisations like the African Union take action.
African countries holding elections increases the quality of civil liberties.
EPA/Stringer
The process of institutionalisation may be patchy and uneven. But one thing is clear: Africa is not without functioning institutions.
Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Fred Dufour/EPA-EFE
Now that President Xi Jinping’s presidential term has been extended indefinitely, African governments need to plan strategically for their future engagements with the Chinese.