Category: Africa

The retreat of global democracy stopped – or just paused?

     

Only 4.5% of the world’s people live in a “full democracy,” but the global democratic regression at least paused in 2018, according to the latest edition of The Economist Intelligence… Read more »

Reform and renewal: democracy staging a comeback?

     

By almost any measure, 2018 has been a disastrous year for democracy, notes analyst Frida Ghitis. Authoritarian leaders have made decisive moves to tighten their grip on power by eroding practices indispensable… Read more »

Nigeria’s election: human rights on the agenda

     

On February 16, 2019, Nigeria will hold its first national elections since the nation’s peaceful transfer of political power in 2015. While pre-election assessments suggest positive developments by electoral stakeholders,… Read more »

Restricting basic freedoms ‘the new global norm’?

     

Nearly six in ten countries are seriously restricting people’s basic rights of association, peaceful assembly and expression, according to data released by the CIVICUS Monitor,  which rates and tracks fundamental freedoms… Read more »

Do international observers ‘go easy’ on African elections?

     

  Anecdotal evidence of observers accepting low-quality elections in Africa is easy to find. Yet systematic, empirical evidence has been absent — until now, argues Susan Dodsworth, a research fellow in… Read more »

Aiding autocrats: China’s ‘sharp power’ at work

     

Chinese telecommunications company ZTE has been helping Venezuela’s autocratic government construct an advanced citizen surveillance program, Slate’s Mia Armstrong reports. A Reuters investigation published Wednesday provides a detailed look into the development… Read more »

Conservative civil society pushing back against Western liberal norms

     

The rapid rise of Brazil’s new far-right leader Jair Bolsonaro may have surprised some observers but it did not come out of thin air. His success follows years of support… Read more »

Investigative journalism key to tackling corruption

     

…..…. according to Nigeria’s  Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), which launched its latest publication titled Uncovering Corruption in Nigeria: A Manual for Investigative Journalists, Nigeria’s Vanguard News reports. “The public… Read more »