Abstract
African leaders have not used processes in constitutional reforms that would result in institutions that could, in turn, reduce ethnicity (ethnic consciousness and mobilization for effective ethnic group demands on the state). Popular methods used to manage ethnicity have serious costs and weaknesses. Proposed are constitutional reforms via stable equilibrium determination processes. Focal points embedded in the cultures of the groups, relating to political institutions, distributive justice, and societal civility should facilitate the tasks. Important as enabling factors are leadership activities within civil society, inter alia to promote mutual respect, generalized trust, and pluralistic solidarity.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
A. Addis (1997) “On Human Diversity and the Limits of Toleration” I Shapiro W Kymlicka (Eds) Ethnicity and Group Rights. Nomos New York University Press New York: 112–153
ER Aiyede (2003) ArticleTitle“The Dynamics of Civil Society and the Democratization Process in Nigeria” Canadian Journal of African Studies 37 1–27
C. Ake (1993) “Rethinking African Democracy” L. Diamond M. F. Plattner (Eds) The Global Resurgence of Democracy The Johns Hopkins University Press Baltimore, MD 70–82
NF Awasom (2002) ArticleTitle“Politics and Constitution-Making in Francophone Cameroon, 1959–1960” Africa Today 49 3–30
G. B. N. Ayittey (1991) Indigenous African Institutions Transnational Publishers, Inc New York
P Bardhan (2002) ArticleTitle“Decentralization of Governance and Development” Journal of Economic Perspectives 16 185–205
A. Boahen JFA Ajaye M Tidy (1986) Topics in West African History Longman Group London
P. Bourdieu (1986) “Forms of Capital” J. G. Richardson (Eds) Handbook of Theory and Research for the Sociology of Education Greenwood Press Westport, CT 241–260
G. Brennan A. Hamlin (2000) “Nationalism and Federalism: The Political Constitution of Peace” G Gianluigi P Salmon R Wintrobe (Eds) Competition and Structure, The Political Economy of Collective Decisions: Essays in Honor of Albert Breton Cambridge University Press Cambridge 259–283
P Collier (2000) ArticleTitle“Ethnicity , Politics and Economic Performance” Economics and Politics 12 225–45
S. Decalo (1997) “Benin: First of the New Democracies” JF Clark DE Gardinier (Eds) Political Reform in Francophone Africa Westview Press Boulder 43–61
F.M Deng S Kimaro T Lyons D Rothchild IW Zartman (1996) Sovereignty as Responsibility: Conflict Management in Africa Brookings Institution Washington
L. Diamond (1999) Developing Democracy: Toward Consolidation Johns Hopkins University Press Baltimore and London
M. Doornbos (1998) “Linking the Future to the Past” J Markakis (Eds) Ethnicity and the State in Eastern Africa Uppsala Afrikainstitutet 17–29
W. Easterly (2001a) The Elusive Quest for Growth: Economists’ Adventures and Misadventures in the Tropics MIT Press Cambridge, MA
W. Easterly (2001b) “Can Institutions Resolve Ethnic Conflicts?” Economic Development and Cultural Change 49 687–706
W Easterly R Levine (1997) ArticleTitle“Africa’s Growth Tragedy: Policies and Ethnic Divisions” Quarterly Journal of Economics 112 1203–1250
J. D. Eller (1999) From Culture to Ethnicity to Conflict: An International Perspective on Ethnic Conflict University of Michigan Press Ann Arbor
E. Fehr U. Fischbacher (2002) ArticleTitle“Why Social Preferences Matter–The Impact of Non-Selfish Motives on Competition, Cooperation and Incentives” Economic Journal 112 C1–C3
B. S. Frey R. Eichenberger (1999) The New Democratic Federalism for Europe: Functional Overlapping and Competing Jurisdictions Cheltenham Edward Elgar UK, and Northampton, MA, USA
N. Glazer D. Moynihan (Eds) (1975) Ethnicity Theory and Practice Cambridge MA: Harvard University Press
BL Goff RE McCormick RD Tollison (2002) ArticleTitle“Racial Integration as an Innovation: Empirical Evidence from Sports Leagues” American Economic Review 92 16–26
S. H. Hameso (1997) Ethnicity in Africa A Positive Approach. Lincoln NE: University Press
S. Hampshire (2000) Justice is Conflict Princeton University Press Princeton
Hassan, A. I. (2001) “Constitution of Kenya Review Commission Discussion Paper on the Review Process.” http://www.kenyaconstitution.org/docs/02d001.htm access date: 15-09-2001.
M. Hechter (1987) Principles of Group Solidarity University of California Press Berkeley and Los Angeles
A Ikelegbe (2001) ArticleTitle“The Perverse Manifestation of Civil Society: Evidence from Nigeria” Journal of Modern African Studies 39 1–24
H. Jerman (1998) “Dynamics of Ethnicity–A Case Study From the Western Bagamoyo District in Tanzania” MAM Salih J Markakis (Eds) Ethnicity and the State in Eastern Africa Nordiska Afrikainstitutet Uppsala 156–179
OEG Johnson (1972) ArticleTitle“Economic Analysis, the Legal Framework, and Land Tenure Systems” Journal of Law and Economics 15 259–76
OEG Johnson (1974) ArticleTitle“Contract Costs and the Liability Structure for Stranger-Tenant Damages in Sierra Leone’s Customary Land Law: An Economic Analysis” African Studies Review 17 549–59
O. E. G. Johnson (1976) “Economic Aspects of the Structure of Land Rights” J. Levi (Eds) African Agriculture: Economic Action and Reaction in Sierra Leone, pp Farnham Royal Bucks,UK: Commonwealth Agricultural Bureaux 203–236
O. E. G. Johnson (2004) “How Will Good Economic Policy Environments Emerge in Africa?” Journal of Policy Reform 7 151–64
PM Kagwanja (2003) ArticleTitle“Facing Mount Kenya or Facing Mecca The Mungiki, Ethnic Violence and the Politics of the Moi Succession in Kenya, 1987–2002”. African Affairs 102 25–49
Kenya (2001) The Constitution of Kenya Review Act. The Constitution of Kenya Review Commission. http://www.kenyaconstitution.org/docs/01bd001.htm access date: 30-09-2001.
I. Kopytoff (Eds) (1987) “The Internal African Frontier: The Making of African Political Culture” The Reproduction of Traditional African Societies Bloomington and Indianapolis: Indiana University Press The African Frontier 3–84
R Lemarchand (1998) ArticleTitle“Genocide in the Great Lakes: Which Genocide Whose Genocide?” African Studies Review 41 3–16
A. Lijphart (1977) Democracy in Plural Societies: A Comparative Exploration Yale University Press New Haven and London
Lin, N. (2001) “Building a Network Theory of Social Capital.” In: Lin, N., Cook, K., and Burt, R. S. (eds.) Social Capital: Theory and Research, pp. 3–29. New York: Aldine de Gruyter.
S. Lindenberg (2002) “Solidarity, its Microfoundations and Macrodependence: A Framing Approach” O. Favereau E Lazega (Eds) Conventions and Structures in Economic Organization: Markets, Networks and Hierarchies, pp Northampton MA: Elgar 282–328
M. McGinnis (Eds) (1999) Polycentric Governance and Development: Readings from the Workshop in Political Theory and Policy Analysis University of Michigan Press Ann Arbor
K Mengisteab (1997) ArticleTitle“New Approaches to State Building in Africa: The Case of Ethiopia Ethnic-Based Federalism” African Studies Review 40 111–32
D. C. Mueller (1996) Constitutional Democracy Oxford University Press Oxford
Mueller, D. C. (2001) “On Writing a Constitution.” In: Mudambi, R., Navarra, P. and Sobbrio, G. (eds.) Rules and Reason, pp. 9–32 . Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
L Ndikumana (1998) ArticleTitle“Institutional Failure and Ethnic Conflicts in Burundi” African Studies Review 41 29–47
Ottaway, M. (1999) Africa’s New Leaders: Democracy or State Reconstruction? Washington: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
Parsons, T. (1975) “Some Theoretical Considerations on the Nature and Trends of Change of Ethnicity.” In: Glazer, N. and Moynihan, D. P. (eds.) Ethnicity, Theory and Practice, Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, pp. 53–83.
Poluha, E. (1998) “Ethnicity and Democracy – A Viable Alliance?” In: Salih, M.A.M., and Markakis, J (eds.) pp. 30–41. Ethnicity and the State in Eastern Africa, Uppsala: Nordiska Afrikainstitutet.
G. Prunier (1995) The Rwanda Crisis: History of a Genocide Columbia University Press New York
D. Rothchild (1997) Managing Ethnic Conflict in Africa: Pressures and Incentives for Cooperation Brookings Institution Press Washington
T. C. Schelling (1960) The Strategy of Conflict Harvard University Press Cambridge, MA
SJ Shivakumar (2003) ArticleTitle“The Place of Indigenous Institutions in Constitutional Order” Constitutional Political Economy 14 3–21
A. Sen (2000) “Merit and Justice” K. Arrow S. Bowles S. Durlauf (Eds) Meritocracy and Economic Inequality Princeton NJ: Princeton University Press 5–16
Voss, T. (2001) “Game-Theoretical Perspectives on the Emergence of Social Norms.” In: Hechter, M., and Opp, K.-D. (eds.) Social Norms, pp. 105–36. New York: Russell Sage Foundation.
Wallerstein, I. (1964) “Voluntary Associations.” In: Coleman, J. S., and Rosberg, C. G., Jr (eds.) Political Parties and National Integration in Tropical Africa, pp. 318–39. Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press.
HP Young (1993a) ArticleTitle“The Evolution of Conventions” Econometrica 61 57–84
HP Young (1993b) ArticleTitle“An Evolutionary Model of Bargaining” Journal of Economic Theory 59 145–68
Zartman, I. W. (1991) “Conflict Reduction: Prevention, Management, and Resolution.” In: Deng, F. M., and Zartman, I. W. (eds.) Conflict Resolution in Africa, pp. 299–319. Washington: The Brookings Institution.
I. W. Zartman (1997) Governance as Conflict Management: Politics and Violence in West Africa Brookings Institution Press Washington
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
JEL Classification: D74, O55, Z13.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Johnson, O.E.G. Addressing Ethnicity in Sub-Saharan Africa: Institutions and Agency. Constit Polit Econ 16, 49–69 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10602-005-5852-0
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10602-005-5852-0