Introduction

Abstract

Since the wave of decolonisation following World War II, a number of Third World nations, most of them former British colonies, have attempted to govern themselves through Western-style democratic institutions. Almost all of them have failed. This pervasive failure, often heralded by successions of military coups and long periods of political instability, has been a subject of intensive study in the past two decades.

‘Metaphorically speaking, most Africans today live under the dictatorship of material poverty. The poverty of dictatorship in Africa is equally apparent. It offends the renowned African tradition of community-wide participation in decision-making. By contrast with dictatorship, democracy is a developing idea and an increasingly sophisticated form of political organisation. The development of democracy in Africa has become a major determinant of its progress in the world.’ Richard L. Sklar, ‘Democracy in Africa,’ Presidential Address to the 1982 annual meeting of the African Association (Sklar, 1982: 21).