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PDF NNSO OKAF, Ph.D. (a.k.a. OKEREAFEZEKE) Democracy, Monarchy and Dictatorship: Types of Government Systems Posted: 12 May 2011. Stagnant economy, absence of diversification in occupational patterns and allegiance to traditionall these have a bearing on the system of education prevailing in these societies. These dynamics often lead to increased state fragility or the re-authoritarianization of once more participatory governance systems.12 The trend is sometimes, ironically, promoted by western firms and governments more interested in commercial access and getting along with existing governments than with durable political and economic development. This point links the reader to the other Africa chapters that have been prepared for this project. A third objective is to examine the relevance of traditional institutions. In this respect, they complement official courts that are often unable to provide court services to all their rural communities. Some regimes seem resilient because of their apparent staying power but actually have a narrow base of (typically ethnic or regional) support. You cant impose middle class values on a pre-industrial society.13. Generally, these traditions are oral rather than scriptural, include belief in a supreme creator, belief in spirits, veneration of the dead, use of magic and traditional African . Both can be identified as forms of governance. It is imperative that customary land rights are recognized and respected so that communities in the traditional economic system exercise control of land and other resources under their customary ownership, at least until alternative sources of employment are developed to absorb those who might be displaced. The challenge facing Africas leadersperhaps above all othersis how to govern under conditions of ethnic diversity. These migrations resulted in part from the formation and disintegration of a series of large states in the western Sudan (the region north of modern Ghana drained by the Niger River). Its marginalization, in turn, impedes the transformation of the traditional sector, thus extending the fragmentation of institutions. Traditional African religions are not stagnant but highly dynamic and constantly reacting to various shifting influences such as old age, modernity, and technological advances. No doubt rural communities participate in elections, although they are hardly represented in national assemblies by people from their own socioeconomic space. Rules of procedure were established through customs and traditions some with oral, some with written constitutions Women played active roles in the political system including holding leadership and military positions. In most African countries, constitutionally established authorities exercise the power of government alongside traditional authorities. Chiefs with limited power: Another category of chiefs is those that are hereditary, like the paramount chiefs, but have limited powers. Its lack of influence on policy also leads to its marginalization in accessing resources and public services, resulting in poverty, poor knowledge, and a poor information base, which, in turn, limits its ability to exert influence on policy. The nature of governance is central because it determines whether the exercise of authority is viewed as legitimate. The participatory and consensus-based system of conflict resolution can also govern inter-party politics and curtail the frequent post-election conflicts that erupt in many African countries. The Boundaries of Tradition: An Examination of the Traditional PDF Development of African Administration: Pre-Colonial Times and since - EOLSS A related reason for their relevance is that traditional institutions, unlike the state, provide rural communities the platform to participate directly in their own governance. Poor gender relations: Traditional institutions share some common weaknesses. In the centralized systems also, traditional leaders of various titles were reduced to chiefs and the colonial state modified notably the relations between the chiefs and their communities by making the chiefs accountable to the colonial state rather than to their communities (Coplan & Quinlan, 1997). The size and intensity of adherence to the traditional economic and institutional systems, however, vary from country to country. The Aqils (elders) of Somalia and the chiefs in Kenya are good examples. With respect to their relevance, traditional institutions remain indispensable for several reasons. List of African Union member states by political system In Africa, as in every region, it is the quality and characteristics of governance that shape the level of peace and stability and the prospects for economic development. The opinions expressed on this website are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Hoover Institution or Stanford University. This proposal will be subject to a referendum on the constitutional changes required.16.2e 2.4 Traditional leadership Traditional leaders are accorded A third pattern flows from the authoritarian reflex where big men operate arbitrary political machines, often behind a thin democratic veneer. By 2016, 35 AU members had joined it, but less than half actually subjected themselves to being assessed. The third section looks at the critical role of political and economic inclusion in shaping peace and stability and points to some of the primary challenges leaders face in deciding how to manage inclusion: whom to include and how to pay for it. (2005), customary systems operating outside of the state regime are often the dominant form of regulation and dispute resolution, covering up to 90% of the population in parts of Africa. Such a transformation would render traditional institutions dispensable. Features/Characteristics Of Government - 2022 - StopLearn The post-colonial State, on the other hand . The institution of traditional leadership in Africa pre-existed both the colonial and apartheid systems and was the only known system of governance among indigenous people. One of these will be the role and weight of various powerful external actors. For example, the election day itself goes more or less peacefully, the vote tabulation process is opaque or obscure, and the entire process is shaped by a pre-election playing field skewed decisively in favor of the incumbents. Long-standing kingdoms such as those in Morocco and Swaziland are recognized national states. African Politics - Political Science - iResearchNet Ndlela (2007: 34) confirms that traditional leaders continue to enjoy their role and recognition in the new dispensation, just like in other African states; and Good (2002: 3) argues that the system of traditional leadership in Botswana exists parallel to the democratic system of government and the challenge is of forging unity. The key . Why traditional institutional systems endure, how large the adherents to them is, and why populations, especially in rural areas, continue to rely on traditional institutions, even when an alternative system is provided by the state, and what the implications of institutional dichotomy is are questions that have not yet received adequate attention in the literature. Hoover scholars offer analysis of current policy challenges and provide solutions on how America can advance freedom, peace, and prosperity. One layer represents the formal institutions (laws) of the state. Institutions represent an enduring collection of formal laws and informal rules, customs, codes of conduct, and organized practices that shape human behavior and interaction. America's flawed democracy: the five key areas where it - The Guardian This page was processed by aws-apollo-l2 in. A strict democracy would enforce the "popular vote" total over the entire United States. Regardless, fragmentation of institutional systems poses a number of serious challenges to Africas governance and economic development. These consisted of monarchy, aristocracy and polity. Relatively unfettered access to the internet via smart phones and laptops brings informationand hence potential powerto individuals and groups about all kinds of things: e.g., market prices, the views of relatives in the diaspora, conditions in the country next door, and the self-enrichment of corrupt officials. As Legesse (1973, 2000) notes, the fundamental principles that guide the consensus-based (decentralized) authority systems include curbing the concentration of power in an institution or a person and averting the emergence of a rigid hierarchy. A partial explanation as to why the traditional systems endure was given in the section Why African Traditional Institutions Endure. The argument in that section was that they endure primarily because they are compatible with traditional economic systems, under which large segments of the African population still operate. In most African countries, constitutionally established authorities exercise the power of government alongside traditional authorities. Traditional institutions already adjudicate undisclosed but large proportions of rural disputes. Indigenous education is a process of passing the inherited knowledge, skills, cultural traditions norms and values of the tribe, among the tribal member from one generation to another Mushi (2009). Another reason is that African leaders of the postcolonial state, who wanted to consolidate their power, did not want other points of power that would compromise their control. Poor statesociety relations and weak state legitimacy: Another critical outcome of institutional fragmentation and institutional detachment of the state from the overwhelming majority of the population is weak legitimacy of the state (Englebert, 2000). Seeming preference for Democracy in Africa over other governance systems in Africa before and after independence 15-17 1.5. Indications are, however, that the more centralized the system is, the lower the accountability and popular participation in decision making. These features include nonprofits, non-profits and hybrid entities are now provide goods and services that were once delivered by the government. Sometimes, another precedent flows from thesenamely, pressure from outside the country but with some support internally as well for creating a transitional government of national unity. Traditional Political Ideas, Values, and Practices: Their Status in the One is that the leaders of the postcolonial state saw traditional institutions and their leadership as archaic vestiges of the past that no longer had a place in Africas modern system of governance. Freedom Houses ratings see a pattern of decline since 2005 and note that 10 out of 25 countries (worldwide) with declining ratings are in Africa. Institutions represent an enduring collection of formal laws and informal rules, customs, codes of conduct, and organized practices that shape human behavior and interaction. The kings and chiefs of Angola and Asante, for example, allowed European merchants to send their representatives to their courts. This brief essay began by identifying the state-society gap as the central challenge for African governance. A long-term route to political and economic success has been comprehensively documented by Daron Acemoglu and James Robinson in their global study of why nations fail or succeed. Hindrance to democratization: Perhaps among the most important challenges institutional fragmentation poses is to the process of democratization. They include: Monarchs (absolute or constitutional): While the colonial state reduced most African kings to chiefs, a few survived as monarchs. Afrocentrism, also called Africentrism, cultural and political movement whose mainly African American adherents regard themselves and all other Blacks as syncretic Africans and believe that their worldview should positively reflect traditional African values. Three layers of institutions characterize most African countries. Galizzi, Paolo and Abotsi, Ernest K., Traditional Institutions and Governance in Modern African Democracies (May 9, 2011). The third section deals with the post-colonial period and discusses some problems associated with African administration. In many cases, the invented chieftaincies were unsuccessful in displacing the consensus-based governance structures (Gartrell, 1983; Uwazie, 1994). Similarly, the process of conflict resolution is undertaken in an open assembly and is intended to reconcile parties in conflict rather than to merely punish offenders. As institutional scholars state, institutional incompatibility leads to societal conflicts by projecting different laws governing societal interactions (Eisenstadt, 1968; Helmke & Levitsky, 2004; March & Olsen, 1984; North, 1990; Olsen, 2007).