Democratization and Consolidation of Democratic Institutions

Abstract

This chapter examines the relationship between democratization and the consolidation of democratic institutions in Sub-Saharan Africa. The key questions that it aims to address is what sustains democracy and what consolidates the democratic institutions recently established. It looks, in more detail, at the main barriers to democratization and to the consolidation of democratic institutions, investigating the state of the art in the process of democratization and consolidation of democratic institutions in Botswana, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabon, Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria, the Republic of the Congo, Senegal, Somalia and South Africa. Here, strengths and shortcomings are highlighted. In line with Przeworski (2006), the self-enforcing and self-sustaining character of democracy is emphasized. The conclusion briefly summarizes the results.