Back

Africafé: Electoral Reforms in Africa

September 19, 2024
Related topics: 
International Relations
Diplomacy
Africa

Electoral processes in Africa face significant challenges that undermine democratic ideals. Despite ongoing efforts to enhance electoral integrity, many nations struggle to conduct credible elections. In this episode, Dr. Sharamo examines the current landscape of electoral reforms across the continent, addressing both the challenges and opportunities that exist. He analyzes how electoral processes have evolved, highlighting persistent issues that threaten democracy.

The conversation will explore regional disparities, focusing on varying political contexts and identifying countries that have made notable strides in electoral reforms. He will also examine the impact of digitalization and its effects on transparency and voter confidence, especially in areas with limited digital literacy. This discussion will provide insights into the future of democracy in Africa and the essential steps needed to build more resilient electoral systems.

Speakers
Ahmed Ouhnini
Economist, Policy Center for the New South
Ahmed Ouhnini is an Economist at the Policy Center for the New South. His research area covers agricultural economics, human and social development. Previously, he has worked as a researcher at the Paris School of Economics (PSE) and has also a record of working in consulting services in Morocco. Ahmed holds an engineering Diploma in Agriculture and Rural Development from the National School of Agriculture of Meknes and a Master’s Degree in Law, Economics and Management from the Paris 1 Pantheon Sorbonne Institute of Development. ...
Roba Sharamo
Director of the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance  
...

RELATED CONTENT

  • AFTER THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC: HOW DOES THE WORLD CHANGE?
    Authors
    Len Ishmael
    July 16, 2021
    The BDA Currents: Where Diplomacy Meets Business, is the Brussels Diplomatic Academy’s annual report covering the wider geopolitical and other factors influencing and affecting the world of diplomacy, international relations and global business. The journal focuses on issues of topical interest around the centers of global power, influence and importance, including the continents of Europe and Africa, the Middle East, China, India & Asia, Russia and the Commonwealth of Independe ...
  • Download PDF
    INSIGHTS INTO THE EU-OACPS NEGOTIATIONS 2018-2021 : What are the implications for the future partnership?
    Authors
    Len Ishmael
    April 20, 2021
    The briefing document by Ambassador Dr. Len Ishmael created in collaboration with MDPD KAS reviews the process of the EU-OACPS negotiations, reviews the process of the EU-OACPS negotiations, with a view to providing insights on the following issues: - The challenges and bottlenecks in the process and those issues that have created tension. - The future roles of the African Union (AU) and #OACPS Secretariats in the EU-OACPS relationship, and in Africa’s relationship with the #EU. ...
  • La présidence de la RDC de l'Union africaine
    Abdelhak Bassou & Oussama Tayebi
    April 09, 2021
    C’est dans un contexte marqué à la fois par la crise sanitaire liée à la pandémie de COVID-19 et par l’émergence de nouvelles menaces à la paix et à la sécurité du continent africain que ...
  • Download PDF
    La diplomatie économique du Japon en Afrique: Un bilan de l’ère Abe, entre priorités stratégiques et réalités de terrain
    Authors
    Céline PAJON
    January 8, 2021
    Durant  son  mandat  (2012-2020),  le  Premier  ministre  Shinzo  Abe  s’est évertué  à  démontrer  le  fort  intérêt  duJapon  pour  l’Afrique,s’engageant notamment sur un soutien financier d’un total de 60 milliards de dollars lors des sommets de la Tokyo International Conference on African Development(TICAD)  en  2013  et  2016  et  dévoilant  sa  vision  pour «un  Indo-Pacifiquelibre  et ouvert»(«Free  and  Open  Indo-Pacific»–FOIP)  lors  de  la TICADVI à Nairobi. Pour autant, ...
  • They Did Not Want Compromise and Consensus. They Wanted War
    Authors
    Helmut Sorge
    December 22, 2020
    “When I got home late that night, the house was dark and Michelle was already asleep. After taking a shower and going through a stack of mail, I slipped under the covers and began drifting off. In that luminal space between wakefulness and sleep, I imagined myself stepping toward a portal of some sort, a bright and cold and airless place, uninhabited and severed from the world. And behind me, out of the darkness, I heard a voice, sharp and clear, as if someone were right next to me, ...
  • Fortes impressions d’Egypte dans les mémoires de Barack Obama
    Authors
    Sabine Cessou
    November 27, 2020
    « Une terre promise » (Fayard), livre événement de Barack Obama, couvre sa campagne et les trois premières années de sa présidence. L’Egypte est le pays d’Afrique dont il parle le plus – et pas seulement à cause du Printemps arabe. L’Afrique occupe à peine 40 pages sur les 840 que comptent les mémoires de Barack Obama. La crise financière internationale, la loi Obama Care et le retrait des troupes d’Irak et Afghanistan ont retenu l’attention du président fraîchement élu. C’est l’Eg ...
  • What Could President-Elect Joe Biden’s African Strategy Be?
    Authors
    Souha Majidi
    November 26, 2020
    The Trump Administration “America First” policy changed U.S. foreign policy towards the African continent. Trump opposed trade agreements with several countries, considering them to be unfavorable to the U.S., given the nature of the African market. He shifted the U.S. concern in Africa from fighting against violent extremism and terrorism to a direct competition with other great powers—China and Russia—which had already extensively implemented African strategies. He endeavored to r ...
  • Download PDF
    Burkina Faso elections, another box to check
    Authors
    Rida Lyammouri
    November 19, 2020
    In October 2014, Burkina Faso entered a new era when a social uprising resulted in the overthrow after 27 years of President Blaise Compaoré. The uprising was triggered by Compaoré’s attempt to amend the constitution so he could run for another term. In late 2015, Roch Marc Christian Kaboré was elected and sworn as a new president with high hopes for a new Burkina Faso. Corruption, democratic reforms, poverty, and economic development dominated President Kaboré’s inauguration speech ...