GOVERNANCE AND DEMOCRACY DIVISION  

“Should We Be Concerned About The Resurgence Of Military Coups In Africa?” 

Friday November 05, 2021 _” 3:00pm-4:00pm via Zoom (Register Now)

1. Context

Is Africa condemned to the infamy of military coups? This is the question that torments any observer of the sinuosities of the democratic phenomenon in Africa in the light of the recent coup d’état in Sudan on October 25, 2021. In fact, the military coups that took place in Guinea, Mali and Chad in 2021 are still fresh in our minds. With nearly 200 coups d’état recorded on the continent since independence, African countries seemed to have warded off this “curse” by adopting elections as the ultimate means of access to power, at the beginning of the 1990s. This desire to return to democratic civility was reaffirmed within the African Union by the adoption of legal instruments condemning unconstitutional changes of government, such as military putsches (Article 23 of the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance, ACDEG). While it revives painful memories of military dictatorships on the continent, the contemporary resurgence of coups is undoubtedly the result of the repeated vicissitudes and failures of civilian management of power.  

2. Objective of the dialogue

The objective of this dialogue is to analyse the re-emergence of the phenomenon of military coups in Africa. The aim is to identify the root causes, to question the binding value of existing normative mechanisms, to examine the stance of actors (national and international), and to formulate useful recommendations to curb the phenomenon of military coups on the continent. 

3. Participants

The public dialogue organised by the Governance and Democracy Division of the Nkafu Policy Institute Think Tank is open to all without restriction, including political entrepreneurs, private sector actors, chancelleries and international organisations, academics, civil society, students and citizens. 

4. Guest Panelist

STÉPHANE AKOA 

Stéphane Akoa holds a PhD in political science and is a research fellow at the Paul Ango Ela Foundation. He teaches in several universities in Cameroon and abroad, and is a consultant on security and defence issues for several international organisations. His main research interests are democracy, good governance, security, defence, human rights, geostrategy and international relations. 

5. Moderator:

Steve Tametong, Ph.D, Nkafu Policy Institute 

5. Foundation contact

For more information, please write to us at [email protected] or contact Tel: (+237) 22 31 15 84 / 653 78 25 81 / 698 64 55 24.