Amid general elections in Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and Liberia in 2023, military coups in Burkina Faso, Niger and Togo, and General elections to hold in Ghana, Guinea Bissau, Senegal, and Mali in 2024, with the indefinite postponement of elections in Mali and the Constitutional crisis in Senegal, the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), the research and analysis branch of the Economist Group released its Democracy Index for 2023 title ‘Age of Conflict.’ The Index is a yearly ranking of democracies that groups countries under four categories: full democracies, flawed democracies, hybrid democracies, and authoritarian regimes.
EIU’s index is measured based on five categories: electoral process and pluralism, civil liberties, the functioning of government, political participation, and political culture. Full democracies score between 8.0 to 10.0 on the index, flawed democracies score 6.0 to 8.0, the next on the ranking hybrid democracies have a score of 4.0 to 6.0, and the least ranked authoritarian regimes score between 0 to 4.0.
The EIU ranked 167 countries and territories on the democracy index. It concluded that only 14.4% of countries were fully democratic, comprising 24 countries, with only Mauritius being in Africa, with a score of 8.14 at number 1 on the continent and 20 worldwide. Fifty countries are classified as flawed democracies, 34 as hybrid democracies, and 59 as authoritarian, making up 29.9%, 20.4%, and 35.3% of countries, respectively. Botswana, Cabo Verde, Ghana, South Africa, and Lesotho fall under flawed democracies in Africa, with the lowest score among the African Nations being Lesotho at 6.06, ranking 71 worldwide. Malawi, Liberia, Senegal, Zambia, Tunisia, Tanzania, Kenya, Madagascar, Morocco, Benin, Uganda, Gambia, Sierra Leone, Nigeria, Cote d’Ivoire, Angola, and Mauritania at 4.14 ranked number 108 are ranked among Hybrid democracies. Algeria, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Zimbabwe, Togo, Egypt, Congo Brazzaville, Eswantini, Burkina Faso, Mali, Cameroon, Guinea Bissau, Niger, Guinea, Gabon, Burundi, Eritrea, Equatorial Guinea, Libya, Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo, Chad and Central African Republic at 1.18 (ranked 164 worldwide) are classified as authoritarian regimes.
In general, West Africa saw a decline in the index in 2023. It is to be expected with the rollback on democratic gains in the region from 2020 till date. Guinea, Mali, Burki na Faso, Niger. There has been a decline in democratic sentiments due to the actions of elected officials, with citizens in certain countries in sub-Saharan Africa preferring military regimes. Ghana is one of the most highly-ranked democracies in Africa, with 6.30 points, and is ranked sixth regionally and 65th worldwide. While Ghana’s democracy has been stable with an uninterrupted transition from one democratically elected government to another since 1992, a comparison with the 2022 index shows that Ghana dropped some points, from 6.43 in 2022 and ranked number 63 worldwide. While Nigeria retains its score of 4.23 from 2022, it has moved to 104th place worldwide instead of 105th in 2022 but still maintains its regional ranking at number 19. Nigeria’s 2023 General elections suffered from credibility issues and massive voter apathy, with a 26.72% voter turnout. On the other hand, Senegal, one of the most stable democracies in sub-Saharan Africa, had an overall score of 5.48 and ranked 83 worldwide and 11 in Africa. In 2022, Senegal had an overall score of 5.72 and ranked 79 worldwide and 10 in Africa. That is a decline, and the recent constitutional and political crisis in Senegal shows that democratic gains made in the last few decades are slowly being rolled back.
What does the future hold for democracy in Africa with military regimes making a comeback, a rise of Nationalism, an incursion of China and Russia into Africa to replace Western alliances, rollback on democratic values, conflicts, the rise of strong men politicians and citizens themselves calling for elected officials to be replaced with the military? With democratic regressions come regression of fundamental human rights such as the right to participate in the political process, freedom of the press, and, by extension, the freedom to association. Democracy remains Africa’s best form of government, with its heterogeneous populations. Democracy will ensure that different groups can negotiate their place in such societies. Sub-Saharan Africa needs help to afford to let the gains of the last three decades go to waste.
To improve the ranking of countries in Africa,
- African leaders must ensure that elections are held when due and Election Management bodies are allowed to express their independence in conducting elections. This will help create institutions with integrity and trust in the electoral process.
- Citizens should be allowed to participate in the democratic process by contesting for elections or voting unhindered for desired candidates.
- Governments, CSOs, and political parties should drive voter education, which should be made mandatory and improved. This will produce a set of voters who understand why they should vote in an election, thereby combating voter apathy.
- Opposition parties and politicians must be allowed to show dissent within the armpits of the law, as that is the only way to grow a multiparty democracy.
- In conclusion, journalists should be allowed to report the news and disseminate information to curb misinformation and disinformation, affecting electoral institutions’ credibility.
- A full democracy is one where fundamental political freedoms and civil liberties are honored, possessing a political culture conducive to the thriving of democracy, a diverse and independent media, an effective system of checks and balances, and a independent judiciary. – Page 66 Democracy Index, 2023 : Age of Conflict
- Flawed democracies experience free and fair elections despite encroachments on media freedom. While they also respect civil liberties, they encounter governance issues, potentially having an underdeveloped political culture and low levels of political participation. – Page 66 Democracy Index, 2023 : Age of Conflict
- Hybrid regimes have elections characterized by significant irregularities that often impede their fairness. These nations typically face challenges related to opposition interference, weaknesses in political culture, government functionality, and political participation. Widespread corruption, a feeble rule of law, a fragile civil society, judicial harassment, a non-independent judiciary, and pressure on journalists are prevalent in such regimes – Page 66 Democracy Index, 2023 : Age of Conflict
- Authoritarian regimes lack state political pluralism. These countries are predominantly dictatorships, and if elections occur, they are neither free nor fair, with a disregard for civil liberties. State ownership of media, extensive media censorship, and the absence of an independent judiciary are standard features in such regimes -Page 66 Democracy Index, 2023 : Age of Conflict
- https://www.dataphyte.com/latest-reports/nigeriadecides-nigeria-records-only-26-72-voter-turnout-in-2023-election/