By Dr. Nic Cheeseman, University of Birmingham — The Conversation UK — 11 August 2020
For the last few years the African political landscape has been dominated by high-profile changes of leaders and governments in Angola, Ethiopia, South Africa, Sudan and Zimbabwe. But do changes of leaders and governments generate more democratic and responsive governments?
The Bertelsmann Transformation Index Africa Report 2020 suggests we should be cautious. Reviewing developments in 44 countries from 2017 to the start of 2019, the report finds that leadership change results in an initial wave of optimism, but ongoing political challenges mean it is often a case of “the more things change the more they stay the same.” Sub-Saharan Africa as a whole has seen no significant changes to the overall level of democracy, economic management and governance.
Nowhere is this more true than Zimbabwe, where recent weeks have witnessed a brutal government crackdown. Not only have journalists been arrested on flimsy charges, but the rule of law has been manipulated to keep them in jail. It is now clear that the Mnangagwa government is no more committed to human rights and civil liberties than its predecessor was. For us as a people there are many lessons to be learnt about our nation’s politics and the struggle for economic upliftment.