Turning elections into a development asset in Africa

The paper examines the factors that turn elections into sources of conflict in Africa and proposes a framework to make them developmental assets. It identifies issues such as the 'predatory long incumbency' of leaders, the dominance of single-party systems, and the lack of public confidence in electoral machinery. The author suggests that improving political management requires a combination of individual integrity, AU oversight, and a shift toward 'meaningful developmental decentralisation' that empowers local communities with technical skills and resources rather than using decentralisation as a tool for party control.

• Elections in Africa often fail as developmental assets because they are viewed as the primary means of accessing privileged status, including state resources, credit lines, and protection from prosecution, leading incumbents to resist vacating office.
• Dominant party systems, often emerging from liberation movements, undermine credible elections by exercising exclusive control over the legislative process, the army, and the media, while blurring the line between state and party properties.
• Election-related violence is not spontaneous but is a symptom of long-term political and economic mismanagement, reflecting deep-rooted social frustrations over the denial of basic needs and economic justice.
• The author identifies 'predatory long incumbency' as a situation where a leader remains in power while the country's social, political, and economic conditions deteriorate, which eventually triggers instability.
• The African Union (AU) can improve electoral landscapes by providing oversight between elections, deploying massive monitoring teams, and acting as a neutral mediator during disputes, although its effectiveness is limited by its lack of supra-national competencies.
• Meaningful developmental decentralisation is required to manage ethnic diversity and foster growth; this differs from 'cosmetic decentralisation,' which merely extends the governing party's control to local levels.

APA

Kambudzi, A. (2008). Turning elections into a development asset in Africa. Institute for Security Studies. https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/PAPER163.pdf

Chicago

Kambudzi, Admore. Turning elections into a development asset in Africa. Institute for Security Studies, 2008. https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/PAPER163.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Kambudzi |first1=Admore |title=Turning elections into a development asset in Africa |publisher=Institute for Security Studies |date=June 2008 |url=https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/PAPER163.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{kambudzi2008turning, author = {Kambudzi, Admore}, title = {{Turning elections into a development asset in Africa}}, institution = {Institute for Security Studies}, year = {2008}, month = jun, url = {https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/PAPER163.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }