Political Parties and Political Economy in Africa’s Democracies, 1990–2018
Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Politics, Aug 28, 2019
On a continent where the majority of people are poor, do political parties represent class cleava... more On a continent where the majority of people are poor, do political parties represent class cleavages? Do parties have strong linkages to ordinary voters? Do economic policies address their needs? In the initial years following democratic transitions across the African continent in the 1990s, the answers to such questions were negative. Clientelism and patronage were the principal means by which parties interacted with their constituencies; elites and elite interests determined the objectives of political parties; voters in many African countries shifted parties frequently; and neoliberal economic policies largely reflected the preferences of foreign donors and international financial institutions. As parties and voters have adjusted to the institutional arrangements and political demands associated with democracy, a more heterogeneous political landscape has materialized since 2010. Party systems demonstrate distinct patterns of variation, from the more stable, institutionalized systems in Ghana and Botswana to fluid, inchoate configurations in Benin and Malawi. These variations in the degree to which party systems have institutionalized affect economic policy choices by parties and those who benefit from them. Furthermore, democratic politics has intensified pressures on ruling parties to provide goods such as electricity and education. Here too, patterns of goods provision show substantial variation over time and across countries, calling attention to the differences in the incentives and capacities of parties to respond to distributive demands by the electorate. To explore the political and economic heterogeneity of contemporary Africa, scholars have combined well-established qualitative and comparative approaches with new analytical tools. The use of cross-national public opinion surveys, field and survey experiments, satellite imagery, and geo-coded data have enabled more systematic, fine-grained study of the economic determinants of party system competition, economic voting, the distribution of goods, and the management of private sector development by ruling parties in recent years. These empirical approaches enrich understanding of the relationship between parties and political economy in Africa and facilitate more fruitful comparisons with other regions of the world.
Although the sixtieth anniversary of the ASA's founding offers an occasion to celebrate the assoc... more Although the sixtieth anniversary of the ASA's founding offers an occasion to celebrate the association's accomplishments, it also coincides with a historical moment of resurgent authoritarianism, growing intolerance, and renascent nativism. Democratic institutions in the United States and abroad are under attack; bigotry, injustice, and incivility have become re-energized. This article reflects on the discourses, spaces, and technologies employed by Africans to contest the multiple expressions of political exclusion on the continent over the last sixty years. It finds inspiration and lessons that might guide us as we develop our own forms of political advocacy in this illiberal age. Résumé: Même si le soixantième anniversaire de la Fondation de l'ASA offre une occasion de célébrer les réalisations de l'association, elle coïncide également avec un moment historique ou l'autoritarisme et le nativisme ont resurgit accompagnés d'une intolérance croissante. Les institutions démocratiques aux États-Unis et à l'étranger sont attaquées ; la bigoterie, l'injustice et l'incivilité
Conditions, Commitments, and the Politics of Restructuring in Africa
Comparative Politics, 2004
Both supporters and critics of neoliberal reforms adopted by African countries during the past tw... more Both supporters and critics of neoliberal reforms adopted by African countries during the past two decades argue that donor conditionalities have been counterproductive and should be abandoned. Several studies claim that, when donors have forced governments into ...
Cars Are Killing Luanda: Cronyism, Consumerism, and Other Assaults on Angola’s Postwar, Capital City
Cities in Contemporary Africa, 2006
Page 191. 7 Cars Are Killing Luanda: Cronyism, Consumerism, and Other Assaults on Angola&#x27... more Page 191. 7 Cars Are Killing Luanda: Cronyism, Consumerism, and Other Assaults on Angola's Postwar, Capital City M. Anne Pitcher with Aubrey Graham Xf the bicycle embodied the contradictory effects of twentieth-century ...
Journal of International Relations and Development
, at the Alfred Marshall Lecture in Stockholm, the political economist Daron Acemoglu and colleag... more , at the Alfred Marshall Lecture in Stockholm, the political economist Daron Acemoglu and colleagues noted that the greatest puzzle about kleptocracies 'is their longevity, despite the disastrous policies pursued by the rulers' (Acemoglu et al. 2004: 163). As weakly institutionalized polities, kleptocracies-defined as those countries 'where the state is controlled and run for the benefit of an individual, or a small group, who use their power to transfer a large fraction of society's resources to themselves' (Acemoglu et al. 2004: 162)-do indeed challenge most theoretical conceptions in political science, international relations, and international political economy (Pitcher and Soares de Oliveira 2022). Two decades on, this puzzle has hypertrophied rather than abated and thus gained far more attention from academics in these fields. Not only do kleptocracies endure, but also they have been globalized to the extent that their elites are no longer content to capture and command their own states. Now they are transnational, buying assets, purchasing reputations, and gaining influence in democracies. Their divide-and-rule strategies are not merely national but transnational. This special issue on transnational kleptocracy and the international political economy of authoritarianism embarks from two emergent and related claims in the literature. First, both the academic and policy literatures have called attention to the entrenched corruption evident in authoritarian and democratic regimes, particularly those in resource rich, developing countries. Increasingly the research recognizes that tackling corruption must take into account the global 'gatekeepers' or 'enablers' of corruption. These consist of an array of creditors; multinational companies and
Wiser. He writes about the cultural and economic history of South Africa, particularly the gold-m... more Wiser. He writes about the cultural and economic history of South Africa, particularly the gold-mining industry, the state, and the development of information systems. He is currently writing about infrastructures of biometric civil registration and credit surveillance developing on the African continent.
This paper examines the impact of independent technocratic agencies on the politics of economic l... more This paper examines the impact of independent technocratic agencies on the politics of economic liberalization in developing countries. Because the process of privatizing state-owned enterprises (SOEs) in developing countries is complex and contentious, the conventional wisdom of the “Washington Consensus” over economic development is that technocrats housed in independent agencies are best suited to carry out privatization. Free from political interference, technocrats are expected to privatize SOEs based on professional calculations, not political considerations. This expectation has rarely been subject to empirical investigation, however. In this paper we argue that the effects of independent agencies on privatization of SOEs depend on the democratic contexts in which they operate. The subjects of our study are Sub-Saharan African countries that were engaged in SOE privatizations during the 1990s and early 2000s. We begin with case studies in four countries to examine the roles o...
On 8 May 2019, nearly twenty-five years to the day after Nelson Mandela was inaugurated as South ... more On 8 May 2019, nearly twenty-five years to the day after Nelson Mandela was inaugurated as South Africa's first democratically elected president, the country went to the polls in its sixth round of national elections. Mandela's African National Congress (ANC) had won by comfortable margins in every previous election, all peaceful, "free and fair" contests administered by the country's well-regarded electoral commission. Much of the skepticism about the quality of South Africa's democracy has centered on the ease with which the ANC wins elections. With the majority of voters committed to the ANC, the essence of democracy as described by Joseph Schumpeter-elite competition for voter support-seems to be lacking. And South Africans seem to be in no rush to pass Samuel Huntington's two-turnover test of democratic consolidation. At first glance, the run-up to the 2019 election looked like more of the same. The ANC's presidential candidate, Cyril Ramaphosa (b. 1952), campaigned on the lofty promise of bringing a "new dawn" that would reinfuse the country with Mandela's values. He had the pedigree to make this promise credible. In the early 1980s, at the height of the apartheid policies that had institutionalized a pervasive system of racial discrimination, Ramaphosa founded and led the National Union of Mineworkers, the country's largest trade union. Between 1991 and 1996, he served as secretary-general of the ANC, which made its own transition from banned resistance movement to dominant political party. He played a central role in the political negotiations that brought South Africa out of apartheid, and he was a key architect of the country's progressive, democratic 1996 Constitution. Ramaphosa was reportedly Mandela's personal choice as presidential successor when the widely re
This study investigates the effects of formal bureaucratic independence under varying democratic ... more This study investigates the effects of formal bureaucratic independence under varying democratic conditions. Conventional accounts predict that greater formal independence of technocratic agencies facilitates policy implementation, but those claims rest on observations of industrialised, high-income countries that are also established democracies. On the basis of research in developing countries, we argue that the effects of agency independence depend on the political context in which the agency operates. Our empirical subjects are privatisation agencies and their efforts to privatise state-owned enterprises in Africa. We predict that greater independence leads to more thorough privatisation under authoritarian regimes, but that the effect of independence declines as a country becomes more democratic. Using an original data set, we examine the relationship between formal agency independence and privatisation in Africa from 1990 to 2007. Our results modify the conventional wisdom on ...
Mozambique has undergone some dramatic changes in recent years. The government concluded a 17-yea... more Mozambique has undergone some dramatic changes in recent years. The government concluded a 17-year-old civil war in 1992 and held democratic elections in 1994. Following the adoption of structural adjustment policies after 1987, the government eliminated subsidies on food and consumer items, pledged its support for emerging markets, and has now sold most state companies to private investors. These changes have generated much interest among researchers and policymakers, particularly with regard to their impact on the countryside, where the majority of Mozambicans live and work. Recent studies have focused on the most appropriate rural development strategy for Mozambique now that the war has ended, or examined ways to alleviate the widespread poverty that still exists in rural areas. Other work has analysed the structure of agrarian relations or how to ensure food security. Additional research has criticised the government's on-going policy of encouraging and granting land concess...
Angola from Afro-Stalinism to Petro-Diamond Capitalism
Canadian Journal of African Studies / Revue Canadienne des Études Africaines, 2001
... whole range oi , lati d to economic and social development had to be inco I into tin official... more ... whole range oi , lati d to economic and social development had to be inco I into tin official ... Chapter 4 focuses in detail on the nature of the Angolan state and its relationship with civil ... But the transition was never fully completed, partly because of the return to war, but also due to ...
Political Parties and Political Economy in Africa’s Democracies, 1990–2018
Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Politics, Aug 28, 2019
On a continent where the majority of people are poor, do political parties represent class cleava... more On a continent where the majority of people are poor, do political parties represent class cleavages? Do parties have strong linkages to ordinary voters? Do economic policies address their needs? In the initial years following democratic transitions across the African continent in the 1990s, the answers to such questions were negative. Clientelism and patronage were the principal means by which parties interacted with their constituencies; elites and elite interests determined the objectives of political parties; voters in many African countries shifted parties frequently; and neoliberal economic policies largely reflected the preferences of foreign donors and international financial institutions. As parties and voters have adjusted to the institutional arrangements and political demands associated with democracy, a more heterogeneous political landscape has materialized since 2010. Party systems demonstrate distinct patterns of variation, from the more stable, institutionalized systems in Ghana and Botswana to fluid, inchoate configurations in Benin and Malawi. These variations in the degree to which party systems have institutionalized affect economic policy choices by parties and those who benefit from them. Furthermore, democratic politics has intensified pressures on ruling parties to provide goods such as electricity and education. Here too, patterns of goods provision show substantial variation over time and across countries, calling attention to the differences in the incentives and capacities of parties to respond to distributive demands by the electorate. To explore the political and economic heterogeneity of contemporary Africa, scholars have combined well-established qualitative and comparative approaches with new analytical tools. The use of cross-national public opinion surveys, field and survey experiments, satellite imagery, and geo-coded data have enabled more systematic, fine-grained study of the economic determinants of party system competition, economic voting, the distribution of goods, and the management of private sector development by ruling parties in recent years. These empirical approaches enrich understanding of the relationship between parties and political economy in Africa and facilitate more fruitful comparisons with other regions of the world.
Although the sixtieth anniversary of the ASA's founding offers an occasion to celebrate the assoc... more Although the sixtieth anniversary of the ASA's founding offers an occasion to celebrate the association's accomplishments, it also coincides with a historical moment of resurgent authoritarianism, growing intolerance, and renascent nativism. Democratic institutions in the United States and abroad are under attack; bigotry, injustice, and incivility have become re-energized. This article reflects on the discourses, spaces, and technologies employed by Africans to contest the multiple expressions of political exclusion on the continent over the last sixty years. It finds inspiration and lessons that might guide us as we develop our own forms of political advocacy in this illiberal age. Résumé: Même si le soixantième anniversaire de la Fondation de l'ASA offre une occasion de célébrer les réalisations de l'association, elle coïncide également avec un moment historique ou l'autoritarisme et le nativisme ont resurgit accompagnés d'une intolérance croissante. Les institutions démocratiques aux États-Unis et à l'étranger sont attaquées ; la bigoterie, l'injustice et l'incivilité
Conditions, Commitments, and the Politics of Restructuring in Africa
Comparative Politics, 2004
Both supporters and critics of neoliberal reforms adopted by African countries during the past tw... more Both supporters and critics of neoliberal reforms adopted by African countries during the past two decades argue that donor conditionalities have been counterproductive and should be abandoned. Several studies claim that, when donors have forced governments into ...
Cars Are Killing Luanda: Cronyism, Consumerism, and Other Assaults on Angola’s Postwar, Capital City
Cities in Contemporary Africa, 2006
Page 191. 7 Cars Are Killing Luanda: Cronyism, Consumerism, and Other Assaults on Angola&#x27... more Page 191. 7 Cars Are Killing Luanda: Cronyism, Consumerism, and Other Assaults on Angola's Postwar, Capital City M. Anne Pitcher with Aubrey Graham Xf the bicycle embodied the contradictory effects of twentieth-century ...
Journal of International Relations and Development
, at the Alfred Marshall Lecture in Stockholm, the political economist Daron Acemoglu and colleag... more , at the Alfred Marshall Lecture in Stockholm, the political economist Daron Acemoglu and colleagues noted that the greatest puzzle about kleptocracies 'is their longevity, despite the disastrous policies pursued by the rulers' (Acemoglu et al. 2004: 163). As weakly institutionalized polities, kleptocracies-defined as those countries 'where the state is controlled and run for the benefit of an individual, or a small group, who use their power to transfer a large fraction of society's resources to themselves' (Acemoglu et al. 2004: 162)-do indeed challenge most theoretical conceptions in political science, international relations, and international political economy (Pitcher and Soares de Oliveira 2022). Two decades on, this puzzle has hypertrophied rather than abated and thus gained far more attention from academics in these fields. Not only do kleptocracies endure, but also they have been globalized to the extent that their elites are no longer content to capture and command their own states. Now they are transnational, buying assets, purchasing reputations, and gaining influence in democracies. Their divide-and-rule strategies are not merely national but transnational. This special issue on transnational kleptocracy and the international political economy of authoritarianism embarks from two emergent and related claims in the literature. First, both the academic and policy literatures have called attention to the entrenched corruption evident in authoritarian and democratic regimes, particularly those in resource rich, developing countries. Increasingly the research recognizes that tackling corruption must take into account the global 'gatekeepers' or 'enablers' of corruption. These consist of an array of creditors; multinational companies and
Wiser. He writes about the cultural and economic history of South Africa, particularly the gold-m... more Wiser. He writes about the cultural and economic history of South Africa, particularly the gold-mining industry, the state, and the development of information systems. He is currently writing about infrastructures of biometric civil registration and credit surveillance developing on the African continent.
This paper examines the impact of independent technocratic agencies on the politics of economic l... more This paper examines the impact of independent technocratic agencies on the politics of economic liberalization in developing countries. Because the process of privatizing state-owned enterprises (SOEs) in developing countries is complex and contentious, the conventional wisdom of the “Washington Consensus” over economic development is that technocrats housed in independent agencies are best suited to carry out privatization. Free from political interference, technocrats are expected to privatize SOEs based on professional calculations, not political considerations. This expectation has rarely been subject to empirical investigation, however. In this paper we argue that the effects of independent agencies on privatization of SOEs depend on the democratic contexts in which they operate. The subjects of our study are Sub-Saharan African countries that were engaged in SOE privatizations during the 1990s and early 2000s. We begin with case studies in four countries to examine the roles o...
On 8 May 2019, nearly twenty-five years to the day after Nelson Mandela was inaugurated as South ... more On 8 May 2019, nearly twenty-five years to the day after Nelson Mandela was inaugurated as South Africa's first democratically elected president, the country went to the polls in its sixth round of national elections. Mandela's African National Congress (ANC) had won by comfortable margins in every previous election, all peaceful, "free and fair" contests administered by the country's well-regarded electoral commission. Much of the skepticism about the quality of South Africa's democracy has centered on the ease with which the ANC wins elections. With the majority of voters committed to the ANC, the essence of democracy as described by Joseph Schumpeter-elite competition for voter support-seems to be lacking. And South Africans seem to be in no rush to pass Samuel Huntington's two-turnover test of democratic consolidation. At first glance, the run-up to the 2019 election looked like more of the same. The ANC's presidential candidate, Cyril Ramaphosa (b. 1952), campaigned on the lofty promise of bringing a "new dawn" that would reinfuse the country with Mandela's values. He had the pedigree to make this promise credible. In the early 1980s, at the height of the apartheid policies that had institutionalized a pervasive system of racial discrimination, Ramaphosa founded and led the National Union of Mineworkers, the country's largest trade union. Between 1991 and 1996, he served as secretary-general of the ANC, which made its own transition from banned resistance movement to dominant political party. He played a central role in the political negotiations that brought South Africa out of apartheid, and he was a key architect of the country's progressive, democratic 1996 Constitution. Ramaphosa was reportedly Mandela's personal choice as presidential successor when the widely re
This study investigates the effects of formal bureaucratic independence under varying democratic ... more This study investigates the effects of formal bureaucratic independence under varying democratic conditions. Conventional accounts predict that greater formal independence of technocratic agencies facilitates policy implementation, but those claims rest on observations of industrialised, high-income countries that are also established democracies. On the basis of research in developing countries, we argue that the effects of agency independence depend on the political context in which the agency operates. Our empirical subjects are privatisation agencies and their efforts to privatise state-owned enterprises in Africa. We predict that greater independence leads to more thorough privatisation under authoritarian regimes, but that the effect of independence declines as a country becomes more democratic. Using an original data set, we examine the relationship between formal agency independence and privatisation in Africa from 1990 to 2007. Our results modify the conventional wisdom on ...
Mozambique has undergone some dramatic changes in recent years. The government concluded a 17-yea... more Mozambique has undergone some dramatic changes in recent years. The government concluded a 17-year-old civil war in 1992 and held democratic elections in 1994. Following the adoption of structural adjustment policies after 1987, the government eliminated subsidies on food and consumer items, pledged its support for emerging markets, and has now sold most state companies to private investors. These changes have generated much interest among researchers and policymakers, particularly with regard to their impact on the countryside, where the majority of Mozambicans live and work. Recent studies have focused on the most appropriate rural development strategy for Mozambique now that the war has ended, or examined ways to alleviate the widespread poverty that still exists in rural areas. Other work has analysed the structure of agrarian relations or how to ensure food security. Additional research has criticised the government's on-going policy of encouraging and granting land concess...
Angola from Afro-Stalinism to Petro-Diamond Capitalism
Canadian Journal of African Studies / Revue Canadienne des Études Africaines, 2001
... whole range oi , lati d to economic and social development had to be inco I into tin official... more ... whole range oi , lati d to economic and social development had to be inco I into tin official ... Chapter 4 focuses in detail on the nature of the Angolan state and its relationship with civil ... But the transition was never fully completed, partly because of the return to war, but also due to ...
review article about Filip De Boeck & Marie-Françoise Plissart, 2004. Kinshasa. Tales of the Invi... more review article about Filip De Boeck & Marie-Françoise Plissart, 2004. Kinshasa. Tales of the Invisible City.
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