Democracy Day 2024: CDD-West Africa Calls for Reversal of Democratic Decline in West Africa

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As the world commemorates the 2024 International Day of Democracy, the Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD-West Africa) has called for reflection on the state of democracy in West Africa and a collective action to reverse what it calls West Africa’s unfortunate sliding back to the dark days of military dictatorship.

A press statement by CDD-West Africa says the region, once celebrated for its significant and enduring democratic gains, is now characterized by fears of unconstitutional change of government, with four out of fifteen ECOWAS member countries currently under military rule. The regional think-tank described as “quite worrisome” the recent rise in anti-democratic tendencies, the reversal of democratic gains, and the erosion of civil liberties and freedoms in West Africa.

“The coups in Burkina Faso, Guinea, Mali, and Niger point to a growing disillusionment with democratic governance systems, and the failure of those systems to address the issues, which matter the most to the ordinary people of the region. Yet opposition to military rule has largely weakened with Mali and Burkina Faso alone recording 40 and 37 points, respectively, in a 2024 report by Afrobarometer measuring the people’s perspectives on African insights on democracy risk in 30 countries,” bemoans CDD-West Africa in the statement signed by its director, Dr Dauda Garuba.

The think-tank says recent events in countries with even resilient democratic systems, like Senegal, have proved “democracy is not a destination but a continually intentional decision by the people who practise it to push for its incremental improvement. Therefore, to address the troubling trend of observed reversals in democratic gains in West Africa, there is an urgent need to strengthen institutions and processes at the heart of democratic development.”

To this end, CDD-West Africa urges countries in the region to reaffirm constitutional order by committing to upholding the rule of law, freedom of speech and association, and constitutional term limits, arguing that democratic transitions should be safeguarded from manipulation that leads to power entrenchment and all shades of constitutional coups. “Furthermore, political systems must become more inclusive by ensuring representation for all segments of society, particularly women, youth, and marginalized groups—including persons living with disability (PWDs). Such inclusivity fosters legitimacy and trust in democratic governance.”

In this vein, CDD-West Africa calls for the strengthening of electoral integrity in West Africa by empowering and fostering the independence of Election Management Bodies (EMBs) as well as enhancing the transparency and accountability of electoral processes. “Equally important is the need for West Africa to leverage the significance of the values and practices of democracy to bolster regional cooperation. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the African Union (AU) must revamp and re-energize collective efforts to ensure compliance with democratic norms, values, and practices as well as to provide technical and political support to fragile democracies.”

The think-tank describes a vibrant civil society and a free press as essential for holding leaders accountable, in addition to addressing the threat posed by information manipulation and the spread of disinformation. “Manipulated narratives have tended to suggest that democracy is a failing system that will not take West Africans their manifest destiny. Through collective initiatives, such maligned narratives, either from domestic and foreign influence actors, should be debunked, while legal systems should be strengthened to ensure technology companies on whose platforms disinformation spread are held to account.”