Abstract

The effects of conflict, economic liberalization, small-scale economies and other pressures, have combined to yield a pattern of "weak states" in Africa. It has been hypothesized that decentralization offers considerable scope for achieving desirable functional attributes typically associated with "democratic governance," such as citizen participation, transparency, accountability and state-society integration. In other words, there are linear and contingent linkages between decentralization, democratic governance and the achievement of sustainable peace. While standards of decentralized, democratic governance are taken for granted in the West, Africa has limited experience in this domain: South Africa and Mozambique are emerging from protracted conflict and trying to embrace decentralization while ensuring political stability; Botswana has successfully managed political differences between 12 ethnic groups through vigorous decentralization, but perhaps at the expense of national stability; Angola and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) need to define workable peace-building strategies that take into account questions of decentralization and democratic governance; and Zimbabwe is at risk of sliding back into civil strife, and possibly armed conflict with the DRC. This grant will support a short review aimed at delineating and furthering understanding of the potential linkages between decentralization, democratic governance and the achievement of sustainable peace. Researchers will identify a set of issues for further investigation in a subsequent project.

Post-Project Summary

Researchers undertook a review of the literature on the linkages between decentralization, democratic governance and peace in Angola, Botswana, Mozambique, South Africa and Zimbabwe and, where appropriate, identified issues for further investigation. In general, the findings of the literature review confirmed the hypothesis that "decentralization is a critical element in the promotion and attainment of democratic governance which is, in turn, a prerequisite for a peaceful and sustainable future." The main findings were as follows. First, there are considerable variations in the approach and extent of decentralization in the countries studies. Second, political stability is enhanced in environments where local governance is truly local in scope, as in Botswana, and promoted by the central government. Third, key variables such as the extent of fiscal autonomy of and citizen participation in local governance have an impact on citizen satisfaction and peace and stability. Fourth, with the possible exception of Angola, all countries studied are actively pursuing decentralization in the quest for peace and stability. Fifth, there is no ideal model of decentralization. Nor need the approach to decentralization be completely uniform within a country, as between major urban concentrations and other local jurisdictions. Decentralization efforts must be geared to individual country circumstances. And finally, the preponderance of the literature pertaining to each of the case studies clearly demonstrates that decentralization in the form of domestic distribution of power and decision-making can defuse internal conflicts, promote lasting peace, and sustain reconstruction and development efforts. The five case studies are appended to the final report. The papers were also made available to regional libraries and appropriate government departments/ministries, and some were being revised for journal publication.

Recipient Institution(s)