Africa and the Arab Spring: a New Era of Democratic Expectations

2011 saw dramatic changes in Africa?s governance landscape. Unprecedented popular demonstrations in Tunisia, Egypt, and Libya led to the overturning of a century of autocratic rule in North Africa. These protests, demanding greater political freedom, economic opportunity, and an end to systemic corruption, have resonated deeply across Africa, sparking calls for change throughout the continent. Already home to more of the world?s democratizing states than any other region, even modest reverberations from the Arab Spring on Africa?s democratic trajectory will have implications for global governance norms, stability, and development. Recognizing the fluid nature of these events, the Africa Center for Strategic Studies (ACSS) convened a Working Group of Africa democracy experts to take stock of the significance of the Arab Spring for African democracy. The objective was to evaluate the extent to which the Arab Spring would be a catalyst for further political change on the continent, the durability of such change, the influence of other drivers and counterweights to democratization, and their combined implications for African democracy in the coming years. Based on this analysis, the Working Group assessed priority actions that would be required of African and international actors to reinforce and sustain Africa?s nascent democratic structures. The insights from these deliberations have informed this ACSS Special Report as distilled and principally authored by Working Group Chair, Joseph Siegle. All members of the Working Group endorse the findings and recommendations herein.