ABSTRACT
During the last decade of the 20th century, Africa has been marked by a "constitutional wind" which has blown across the continent giving impetus to constitutional reforms designed to introduce constitutionalism and good governance. One of the main features of these processes has been the promotion of public participation, encouraged by both civil society and the international community.
This book aims to provide a systematic overview of participation forms and mechanisms across Africa, and a critical understanding of the impact of public participation in constitution-making processes, digging beneath the rhetoric of public participation as being at the heart of any successful transition towards democracy and constitutionalism. Using case studies from Central African Republic, Egypt, Kenya, Libya, Malawi, Morocco, Senegal, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, Tanzania, Tunisia, Zambia and Zimbabwe, the book investigates various aspects of participatory constitution making: from conception, to processes, and specific contents that trigger ambivalent dynamics in such processes. The abstract glorification of public participation is questioned as theoretical and empirical perspectives are used to explain what public participation does in concrete terms and to identify what lessons might be drawn from those experiences.
This is a valuable resource for academics, researchers and students with an interest in politics and constitution building in Africa, as well as experts working in national offices, international organizations or in national and international NGOs.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
part I|29 pages
Conceptualizing public participation in constitution-making processes
chapter 2|14 pages
Letting the constituent power decide?
part II|186 pages
Participation in constitution-making processes
chapter 4|14 pages
The 2011 constitution-making process in Morocco
chapter 6|14 pages
The role of participation in the two Kenyan constitution-building processes of 2000–2005 and 2010
chapter 11|17 pages
Public participation and elite capture
chapter 12|16 pages
Mission impossible?
chapter 13|17 pages
The process of drafting a citizen-driven constitution in South Sudan
part III|81 pages
Participation in context