Democracy, Legislatures, and Business Conditions in Post-Authoritarian African Regimes

Following the independence movement in Africa, most countries replaced colonialist powers by one-party rule, or dictatorship maintaining authoritarianism and disabling the rise of democracy on the continent; legislatures were generally weak. Between 1991 and 2011, this tendency changed with ‘The Third Wave’ of democratization spreading across Africa. ¹ Overall, African countries have maintained stable levels of democracy (civil and political liberties), with some countries experiencing stronger democracies and legislatures and others falling back to less democracy and weaker legislatures. This has implications for the business climate in African countries, as well as growth and investment.