Why has it been so difficult to sustain democracy in Africa?

At the end of colonialism, the liberation movements promised so much in the name of freedom and democracy. Over the last fifty years, however, most of the governments that sprang from these movements have behaved in ways that are markedly undemocratic. The opposition parties which came to power after the end of corrupt and authoritarian regimes have not done much better. For ordinary citizens, the cost of this 'democracy gap' has been devastating - uncountable numbers have lost their lives, there has been a staggering loss of human potential, development has been stunted and societies have imploded.

William Gumede's timely and powerful analysis of the fate of democracy across the continent is essential reading.