On the Question of Governance: Has Africa Seen the Last of the Coup Years?

Abstract

In 2013, the duly elected leader of Egypt, Mohamed Morsi, was removed from office by a group of military officers led by General Abdel Fattah el-Sisi. But, for geopolitical reasons, much of the west – especially the United States of America – chose not to refer to the putsch as a military coup. Four years later, in 2017, a group of military officers led by General Constantine Chiwenga, brought the 37-year reign of President Robert Mugabe to an abrupt end. Much of the world – especially the African world – saw it as an internal palaver within the ruling Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (ZANU–PF) of which the military has always been an integral part. By posing the important question of whether Africa has seen the last of the coup years, the chapter explores some of the fundamental factors that have contributed to coup d’etats and attempted coups in Africa since the independence era. While there has been less than 20 successful coups from 2011 to 2022 given the acceptance of multiparty democracy by African states, the chapter observes that recent coups on the continent are raising further concerns on Africa’s representative democracy and the question on political stability.