African Union, Promotion of Democracy and Anti-Corruption Initiatives in Africa

Main Article Content

Gafar Idowu Ayodeji
Adegboyega Francis Kolade
Emmanuel Temitope Abiodun

Abstract

The African Union (AU) has been pursuing one of its primary objectives of promoting democratic principles and institutions by ensuring good governance through the curbing of corruption. It is uncertain whether the democratic approach has rubbed off on its anti-corruption initiatives, given the recent performance of most AU member states on many global surveys of corruption, development and governance evaluation indexes. The paper, therefore, examined the extent to which the AU’s stance on democratic promotion has impacted on its anti-corruption initiatives in Africa. The study is qualitative and relied on data sourced from secondary sources, while content analysis was adopted for data analysis. The findings acknowledge AU's committed advancement of democracy in Africa through its different anti-corruption frameworks. But in spite of the slight improvements of some African counties on different corruption perception indexes, corruption persists in the governance of many AU member states. The study further shows inter alia that the AU’s anti-corruption initiatives have not
effectively reflected the adopted measures due to uncommon democratic ideals, legitimisation of autocratic regimes, and the fact that many African states fail to uphold their obligations under the AU's anti-corruption convention. The study contends that AU’s anti-corruption bodies should ensure and encourage member states to internalise and uphold existing governance norms and accountability measures, while implementation mechanisms should be strengthened.

Article Details

How to Cite
Ayodeji, Gafar Idowu, Adegboyega Francis Kolade, and Emmanuel Temitope Abiodun. 2023. “African Union, Promotion of Democracy and Anti-Corruption Initiatives in Africa”. ABUAD Journal of Social and Management Sciences 4 (1), 1-21. https://doi.org/10.53982/ajsms.2023.0401.01-j.
Section
Articles
Author Biographies

Gafar Idowu Ayodeji, Tai Solarin University of Education, Ijagun, Ogun State, Nigeria

Gafar Idowu Ayodeji is a Professor of Governance and Public Policy at Tai Solarin University of
Education, Ijagun, Ogun State, Nigeria.

Adegboyega Francis Kolade, Department of Political Science, Tai Solarin University of Education, Ijagun, Ogun State, Nigeria

Adegboyega Francis Kolade is affiliated with the Department of Political Science, Tai Solarin University of Education, Ijagun, Ogun State, Nigeria.

Emmanuel Temitope Abiodun, Department of Political Science, Sikiru Adetona College of Education, Science and Technology, Omu-Ajose, Ogun State, Nigeria

Emmanuel Temitope Abiodun lectures in the Department of Political Science, Sikiru Adetona College of Education, Science and Technology, Omu-Ajose, Ogun State, Nigeria.

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