Historicising Civil Society In Africa: An Analysis of the State, Democracy and the Third Sector

Mojibayo M Fadakinte

Abstract


This paper discusses civil society as both a social value and as a set of institutions. However, whichever way we discuss the idea of civil society (as social value or as a set of institutions) in Africa, we are faced with some challenges because the idea of civil society poses a unique problematic. For example, to what extent is civil society a relevant idea in Africa, or does the idea of civil society any history in Africa, or does the third sector play any meaningful role, so as to be relevant in constitutionalism? Civil society as institutions derives its relevance from being between the state (government) and the people (society) to prevent the state from tyrannical and authoritarian rule and protect the citizen’s rights (democracy). In Africa, the state is either non-existent or it is in serious crisis, because it is fragmented and also lacks the peace to grow democracy while the African societies are more like communities as Africans are really more in communities than in societies. Again, in Africa, the liberal democracy that makes civil society institutions relevant is a charm. What do we then have in Africa, to make politics and liberal democracy (state/ society relations) a meaningful
project?


Keywords


Historicizing; Civil society; Africa; State; Democracy; Third sector; Social value

Full Text:

PDF

References


Abootalebi, A. R. (1998). Civil society, democracy and the Middle East. Middle East Review of International Affairs, 2(3), 1-15.

Aglietta, M. (1979). A theory of capitalist regulation: The US experience. London: New Left Review.

Ake, C. (1996). Democracy and development in Africa. Ibadan, Spectrum Bks.

Baradat, L. P. (2006). Political ideologies, their origins and impact (9th ed.). New Jersey, Pearson Prentice Hall.

Bayart, J. (1993). The state in Africa: The politics of the Belly. London, Longman.

Bobbio, N. (1988). Gramsci and the concept of civil society. In John Kean (ed.) Civil society and the state. London, Verso.

Carotha, T., & Mavina, O. (2002). Defining civil society: The Elusive Teno development science (winter).

Carothers, T. (1999). Civil society: Foreign affairs (winter) pp. 18-29.

Chabal, P., & Daliz, J. P. (1999). Africa works: Disorder as political instrument. Oxford: James Currey.

Chandloke, N. (1995). State and civil society: Explorations in political theory. Sage Publications, New Delhi.

Das, P. G. (2009). Modern political theory. Delhi: New Central Book Ayemay Ltd.

DeLue, S. (2002). Political thinking, political theory, and civil society. Longman, NY.

Drake, M. S. (2010). Political sociology for a globalizing world. Cambridge, Polity Press.

Edgbe, M. E. (2004). The state and civil society in Nigeria: A case study of the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOFOP). Lagos, Nigerian Institute of International Affairs.

Edwards, M. (2004) . Civil society. Cambridge. Polity Press.

Fadakinte, M. M. (2002). The Nigerian state and transition politics. In B. Onuoha & M. M. Fadakinte (Eds.), Transition politics in Nigeria, 1970 – 1999. Lagos, Malthouse Press.

Fadakinte, M. M. (2014). Election crises in Nigeria: Debating the causes. International Journal of Humanities and Social Science, 4( 6),74- 86.

Fadakinte, M. M. (2013). Civil society, democracy and good governance in Nigeria, 1999-2012. International Journal of Modern Social Sciences, 2(2), 133-154.

Fadakinte, M. M. (2013). The nature and character of the Nigerian state, explaining election crisis in a Peripheral state. British Journal of Arts and Social Sciences, 12(11), 275- 287.

Foley, M., W., & Edward, B. (1996). The paradox of civil society. Journal of Democracy, 7(3), 38- 52.

Fontana, B. (2006). Liberty and domination: Civil society in Gramsci. Boundary, 33(2), 3, 5- 4.

Giddens, A. (1981). Politics and sociology in the thought of Max Weber. London: The Maximal and Press Ltd.

Goodwin, B. (997). Using political ideas (4th ed.). New York, John Wiley& Son.

Hadson, R. (2005). Economic geographies, circuits, flows and spaces. London: Sage.

Hague, R., & Martin, H. (2001). Political science: A comparative introduction. New York, NY: Palgrave.

Hall, J. (Ed.). (1995). Civil society: Theory, history, comparison. Cambridge, Polity Press.

Herbeson, J., et al. (Eds.). (1994). Civil society and the state in Africa. Lynne Reinner Publishers, London.

Ikimi, O. (1980). Groundwork of Nigerian history. Ibadan, Heinemann Bless.

Imade, L. (2001). Democratizing democracy in Nigeria: The role of civil society organizations. Journal of Sustainable Development in Africa, 3(1), 8- 34.

Johari, J. C. (2006). New comparative governmen. Dew Delhi. Lotus Press.

Keller, E. J. (2007). Africa in transition: Facing the challenges of globalization. Harvard International Review, 47- 51.

Knofir, N. (Ed.) (1998). Society and democracy in Africa. London: Frank Cass.

Lewis, D. (2002). Civil society in African context: Reflections on the usefulness of a concept. Journal of Developmen, 33(4), 569- 586.

Lewis, P. M. (1992). Political transition and the dilemma of civil society in Africa. Journal of International Affairs, 46, 31- 54.

Lumumba-Kasungo, T. (2005). Beyond the current discourse on democracy and democratic process in Africa. In T. Lumuba-Kasungo (Ed.), Liberal democracy and it’s critics in Africa., London, Zeb Books.

MacKinnon, D., & Cumbers, A. (2007). An introduction to economic geography, globalization, uneven development and place. London: Person, Prentice Hall.

Macpherson, C. B. (1973). Democratic theory: Essays in retrieval. Oxford: Clarendon Press.

Maina, W. (1998). Kenya: The state donors and the politics of democratization. In A Van Rooy (Ed.), Civil Society and the Aid Industry, London. Earth Scan.

Makumbe, J. M. (1998). Is there a civil society in Africa? International Affairs, 74(2), 30 -37.

Mbiti, J. (1969). African religions and philosophy. London, Heinemann.

Nisnevich, Y. A. (2012) Political and legal concept of modern democratic state. American Journal of Sociological Research, 2(3), 32- 37.

Nwabueze, B. (2010a). Colonialism in Africa: Origin, nature, and end of colonialism in Africa (Vol. I). Ibadan, Gold Press Ltd.

Nwabueze, B. (2010b). Colonialism in Africa: Ancient and modern (Vol. 2). Ibadan, Gold Press Ltd.

O’Brien, R. (1999). Philosophical history of the idea of civil society. Retrieved 2014, May 23 from http//www.web.net/robrien/papers/civilest.html

Obadare, E. (2011). Revalorizing the politics: Towards a new intellectual agenda for african civil society discourse. Journal of Civil Society, 7(4), 427- 442.

Onuoha, B. (2002). Elections. In B. Onuoha & M. M. Fadakinte (Eds.), Transition Politics in Nigeria, 1970-1999.

Osaghae, E. (2006). Colonialism and civil society in Africa: The perspective of Eke’s two publishes (pp.233- 245). Volunteers, 7. Spring.

Pietrzyk, D. I. (2003). Democracy or civil society? Politics, 23, 38-45.

Ronning, H. (1995). Democracy, civil society and the media in Africa in the Nineties. A discussion of the emergence and relevance of some analytic concepts for the understanding of the situation in Africa. The European Journal of Social Science, 8(4), 335- 352.

Roniger L. (1994). The comparative study of clientelism and changing nature of civil society in the contemporary world. In L. Roniger & Lines-Ayata (Eds.), Democracy clientelism and civil society. Colorado, Lynne Reinner Publishers.

Sabine, G. H., &Thorson, T. (1973). A history of political theory (4th ed.). New Delhi, Oxford and IBH Publishing Co.

Seligman, A. (1992) The idea of civil society. New York, NY: The free Press.




DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3968/%25x

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


Copyright (c)



Reminder

  • How to do online submission to another Journal?
  • If you have already registered in Journal A, then how can you submit another article to Journal B? It takes two steps to make it happen:

Submission Guidelines for Canadian Social Science

We are currently accepting submissions via email only. The registration and online submission functions have been disabled.

Please send your manuscripts to css@cscanada.net，or css@cscanada.org for consideration. We look forward to receiving your work.

 Articles published in Canadian Social Science are licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC-BY).

 

Canadian Social Science Editorial Office

Address: 1020 Bouvier Street, Suite 400, Quebec City, Quebec, G2K 0K9, Canada.
Telephone: 1-514-558 6138 
Website: Http://www.cscanada.net; Http://www.cscanada.org 
E-mail:caooc@hotmail.com; office@cscanada.net

Copyright © Canadian Academy of Oriental and Occidental Culture