List of African Union Member States By Political System - Form of Government

Form of Government

See also: Form of government

There are several types of government systems in African politics:

  • in an absolute monarchy, the head of state and head of government is a monarch with unlimited legal authority,
  • in a constitutional monarchy, the monarch is a ceremonial figurehead who has few political competences,
  • in a presidential system, the president is the head of state and head of government,
  • in a semi-presidential system, the president and the prime minister share a number of competences,
  • in a parliamentary system, the president is a ceremonial figurehead who has few political competences
  • in a single-party state, there may be theoretical or legal protection for opposition parties, but there is no legitimate chance of a candidate outside the ruling party winning an election; often there are constitutional provisions protecting one-party dominance. While no AU state is constitutionally defined as such, the following are effectively one-party states:
    • Egypt (National Democratic Party) (other parties exist but face various restrictions)
    • Eritrea (People's Front for Democracy and Justice)
    • Western Sahara's Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic is composed entirely of Polisario Front members. Elections are held every three years with no opposition. In 2004, a splinter group, the Front Polisario Khat al-Shahid was announced.
Even in other states with elections, actual opposition may not exist. The following have been or are considered dominant-party systems:
  • Angola (Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola - Party of Labour)
  • Botswana (Botswana Democratic Party)
  • Burkina Faso (Congress for Democracy and Progress)
  • Cameroon (Cameroon People's Democratic Movement)
  • Chad (Patriotic Salvation Movement)
  • Republic of the Congo (Congolese Labour Party)
  • Djibouti (Progress People's Assembly)
  • Equatorial Guinea (Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea)
  • Ethiopia (Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front)
  • Gabon (Gabonese Democratic Party)
  • The Gambia (Alliance for Patriotic Reorientation and Construction)
  • Guinea (Party of Unity and Progress)
  • Mozambique (Mozambican Liberation Front)
  • Namibia (South-West Africa People's Organisation)
  • Nigeria (People's Democratic Party)
  • Rwanda (Rwandese Patriotic Front)
  • Seychelles (Seychelles People's Progressive Front)
  • South Africa (African National Congress)
  • Sudan (National Congress Party)
  • Tanzania (Chama Cha Mapinduzi)
  • Togo (Rally of the Togolese People)
  • Tunisia (Democratic Constitutional Rally)
  • Zambia (Movement for Multiparty Democracy)
  • Zimbabwe (Zimbabwe African National Union - Patriotic Front)
  • in a military dictatorship, high-ranking military officials run the state with authoritarian rule.

The politics of Africa have been blighted by severe problems with corruption and nepotism, coups d'état, and civil war. Corruption is a severe problem in much of the continent, with the vast majority of African states ranking below a five out of ten in Transparency International's Corruption Perceptions Index. Five of the ten most corrupt governments are AU member states:

  1. Angola (2.0)
  2. Côte d'Ivoire (1.9)
  1. Equatorial Guinea (1.9)
  1. Nigeria (1.9)
  1. Chad (1.7)

The following AU states are in ongoing wars, or have recently ceased hostilities:

  • Côte d'Ivoire: Ivorian Civil War, 2002–2011
  • Democratic Republic of the Congo: Ituri Conflict, since 1999, Second Congo War, 1998–2002
  • Senegal: Casamance Conflict, since 1988
  • Somalia: Somali Civil War, since 1991 certain regions are controlled by different warlords; autonomous internal states emerged (Jubaland, Puntland, Southwestern Somalia, Galmudug); Somaliland declared independence in 1991 but is not internationally recognized; since 2004, there is a new transitional parliamentary republican government.
  • Sudan: Chadian-Sudanese conflict, 2005–2006, part of the larger Darfur conflict in Darfur, Second Sudanese Civil War, 1983–2005, in Southern Sudan
  • Western Sahara: Independence Intifada, a non-violent resistance to on-going military occupation by Morocco, starting in 1976
  • Libya: 2011 Libyan civil war, ongoing

Read more about this topic:  List Of African Union Member States By Political System

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