Der Wegfall effektiver Staatsgewalt in den Staaten Afrikas

In: Die Friedens-Warte: Journal of International Peace and Organization, Band 74, Heft 3, S. 307-330

Abstract

Since the end of the East-West conflict, the trend toward state collapse in Africa has become stronger, notwithstanding a parallel but weaker trend toward democratization. In many countries, a transformation of the "inherited" colonial structures into a viable institution for development & nation-building has not been achieved. A differentiation of society into a relatively autonomous state sector & a private society of trade & commerce functioning according to market principles did not take place. Often it was blocked by a bureaucratic "state-class" with a strong rental mentality. In this respect, an increased informality of politics (politicized ethnicity, clientelism, corruption) & the economy (great importance of the informal sector) is typical. The ruinous consequences of the erosion of state functions can mainly be seen in countries suffering from civil wars (Congo, Somalia, Sierra Leone, Rwanda, Angola). In most cases, "civil society" has proved to be too weak to stop such state collapse. These problems also make the question of sovereignty appear in a new light. Adapted from the source document.