Former Nigerian Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo has warned that declining public confidence in democratic institutions is placing democracy under growing pressure across Africa, urging governments to strengthen accountability, protect constitutional rule and deliver better services to citizens.
Osinbajo gave the warning while delivering the keynote address at the annual lecture of Good Governance Africa (GGA), held on October 22 in Accra, Ghana, with the theme, “Democracy Under Pressure: Rebuilding Trust, Accountability, and Institutional Integrity in Africa’s New Political Era.”
He cited findings from Afrobarometer’s 2024 flagship report, based on surveys conducted across 39 African countries between 2021 and 2023, which showed that 66 per cent of respondents preferred democracy to other forms of government, while only 37 per cent were satisfied with how democracy was working in their countries.
The former vice-president also disclosed that 53 per cent of respondents were willing to tolerate military intervention if elected leaders abused power for their personal interests.
He said the figures revealed a troubling gap between Africans’ preference for democracy and their experience of governance, warning that failure by governments to meet citizens’ expectations could further erode confidence in constitutional rule.
“Democracy in Africa is clearly under pressure,” Osinbajo said, identifying military interventions and declining trust in governments and institutions responsible for protecting citizens’ rights as major challenges.
According to him, Africa recorded 11 successful coups in nine countries between 2020 and 2025.
While acknowledging that the circumstances surrounding the military takeovers differed, he said their cumulative effect was to weaken the principle that political authority should be acquired and exercised through constitutional processes.
Osinbajo, however, cautioned that Africa’s democratic challenges extended beyond military coups, noting that elected leaders could also undermine constitutional governance by manipulating political rules and restricting opportunities for genuine political change.
He stressed that dissatisfaction with elected governments should not automatically be interpreted as a rejection of democracy.
Citing a 2023 United Nations Development Programme survey involving 8,000 African citizens, the former vice-president said only 11 per cent of respondents in countries that had experienced unconstitutional changes of government preferred non-democratic forms of government.
He argued that governments should focus on addressing governance failures that fuel public frustration while strengthening institutions responsible for protecting citizens’ rights and holding public officials accountable.
Accountability, Public Services Key to Restoring Trust
The GGA lecture also examined the relationship between institutional integrity, accountability and Africa’s development prospects.
The organisation’s founder and outgoing global chairman, Robert Rose, said GGA was established more than a decade ago to promote independent research, policy analysis and engagement with governments, civil society, businesses, communities and the media.
Rose said the organisation was founded on the belief that Africa’s development could not be separated from the quality of governance across the continent.
He identified the gap between the existence of laws and oversight institutions and the enforcement of accountability as a persistent challenge.
According to him, corruption must attract consequences, while public resources must be deployed for the purposes for which they were intended.
Rose also highlighted GGA’s involvement in the campaign for an International Anti-Corruption Court, a proposed international mechanism designed to address grand corruption in cases where national authorities are unable or unwilling to prosecute offenders.
He explained that the proposed court would complement rather than replace national justice systems, offering an additional avenue for accountability where domestic institutions fail to act.
Rose estimated that corruption costs the world $2.6 trillion annually, stressing that the scale of the problem has serious implications for public finances and development.
He further argued that effective governance was essential to attracting investment, noting that businesses needed predictable regulations, enforceable contracts and institutions capable of ensuring fairness.
‘Trust Must Be Earned’
In his closing remarks, GGA Vice-Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Deji Haastrup, said public trust could only be restored when institutions demonstrated integrity through their actions rather than relying on their formal existence.
“Trust cannot be demanded. It must be earned,” Haastrup said.
He explained that trust grew when citizens saw public resources being used for the common good, institutions responding to their needs, corruption attracting consequences and courts operating independently.
Haastrup also identified effective legislative oversight, press freedom, space for civil society and the equal application of the law as essential elements of accountable governance.
“The great governance challenges facing Africa does not include a lack of thoughtfully crafted constitutions. We do have laws. We have anti-corruption agencies. We have law courts, parliaments, auditors-general and other oversight institutions. Yet, there often remains a gap between the promise of accountability and the experience of it,” he said.
He maintained that governance must translate into practical improvements in citizens’ lives, including access to functional schools and healthcare, opportunities for young people to build their futures at home, and an environment where entrepreneurs can establish businesses without relying on political connections.
According to him, these outcomes reflect GGA’s longstanding position that governance is fundamentally a development issue.
Haastrup said the organisation would continue to focus on democratic governance, anti-corruption, peace and security, natural resource governance, economic development, data and analytics, and youth empowerment through research, evidence-based advocacy and partnerships.
GGA Seeks Sustainable Funding for Governance Initiatives
Haastrup also appealed to foundations, businesses, development institutions and individuals to provide sustained financial support for the organisation’s activities.
He said GGA needed partners willing to invest not only in individual projects but also in the institutional capacity required to sustain its research, continental networks and response to emerging governance challenges.
“The work we have discussed today … none of these can be sustained by conviction alone,” he said.
He called for stronger collaboration among governments, parliaments, the judiciary, businesses, civil society, the media, academia, development partners and young people, arguing that democratic renewal required shared responsibility across society.
Rose, meanwhile, emphasised the importance of building institutions capable of surviving beyond the tenure of their founders.
He outlined a long-term vision for GGA to expand its continental presence through the establishment of nine regional centres over the next 10 to 15 years.
However, he acknowledged that achieving the ambition would require sustained funding, strategic partnerships and consistent leadership.
The discussions reinforced the central message of the lecture: that strengthening democracy in Africa requires more than constitutional provisions and formal institutions; it demands accountable leadership, effective public services and tangible improvements in the lives of citizens.
