The purpose of this essay is to find a nexus between democracy and governance as inspired by cultural values in Africa. It is to find explanations as to how traditional core African values; indigenous knowledge and indigenous institutions have impacted on or can shape political systems and democratic institutions in the continent. It shall be necessary to explore those cultural values especially within a pre-colonial Africa, their relevance to the Afrocentric and Eurocentric definition of democracy and governance and their limitations in contemporary nation-building efforts within the continent.
It must be understood that Africa’s political governance architecture and democratic perceptions do not spring from a mystical or mythical source. It is arguably the result of a long process of cultural elaboration. It comes from this reality that every people of the world have developed throughout their history, particular forms of social, economic and political organisations as well as particular forms of thought, beliefs, attitudes, symbols, images, etc. It is this set of values which confer on them specificity, an identity and a personality. It can be said that all what constitutes our cultural past and present affect our outlook and condition our political development. Rather than being prescriptive, the conclusion aims at leaving the choice of democratic models with the people. Yet, there is room to strongly affirm that if other countries have developed their governance structure from a cultural imprint, Africa cannot be an exception.
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