Political polarization stereotypically holds a negative connotation, especially within an entire country. However, when we hold a conversation about an entire continent, does the preconception change at all? According to Freedom House, Namibia has a freedom score of 77, which is relatively comparable to that of the United States (83). Conversely, South Sudan has a freedom score of precisely 1. How can two countries only 3000 miles (4800 Km) apart have such a divide in political norms and behaviors?

A Divide in the Continent

How flawed could democracy indeed be in this vast continent? For beginners, only six out of 54 countries have a “good” democracy score on Freedom House. There is a significant divide, but is it like this country-by-country? The majority of countries within Africa would be considered “Young Democracies.” With this, there are apparent struggles to start and maintain democracy, especially for young people. 

The democratic backsliding not only lies within the continent but in each country as well. After identifying that there is backsliding, we must find what the cause of this could be. A large contributor is the polarization within the continent. The question then develops into: Is polarization within a young democracy healthy? The answer, although contested, is yes. Polarization is only as bad as the identity conceptions previously believed and structured within the society. Therefore, polarization within itself is not inherently wrong, although it holds the possibility to turn sour.

It is perfect for a young democracy to be polarized due to the positives that it can bring. Polarization allows for a large voter turnout, which generally is an issue in a young democracy. Polarization can also provide institutional checks and balances and very competitive elections. If there is more than one voter base, the citizens will usually become complacent with the actions taken by their government officials.

International Influence

What can the international community do, if anything, to relieve tensions between voter bases and spread healthy democracy? Before attempting to answer this complex question, one must understand that there are numerous reasons for democratic backsliding specific to one country, let alone one continent, and no one trend is fully applicable to all 54 countries of the African continent. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, we have seen 80 countries lowering Freedom House scores.

Specific ways that the United States, as well as the international community, can help is by improving the leadership quality within the continent. Many leaders are using their powers to either shrink the democracy within their country or using it to limit the checks and influences that relate to their power. There are also major network and internet outages within the continent that could be solved and relieved by any country within the G8. The relevance to this lies under the guise of misinformation. In the internet age, the majority of information is learned and received through the internet; therefore, if there is no internet, there is no information, leading to an uninformed voter base.

The State of Democracy

Although we can see democratic backsliding throughout the continent, we can also see a common trend throughout the judiciary. Stereotypically, the judiciary is usually attacked and destroyed by leaders wanting to ruin democracy, but in this case, the judiciary has held extraordinarily strong.

That happens to be an extremely positive sign in the fight against democratic backsliding. Relative to the development of this continent, democracy is in a perfect place. Although we see backsliding, it was just 64 years ago when we saw most African Countries receive their independence.

Currently, civilian engagement and civilian concerns regarding accountability are also exceptionally high. This high level of engagement makes it very hard for leaders to manipulate voter bases with misinformation and rig or manipulate elections. 

Although the entirety of the African continent is at a very crucial point in its journey to democracy, this could genuinely be considered a tipping point. Although the state of democracy is relatively healthy, most of the continent is in a severe backslide. Forty-eight total countries are not considered to have a healthy democracy. With international help, by holding these rulers accountable for their actions to destroy democracy, providing the internet to inform voters, and destroying the stereotypes and misconceptions held to destroy identity politics, we could see the African continent develop into a highly democratic landscape.