Civil Society has increased its dominance in politics and academic debates. It is one of the concepts termed as complex and debatable for a very long time since pre-colonial Africa. Complexities regarding the concept have led to different definitions ranging from broad perspectives to more specific terms. An analysis of these definitions shows a typical pattern or relationship leading to one functional definition, which states that Civil Society is a broad field of organized groups and associations that practice democracy and citizens’ interests from the grassroots and presenting them to the State to counter any imbalances and create harmony. The organized groups may be informal or professional designed for public interest concerning religion, politics, businesses, culture, clubs, activist groups, political parties, environment, academia, and NGOs. Generally, civil Society is a non-profit association with voluntary members who have the same interests.
Since the establishment of the concept in the Post-colonial era, there has been a rapid increase in civil society Organisations which external interests have used as a tool for liberalization and development of developing states. Africa has experienced many challenges in eradicating poverty, dictatorship authorities, and state oppression. The Establishment of Civil Society presents a solution for combating these challenges by protecting civilian rights and resisting state dominance. Civil Society also creates a platform for public participation and voicing opinions regarding civil powers, civilians’ interests, state authority, economic policies, and political reforms. Due to the diversity of African nations, each country presents different concepts of Civil Society, which poses a challenge in generalizing the concept in Africa as a whole. The post-colonial period further intensified the difference of the concept as different countries adopted different forms of Civil Society. For example, Islamic communities are common in North Africa, Christian communities are seen more in the South and East Africa while West Africa adopted the more professional organizations. In this paper, discussions involve the rapid increase of Civil Society in Africa and its relationship with the State and how it affects politics focusing on select countries, that is, Uganda covering the Sub-Saharan region, and Egypt, for North Africa.
State and Civil Society in Uganda
Uganda’s Civil Society consists of different influential organizations, each having different roles in their areas of interest. Some organizations include the media, social organizations, trade unions, political parties, NGOs, professional organizations, social movements, and religious institutions (EDA-Africa). Since the establishment of Civil Society in the post-colonial era, it has been at the forefront in supporting the State’s policies by effective service delivery from the grassroots. The Society’s dominance in service delivery comes from the State’s policy for Structural Adjustment Programs (SAP), which led to; restructuring and privatizing parastatals, retrenchments, and cost-sharing to reduce government expenditure (EDA-Africa). Due to the SAP policy, the Civil Society receives more financial support from the State because of additional work, which was previously the government’s responsibility. Other than supporting the policy and providing service delivery, another set of Civil Society Organisation has stuck on confronting the State leading to strenuous relationships.
Another source of the rift comes from the funding of donor communities where the funds go directly to the Civil Society instead of passing through the State, creating great rivalry. Limited funds mean less corruption and embezzlement, which strain the government officials and politicians who challenge the existence of Civil Society at every given opportunity. As an external interest, donors could stop or limit the funding if it endangers their relationship with the government and Civil Society. In taking charge of social service delivery, Civil Society enhances efficiency and support assisting donor communities in developing the country politically and in struggling for democracy. Strong actors of Civil Society in Uganda are Non-governmental Organizations (NGOs) who provide structural adjustment programs from the grassroots. NGOs aid in providing social services that the State cannot offer through Civil Society, for example, programs for poverty eradication, constructing schools to promote education, and health programs that aim to reduce HIV/AIDS infection. The relationship between these NGOs and the State has been harmonious because they are not involved in politics.
Civil Society filled the gap of political parties during the period of its abolishment up to its re-introduction. Many organizations came up to voice the interests of the civil Society to the State since there was no opposition to the government to challenge its leadership. Interest groups included vulnerable members of the community, for example, women and youth organizations. Being marginalized and vulnerable, Civil Society enhanced the presentation of these members contributing to democracy and liberalization. After the re-introduction of multi-Partyism, Civil Society lost some of its power and influence on the State, leading to discord as they feared the loss of policy advocacy (EDA-Africa). The friction affects working together in harmony to have a sound political system for the good of the country and the citizens.
During elections in Uganda, the Civil Society helps in monitoring the election process to promote peace and fairness. Among organizations that participate in monitoring are; “National Organization of Civic and Election Monitoring” (NOCEM) and “Uganda Joint Christian Council” (UJCC) (EDA-Africa). Civil Society keeps an eye on election malpractices that may lead to conflicts and possible clashes among opposing political parties, for example, the post-election violence in Kenya, in 2007 which resulted from election malpractices. As an international concern, international communities seek the help of the Civil Society in monitoring processes that involve politics and corruption in the African States to avoid repetition of such violence. Aside from tracking elections, the Civil Society also participates in the recruitment of political leaders (EDA-Africa). The target area of recruitment includes vulnerable members of society such as women and youth who are imparted with knowledge and skills to practice democracy. Women and youth in leadership is a significant achievement in Africa, where the political arena is primarily male-dominated.
State and Civil Society in North Africa (Egypt)
Civil Society in Egypt has a distinct difference from civil Society in other African countries and the Arabs. Since Egypt is among some countries to gain independence earlier, the first establishment of Civil Society was way back in 1821 (EDA-Africa). The concept then underwent various phases, through the pre-colonial period, the colonial period, and finally in the post-colonial era. The post-colonial phase saw the liberation of civil society, marked by adopting constitutional rights like the freedom of expression and a right to associate freely. From the post-colonial phase, civil Society in Egypt faced a lot of opposition from the State, which established and abolished some of its policies that shaped the current civil society’s concept. Today, Egypt has more than 27,000 organizations for civil society, meaning each organization represents 2300 citizens. The total number of individuals who have joined one or more organizations amounts to 23million (EDA-Africa). It is impossible to demonstrate the relationship between the State and Civil Society using these figures because most organizations do not exist, with a lot of dual membership that gives estimated figures only.
In Egypt, the Civil Society has an increasing number of interest groups, such as Trade Unions, Women associations in business, and Civil Enterprises, representing the private sector. A clear relationship between the interest groups and the State is not established. The State relates more with Trade Unions as the State partly runs them in a client- patron relationship. Trade Unions are dominant in Egypt due to more economic organizations, official and unofficial, such as organized cartels, which deal with foreign exchange and criminal networks. Activities of these organizations drain the State’s power and financial resources as revenue collection is not accountable, which also negatively impacts politics. As a result, the State permits more free trade in exchange for political and financial support. Despite having a trade Union, the State is opposed to workers’ strikes, thus limiting the rights of Civil Society in expressing democracy (EDA-Africa). Civil Society in Egypt has minimal participation in politics as legislative laws exist to restrict any movement involving politics. Restrictions mean less opposition from the Society, which leaves the countries under dictatorship regimes and militarism.
Due to the rise of powerful Civil Society Professional syndicates like the Engineer and Lawyers professional syndicate, the Egyptian State felt the upcoming threat in power which gave rise to legislative laws to counter the Civil Society. Business association organizations relate harmoniously with the State of Egypt because they have the same views on factors including; both actors have the same political belief concerning democracy of the State and Civil Society; have similar interests built more cooperation than antagonism with the State. Ethnic communities of Egypt form a major group of Civil Society in the post-colonial era, and their influence in politics is just as significant. Organizations in these communities are made up of traditional authorities, for example, the council of elders who participate in political debates with local people and even decide the community’s political stand.
Most of the North African Civil Society does not follow the laid down democratic standards but acts independently in providing political support. Political parties approach Society to help achieve their political interests because they have connections from the grassroots and religious groups. For example, the ruling elite in Senegal relies on the Support of Sufi organizations who act as direct intermediaries with the people from rural areas to gain political support. Sufi organizations depend on their religious affluence for stability and loyalty in the State.
The rise of Civil Society in the post-colonial era has changed most African countries’ economic and political conditions. Cases of corruption grow less with the rise in anti-corruption organizations. Democracy and liberation are experienced in many countries, especially the Sub-Saharan region, where people have a voice on matters of the State. Vulnerable groups have had their share of benefits from civil Society. Women, people with disabilities, and the youth are in leadership positions and politics due to Civil Society (EDA-Africa). Economically, Civil Society has helped in poverty alleviation, distribution of essential services to marginalized communities, and better healthcare promoting a healthy population and economic growth. The contribution of external factors such as NGOs and international organizations has been viewed as an intrusion in most African States since independence, but without the funding, Africa cannot afford to maintain the State’s financial demands. Civil Society has struggled and still is struggling to bring positive change in Africa despite facing many challenges and threats from the States.
Work Cited
EDA-Africa. “The Changing Relationship Between State, Civil Society And External Interests In The Post-Colonial Era.” 2021.