Political Participation in Africa: A Comparative Analysis in Ghana and South Africa

Abstract

The pertinence of political participation is unarguable in democratic setting as it remains a potent tool to strengthening the legitimacy of political authority and promotion of stability and order. However, it is appalling to say that despite its relevance globally, political participation is questionable in African states, as citizens are less interested in their national politics because of violent-laden electoral processes, bribery and corruption in government, lack of transparency and accountability, patriarchal orientation, aged-politics, ill-governance, etc. Despite these facts, the level of participation in these states varies. Therefore, this paper was established to comparatively analyse the level of participation in Ghana and South Africa. The paper adopted a desk research method and employed general incentive theory as a theoretical framework. The paper discovered that despite the dense population in South Africa compared to Ghana, Ghana is more politically active than South Africa in electoral activities. It was also discovered that both countries have low level of popular participation compared to other countries due to some common factors which implications are graven on the political, social and economic structure of the countries. Thus, the paper recommends that both countries should provide a legal framework that aims to increase the representation of youth and women, the marginalized groups and citizens in the rural areas in the affairs of the state, stringent policies and regulations that shun corruption and embezzlement of public funds should be implemented.