The rise of elective dictatorship and the erosion of social capital

Using exploratory research methods and systems theory, Woldemariam’s work examines the interactions between elective dictatorship and the erosion of social capital, the legitimacy of the state, and the perception of the public towards multiparty politics in Africa, with a focus on Ethiopia.

Woldemariam – assistant professor of Political Science at Spelman College – argues that under conditions of ever diminishing levels of public trust, African societies may be unable to resolve conflict peacefully, advance economically, and develop politically. The author contends that even if public policies are formulated with the best of intentions, they may not achieve their objectives if the state is widely perceived as illegitimate and if the public is denied meaningful opportunities to participate in the decision-making process.

In the absence of public trust coupled with a widespread perception of the illegitimacy of the state, it would be unrealistic to expect durable peace and the mobilisation of domestic and foreign resources for the development of Ethiopia, or indeed other African countries. In short, Woldemariam argues, disingenuous subscriptions for multiparty politics along with the dubious and misguided adoption of free-market economic principles would have negative ramifications on development, democratisation, and the peaceful settlement of disputes in Africa.