In current months, political transitions in components of Africa have taken an unsure flip, with 4 key nations of Mali, Burkina Faso, the Ivory Coast, and Cameroon, witnessing vital energy consolidation by ruling leaders or army juntas.
On the coronary heart of the unfolding developments is a marked erosion of democratic safeguards, exemplified by bans on opposition actions.
Electoral establishments are additionally being dissolved, whereas constitutional reforms that favour tenure elongation are launched.
Observers say these patterns sign a wider democratic retreat in a continent lengthy grappling with coups, civil unrest, and contested political legitimacy.
Ivory Coast: Ouattara’s fourth-term bid stirs rigidity
Within the Ivory Coast, President Alassane Ouattara declared on July 29, 2025, his intention to run for a fourth time period forward of the October 25, 2025, presidential ballot.
The announcement, made after months of hypothesis and earlier hints in June 2025, sparked renewed concern over the nation’s democratic trajectory.
His re-nomination by the Rally of Houphouetists for Democracy and Peace (RHDP) got here as constitutional time period limits remained some extent of competition.
On June 4, 2025, the nation’s electoral panorama was additional destabilised when 4 main opposition figures–Tidjane Thiam, Laurent Gbagbo, Charles Blé Goudé, and Guillaume Soro–were barred from contesting the election.
The Electoral Fee’s refusal to replace the voter register, regardless of repeated appeals, drew sharp criticism from civil society and worldwide observers.
“The indicators are worrying,” stated Dr. Marie-Kaïssa Koné, a political scientist primarily based in Abidjan. “The systematic exclusion of opposition voices isn’t just in regards to the candidates–it’s about disenfranchising their help base.”
Cameroon: Biya’s enduring rule and shrinking political area
In Cameroon, President Paul Biya–Africa’s oldest head of state at 91 years–made quiet however decisive strikes towards securing an eighth time period, formally introduced on July 13, 2025, forward of the October 12, 2025, presidential election.
The legislative elections have been earlier postponed in early 2025, which opposition events stated was deliberate.
On July 26, 2025, opposition chief Maurice Kamto was forcibly evicted from Douala throughout a rally, whereas police barricaded venues throughout Yaoundé and Bafoussam, citing “safety issues.” Cameroon’s electoral fee, ELECAM, launched a provisional record of candidates that excluded Kamto.
“Paul Biya has turn into a grasp of delicate authoritarianism,” stated a senior editor at Le Messager. “He does not want tanks. He makes use of legal guidelines.”
Mali: Multiparty democracy dismantled
In Mali, the place the army took energy after coups in 2020 and 2021, democratic constructions suffered a serious blow in Might 2025, when the ruling junta formally dissolved all political events and banned their actions nationwide.
On Might 7, a decree suspended political celebration operations, and by Might 13, the ban was codified into regulation.
Simply weeks later, on July 10, 2025, junta chief Assimi Goïta permitted a controversial regulation granting himself a five-year presidential mandate, renewable indefinitely and with out elections.
The measure, handed by Mali’s military-appointed legislative physique and adopted by the Council of Ministers, permits Goïta to stay in energy till at the very least 2030, regardless of earlier pledges to return to civilian rule by March 2024.
Opposition leaders–Abba Alhassane, El Bachir Thiam, and Abdoul Karim Traoré–reportedly went lacking starting Might 8, following pro-democracy protests. Civic organisations have condemned the junta’s actions as a harmful slide into authoritarianism.
Burkina Faso: Electoral oversight stripped away
Burkina Faso’s democratic constructions have been dealt a extreme blow on July 17, 2025, when the ruling army dissolved the Impartial Nationwide Electoral Fee (CENI). The next day, July 18, electoral obligations have been transferred to the Ministry of Territorial Administration, drawing criticism for centralising govt management.
Initially scheduled elections in July 2023 have been indefinitely postponed, and the junta prolonged its tenure till July 2029. A constitutional modification handed throughout this transition now permits Captain Ibrahim Traoré to contest future presidential elections.
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“From revolutionary euphoria to quiet disenchantment–Burkina Faso is watching democracy retreat behind the barrels of weapons,” stated Issaka Zongo, editor of L’Observateur Paalga.
In a associated growth, two outstanding Senegalese critics of the federal government, political commentator Bachir Fofana and opposition politician Moustapha Diakhate–were launched on Wednesday following convictions for insulting the president and spreading disinformation.
Their arrest and sentencing triggered outcry from their authorized groups, who described the detentions as politically motivated and a type of “hostage-taking.”
Fofana had questioned the legality of a controversial automotive procurement deal for parliament, whereas Diakhate had branded Senegal’s new leaders “scoundrels.”
Each males obtained two-month sentences, although Diakhate had already served his time, and Fofana’s sentence was suspended.
Their launch marks a contentious second in Senegal’s political panorama, the place dissent has come underneath sharper scrutiny since President Bassirou Diomaye Faye took workplace in March 2024.
