Cote d’Ivoire & Tanzania: Peaceful elections a welcome sign

Peaceful elections held earlier this month in Cote d’Ivoire and Tanzania were welcome signs of improving institutions in both countries. While final results haven’t been announced yet, the fact that Cote d’Ivoire’s vote passed peacefully is a particularly important turnaround – the 2010 election sparked a brutal civil conflict. Although the incumbent CCM, which has ruled Tanzania’s since independence, probably won again, this month’s vote was the country’s most competitive ever. This year has already seen Nigeria’s first ever democratic transfer of power between different parties, and these latest polls add to a sense that, while Sub- Saharan Africa is facing an extremely difficult economic adjustment due to low commodity prices, political institutions do seem to be strengthening in many countries. More competitive political systems in the region may eventually result in better governance, improving long term growth prospects. The trend is, however, far from uniform. October also saw the Republic of the Congo’s long-ruling president hold a widely-boycotted plebiscite to extend his rule. The presidents of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda also look set to extend their own terms in office next year, rather than step down as their constitutions currently require.