This year’s Africa Day 25 May is the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU). It was replaced in 2002 by the African Union (AU).

The OAU was best known for its long and finally victorious decolonization struggle and the often problematic defence of African sovereignty and support for liberation struggle leaders.

The OAU was also important in achieving consensus around a set of core principles and norms governing a pan-African political order favouring sovereign equality and non-interference.

For the AU, improving the record on governance and human rights will become more important, as will policy action on youth unemployment, economic development, food security, and other areas.

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The government has signalled reconciliatory tones towards the opposition, calling for national political dialogue. If this is a genuine wish to open the public sphere, or political rhetoric intended to prolong the lifespan of the government remains to be seen.

Some political prisoners were released. The government invited the opposition to take active part in the on-going constitution drafting process, which is mired in conflicts over the role of religion.

The new policy to engage armed groups in dialogue could open the possibility for the umbrella coalition of opposition, the National Consensus Forces, to face the government in unison.

The move of the government is perceived by the opposition as political rhetoric. Observers however detect a genuine will from the government to open the political space for the opposition.

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Recent years have seen a growing interest on taxation in developing countries among aid agencies. This reflects a concern for raising domestic revenues to finance public goods and services.

It also represents a recognition of the centrality of taxation for growth and redistribution. However, efforts to broaden the tax base are intimately connected to the quality of government expenditure.

Aid to taxation can be grouped into three broad working areas: (1) strengthen tax policy and design; (2) build more effective tax administrations; and (3) encourage constructive state-society engagement around taxes.

This article discusses experiences with donor support to strengthen tax systems in developing countries and challenges in scaling up donor efforts, with a particular focus on sub-Saharan Africa.

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On 15 September, 2008, President Robert Mugabe was forced into a political union with a bitter rival: Morgan Tsvangirai of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC-T).

This move culminated in the Global Political Agreement (GPA), the foundation of the current coalition government of ZANU-PF, MDC-T and the smaller MDC faction MDC-M.

A new constitution was recently adopted by parliament, and the main political parties encouraged Zimbabweans to vote ‘Yes’ in the referendum on 16 March, which they overwhelmingly did.

In a telling announcement, President Mugabe reassured traditional leaders in Masvingo province that his party will make changes to the document soon after the elections that he is confident of winning.

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Throughout the history of the Kenyan republic, multi-party electoral processes have seen widespread violence. The absence of violence this year is only paralleled with the remarkably peaceful elections of 2002.

Furthermore, the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) reports a baffling voter turn-out of 86% which must be considered one of the highest turn-outs in the history of democracy.

But was the process ‘free and fair’? Preliminary observer statements from EU and the Commonwealth indicate that they were. There were glitches, some which could be construed as indications of irregularities and tampering, especially in the tallying process.

While promoters of democracy have successfully contributed to fast-tracking democratic processes in Kenya, the trust-building processes and the gradual unfolding of the political landscape into patterns less ethnically based will take a long time.

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The Kenyan press is outspoken and reports habitually on corruption, power struggles and politics. But there is one topic where strict self-censorship applies: ethnicity.

Self-censorship is applied to avoid inciting trouble. The ethical rules therefore include using ethnic identity only in positive ways and in connection with uncontroversial cultural expressions.

The international press had quite a different approach. It raised the ethnic background of the clashes and described Kenya as a country where tribal conflict had erupted into near-civil war.

New general elections are now coming up in Kenya. The last elections in December 2007 provoked an extensive wave of violence that shook the country and worsened the ethnic conflicts.

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As French fighter jets attacked key strongholds, hundreds of Islamist fighters prepared convoys, which would escort leaders, weapons and fighters away from major towns.

Local and international troops should prepare for increased resistance and a protracted campaign. Malian soldiers faced the first wave of attacks when various suicide bombers targeted Malian army bases and checkpoints in the city of Gao.

Mali and other states in the region will have to address seriously ‘the Tuareg problem’. This will require dialogue and political will to curb marginalisation and stigmatisation from which they and other minority ethnic groups suffer.

The interim civilian government in Bamako should use the brief respite afforded to it by the presence of foreign troops to address the endemic corruption and legitimate grievances, which lie at the roots of this multifaceted crisis.

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Multi-party elections were a prominent feature of Africa’s political landscape in 2012, with twenty-three countries conducting polls – whether presidential, legislative or municipal.

The media usually cover little more than who is likely to win and whether there will be violence. Rapid and diverse political transitions taking place across the continent are seldom reflected upon in any depth.

Sierra Leone and Ghana are typically depicted in very different ways: the former as a fragile state recovering from a decade-long civil war, the latter as one of Africa’s most stable democracies.

But the conduct of elections in both countries have much in common – notably a commitment to accession to power through the ballot box, avoidance of violence, the use of technology to mitigate fraud, and a prominent monitoring role for civil society.

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What are France’s objectives in intervening in northern Mali? Who exactly are they fighting? It is worth beginning by dismissing some theories about France’s motivations for intervening which are erroneous.

Firstly, it is not neo-colonialism. Secondly, conspiracy theories about riches under the Sahara are misguided. Thirdly, references to the “strategic importance” of Mali should be quickly dismissed.

Mali is a victim of structural dominances related to colonialism and its subordinate position in systems of global power. France’s intervention is an expression of that rather than an extension of it.

The narrative which has been accepted is that the events in northern Mali are blowback from NATO’s 2011 intervention in Libya. Whilst not without elements of truth, this is overstated.

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The ‘African Renaissance’ was launched in the late 1990s with a plethora of new initiatives to promote popular participation and good governance, peace and security, economic growth and to reposition Africa in a globalized world.

Previously absent governance initiatives, institutions and accompanying instruments have since been established and provide the basis for the promotion of common governance norms.

The aims of the ‘African Renaissance’ have not nearly been achieved. There is now a need to redefine the way forward. A revised agenda will need to build on the achievements of the first ‘version’.

An African Renaissance 2.0 will need to focus on five key areas summarized here as IDEALS. That is the challenge for the extraordinary African Union summit planned for May 2013.

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