Citizens protested when there was coup in Guinea
October’s shocking events in Tanzania offer a snapshot of some of the tensions which have shaped a difficult year for African politics.
Demonstrators were shot dead by police while protesting against what they saw as a rigged election – condemned by regional and continental bodies – shattering the country’s reputation for peace and stability.
With opposition candidates either imprisoned or barred from running, President Samia Suluhu Hassan was elected with 98% of the votes.
Any moves towards Tanzania becoming a more open democracy had been seemingly reversed.
From Mali to Guinea-Bissau: Africa’s new era of coups
Arguably what happened there highlighted a broader breakdown in many African nations between the people and those who govern them.
Several countries saw protests and election disputes in 2025, while military leaders cemented their power in others, with analysts believing next year could bring more upheaval.
“If we look at the overall picture across the continent, the trend is worrying,” said Mo Ibrahim, whose foundation analyses data to assess the state of African governance.
Its most recent report suggests that in its measure of governance, which includes things like security, participation in decision-making and the state of health and education, progress has stalled when compared to the decade up to 2022.
“The increase in coups [in recent years], the return of military governments and the closing of democratic space all point to the same problem: a failure of governance.”
The spike in the cost of living has been the spark that lit the fire of dissatisfaction in many places. This was not unique to the continent but, as Mr Ibrahim told the BBC, “the risk for Africa is that these negative patterns spread unchecked, much of the hard-won progress achieved over recent decades could be reversed”.
AFP via Getty Images A group of people hold up a giant image of the head of Lazarus Chakwera that has been torn down from a billboard.
Supporters of Malawi’s Peter Mutharika celebrated his election victory with a torn billboard image of his rival, incumbent Lazarus Chakwera
For those who believe that democracy is the best way to channel the demands of the population, there have been some points of positivity in 2025 with peaceful transfers of power and free and fair elections.
In Malawi the country’s former leader, Peter Mutharika, won back the presidency after a period in opposition. Seychelles saw long-term ruling party United Seychelles returned to office, five years after losing power.
Both incumbents lost in part because of a perceived failure to mitigate the impact of inflation. These results followed other setbacks for ruling parties in 2024.
In South Africa, the African National Congress lost its overall majority for the first time since 1994 and entered a power-sharing government with its main opposition.
In Senegal, a combination of street protests and the courts prevented apparent attempts by the president to extend his time in office and a relative unknown was elected president after the main opposition leader was barred.
But analysts point to shifts elsewhere as evidence that democracy on the continent is being challenged.
Perhaps no more so than through the consolidation of the power of military-led governments across West Africa’s Sahel region.
Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso all split from the regional bloc, Ecowas, forming a new alliance of governments which seized power through coups.
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