Constitution making and democratization trends in Africa the Kenyan case

Abstract

Constitution making and constitutionalism has today assumed a greater prominence than at any time before in the struggle for democracy. The last decade has witnessed an ever- increasing number of constitutional reform processes taking place, particularly in Africa. While most constitutional moments are essentially a negotiated process between competing political forces, very few countries have gone beyond this and through the interactive and inclusive process of truly making their constitution. But an essential feature of the emerging trend has been the extent to which the people have been involved in the making of their constitution. Examples of this can be found from the Eritrean, Malawian, Ugandan, South African, Rwandan and more recently the Kenyan experiences. This trend is set to escalate in the coming years. This paper sets out the broad constitutional reform agenda and the institutional framework for the review in Kenya. It examines some relevant practices in constitutional reform in African countries and concludes that constitutional reform is an imperative in the democratization trajectory in Africa.