Role of donors in the democratization process in Kenya 1991-2010

Abstract

Since the end of the Cold War, international politics have taken on ideals of liberalism on argument that participatory governance supports domestic and international peace. The expansion of liberal markets and politics has been fronted by powerful states and international organisations as the most preferred state systems. In Africa, which only got integrated into the World economy and political arena just over half a century ago, the task of state-building and adopting international systems has proved challenging prompting development partners to provide assistance and use their leverage to influence the liberalist trajectory. Economic liberalisation preceded democracy and albeit the challenges encountered, political liberalization has also posed challenges in democratizing states. Kenya as the focus of this study has oscillated from a democracy to an autocracy before resuming on the liberal trend. This process has been moved by both domestic and international actors with the latter playing a political as well as financial role. Kenya‟s democratization experience has faced challenges including instability occasioned by election-related conflicts. This study will look into the details of Kenya‟s democratic trajectory, exploring the extent to which international actors influence the trajectory and the outcomes of democratic processes. This research finds that Kenya has fully transitioned into a functional democracy and all actors are recommended to continue working on consolidating the gains achieved so far while further entrenching democratic ideals.