“I am the government”: party institutionalisation and perceptions of service delivery in Africa's resource economies

Xichavo Alecia Ndlovu

Chapter 7 in The Elgar Companion to Democracy and Development in Africa, 2026, pp 118-140 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: The rising demand for critical minerals needed for the green energy transition has revived optimism that new resource revenues could enhance public services in Africa's resource-based economies. However, whether resource wealth translates into developmental gains depends on political organisation and democratic accountability. This chapter explores the relationship between party institutionalisation and citizens’ perceptions of government performance in health and education, drawing on Afrobarometer survey data and macro-political and economic data. Although the overall correlation is weak, disaggregated results reveal that the benefits of party institutionalisation are not universal but are most significant in democracies, where electoral competition encourages programme-based commitments. The case of Ghana illustrates how party capacity, political incentives, and revenue from resource extraction can align to improve social services, yet also how these gains fluctuate with fiscal and electoral cycles. The chapter argues that the mineral boom will not ensure inclusive development in Africa without sustained democratic consolidation.

Keywords: Citizen Perceptions; Ghana; Party Institutionalisation; Resources; Service Delivery (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
ISBN: 9781035348176
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.elgaronline.com/doi/10.4337/9781035348183.00015 (application/pdf)
Our link check indicates that this URL is bad, the error code is: 403 Forbidden

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:elg:eechap:24014_7

Ordering information: This item can be ordered from
http://www.e-elgar.com

Access Statistics for this chapter

More chapters in Chapters from Edward Elgar Publishing
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Jack Sweeney ().