Africa

The spreading of Participatory Budgeting in the African continent has been characterised by a gradual but uninterrupted growth dynamic. This pace is determined by some essential factors, two of which stand out:

1. One of a structural scope, related to the ongoing processes of decentralisation - some more advanced and others still in their embryonic state - in order to create the institutional conditions necessary for the existence of local governments in the different countries, with greater or lesser budgetary autonomy and of technical and political resources, as well as of attributions and competences in the management of the territory;
2. The other, of a contextual character, is directly dependent on the presence of international cooperation agencies in the territory, which are crucial in convincing and providing technical support to political agents in each country. These actors have been decisive in 33 the introduction of Participatory Budgeting in Africa, particularly in the places where the institutional conditions indicated in the previous point exist or are being created.

Despite the marked vibrancy, there are also some setbacks on the continent, such as Mozambique, which, amid political hesitations and the financial crisis triggered in 2015, witnessed a decrease in the cases of the Participatory Budgeting process in the country. According to the work carried out by the different authors, it was possible to identify a range of 955 to 958 Participatory Budgeting in Africa, which represents about 8% of the total number of cases worldwide.

In domestic terms, the sub-region of Central Africa stands out with about 40% of Participatory Budgeting identified on the continent.

According to the data obtained, the following data stand out:

1. Madagascar, as the African country with the largest number of Participatory Budgeting, namely 270, representing about 28% of the total number of processes identified in this region of the planet;
2. Angola, as the first country on the continent to create national legislation that makes the adoption of Participatory Budgeting compulsory for all municipalities. The Angolan case is also peculiar because it is the first nation in the world to legislate on this matter without having any remarkable previous experience in terms of its implementation. This decision takes place in a context that precedes the first democratic elections for municipal bodies, scheduled for 2020;
3. The existence of a national process in the Democratic Republic of Congo. According to the findings, this is mainly a so-called ‘budget guidance seminar’ organized by the Ministry of Finance, which enables the government to present the main lines of priority for the various sectoral policies and to gather contributions from the technical and financial partners and civil society organizations.

The expansion of participatory budgeting in Africa, particularly since the beginning of the new millennium, has been ensured by different types of institutions:

1. The vast majority of Participatory Budgeting identified in the continent, around 86%, are promoted by local governments in their different forms;
2. Some 11 to 12% of the processes are organised by other types of institutions;
3. Some 2 to 3% of reported cases are triggered by regional governments. Côte d'Ivoire stands out at this level, with more initiatives at this territorial level than at the local level;
4. A total of 28 national and regional capital cities are involved in the development of participatory budgeting in Africa.
5. 20 African cities with more than 1 million inhabitants were identified as promoting this type of initiative.

Considering the international indexes analysed in this Atlas, it is concluded that:

1. Approximately 50% of Participatory Budgeting in Africa is located in countries with authoritarian regimes; approximately 36% in nations with hybrid regimes; 14% in states with imperfect democracies. This is a stark contrast to the African context, as it is the only continent where most of the identified processes, some 85-86%, are based in countries considered non-democratic.;
2. Most African PB, around 69%, are located in territories with the highest level of corruption; the remaining 31% fall within the group of countries positioned at the third level of corruption, thus confirming the distinctive context of the cases developed in this region of the planet.;
3. About 61% of PB are located in territories with the lowest level of human development;
4. Approximately 65% of African PB are in countries with the second highest level of happiness ranking. The remaining 35% are confined to nations ranked third in the index.

Given the context outlined above, Participatory Budgeting in Africa tends to be promoted mainly as an instrument for promoting leadership, broadening participation and enhancing the transparency of institutions.