Event Report: Parties and Constitutions

Détails

Pretoria, South Africa - The International Conference on Constitutionalisation of Political Parties and Constitutionalism in Sub-Saharan Africa was held on April 25-26, 2024, at the Future Africa Campus Auditorium, University of Pretoria. The conference brought together scholars, researchers, and experts in the field of political science and constitutional law to discuss the constitutionalisation of political parties and its implications for democracy in Sub-Saharan Africa.

The conference featured keynote addresses, panel discussions, and presentations from renowned experts in the field. Judge Dhaya Pillay, a Judge of the High Court in Pietermaritzburg and Durban and Commissioner at the Independent Electoral Commission of South Africa, delivered the keynote address on the first day of the conference. The conference explored various themes, including the overview of political party constitutionalisation under contemporary African constitutions, international standards on the regulation of political parties, and the experience of continental Europe. The conference also examined the constitutional protection of political parties in Francophone African countries, with a case study of Senegal.

 

The second day of the conference focused on political party constitutionalisation in democratic states, multi-ethnic societies, authoritarian states, and dominant party systems. The conference featured presentations from scholars from various countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, including Nigeria, Kenya, Mauritius, Uganda, Rwanda, Cameroon, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, and Tanzania. The conference concluded with a session on the way forward, where participants discussed the implications of political party constitutionalisation for democracy in Sub-Saharan Africa. The conference was moderated by Prof. Charles Fombad, a professor at the University of Pretoria.

 

The conference was organized by the University of Pretoria Law Department, in collaboration with the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung and the Regional Programme Political Dialogue Sub-Saharan Africa. It provided a platform for scholars and experts to share their research findings and experiences on political party constitutionalisation and its implications for democracy in Sub-Saharan Africa, which are set to be published in a new upcoming book.