ABSTRACT
At the turn of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st, Africa launched what some have referred to as the most ambitious governance project in its history. Dubbed the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), its goal was to create opportunities for a people-centred development paradigm. This required African governments to be more accountable to their people as well as offer more choices to citizens so that they could reach their full potential. In the last 10 years, the results of this bold experiment have been mixed. Whilst the global economic downturn that started in late 2008 did not offer any help in the realization of NEPAD’s goals, the economies of some African societies continued to grow whilst others were backsliding.
