Democratic Governance and the Rise of Inequality in Africa: A Case Study of Mauritius and Kenya (1992-2019)

Democratic governance implies a system of government where institutions function according to democratic norms and processes. Inequality is being not equal in terms of distribution of income, wealth and consumption and it is measured using Gini Index or Gini Coefficient. The study mainly focused on exploring the relationship between democratic governance and the rise of inequality in Africa. The study was guided by three objectives. The first objective examined the correlations between democratic governance and inequality in Africa. Secondly, the study examined the mechanisms that African democratic societies employed in achieving equality using the case study of Mauritius and thirdly examined the expert's perceptions on the role of democracy in abetting or diminishing inequality in Kenya. The study used the case study of Mauritius and Kenya from 1992 to 2019. In addition, the research targeted a population of 600 respondents comprising of government officials, civil society officials and Experts within Nairobi County. Furthermore, stratified random sampling and purposive sampling were used in the selection of respondents where a sample size of 60 participants was drawn and grouped into (30) government officials, (20) civil society officials and (10) Experts. Equally important, questionnaires, interviews and secondary sources were used to gather data which was analyzed using Microsoft Excel and SPSS. Likewise, statistical analysis involved frequencies, percentages, quartiles and correlation and the findings were displayed in the forms of pie charts, bar graphs and tables, while data collected from interview schedules were analyzed on a desk review basis and subjected to thematic interpretation. The study found weak positive relationships among rule of law, transparency, efficiency & effectiveness and rising inequalities in Africa and also a moderate weak positive relationship among citizen participation, equity and rising inequalities in Africa which shows non-significant effect because in fully functioning democracies there was a declining trend on inequalities. On the contrary, the findings on the correlation of democratic governance and inequality in Africa using of intervening variable (hindrances of equality) revealed that there was a strong positive relationship when using aspects such as neopatrimonialism, weak political institutions, ethnic political leadership, dictatorial political systems, economic dependency and corruption as the results were statistically significant. This clearly indicates that the practices threatened and undermined growth of democracy leading to inequalities. Also, the study found Mauritius as viable democracy as it practiced full democracy leading to inclusivity, equitable sharing of resources because of observing the rule of law, independent institutions and strong policies. Finally, the experts demonstrated high degree of knowledge on issues of governance, attributed to high level of education and expertise gained from experience. From the findings, the government had put in place necessary measures and programs for dealing with inequality in Kenya however, due to lack of political goodwill, political interferences and corruption there is little achievement. Fundamentally, the study recommends dealing with ethnicity, development of balanced policies and laws that guarantee representation of all ethnic groups in all public offices and above all inculcate a culture of adhering to the constitution.