The aspirational vision of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is to “leave no one behind”. The 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and 169 targets are a demonstration of the global community’s urgency to eradicate poverty and significantly minimise inequality. Of course, the achievement of these goals is directly linked to the quality of governance, specifically the nature of citizens’ participation in the process. Developing partnerships between governments, citizens and the private sector is essential for the achievement of the SDGs, and nowhere is this more critical than in Africa.
African civil society has continuously found novel solutions to multifaceted development challenges. However, this indispensable role of civil society is under siege as its formal and informal groupings face increased constraints in their operating environment. Since 2012, the International Center for Not-for-Profit Law (ICNL) has identified more than 20 restrictive laws and regulations that inhibit the freedom of assembly and expression in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Within the past four years, there has been an upsurge of restrictive laws affecting funding, requiring registration, curtailing protests and targeting particular groups and minorities. Policies in Uganda, Ethiopia, Sudan and the Gambia all reflect this disquieting trend. In addition, governments have passed a significant number of laws that have increased the surveillance on the operations of civil society and affected their ability to operate freely. Some of these laws are public order acts, as well as anti-terrorism and information interception legislation.
