The context of public administration: comparative analysis of selected former colonies in Sub-Saharan Africa

Abstract

This paper presents a comparative study of the legacy of colonial ruler’s vis-a-vis the culture of public administration in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Four countries, Nigeria, Ghana, Cameroon and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) were selected as case studies. They lie in two regions of the continent – West and Central Africa. The culture of public administration in Sub-Saharan Africa is complex as demonstrated by literature presented in this paper. The models of indirect and direct rule initiated prior to independence and the political transformation in each country has played a major role in their current governance. The study shows that the English-speaking countries (Ghana and Nigeria) are better advanced in terms of public sector reform when compared to the two French-speaking states (Cameroon and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). However, administrative problems remain in all the cases. Chief among these are corruption, nepotism and tribalism. Such issues have had also had a negative impact on the development of public administration within these countries.