Jo-Mare Duddy
6 October 2009
TWO separate studies, the 2009 Index of African Governance and the 2009 Ibrahim Index of African Governance, have ranked Namibia among the three best-governed countries in southern Africa.
According to the first, released by Harvard University last Thursday, Namibia scored 69,2 points out of a possible 100, making it the second-best-governed country in the region.
Botswana, with 72,7 points, came in first. The Ibrahim Index of African Governance, released yesterday, allocated Namibia 68,8 points, thereby ranking the country third in southern Africa.
Botswana, with 73,6 points, remained in the top spot. The second place, however, went to South Africa with 69,4 points.
Harvard rated Namibia eighth out of 53 countries on the continent, while the Ibrahim Index placed the country sixth.
The two indexes used to be one. In the past, the Harvard index, spearheaded by Professor Robert Rotberg of the Kennedy School of Government at the university, was supported by Sudanese-born British businessman Mo Ibrahim and was published as the Ibrahim Index of African Governance.
This year, however, the Kennedy School and the Ibrahim Foundation parted ways, after Ibrahim demanded "editorial control" of the index, Rotberg told Sapa. "Ibrahim wanted control over the final product," Sapa quoted Rotberg.
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The Harvard index rates governance according to five keys areas: safety and security, rule of law, transparency and corruption, participation and human rights, sustainable economic opportunity and human development.
The Ibrahim index, on the other hand, looks at only four pillars: safety and rule of law, participation and human rights, sustainable economic opportunity and human development.
Namibia's individual scores out of 100 for the Harvard Index were: safety and security (88,8), rule of law, transparency and corruption (77,2), participation and human rights (76,3), sustainable economic opportunity (43,1) and human development (60,6).
On the Ibrahim Index, Namibia scored 79,5 points for safety and rule of law, 72,7 for participation and human rights, 61,7 for sustainable economic opportunity and 61,3 for human development.
Although both indexes rate Namibia favourably using 2007 data, both also show that the country is steadily losing its grip on good administration: since Harvard started monitoring Namibia in 2000, the country has lost more than eight points on its overall governance score and has fallen three positions on the African index.
Since 2000, when Namibia scored 85,3 points, performance declined to 82,6 in 2002 and 75,8 in 2005, before slightly recovering to 76,3 in 2006 and 76,8 in 2007.
Whereas the country was ranked 5th on the continent in 2000 and 2002, it plunged to the 9th position in 2005. In 2006 and 2007, it regained some of its former reputation, climbing to the eighth spot.
According to the Ibrahim Index, Namibia's lower score this year is mainly of a result of a fallback in safety and security. The country's score in this category has been 83,3 for the past two years. This year, however, it is 79,5 points.
The country has also performed worse in the categories for participation and human rights, as well as human development.
In the first category, Namibia received 72,7 points compared to 75,3 last year, while in human development it scored 61,3 oppose to 61,6.
Namibia's continental rankings according to Ibrahim are: safety and rule of law (4th out of 53), participation and human rights (6), sustainable economic opportunity (9), and human development (15)
2009 Index of African Governance
1. Mauritius 85,7
2. Seychelles 79,8
3. Cape Verde 77,4
4. Botswana 72,7
5. Tunisia 71,5
6. Ghana 70,6
7. Algeria 70,2
8. Namibia 69,2
9. South Africa 68,4
10. Sao Tome and Principe 68,2
53. Somalia 16,3
2009 Ibrahim Index of African Governance
1. Mauritius 82,8
2. Cape Verde 78
3. Seychelles 77,1
4. Botswana 73,6
5. South Africa 69,4
6. Namibia 68,8
7. Ghana 66
8. Tunisia 65,8
9. Lesotho 61,2
10. Sao Tome and Principe 60,2
53. Somalia 15,2
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This report is a treasure to the assesment of Africa. But,It also lacks the in-depth analysis of the leaders that preside over our nations. One such missing ingredient is, the lack of focus on the level of education achieved by those who govern us. The more they are educated, the better their governance. A
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