Dr George Ofosu

This course is available on the MSc in Gender, Peace and Security, MSc in Political Science (Conflict Studies and Comparative Politics), MSc in Political Science (Global Politics) and MSc in Political Science (Political Behaviour). This course is available with permission as an outside option to students on other programmes where regulations permit. This course uses controlled access as part of the course selection process. For information on controlled access courses, including eligibility, application processes, deadlines, and departmental contact details, please refer to the Controlled Access Courses webpage.

How to apply: To apply for a place on this course, please submit a short statement of no more than 200 words via LfY. Your statement should outline your reasons for applying and explain how the course will support your academic and/or career goals. If applicable, you should also demonstrate how you meet any pre-requisites listed in the course guide. If the course is compulsory for your programme, no written statement is required.

Priority for places on Government (GV) courses will be given first to students for whom the course is compulsory. Where applicable, priority will then be given to students on the Department of Government programmes listed in the ‘Availability’ section of the course guide, followed by students on other programmes listed in that section. Students on all other programmes will be considered next, where a course is available as an outside option. You should ensure that you meet any pre-requisites listed in the course guide before applying. Places on capped courses cannot be guaranteed. Where a course is oversubscribed, places will be allocated based on programme priority and the written statement.

Deadline for applications: The deadline for applications is 12:00 noon on Friday 25 September 2026. You can expect to be informed of the outcome of your application by 12:00 noon on Monday 28 September 2026. Any places remaining after this date will be allocated based on priority and written statement - up until course selection closes.

For queries contact: gov.msc@lse.ac.uk.

This course is capped at one group.

This course introduces students to major issues, themes, and theories in contemporary debates on government and politics in Sub-Saharan Africa. It is organized around a set of central questions in the comparative study of African politics. First, to what extent are political outcomes in contemporary Africa shaped by history, society, and geography? Second, why are state institutions and government capacity weaker in many African countries than in other regions of the world? Third, why have political leaders in some African countries adopted policies that undermine economic growth? Fourth, what role does ethnicity play in shaping political behaviour and economic development? Finally, under what conditions do multiparty elections improve governance and political accountability in Sub-Saharan Africa?

To address these questions, the course is divided into four parts. The first examines Africa’s political history, including pre-colonial political systems, the effects of the slave trade, and the legacies of colonial rule for post-colonial states and societies. The second focuses on the social and political forces that shape contemporary forms of government, with particular attention to state structures, institutions, and capacity. The third explores the sources of economic development and underdevelopment, emphasizing policy choices, legal institutions, natural resources, and the mixed impact of foreign aid. The final part examines Africa’s democratic experiences, focusing on political parties, elections, electoral fraud and violence, transparency initiatives, the role of traditional authorities, and gender.

10 hours of lectures and 15 hours of seminars in the Autumn Term.

This course has a reading week in Week 6 of Autumn Term.

Essay (1500 words).

Students will be required to complete one formative essay about proposed research that will serve as the basis of their summative assessment (1,500 words).

Achebe, C. (2013). A man of the people. Penguin UK;  Ake, C. (2001). Democracy and development in Africa. Bloomsbury Publishing USA; Baldwin, K. (2016). The paradox of traditional leaders in democratic Africa. Cambridge University Press.; Barkan, J. D. (Ed.). (2009). Legislative power in emerging African democracies. Lynne Rienner Publishers.; Bleck, J., & van de Walle, N. (2019). Electoral politics in Africa since 1990: Continuity in change. Cambridge University Press; Boone, C. (2014). Property and political order in Africa: Land rights and the structure of politics. Cambridge University Press.; Bratton, M., Mattes, R., & Gyimah-Boadi, E. (2005). Public opinion, democracy, and market reform in Africa. Cambridge University Press; Christensen, D., & Laitin, D. D. (2019). African states since independence: Order, development, and democracy. Yale University Press.; Hassan, M. (2020). Regime threats and state solutions: Bureaucratic loyalty and embeddedness in Kenya. Cambridge University Press.; Herbst, J. (2000). States and power in Africa: Comparative lessons in authority and control. Princeton University Press; Mamdani, M. (1996). Citizen and subject: Contemporary Africa and the legacy of late colonialism. Princeton University Press; Nathan, N. L. (2019). Electoral politics and Africa’s urban transition: Class and ethnicity in Ghana. Cambridge University Press.; Nathan, N. L. (2023). The scarce state. Cambridge University Press.; Posner, D. N. (2005). Institutions and ethnic politics in Africa. Cambridge University Press; Paller, J. W. (2019). Democracy in Ghana: Everyday politics in urban Africa. Cambridge University Press.

Course participation (20%).

Essay (80%, 3500 words) in Winter Term Week 2.

For in-class assessment/course participation, students will be asked to serve as a seminar discussant during the term. Students will be required to select two of the ten seminar weeks to serve as discussant. On these weeks the discussant will write a two or three-page memo that discusses the readings in a comparative perspective.

The essay will comprise a research paper displaying original research and probing in depth one of the themes of the course in a selected African country. It should contain: (a) a theoretical argument, engaging with one of the key themes of the course; (b) empirical implication of the argument and how it can be tested in practice; and (c) theoretical or policy prescriptions that would be shaped by the findings of the paper. In principle this can serve as a basis for your masters’ thesis.