From critique to capacity building: The promise of the African School of Governance

The African School of Governance (ASG) was officially inaugurated in Kigali, Rwanda on January 14. This landmark institution, established by Rwandan President Paul Kagame and former Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn, aims to advance African-centered approaches to governance and development. The ASG offers a Master’s Degree in Public Administration, tailored executive education programs, and specialized research centers. These centers are designed to promote homegrown innovations, critically engage with African historical narratives, explore leadership paradigms, enhance regional and pan-African integration, and leverage technology to improve governance frameworks. The institution aspires to empower students to become transformational leaders across government, private enterprise, security, media, civil society, and academia. A critical issue that the ASG seeks to address is the challenge of isomorphic mimicry in African governance, where foreign frameworks are imposed without regard for the continent’s unique socio-political, economic, and cultural realities. This problem is compounded by diagnostic pessimism—a fixation on deficits—and prescriptive optimism, which advocates one-size-fits-all solutions that disregard Africa’s intellectual traditions. The persistent focus on Africa’s challenges has fostered dependency and disempowerment instead of the capacity to develop homegrown solutions. Breaking this cycle requires a shift from endless critique to intentional capacity-building. Much like business schools and MBA programs revolutionized the corporate sector, the ASG can be seen as an “MBA of governance,” fostering governance excellence across Africa. The key challenge is building locally relevant institutions that address historical obstacles while adapting to the continent’s evolving needs. The true test for the ASG lies in avoiding the pitfalls of mimicking external systems under the guise of being “African.” However, given Rwanda's proven track record in delivering results, there is reason to believe that the ASG will uphold its mission and vision with integrity. The 3C’s of developmental discourse: critique, coloniality, and capacity In promoting good governance in Africa, discourse often leans heavily on critiquing governance systems. While many criticisms are valid and supported by ample evidence of inefficiency and systemic failures, they are frequently narrow in focus and lack a comprehensive approach to development. Governance is central to growth, and discussions around it have evolved to emphasize its transformative potential. However, focusing solely on failures without addressing possibilities for reform undermines efforts to foster long-term structural change. The narrative of governance failures in Africa is deeply entangled with dualities. On one hand, there is an undeniable need for competent governance and transformational leadership to address systemic issues. Conversely, a narrative steeped in coloniality justifies the imposition of external “best practices” that often lead to dependency, superficial reforms, and isomorphic mimicry—models that appear progressive but fail to deliver substantive change. These externally imposed frameworks frequently bypass local institutions, disempowering them in favor of foreign solutions misaligned with Africa’s long-term goals. To shift from critique to capacity-building, governance must address fundamental questions: What is the problem? What can be done? How can we build leaders and institutions capable of delivering transformative results? Rwanda’s post-1994 transformation offers valuable lessons. Confronted with immense challenges, Rwanda critically assessed its unique needs and crafted homegrown solutions, rebuilding institutions with deliberate effort grounded in its context. This approach underscores the importance of engaging deeply with local realities to develop pragmatic, sustainable solutions. The ASG offers a radical departure from flawed frameworks that have historically shaped governance capacity-building on the continent. Unlike institutions that focus on skill development through decontextualized and ahistorical lenses, the ASG positions itself within Africa’s complex socio-political realities and historical trajectories. It confronts what Frantz Fanon described as the “mimicry of empire,” where African elites trained abroad return not as architects of indigenous solutions but as agents of externally derived paradigms. The ASG challenges this by embedding its pedagogy in African contexts, producing leaders critically engaged with the structural and historical dimensions of governance. By reframing governance as a transformative practice rather than a space of failure to be rectified by external solutions, the ASG positions itself as more than an academic institution. It becomes a space of intellectual reclamation, equipping leaders to reimagine governance aligned with Africa’s aspirations for sovereignty, equity, and sustainable development. With deep respect for the ASG and its strides toward addressing Africa’s governance challenges, I offer this reflection on its future. The ASG’s emphasis on homegrown innovations, African history, leadership, and regional integration is commendable. However, the true challenge lies in ensuring its commitment to African identity transcends branding or superficial gestures. As history has shown, institutions that begin with great promise are often co-opted by external frameworks or diluted into forms that mimic the systems they seek to critique. The ASG must create a space where governance solutions are deeply rooted in the continent’s intellectual traditions and lived realities. Every aspect of its work must integrate Africa’s historical and cultural context. It must avoid patterns that undermine noble intentions, such as prioritizing external validation or conforming to global “best practices” at the expense of African uniqueness. The ASG has the opportunity to break this cycle by remaining steadfast in its commitment to indigenous knowledge and intellectual thought. The future of the ASG should center on leading a paradigm shift that unapologetically embraces Africa’s complexities, values, and aspirations. By staying true to this mission, the ASG has the potential to redefine African governance in a way that is transformative and deeply reflective of Africa’s identity, history, and future. The writer is a fellow at the Nelson Mandela School of public Governance (University of CapeTown) NB: In this article, I intentionally refuse to refer to it as ASG, as the abbreviation of such significant African institutions undermines their identity. Using the full name is a linguistic protest to build a strong sense of identity, allowing people to recognize its origins and the type of graduates it produces. I oppose this practice as no one calls Harvard HU, Cambridge, Oxford CU, or OU.

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From critique to capacity building: The promise of the African School of Governance