By Omeiza Ajayi

ABUJA: Leading democracy advocates and scholars have sounded the alarm over the deteriorating state of democratic governance across West Africa, warning that the region stands at a critical juncture as civic space shrinks, institutions weaken, and young people — who account for over 60% of the population — remain shut out of political processes.

The warning came at the West Africa Youth Regional Symposium 2026, tagged “Next Generation Reform,” which opened in Abuja on Tuesday with over 90 young leaders drawn from 13 countries — among them civil rights advocates, labour unionists, policymakers and creatives — gathering under the Next Gen in Reform Community of Practice to chart a course for democratic renewal across the sub-region.

The symposium was organised by the West Africa Democracy Solidarity Network, WADEMOS, a regional initiative of the Centre for Democratic Development Ghana, CDD-Ghana, and the National Democratic Institute, NDI.

In a communiqué issued at the close of the opening session, participants identified weak democratic institutions, poor electoral quality, closing political spaces, and deteriorating living standards as the defining challenges confronting young people and democracy in West Africa.

Members of the Next Gen in Reform Community of Practice affirmed that democracy was not alien to Africa and committed to defending it through sustained national and regional political reform campaigns.

Declaring the event open, NDI Nigeria Country Director Francis Madugu said the symposium was designed to connect young reformers, strengthen their leadership, and expand their political influence in shaping democratic processes across the region.

“West Africa stands at a critical juncture. Democratic institutions are facing challenges of backsliding and shrinking civic space, while young people, who make up over 60% of the population, often find themselves marginalised and not carried along in the process,” he said.

Madugu outlined three core purposes behind the gathering: connecting and consolidating trust and collaboration across the region; equipping and inspiring youth leaders with tools for reform; and increasing the visibility and influence of youth-led democratic engagements. “It is time for young people to take their rightful position in the comparative development of the continent,” he added.

WADEMOS Network Coordinator Paul Osei-Kuffour underscored the demographic imperative driving the programme.

“Youth are critical to democratic renewal in Africa because they represent both the largest demographic group — 60% — on the continent and the generation that will shape its political future. This demographic reality means the sustainability and legitimacy of democratic systems depend largely on whether young people are included in political and governance processes by empowering them with practical tools, skills and knowledge,” he said.

Osei-Kuffour also spoke to the milestones recorded since the Next Gen in Reform programme launched. “We have built a stronger youth leadership for democracy, increased youth participation in governance, enhanced greater collaboration among youth democratic actors across West Africa, enhanced civic knowledge and advocacy skills among young people and developed stronger networks capable of defending democratic values and institutions,” he said.

Veteran democracy advocate Dr. Chris Fomunyoh pushed back firmly against the notion that democracy is incompatible with African culture. “Democracy is not a foreign concept. It is not alien to African tradition. We have always had democracy, it is just that we couldn’t give it the definition it has today. In many African societies, the kings had advisers. We had kingmakers who had some degree of independence,” he said.

Fomunyoh acknowledged the severity of the continent’s democratic challenges but told participants they were not without precedent. “What Africa is going through today might be strange but it is not new. We have gone through this before,” he said.

Perhaps the sharpest intervention came from Prof. Jibrin Ibrahim, who argued that the central weakness in youth democratic participation across the region has been the failure to sustain momentum beyond moments of crisis.

“Youth engagement has never been consistent. They come in at critical moments, create a change and then go back to listen to music,” he said.

Ibrahim cited the Lagos Youth Movement, whose activism helped pave the way for Nigeria’s independence in 1960, as well as youth-driven political interventions in Senegal, Burkina Faso and other West African countries, all of which he said followed the same pattern of mobilisation and retreat.

“You mobilise, you cause a change and then you sit back and say you have achieved your objectives. Too many people are great experts at surrounding the king and telling the king how good he is — and the king actually believes it. When you cause a change and sit back, that is the moment they begin to dismantle the change you have brought,” he warned.

Ibrahim called for a fundamentally different posture from the next generation of reformers. “There has to be eternal vigilance, the capacity for continuous political analysis and interventions that create the basis for a strong democracy,” he said.

Participants also held wide-ranging conversations on the obstacles young people face in advocating for political reforms, including negative cultural norms, and identified national and regional collaboration, intergenerational partnership, and stronger youth political negotiation skills as critical remedies. They equally stressed ethical use of artificial intelligence and the need to back social media activism with physical action.

The symposium, which runs for the next two days, will also take up discussions on strategies for building alliances for more impactful change, and how art and culture can amplify youth voices in the democratic process.

At its conclusion, members of the Next Gen in Reform Community of Practice are expected to adopt specific political reform commitments for their respective countries and for the West African sub-region collectively.