Abstract:
This thesis engages in the debate on civil society and its role in democratization. It does so by analyzing its role in Gambia’s political transition in December 2016, where president Yahya Jammeh was defeated by the ballot box after 22 years of autocratic rule. The approach to Gambian civil society is twofold. On the one hand it deductively assesses the role of civil society in Gambia’s transition guided by theory on democratization and the role of civil society herein. On the other hand, this thesis will inductively explore the manifestations of civil society during the first stage of democratic consolidation. Thereby exploring the discrepancies between theoretical expectations and empirical realities as well as the vast impact of donor interventions and their aim to promote democracy abroad. This thesis shows that while the role of civil society during transition is relatively clear, the undefined process of democratic consolidation results in insecurity and scattered civil society manifestations.
Keywords: Civil
