Ethnic federalism in a comparative perspective : implications for Uganda

On gaining independence, most African states inherited a strongly centralized apparatus at the national level. The first half century of the post-colonial era has, however, seen a succession of crises as many centrist governments have become authoritarian and have contributed to the mire of corruption, economic collapse, ethnic resentment, violence, and civil war. African countries such as Uganda have thus recently found it indispensable to re-think the structure of the state. Federalism has often been considered as one effective way of reconciling the diversity of the constituent parts of nations with their unity. This research note looks at case studies from Switzerland, Nigeria, South Africa and Ethiopia, which Uganda can emulate in creating and maintaining a nation on one hand, while preserving the integrity of the units, on the other.研究ノー