Dr. Babajide Tella

Department of Political Science, Howard University, Washington DC. USA.

Bio

Babajide A. Tella is a lecturer in the Department of Political Science at Howard University, Washington DC. USA. His research interest cuts across international relations with a regional focus on Africa, comparative politics, political communication, and gender and development studies.

Horizontal Community Organizing and Democratic Politics in Africa

Abstract

The expansion of digital technologies has accelerated the growth of horizontal organizing across Africa, particularly among youth confronting economic inequality and exclusion from formal political institutions. Using digital ethnography and drawing on cases from Nigeria, Kenya, and Tanzania, this paper examines how digitally enabled horizontal organizing is reshaping democratic participation and governance across Africa. Findings show how horizontal organizing strengthens civic engagement and creates alternative democratic spaces while simultaneously confronting state repression.