A sub-Saharan "African Spring”? This is the theme of the inaugural edition of the new BBC World Service global monthly programme, BBC Africa Debate, which will be broadcast from Accra, Ghana, on Friday 27 January.
A year ago, when the protesters took to the streets in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya, there were expectations of the Arab Spring spreading down the river Nile. There have been pockets of protests and demonstrations in several sub-Saharan African countries, many of them related to harsh economic conditions and poor governance. While ripple effects from the Arab Spring are visible in sub-Saharan Africa - home to some of the world's longest-serving and oldest leaders - the protests haven't resulted in any change of leadership.
In the inaugural edition from Accra, the presenter of BBC Africa Debate, Alex Jakana, teams up with Sam Farah, BBC Arabic presenter, to ask the panellists and the audience whether Africa is ready for a democratic leap forward, why there has been no "Spring" - and whether an “African Spring” would be useful or, indeed, necessary.
Commenting on the programme's launch from Accra, BBC Africa Current Affairs Editor, Stephane Mayoux, says: "BBC Africa Debate will focus on issues of pan-African as well as global significance. The theme of our very first debate is reform and political transition. Those issues are already being hotly debated across social-media platforms in Africa. Ghana, with its tradition of pan-Africanism, its media freedom - and its reputation for encouraging political and economic reform in Africa - was an obvious choice as a launch-pad for BBC Africa Debate. We are looking forward to bringing this first edition from Accra."
In the inaugural edition from Accra, the presenter of BBC Africa Debate, Alex Jakana, teams up with Sam Farah, BBC Arabic presenter, to ask the panellists and the audience whether Africa is ready for a democratic leap forward, why there has been no "Spring" - and whether an “African Spring” would be useful or, indeed, necessary.
Commenting on the programme's launch from Accra, BBC Africa Current Affairs Editor, Stephane Mayoux, says: "BBC Africa Debate will focus on issues of pan-African as well as global significance. The theme of our very first debate is reform and political transition. Those issues are already being hotly debated across social-media platforms in Africa. Ghana, with its tradition of pan-Africanism, its media freedom - and its reputation for encouraging political and economic reform in Africa - was an obvious choice as a launch-pad for BBC Africa Debate. We are looking forward to bringing this first edition from Accra."
(Source : BBC World Service Publicity)
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