MIASA has welcomed their second Interdisciplinary Fellow Group on 2 September 2019. Eight fellows from various universities in Africa, Europe and North America (Ghana, Togo, Germany, the UK, and the US)  have come together on the University of Ghana campus in Legon-Accra to carry out research on the topic of Parliaments and Democracy in Africa.
Parliaments are central democratic institutions that connect citizens to the political process. They serve several functions like discussing and passing laws, holding the executive accountable, and representing the will of the people. African parliaments are, however, among the most under-researched institutions. The Interdisciplinary Fellow Group seeks to contribute to closing this research gap. They will focus on questions like: who are the members of parliament, how do they represent their constituents and what modes of accountability exist? How do government and opposition interact in countries with different levels of democratic quality? How do parliaments function in different countries, and what is the impact of this institutional variation?
A two-day conference on the topic of Parliaments and Democracy in Africa is planned for mid-December.