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When protests broke out in Sudan in December 2018, international media were quick to frame them as spontaneous riots that would likely fizzle out. When they ultimately led to the overthrow of long-time dictator Omar al-Bashir in April 2019, however, it became clear the protests were part of an organised social movement rooted in Sudan's grassroots opposition.
The Sudanese movement was not alone on the continent. Days earlier, protesters in Algeria forced the resignation of President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, capping a busy decade in which mass mobilisation contributed to transitions of power in Niger, Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Senegal, Burkina Faso, The Gambia, Ethiopia, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
According to the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project, the frequency of mass demonstrations in Africa has increased more than seven-fold in the past decade. Moreover, recent research suggests non-violent protests on the continent have been considerably more successful in achieving their aims than demonstrations in any other region of the world.
Of course, the rise of the street is not an entirely good news story. Protest movements are partly prompted by dissatisfaction with lacklustre governance and they don't always lead to greater democratisation. Yet the extraordinary growth and success rate of mass mobilisation in Africa stands in striking contrast with the declining effectiveness of movements in the West and beyond.
What explains the relative success of protests in Africa? What can other movements around the world learn from them? We highlight three key lessons:
Create inclusive movements
A key tenet of social movement theory...