Can Democratisation Prevent Conflicts? The Bergen Seminar on Development 2001: Lessons from Sub-Saharan Africa

The Bergen Seminar on Development 2001 focused on Africa’s democratic experiences in the last decade, and asked to what extent the development of democratic institutions had contributed to conflict prevention. Through plenary and parallel sessions, the participantsand invited speakers discussed to what extent these democratic institutions were actually working, and to what extent democracy as it has been practised in sub-Saharan Africa so far had erved to prevent internal conflicts. The countries chosen for particular focus and scrutiny this year were Ethiopia, South Africa and Tanzania. Chr. Michelsen Institute (CMI) hosted the seminar, which took place at Solstrand Fjord Hotel on June 18–20, 2001. This report seeks to highlight the main seminar findings and discussions.