“This paper focuses on exactly this issue of leadership, and its related corollary of education, drawing on the various case studies of the project. Good governance, the mantra of this decade, requires
committed political leadership, if it is going to succeed and become rooted in a society. Good governance is increasingly recognised as the most important route for developmental success. Africa has been hesitant about promoting strong leadership, seen as necessary for shared development to take root. Too often, strong leadership has meant authoritarianism, violence and control of the levers of power for very narrow purposes. But strong leadership, like
strong government, should not be a value-laden term in and of itself. McKay examines these issues in his paper comparing and contrasting African with Asian experiences in particular and highlighting the
necessity for a more vigorous discussion of these issues in the continent.”
