Political transitions can be defining moments for nations. They offer opportunities to reset governance, rebuild institutions, and reconnect governments with their citizens. Yet they are also periods of profound uncertainty—when public trust fractures, when the gap between promises and delivery widens, and when the stakes for inclusion, accountability, and human security become starkly visible.

In March 2026, UNDP Africa convened journalists and media practitioners from across the continent for an in-depth conversation on these dynamics. The focus was the Africa Facility to Support Inclusive Transitions (AFSIT), a joint initiative of the African Union Commission and UNDP established to support countries navigating complex political transitions through a development-oriented and inclusive approach.

Opening the session, Katharine Brooks, AFSIT Partnerships Specialist at UNDP, outlined the facility's mandate and operating framework. She emphasized that AFSIT operates under the strategic direction of the African Union Peace and Security Council  and in alignment with United Nations guidance on engagement in transition contexts, including the UN Secretary-General's guidance on engagement with de facto authorities. This dual anchoring—in the AU's political mandate and the UN's principled framework—underpins AFSIT’s approach.

Rather than treating transitions as purely political events, AFSIT grounds them in intersection between development and inclusive governance: how to create jobs, strengthen justice systems, protect human rights, and ensure that young people and women have a meaningful voice in shaping their nations' futures.

Questions from participating journalists brought sharp focus to trust, institutional performance, insecurity, and accountability. Their exchanges with AFSIT leadership reveal the central issues of transition work in Africa today—navigating between short-term dialogue and long-term institutional change, between security imperatives and development needs, between investment in transition frameworks and the imperative to resolve underlying fragilities. These are not abstract debates. They speak directly to whether transitions can deliver meaningful improvements in governance and development that African citizens increasingly demand. That is how the foundations for trust and a renewed social contract can begin to be built.

The edited Q&A below captures the key moments from that exchange, lightly revised for clarity and length.

On rebuilding trust during prolonged transitions

Question — Sarah Ibui (Moderator/Programme Analyst, African Young Women Leaders (AfYWL) Fellowship Programme, UNDP): In countries that have experienced prolonged transitions, public trust in a return to constitutional order can erode. How can AFSIT help rebuild trust and legitimacy, particularly by ensuring that the voices of citizens, including women and youth, are meaningfully heard?

Answer — Jide Okeke, Director, UNDP Regional Programme for Africa: This question goes to the heart of why AFSIT was established. Political processes remain important, but where they are not matched by service delivery and broader socioeconomic progress, trust can weaken. Young people want jobs and opportunities, and where these are limited, vulnerabilities can deepen. AFSIT brings together the political legitimacy of the African Union and the development mandate of UNDP. Through that partnership, transitions can become an opportunity to reset governance by prioritizing jobs, justice, human rights and participation, especially for young people and women. That is how the foundations for trust and a renewed social contract can begin to be rebuilt.

On where AFSIT works, dialogue and the role of institutions

Question — from the chat: In which countries has AFSIT been implemented? What happens when dialogue does not work? And are strong institutions the key?

Answer — Jide Okeke: AFSIT began as a pilot in Chad in 2021, before the facility was established more formally with the African Union in July 2023. Since then, implementation has extended to Niger, Burkina Faso, Mali, Guinea, Gabon, South Sudan, Madagascar and The Gambia.

On dialogue, I would be cautious about describing it simply as a success or a failure. Dialogue should be understood as a process, and often a long-term one. If it is treated only as a short-term exercise, the result may be only be a temporary political solution that doesn’t address deeper fragilities. That is why institutions also matter. Institutions are a stabilizing factor: they support service delivery, accountability and resilience, and they form an important part of the relationship between the state and its citizens.

On constitutional questions and continental reference points

Question — Walter Mulondi, Regional Editorial Director, Radio Ndarason International (Chad, Nigeria, Cameroon, Niger): In Chad, constitutional revisions have raised concerns about concentration of power. How, in your view, should such challenges be addressed?

Answer — Jide Okeke: UNDP is a development institution, so I would not comment on the political dimensions of a constitutional review. What I can say is that the continent has normative frameworks that provide reference points on these questions, including the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance, as well as the Lomé Declaration. These frameworks help clarify the standards and expectations that guide governance processes in Africa.

On insecurity and transitions in the Lake Chad Basin

Question — Walter Mulondi: In the Lake Chad Basin, attacks by non-state armed groups continue to disrupt transition processes. What can be done in the short term?

Answer — Jide Okeke: For a long time, the main emphasis has been on military responses. But security measures alone do not create lasting peace; at most, they may provide a degree of short-term stability. What is also needed is development investment that builds resilience.

Many young people who join non-state armed groups face limited choices: limited education, limited jobs, weak service delivery and, in some places, a near absence of governance. If solutions are to be sustainable, development investment has to reach those communities, especially at sub-national level, and help create viable alternatives over time.

• Journey to Extremism in Africa: Pathways to Recruitment and Disengagement, 
• BEYOND THE NUMBERS: Rethinking Military Expenditure and Development Trade-Offs in Africa

On whether transition frameworks risk normalizing instability

Question — Cynthia Areh, News Anchor, Arise News: Several countries across the continent have experienced unconstitutional changes of government since independence. At what point does continued investment in transition frameworks risk normalizing instability rather than resolving it? And who gets to make that call?

Answer — Jide Okeke: It is important to keep the broader picture in view. In recent years, Africa has also recorded a high number of national elections, even as some countries have experienced interruptions of constitutional order. So, the trajectory is not one-dimensional.

At the same time, there is clearly dissatisfaction in some contexts, and that points to a deeper issue: the gap between institutions and citizen expectations. Even in countries seen as relatively stable, voters have shown that they expect governments to deliver.

The central lesson is that lasting stability is closely tied to human security. If governments can respond to people's needs and uphold the social contract, they are in a stronger position to sustain legitimacy.

On due diligence, corruption risks and institutional support

Question — Fidelis Mbah, International multimedia journalist: When supporting institutions, what level of due diligence is carried out, especially in contexts where corruption or political interference may prevent those institutions from meeting their objectives?

Answer — Jide Okeke: That is an important question. Over time, UNDP has adapted its systems and approaches to reduce risk and strengthen accountability. One part of that is digitalization. We have strengthened our own systems and also encourage governments to digitalize areas such as public financial management, tax administration and the justice sector. Technology can help reduce leakages and improve accountability.

But systems alone are not enough. Media oversight also matters, as does the seriousness and commitment of national leadership. Ultimately, impact depends on whether support is translated into stronger institutions and better governance outcomes.

What did this media exchange reveal?

Throughout the discussion, several issues returned consistently: the importance of trust in transition contexts, the role of dialogue as a continuing process, the centrality of institutions to public confidence, and the need to link political transition with inclusion, governance and development. These questions remain central to how political transitions are understood across the continent and to how recovery is approached in practice.

About The Africa Brief

The Africa Brief is a media engagement platform by UNDP Africa that provides journalists and media practitioners with access to analysis, country perspectives and expert insight on key development issues shaping the continent.

About AFSIT

The Africa Facility to Support Inclusive Transitions (AFSIT) is a collaborative initiative of the African Union Commission (AUC) and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Launched in July 2023, AFSIT provides integrated programmatic support to African countries undergoing complex political transitions, including by laying the foundation for governance and development resets in transition contexts. Explore AFSIT Brochure. Read Beyond Coup Events policy paper.