Mass protests that erupted in Kenya this year over planned tax increases have helped inspire similar mobilisations in other African countries, including Ghana, Nigeria and Uganda. In all these countries, young people have felt compelled to speak out due to economic hardship, corruption and financial mismanagement, confronting wealthy and out-of-touch political elites from older generations. Another common experience is state repression of protests, including through lethal violence, arrests, detentions and protest bans, along with threats of new laws to make it harder for people to mobilise. It’s time for governments to listen to Africa’s Generation Z instead of trying to stifle it.

Kenya’s youthful protest movement is feeling the heat of a government crackdown on street demonstrations.

On 20 October, a holiday commemorating national heroes, people attempted to gather in Uhuru Park, in the centre of the capital, Nairobi, to hold a vigil for those killed in protests in June. Police showed no sign of giving up on the violence they routinely use against protests: they lobbed teargas canisters at protesters and arrested several activists who tried to enter the park.

The scale of protests that erupted in reaction to tax rises in June evidently caught the authorities by surprise. Kenya’s Generation Z led the protests, coming together across the ethnic and political lines that often divide Kenyans and making full use of social media to raise awareness, organise protests and raise funds for those injured and arrested.

Young people make up around 65 per cent of Kenya’s population and many only know economic hardship due to high unemployment and rising costs of living. After pursuing all the education opportunities available, they’re still struggling to get by. Many have come to see the political elite as out of touch, corrupt and financially insulated from everyday struggles.

People protested despite knowing violence was certain. On the worst day, 25 June, when some protesters attempted to storm parliament and set fire to parts of the complex, police used live ammunition and killed several protesters. Police also used batons, teargas and water cannon against protesters. More than 60 people were reported killed.

Protest leaders and social media influencers were targeted in a series of arrests and abductions, including ahead of planned further protests, with reports of torture of those abducted. In September, three people who’d been missing for a month for taking part in a protest were released, but only after the acting police chief repeatedly ignored an order to attend court to answer questions about them. Others still haven’t been accounted for and remain missing.

In June, President William Ruto put the changes on hold and sacked his cabinet, and the police chief resigned. But protests continued, with people demanding greater change, including Ruto’s resignation, and urging Kenya to stand up to international financial institutions. Tax increases and spending cuts were part of a package imposed by the International Monetary Fund in return for a bailout.

Protesters also demanded justice for police violence. Without accountability, impunity only encourages further repression. In September, when striking university lecturers tried to march to parliament, police fired teargas and arrested several people.

The authorities seem intent on further restricting the right to protest. Even though Kenya’s constitution supposedly recognises this right, an Assembly and Demonstration Bill currently before parliament would extend the power to ban protests and impose harsh conditions on them. The bill would ban face coverings at protests and make protest organisers and participants liable for some costs arising from protests. It does nothing to address the real problem – police violence against protesters.

Voices from the frontline

Catherine Mbui is Lead Programme Officer for Eastern Africa at Article 19, a civil society organisation (CSO) that promotes and defends freedom of expression and access to information around the world.

 

While its stated aim is to regulate protests, this bill fails to modernise outdated provisions of the Public Order Act to reflect social and technological changes, and could instead give the state excessive powers to restrict freedoms of assembly and expression.

The bill goes far beyond the restrictions on rights, particularly the right to assembly, allowed under the constitution. Instead of protecting this fundamental right, it introduces administrative hurdles and broad criminal provisions to deter people from exercising their right to protest. For instance, it retains concepts such as ‘public order’ and ‘national security’, which could be abused by law enforcement agencies. This is likely to further deepen the widespread sense of injustice and discontent.

The bill allows police to impose harsh conditions on protesters in the name of public safety, public order or protecting the rights of others. These conditions could include fees to cover clean-up costs or address environmental or cultural concerns. If organisers want to challenge these conditions, they will have to go to the High Court, which is a lengthy and expensive process.

The bill also restricts common forms of protest such as holding placards, singing and chanting. These actions are central to making protests visible and loud, which is the whole point of protests. This is clearly an unconstitutional restriction on freedom of expression. The bill also bans protesters from covering their faces, which is usually a way of protecting their identity from police reprisals or protecting themselves from teargas.

The government’s response to protests has often involved the use of excessive force, resulting in deaths and serious injuries due to police misconduct. For many years, civil society in Kenya has been advocating for a Public Order Act that respects human rights and freedoms as enshrined in the 2010 constitution.

The Kenyan government must address the root causes of protest violence, such as policing methods, the types of weapons used and the independence and neutrality of the police, particularly during political demonstrations. We need a fair balance of rights and responsibilities between protesters, the police and the authorities. Effective management of public order is key to focusing attention on the real issues causing unrest, rather than allowing violence and unfair policing to overshadow these important issues.

 

This is an edited extract of our conversation with Catherine. Read the full interview here.

Playing with fire in Uganda

Kenya’s protests weren’t isolated. Similar protests have come in other African countries with equivalent conditions: young populations, high unemployment, rising costs of living and frustration with governments that don’t listen to young people.

In countries including Nigeria and Uganda, young people took inspiration from Kenya and mobilised in numbers. They were met with similarly violent repression.

In Uganda, authoritarian President Yoweri Museveni warned people against protesting, saying they were ‘playing with fire’, and accusing them of working with foreigners to promote chaos. The authorities denied permission to march. When people took to the streets regardless on 23 July, the government deployed soldiers and arrested over a hundred protesters. People were reportedly assaulted while in custody. Police also arrested opposition politicians at their party’s headquarters.

Protesters demanded the resignation of Anita Among, the speaker of parliament, who has been accused of corruption, and the publication of parliamentarians’ salaries. In both Kenya and Uganda, parliamentarians are reported to be among the highest paid in the world relative to average national income.

Voices from the frontline

Mohammed Ndifuna is Executive Director of Justice Access Point, a CSO that promotes human rights and the rule of law in Uganda.

 

On 23 July, Ugandans took to the streets to protest against corruption, abuse of power and poor governance. Public frustration had been building for some time, but reached a boiling point when an online campaign exposing widespread corruption in parliament began trending on Twitter/X. The campaign leaked documents that revealed the misuse of public funds, fraudulent travel by members of parliament and nepotism in recruitment processes. This sparked calls for greater government accountability and transparency.

The protests weren’t the work of a single group, but rather a collective response from various parts of society. At the forefront were civil society and political activists who’ve been questioning the legitimacy of the government since the 2021 presidential election. Following this, the opposition National Unity Platform played a particularly active role in leading nationwide protests that often clashed with security forces.

But it wasn’t just political activists: business owners also joined the protests, frustrated by the heavy tax burden the Uganda Revenue Authority imposes on them. The imposition of a new tax collection system only added fuel to the fire.

While the anger was mainly driven by local issues such as corruption and poor governance, these protests also echoed what was happening in the region, particularly in Kenya. The Gen Z-led campaign in Kenya may have inspired a sense of solidarity among Ugandan protesters, even if their frustrations were deeply rooted in their own national experiences.

The government’s response to the protests followed a predictable pattern of heavy-handed crackdowns, mass arrests and immediate legal action against protesters. Security forces cracked down on protesters to prevent them presenting their petitions to parliament.

This is the government’s usual response, prioritising repression over engagement and failing to address the underlying grievances driving the protests. Unless they are organised by regime supporters – which means they are not really protests – street demonstrations are seen as a threat and met with repression.

 

This is an edited extract of our conversation with Mohammed. Read the full interview here.

Lethal violence in Nigeria

Violence has also been the government’s predictable response in Nigeria. The world’s sixth-most populous country, Nigeria has a median age of 18, which means it has a huge youth population. But high levels of unemployment and persistent underfunding of education – one of the reasons for frequent university strikes – leave young people frustrated even before they try to enter the job market.

Young Nigerians have experienced the sharp end of state violence before. In 2020 young urban people took to the streets against a brutal arm of the police force, the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS). In response to the #EndSARS protests, the government disbanded SARS, but in what many saw as mere rebranding, replaced it with another unit. It then responded to continuing protests with lethal violence: on 20 October 2020, soldiers opened fire on protesters at the Lekki Toll Gate, killing at least 11 people. The government denied anyone had been killed, and no one has been held to account, while some protesters remain in detention.

After the killings, the #EndSARS protests stopped. In the years that followed, the authorities continued responding to protests with repression. In September 2023, for example, they disrupted a demonstration against university fees with teargas and arrests.

But in July 2024, young people once again took to the streets of Nigeria’s major cities, including the capital, Abuja, and the largest city, Lagos, this time under the #EndBadGovernance banner. In a 10-day protest, they expressed their anger at the rising cost of living, corruption and poor governance.

President Bola Tinubu, who came to power in May 2023, has implemented economic policies that have fuelled an inflation crisis. On his first day in office, he acted on the World Bank’s recommendation to end fuel subsidies, and he’s since devalued the currency, making imported goods more expensive. As a result, the price of essentials has soared, while the minimum wage was frozen; the government approved an increase only after protests started. The impact of the high cost of living is such that in northern Nigeria people are now eating hard-to-process rice grains they used to throw away.

As in Kenya and Uganda, many young Nigerians see their elites thriving while they struggle. Tinubu tried to stem the protest tide by calling on people not to demonstrate and accusing protest organisers of having ‘sinister motives’. When people didn’t heed his call, a violent crackdown ensued, with security forces using live ammunition and teargas, reportedly killing at least 21 protesters, before government-imposed curfews in several states brought this round of protests to an end.

Alarmingly, 10 protesters have been charged with the serious crimes of inciting the military to mutiny and treason, a crime that can carry the death penalty. Police have also made the unlikely claim of having evidence of foreign mercenaries playing a role in the protests. At least 31 journalists were attacked while covering protests, while in some regions there were reports of people being paid to demonstrate in favour of the government.

As in Kenya, Nigerian protesters have made extensive use of social media to debate, organise and recruit supporters. But the government wants to curb this. In the past, it has attempted to pass an anti-social media bill and in 2021 it blocked access to Twitter. Following the protests, it’s unveiled a new proposal to subject social media to stricter state control.

But while economic hardship remains, people are bound to keep protesting. Further protests broke out in early October, and again were met with state violence, with security forces firing teargas.

Voices from the frontline

Hassan Nurudeen is a youth activist and program manager at Hope Behind Bars Africa, a CSO seeking to mitigate human rights abuses in the criminal justice system, reduce unjust imprisonment and improve the lives of people jailed for socio-economic reasons.

 

Many people are frustrated by the government’s policies and lavish spending, which they see as out of touch with their daily realities. While people are struggling to make ends meet, the government bought a new plane and a yacht for the president, made extravagant renovations to the vice president’s palace and got luxurious cars for members of parliament. Public anger was further fuelled by the government’s attempts to discourage the protests, including by using religious and tribal rhetoric.

The protest wasn’t organised by any particular group, but the protesters were mainly young people, long the target of police brutality and the protagonists of the 2020 #EndSARS movement. Since then, many Nigerians have connected the dots between politics, policy and quality of life.

The government has mainly avoided addressing the core issues that sparked the protests, such as inflation, insecurity and inequality. Its initial response was to gaslight the public, suggesting that protest wasn’t an option and trying to exploit ethnic and social divisions. In Lagos, for example, I saw firsthand organised campaigns against the protests, with threats of violence against those who dared to participate. The government also tried to co-opt religious groups and other organisations to discourage participation.

Instead of addressing the root causes of the protests, the government resorted to symbolic gestures such as distributing rice across the country, a temporary solution at best, but not an adequate response. It wasn’t until the fourth day of the protests the president made a speech, and even then it was underwhelming and failed to address the protesters’ main concerns. It was the only positive step, but unfortunately it didn’t go very far.

In addition, the government allowed criminal elements to infiltrate peaceful protests and create chaos as a pretext for imposing curfews. This was a clear strategy to discredit the movement and undermine genuine dissent.

 

This is an edited extract of our conversation with Hassan. Read the full interview here.

Protest bans in Ghana

In Ghana, the authorities are making it as hard as possible for young people to protest, even though they face the same problems – including soaring inflation – as their counterparts in Kenya, Nigeria and Uganda. Many blame the government’s management of the economy, pointing to overspending, a bloated and well-paid political class and high levels of public debt.

In August, civil society groups had planned demonstrations against corruption and the high cost of living, expecting over two million people to take part. But a court banned the planned protests in the capital, Accra, between 31 July and 6 August, at the request of the police, who cited a lack of available officers due to their duties policing election campaign rallies.

This isn’t the first time the authorities have prevented protests in Ghana. Police often interpret the requirement for protest organisers to notify them of demonstrations as giving them the power to refuse permission. If people then protest, police arrest them. This has made protests less frequent in Ghana – but there are signs this is changing with Gen Z.

In September, people again tried to protest about the economic situation and against illegal small-scale gold mining, which causes great environmental harm, particularly water pollution. But the police’s response was to arrest and detain 53 people. The authorities then reportedly denied lawyers and family members access to detainees, and denied bail to several of these in custody

Ghana is due to hold parliamentary elections in December, and these protest restrictions are a troubling sign that the government may be trying to close down the space for debate during the campaign.

Voices from the frontline

Eunice Agbenyadzi is Head of Programmes at STAR-Ghana Foundation, a Ghanaian CSO that promotes active citizenship and supports civil society to engage with government.

 

In late July and early August, CSOs and activists organised protests to demand greater transparency, responsiveness and democratic governance. The context is one of widespread frustration with government corruption and lack of accountability, exacerbated by high inflation and rising youth unemployment. Discontent is growing as the country approaches the elections.

In Ghana, protests are less frequent than in countries such as Kenya. Mobilisation efforts face significant obstacles due to political polarisation and a disconnect between tech-savvy young people and the rest of the population. But people are increasingly taking to the streets when they feel their concerns are being ignored.

As the next election approaches, the government is increasingly trying to prevent protests. In a system where the separation of powers is weak, institutions that should be independent, such as the courts, are seen often to be acting under the influence of the executive.

The rules governing protests are often misinterpreted by the authorities. While the law only requires organisers to notify the police before a protest, the police often insist on the need to obtain a permit. They claim this is necessary to provide adequate security. In practice, this often leads to the police refusing to authorise protests, and when protests go ahead without authorisation, the authorities label them as unlawful, even if they are peaceful, and arrest organisers and protesters.

Calls for measures to curb excessive government spending, a reduction in ministerial appointments and greater accountability in the management of public resources have not been addressed. The government has refused to engage with protest movements.

 

This is an edited extract of our interview with Eunice. Read the full interview here.

Leaders called into question

Time and again, young protesters are accusing their leaders of being part of a corrupt and wealthy elite that doesn’t understand their problems or listen to them. Some of these leaders lack democratic legitimacy: Museveni for instance has stayed in power in Uganda since 1986 by rewriting the constitution and criminalising, intimidating and using violence against any opposition. He won his current term in 2021, in an election riddled with irregularities in which he used every lever at his disposal to defeat a candidate who spoke to young people’s desire for change.

In Nigeria, the last election in 2023 didn’t deliver the change young people might have hoped for. There’s a widespread feeling among young people that established politics isn’t speaking to them, reflected in a very low turnout of under 27 per cent. Most potential voters are young, but the politicians on offer are generations removed. Tinubu is 71 and took over from an 80-year-old predecessor from the same party.

In Kenya, Ruto was the narrow winner of a 2022 election marked by record low levels of interest among young people and turnout way down on previous votes; those who backed Ruto, who positioned himself as the street hustler champion of low-income people, likely feel betrayed.

In country after country, ageing and wealthy men are doing everything they can to keep the political gates shut against a rising younger generation. Despite widespread dissatisfaction with the state of the economy, their limited future prospects and the political decisions behind these problems, young people’s routes into political leadership are blocked, and when they protest they’re repressed.

When Ghanaians go to the polls in December, they ‘ll be electing a new president, incumbent Nana Akufo-Addo having served the maximum two terms – but they’ll be choosing between the current vice president and a former president, from the same two parties that have won every election since democracy returned in 1992.

While major change doesn’t seem on the cards, in Ghana or in the other countries, the least the authorities should do is respect people’s right to protest, make an effort to understand the challenges people face and respond with policies that address grievances rather than repress people for speaking out. It’s time for political leaders to show some humility and listen to their vast ranks of Gen Z citizens clamouring for a better future.

OUR CALLS FOR ACTION

  • Governments should respect the right to protest and stop using violence against protesters.
  • Africa’s Gen Z protest movements should work together to share strategies, including for protection in the face of repression.
  • African political parties should take measures to nurture young political leaders and remove barriers against their leadership.

For interviews or more information, please contact research@civicus.org

Cover photo by Akintunde Akinleye/Reuters via Gallo Images