Open Society Foundations, partners push continental political finance reforms with Accra Declaration
Participants at a three-day high-level regional convening in Accra have adopted the Accra Declaration on Regulating Financing of Politics to Advance Democratic Integrity in Africa.
The declaration commits governments, political parties, oversight institutions and civil society to reforms aimed at reducing the rising influence of money in African politics.
It was adopted on Wednesday, July 16, at the culmination of the High-Level Regional Convening on the Financialization of Politics in Africa: Advancing Reform, Transparency, Accountability and Democratic Integrity, held from July 14 to 16 in Accra.
The event was co-hosted by the Open Society Foundations, the Ghana Center for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana), Transparency International, the African Union Advisory Board Against Corruption (AUABC) and the Community of Practice on Money in Politics in Africa.
The organisers observed that escalating campaign costs, opaque political financing, corruption, illicit financial flows and state capture are increasingly undermining democratic governance.
The development, they say, has been excluding women and young people from political participation, and eroding public trust in public institutions.
The declaration therefore calls for stronger political finance laws, effective enforcement mechanisms, greater transparency in campaign financing, enhanced oversight institutions and broader citizen participation in democratic governance.
It also commits stakeholders to developing a continental Model Law on Political Finance under the leadership of the AUABC.
Delivering a closing remark on Thursday, Associate Director at the Open Society Foundations, Mwende Mueke, said the discussions had moved beyond identifying the problem to agreeing on concrete actions, but stressed that implementation would determine the declaration's success.
"The true significance of our deliberations will be determined by what we do when we leave Accra and how we live up to the commitments that we have made today," she said.
She urged governments, civil society organisations, researchers and development partners to invest resources and strengthen collaboration to translate the declaration into practical reforms across the continent.
"Financialisation of politics is not simply a political problem that must be addressed through political reforms. It is a social-cultural problem, an economic problem, and ultimately, a democratic governance problem," she noted.
In his keynote address, the African Union High Representative for Silencing the Guns, Dr. Mohamed Ibn Chambas described political finance reform as central to peace, democratic stability and good governance across Africa.
"We cannot silence the guns in Africa while money is doing all the talking in our politics," he noted.
Dr. Chambas noted that while Africa has adopted many declarations over the years, the Accra Declaration would be judged by measurable progress, including new legislation, stronger disclosure regimes, effective enforcement, asset recovery and expanded political participation by women and young people.
The declaration also builds on the momentum created by the December 2025 adoption of a United Nations Convention Against Corruption resolution recognising political finance as a distinct anti-corruption issue and seeks to operationalise Article 10 of the African Union Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption through a continental model law.
Beyond the declaration, organisers outlined a structured implementation roadmap designed to ensure the commitments do not remain on paper.
Over the next three months, stakeholders are expected to complete a continental roadmap, undertake stakeholder mapping and begin reviewing existing African Union anti-corruption instruments.
Within six to nine months, guidelines on political finance are expected to be developed to support member states while consultations continue on the continental Model Law on Political Finance.
The draft model law is expected to be completed within a year for submission through the African Union's policy processes, after which member states will be encouraged to align their national legislation with the continental framework.
Organisers also indicated that implementation progress will be reviewed through regular monitoring by the Community of Practice on Money in Politics in Africa, with updates expected at future continental engagements, including an Election Integrity Summit later this year.