Parallel or dependent? The state, chieftaincy and institutions of governance in Ghana
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 6020532 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Edem Adotey (0000-0002-8007-7950, University of Ghana, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2019 |
| Volume | 118 |
| Issue | 473 |
| Pages | 628-645 |
| Publication date | 2019-10-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | African Affairs (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0001-9909 • E-ISSN: 1468-2621 |
| Publisher | Oxford University Press (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1093/afraf/ady060 |
| OpenAlex | W2955036143 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 10 |
In recent policy frameworks, traditional authorities have been (re)assigned roles of directly representing civil society and local communities as key actors in development, leading to questions about the relationship between the chieftaincy institution and the state in governance. Using the example of a chieftaincy dispute between the Sokpoe and Tefle, a Tongu-Ewe people of Ghana, at the heart of which are claims to paramountcy status, this article argues that chieftaincy and the state are not always parallel institutions of governance that derive their legitimacy from different sources. Struggles over chieftaincy hierarchies have become struggles for the preferential recognition by and access to the state conveyed by membership in the Houses of Chiefs. In effect, the chieftaincy institution may be both parallel to and dependent on the state. The article draws attention to the importance of hierarchy in explaining state-chieftaincy relationships because an understanding of the nuances of legitimacy in chieftaincy will enrich how chiefs are engaged as key actors in development
Business · Civil society · Corporate governance · Hierarchy · Institution · Key (lock) · Legitimacy · Political science · Politics · Sociology · State (computer science) · African studies and sociopolitical issues · Law · Public Administration
Traditional Authorities and Strategies in Demands for Self-Determination
Migration, Mobility and the Formation of In-Migrants’ Leadership among Dagombas in Ghana’s Capital City
(Re)theorizing hybrid governance in the Global South
The alley as an expression of urban form
Climate change, soil health, and governance challenges in Ghana
An imaginary line? Decolonisation, bordering and borderscapes on the Ghana–Togo border
Legislators between the throne and the house
Traditional Authorities, Norm Collisions, and Communal Conflict
Chiefs’ Endorsements and Voter Behavior
Local Aspirants and Politicised Chieftaincy Disputes
| Unique citing works | 10 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 2 |
| Citation span | 2021 - 2026 (6) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 10 |