Expert in democratization of Africa visits STA
October 6, 2022
Today, students in the Honors World Literature class at St. Teresa’s Academy had the pleasure of hearing Christopher Fomunyoh, Ph.D., speak about his extensive experience as an expert on democratization in Africa.
Dr. Fomunyoh is senior associate and regional director for Central and West Africa at the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs, a non0rofit organization that works with partners in developing countries to increase the effectiveness of democratic institutions. He has organized and advised international election observation missions to Benin, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Côte d’Ivoire, Ethiopia, Ghana, Liberia, Madagascar, Mali, Nigeria and Sierra Leone. He has also designed and supervised country-specific democracy support programs with civic organizations, political parties and legislative bodies in Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Côte d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of Congo, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea Bissau, Guinea Conakry, Liberia, Mali, Madagascar, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal and Togo.
In the course of his work, Dr. Fomunyoh interacts regularly with heads of state and government, cabinet ministers, elected officials and political and civic leaders. He recently designed and helped launch the African Statesmen Initiative (ASI), a program aimed at facilitating political transitions in Africa by encouraging former democratic heads of state to stay engaged in humanitarian issues, conflict mediation, public health and other key sectors of political, economic and human development on the continent.
As an expert on democratization in Africa, Dr. Fomunyoh makes frequent guest appearances on major radio and television networks including CNN, BBC, NewsHour, National Public Radio, Voice of America, and Radio France Internationale, and provides interviews for major national and international newspapers, including the Los Angeles Times, New York Times, Washington Post, Washington Times, Le Monde and The International Herald Tribune. He has published a number of articles in academic journals on African politics and democratization.
Dr. Fomunyoh has traveled extensively in Africa, Europe and North America, and is bilingual in English and French. He holds a Licence en Droit from Yaoundé University in Cameroon, a master’s degree (LL.M.) in international law from Harvard Law School; and a Ph.D. in political science from Boston University. Dr. Fomunyoh is an adjunct faculty member at the African Center for Strategic Studies and a former adjunct professor of African politics and government at Georgetown University. He also is the founder of a nonprofit organization interested in supporting democracy and humanitarian causes in Cameroon.
Christopher Fomunyoh, Ph.D., with Kelly Finn, STA Director of Experiential Learning, and students from Honors World Literature class