Conceptualizing Civil Society in Africa: The Case of Eritrea

The article analyses the evolution of civil society in Eritrea. It has two sections. The first section critically analyses the notion of civil society. It argues that the Eurocentric or conventional perception of the notion of civil society fails to capture the reality in Africa. The second section, the case of Eritrea (the empirical part), deals with a specific type of civil society. The Eritrean civil society is an outcome of colonial-, liberation- and post-liberation-induced societal reality. The article traces the emergence of civil society in Eritrea in its diverse forms through the historical trajectories of pre-colonial, colonial, liberation and post-liberation eras. It maps out the development of civil society in Eritrea.