Introduction

Coup d’états have been occurring across the world for a number of years. There are a number of different reasons for their occurrence across the world and these reasons as well as the resulting consequences may vary from state to state depending on the geographical location, the economic prospects, demographic stress, the resource trap as well as the presence of ethnic and religious differences.

Coup d’états have proven to be a common occurrence on the African continent since the end of colonialism. A coup d’état can be explained as a violent challenge to the state, similar to a rebellion or it can be explained as the sudden and forcible takeover of government exercised by a small or large group of rebel movements that resides within the targeted state’s borders (external parties may also be involved) and is typically carried out through violent and/or illegal means with the goal of installing their own leadership into power, coups are staged in order to capture the state by force and sometimes a coup that fails to oust the government results in a rebellion.

 

Report by IGD