Civil society organisations (CSOs) and the changing nature of African politics: The case of CSO-government relationship in Malawi

The nature of contemporary African politics in the 21stcentury and the increasing engagement of civil society organisations (CSOs) (including International NGOs) in the social, political and economic endeavours in the developing world, buttressed by their 'Northern' counterparts, is an issue that has received a significant degree of attention in the development discourse. However, the changing nature of African politics and its implications on the operationalisation of CSOs, especially in the social development sector, still remains one of the areas of scholarship that is largely under-explored. The ripple effects of the influence of the European aid agencies on both the African governments and civil society organisations has greatly changed not only the power dynamics but has also reconfigured the politics and relationships between states and CSOs. These changes further call for microscopic scrutiny and analysis of the long-term effects on social development within Africa.