Military Administrative Behavior and Democratization: Civilian Cabinet Appointments in Military Regimes in Sub-Saharan Africa

Military administrators in sub-Saharan Africa often appoint civilian political elites to cabinet positions for the following reasons: to advance effective governance, as a response to demands for transition to civilian rule, and as a political technique to civilianize the military regime. Empirical patterns of civilian cabinet appointments by the types of post-military political regimes show that the nature of civilian involvement in military administration is a valid predictor of the types of regime likely to follow military rule. Further findings confer some historical insights to the programmed and the national conference models of democratization in the region. In addition, military administrative analysis is a way to gain new insights into military transition in the region.