Coup attempts were frequent in Africa in the post-independence and Cold War periods

By comparison, the past 20 or so years have been quiet. From 2011 through 2020, the continent averaged fewer than one completed coup per year. But since then, the relative stability has given way to what looks like a sharp reemergence of coup attempts.

From January 1, 2020, through December 2022, there were a dozen coup attempts on the continent. Of those, six resulted in an unconstitutional change in government at the hands of military officers.

The trend has caused concern among continental and regional organizations. The development prompted the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to hold an emergency summit in Accra, Ghana, in February 2022 to discuss the issue.

ECOWAS Chairman and Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo told the summit that coups had become “contagious” and that the trend “must be contained before it devastates our whole region,” according to Al-Jazeera.

Likewise, Moussa Faki Mahamat, chairman of the African Union Commission, voiced his concern about “the resurgence of unconstitutional changes of government.”

Coups are complex and disruptive events. Their causes can be varied, and preventing them can be difficult. But understanding what causes coups is the first step in building professional militaries that have the knowledge, training and desire to avoid them.

When Is a Coup a Coup?

A coup occurs when organized forces, be they military or political, act to unseat a ruling national government. Coups in Africa most often involve action by a faction within the nation’s military. Some are violent; others involve security officers co-opting national communications channels and detaining leaders and high-ranking government officials.

Coups typically are considered to be complete if the disruption lasts seven days or more. Other experts say plotters must stay in power at least a month. Regardless, studies have shown that about half of all coups in Africa over the past several decades were completed. That trend held for the continent’s most recent spate of coups as well.

How Often Do Coups Occur?

Coups are not unique to African nations. They have happened in Asia, Europe and South America over the years. A look at coup attempts in Africa since 1950 shows a period of relative calm until about 1963, which could be described as the continent’s post-independence period. From 1960 through 1999, coup attempts averaged just over 40 per decade.