I changed a mind a few times on this issue, of what’s the perfect government structure for the economy.
We’ve spent the last century arguing over two broken systems: the authoritarian failures of communism and the capitalistic excesses of the West. But what if the answer isn’t a new import, but something we’ve always had?
What is Ubuntu?
I had a conversation with a friend who mentioned something along the lines of our culture as the Bantu people shouldn’t be erased because “tiri vanhu nekuda kwevanhu” which means “a person is a person because of other people”.
And that’s what made me think, why do we never think of what our culture holds to be irrevocably true, as something that might be introduced in goverment?
Walk with me on this for bit.
Core values of ubuntu:
- Community > individual
- Reciprocity, compassion, and solidarity.
- Justice not only legal but relational (restoring harmony vs punishment)
Social bonds are as essential as oxygen to the individual. Individual flourishing depends on collective flourishing.
What is Social Democracy?
Describing it might be a better way of explaining it. Core features are:
- Parliamentary or constitutional democracy (citizen participation, rule of law).
- Market economy, but with state intervention to ensure fairness (universal healthcare, education, social safety nets).
- Progressive taxation to reduce inequality
This model is already working in Scandanavian countries and it’s taking the best of what’s in socialism and the best of what’s in capitalism and finding a balance inbetween the two.
How do Social Democracy & Ubuntu Fit Together?
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Healthcare: In the public health, we yap endlessly over the concept of Universal Health Coverage where we want access to good healthcare to be available without financial hardship. This is a core tenet of social democracy and it fits well with ubuntu’s emphasis on community well-being. In a society that values collective health, ensuring that everyone has access to healthcare is not just a policy choice but a moral imperative.
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Education: Investing in everyone’s knowledge base reflects Ubuntu’s belief that my growth enhances yours.
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Everyday needs such as transport, welfare: Essentially, the things that cost the most for people are “democratised” (funded by high taxes which are a necessary trade-off for these universal services) because everyone needs transport and there is a need to cover people’s welfare.
The only tension is that Social Democracy believes a lot in individual rights while Ubuntu is more duty/community-centered. But that’s exactly the idea. Finding the balance between the two.
High taxes, not only because they fund Universal Health Coverage, Education and Transport, but because Ubuntu is a principle which encourages us to pool resources to support each other, and that’s an interesting synergy I had never thought about.
This Is Not A New Idea
This is not a foreign import grafted onto Africa. Julius Nyerere’s Ujamaa in Tanzania was an early attempt to build governance around African communal values.
While it struggled economically due to over-centralisation (fixed by decentralising responsibilities to the country’s provinces) and coercion, it showed that philosophies like Ubuntu are not abstract ideals. They can and have been the foundation of statecraft.
Similarly, South Africa’s post-apartheid Truth and Reconciliation Commission reflected Ubuntu’s emphasis on relational justice rather than retribution.
Challenges
Of course, there are challenges.
High taxation can trigger brain drain, welfare can risk dependency, and invoking Ubuntu without safeguards could degenerate into tribalism or patronage.
But these are not fatal flaws. They are design questions.
Strong institutions, fair taxation, and civic education can ensure that Ubuntu strengthens solidarity without suffocating initiative, and that Social Democracy’s redistribution lifts everyone without breeding complacency.
Conclusion
Social Democracy gives us the institutional framework (parliaments, rights, welfare systems), while Ubuntu provides the ethical foundation (community-first, relational justice, compassion).
Together, they could shape a political model that feels authentically African yet globally modern.