Africa: Lower Africa’s voting age to 16

In a predictable show of force, Kenyan voters have consigned a large number of sitting parliamentarians to political oblivion in party nominations. Attempts by Kenya’s Youth Affairs Minister Mohammed Kuti to change the legal definition of youth to include people up to 50 years old was a clear sign of political panic. But there is an easier alternative to panic, argues Calestous Juma: incumbent leaders should start to transfer power to younger generations in an orderly manner. One way to do so is to lower the voting age from 18 to 16 at most.