Citizen assessment of government performance remains a contentious issue among public management researchers. Some contend that citizen surveys are inevitably inadequate for gathering information. Others question citizens’ reliability as consistent sources of performance feedback. Yet citizen satisfaction should be an integral part of the evaluation process because they are the end consumers of government goods and services. However, compared to Western countries, relatively little is known about African citizens’ attitudes towards governments’ performance in public service delivery. Therefore, this study analyses 30 African nations, and includes a survey experiment conducted in Kenya. The study draws from three perspectives – politics, administration, and policymaking. Findings suggest that Africa’s government evaluation trends are not necessarily different from those in the West; and democracy certainly facilitates more satisfaction among citizens. The study also demonstrates that de facto country-level contextual nuances must be accounted for. However, contrary to persisting assumptions, ethnicity is not one of those nuances. Just as in other countries there are several other important factors that influence Africans’ satisfaction with public service delivery.