With cheerleaders like South African elder statesman Nelson Mandela, ex-U.S. President Bill Clinton and Nobel laureate economist Amartya Sen, who could possibly object to the new prize for good African leadership? The launch of a multi-million award for a well-behaved African leader has generated press in the West but so far precious little comment in African newspapers. Amid the boos and hurrahs from overseas, at least you could argue it's a more dignified reason to focus on Africa than Madonna's Malawi adoption debacle.

The prize founder, British-based Sudanese telecoms tycoon Mo Ibrahim, says the award will add to the three choices African leaders usually face as they perch at the wobbly end of their time in office: relative poverty, finding a way to extend their term in office, or siphoning offf some funds for retirement. The prize will "give African leaders a fourth choice: govern well, and win a substantial prize", Ibrahim enthuses on the Guardian website. What's more, the $5 million prize cash won't get thrown around on a whim but will chug through a rigorous selection process based on an index developed at Harvard University. As Ibrahim says, "the aim is to take good governance out of the closet".

The staggering thing with this award is that it's for an amount that soars well above the going Nobel laureate rate, Richard Dowden, director of the British Royal African Society, writes in the Independent newspaper. Ibrahim seems prepared to "bribe leaders to rule well then leave on time", Dowden quips - why not spend the money on schools, hospitals, teachers and doctors instead?

Ibrahim succesfully aligns himself with a growing gang of 21st century philanthropists that prefer to prod popular opinion on Africa's behalf rather than set up hospitals and libraries on the continent, Time magazine notes. However, African leaders are often tempted to line their pockets with a lot more than the prize money on offer for the day when their power and glory evaporate, an Independent editorial says. It adds that the new "Ibrahim index" could still trigger debate among African voters and help make governance on "that unhappy continent" more accountable.

The index will look at tangible things such as miles of paved road and the number of journalists in prison to measure progress in areas like infrastructure and political freedom, AllAfrica.com reports. It will be the only international governance measure of its kind, according to Dr Robert Rotberg, the Harvard professor in charge of the project. However, the choice won't actually be tied to the governance index alone, the Financial Times notes, adding that critics would rather see the money spent on grassroots organisations in Africa.

"After the Nobels, the Pulitzers and the Oscars, why not a prize for African presidents?", the New York Times asks optimistically. The prize aims to take on the "post-independence culture of autocrats and kleptocrats", but could run into hurdles - not least the lack of eligible contestants.

The prize runs the risk of diverting attention from more critical governance issues, argues Calestous Juma on the Guardian website. Leadership is not just about personal acts of heroism, but depends on strong institutions that are lacking in many African countries. Despite multi-party elections, parliaments are often poorly supported and judiciaries need funding to improve their work, Juma says.

Ibrahim fends off the critique by pointing at successful Western leaders leaving active politics. African leaders face none of the fame and fortune of, say, a Clinton upon leaving office. "Suddenly, all the mansions, cars, food, wine is withdrawn," he told the Financial Times. "Some find it difficult to rent a house in the capital. That incites corruption; it incites people to cling to power."

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