UntitledSouth Africa Update
NDI worked in South Africa for nearly a decade to support
the country's transition to a participatory constitutional democracy.
NDI offered assistance inside and outside government in the areas of:
parliamentary development
local government
policy support
political party training
election administration
voter education
NGO capacity-building
Key partnerships in NDI's South Africa program included:
Parliament: National Council of Provinces
NDI worked to assist in establishing the
second house of Parliament, the National
Council of Provinces. At the direction
of the then-Chairperson Patrick Lekota,
NDI provided study missions, technical
assistance and comparative research to
help define the role and responsibilities
of this unique legislative body. NDI continued
to provide extensive support to MPs and
staff in their efforts to improve the
NCOP's legislative capacity. In late 1999,
NCOP and NDI used USAID and private sector
support to design and launch NCOP
Online! The cutting edge information
management system and website was intended
to promote public access to the legislative
process and assist the NCOP's provincial
and local government delegations in representing
their constituents more effectively and
efficiently.
Over the years, NDI provided targeted assistance
to the National Assembly, particularly
through the Committee on Members' Interests
and the Portfolio Committee on Provincial
and Local Government. The National
Assembly Finance Committee requested NDI
to provide international comparative research
on budget processes.
Local Government: South African Local Government Association
NDI's support for the development of the 1997
White Paper on Local Governance made way
for one of the Institute's strongest partnerships,
with the South African Local Government
Association. Mandated in the Constitution
to be the "voice of organized local government,"
SALGA has an unparalleled responsibility
to represent local government interests
in policy-making at national and provincial
level through the NCOP and other intergovernmental
policy forums. NDI helped SALGA's
political leadership and staff build capacity
in the areas of advocacy and policy, organizational
development and information technology.
Good Governance: Ethics and other policies
Over the course of several years, NDI made
contributions to policies central to the
consolidation of democracy in South Africa.
Along with local government, those include
political party funding, traditional leadership,
intergovernmental relations and ethics.
With President Mbeki's strong commitment
to fighting corruption in the public sector,
ethics support continues to be a central
program area for NDI in South Africa and
the region. NDI worked with
the Public Service Commission to support
a publication series on ethics in government.
NGO Partnerships: University of the Western Cape and Street Law
After the 1994 elections, NDI maintained
close links with the South African NGO
community. Two formal subgrant relationships
were established. The first was with the
School of Government at the University
of the Western Cape, to promote study
of intergovernmental relations. The second
was with the university-based NGO Street
Law, to build its capacity to conduct
focus group research. Street
Law conducted a nationwide study on HIV/AIDS
for an inter-ministerial committee led
by President Mbeki.
Contact Information
For more information on NDI's work in Southern and East Africa, please contact:
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