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GOVERNANCE

GOVERNANCE. Consolidating Electoral Frameworks and Mandates By Khabele Matlosa Research Director, EISA Johannesburg. PRESENTATION OUTLINE. Contextual Background to SADC Principles SADC Principles: Lessons of Experience; Areas and Strategies for Civil Society Engagement; Conclusions.

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GOVERNANCE

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  1. GOVERNANCE Consolidating Electoral Frameworks and Mandates By Khabele Matlosa Research Director, EISA Johannesburg

  2. PRESENTATION OUTLINE • Contextual Background to SADC Principles • SADC Principles: Lessons of Experience; • Areas and Strategies for Civil Society Engagement; • Conclusions

  3. Contextual Background • 1990s political transition; • Progress made and challenges for democratic consolidation/stability • Multiparty system and elections • Elections vs Democracy • Quantity vs quality of elections • Concerns with election quality

  4. Background (cont.) • Hence the emergence of various regional instruments aimed at improving election quality in SADC • These include: • SADC-PF Norms and Standards (2001) • Principles for Election Management, Monitoring and Observation in the SADC region (PEMMO) (2003) • SADC Principles and Guidelines Governing Democratic Elections (2004)

  5. The SADC Principles and Guidelines Governing Democratic Elections • The meaning and essence of the Principles • Relationship with other existing regional instruments • Prospects for (a) coordination, (b) harmonisation (c) merger of the three instruments • Coordination is possible • Harminisation may be possible • Merger is impossible

  6. Lessons of Experience Since 2004 • Since the Principles were adopted in August 2004, they have been put to the test in the following countries • Botswana, October 2004; • Namibia, November 2004; • Mozambique, December 2004; • Zimbabwe, March 2005; • Mauritius, July 2005

  7. Lessons Learnt (cont.) • Given the implementation of the Principles since 2004, some lessons of experience are worth noting: • Lack of congruence between the principles and domestic electoral laws (no law reform); • SADC Organ lacks technical competence and capacity for election observation; • Lack of structured and institutionalised coordination between SADC and other observer missions (with the exception of the AU)

  8. Lessons Learnt (cont.) • Inadequate political commitment and active participation of SADC member states in election observation • Reluctance of SADC member states to avail necessary resources (esp. financial) to support SADC Election Observer Missions

  9. AREAS AND STRATEGIES FOR CSO ENGAGEMENT

  10. Conclusion • SADC has made impeccable progress on democratisation (with few exceptional cases); • Democratic transition is surely on course, although reversals cannot be ruled out; • Elections have become an embedded part of the political culture of SADC member states;

  11. Conclusion (cont.) • While frequency & regularity of elections has been impressive, the quality of these elections has been questionable; • Hence the development of regional election instruments; • It may be impossible to merge these instruments; it may be possible to harmonise them; it is possible to coordinate them; • Civil society needs to pro-actively engage with the SADC governance agenda at both national and regional level

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