The webinar examined the state of South Africa’s democracy in a time of profound structural change driven by declining public trust, fragmented representation and coalition government.
On 11 and 12 May, SAIIA convened a conference, supported by the Social Justice Initiative (SJI), that brought together civil society, academia and researchers to discuss critical questions on electoral reform, coalition governance and civil society power in South Africa.
Building on those discussions, the webinar examined key insights and findings from the conference ahead of South Africa’s local government elections on 4 November.
Speakers discussed the kind of democratic environment they find themselves operating in; how we should think about civil society power and what realistically lies within its power to shape; whether anything has changed in how we think about accountability in the context of coalition government; and what is understood as the limits of electoral reform.
Moderator
Isabel Bosman-Burnett, Researcher: African Governance and Diplomacy Programme, SAIIA
Panellists
- Lawson Naidoo, Director, Council for the Advancement of the South African Constitution (CASAC)
- Lindokuhle Vellem, Programme Manager, Afesis
- Rendani Tshitangano, Research Assistant: Youth Programme, SAIIA
Watch the Recording
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