Pan–African parliament and civil society: towards representing the voices of the people
Abstract
The Pan-African Parliament (PAP) plays a major role in the democratisation
process and the harmonisation of relations with civil society organisations
(CSOs) for socio-economic and political development to be realised in Africa.
It has a responsibility, in line with its objectives, to work towards incorporating
and representing the voices of the people, which includes the promotion of
human rights and democratic institutions. The PAP forum offers a congenial
and functional platform to close the gap between governments and the people.
People-participation at parliamentary and state levels is an essential ingredient
for cooperation and potent governance.
T he article analyses critically the operational performance of the PAP and the
execution of its mandate as far as civil society engagement is concerned. This
critical analysis is important, because the findings of the study could contribute
to democracy and the rule of law in Africa. From its inception, PAP envisaged
to safeguard human rights and governance structures based on lasting
synergies with civic institutions. However, a lack of synchronisation of activities
has deleteriously impacted on the practise of good governance in Africa. The
apparent failure by PAP to promote an articulate civil society presents the
African continent with many democracy-related challenges. Utilising secondary
literature, including CSO publications, the article examines PAP’s achievements
and evaluates insights into the PAP–CSOs relationship.
URI
http://hdl.handle.net/10394/17865http://reference.sabinet.co.za/webx/access/electronic_journals/polit/polit_v30_n1_a3.pdf
Collections
- Faculty of Humanities [2033]