Legal mechanisms for cooperative governance in South Africa: successes and failures

Abstract

South Africa's Constitution explicitly makes provision for cooperative governance. Despite this obligation, fragmentation, turf wars and the unwillingness of officials sometimes frustrate this ideal. South Africa's policy and legislation have served to strengthen cooperative governance, especially with regard to environmental matters, and so leading to a mixture of success and failure. Section 24 of the Constitution states that everyone has a right to an environment that is not harmful to their health or well-being, and this section may be applied vertically and horisontially (Drittwirkung). To ensure that this right is given further effect, government must, through reasonable legislation and other measures, ensure that the environment is protected for present and future generations. This right is not an absolute right, but it must be weighed against the promotion of justifiable economic and social development.