Civil society critical - Katjavivi

Namibia continues to seek policy and legislation to strengthen the work of civil society, while creating concise pathways for it to engage with parliament.This is according to National Assembly speaker Professor Peter Katjavivi, who was speaking at an 'Action for becoming a credible civil society organisation (CSO) in Namibian communities' project media conference last week.The event took place at the Okahandja Samaritan Network (OSN) on Friday.Katjavivi further stressed that public participation in decision-making processes is a great opportunity for citizens and will deter them from resorting to violence as a means of political expression.The media conference provided CSO stakeholders with an update on the project's activities and successful implementation during 2018.European Union (EU) ambassador to Namibia, Jana Hybášková said through the project, the EU aims to enhance the credibility of CSOs and therefore contribute to a stronger democracy in Namibia. The objective of the project is to make a positive contribution to accountable, transparent and participatory democracy in Namibia. “Action for becoming a credible CSO in Namibian communities, supported by the EU and the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS), is a milestone project in strengthening the work of parliament and of civil society in Namibia,” said Katjavivi. According to him, the National Assembly and the entire parliament attaches great importance to the role of civil society in Namibia, amongst other key stakeholders, for the enhancement of democracy and good governance.He said credible and professional CSOs are important in upping the level of transparency and accountability in the country. Katjavivi said the CSO project has played a fundamental role in not only in streamlining the civil society landscape, but also in capacitating organisations. According to him, parliament is key to promoting democracy and good governance. “Parliament can ensure that government remains accountable to the people by maintaining regular contact with the citizens in its actions and decisions.” Katjavivi said there are two critical aspects to ensure the success of this endeavour. Firstly, there is a need to integrate parliament's public participation function within its overall mechanism, structures and operations. Secondly, appropriate resources and capacity need to be provided to both individual parliamentarians and parliamentary committees for implementation. He said for parliament to promote democracy and good governance, it should be easily accessible to the public. In this respect, parliament should continue to adopt laws, policies and mechanisms towards improving citizen participation in economic, social and political decision-making processes that affect their lives. “Only knowledgeable and informed citizens can actively participate in their national and local government affairs and hold them accountable for the resources they receive and the services they provide. Therefore, we should continue to build an effective parliamentary consultation with the public.”The CSO project is jointly funded by the EU and KAS with €749 281 (about N$13 million). It is implemented in five regions, namely Oshikoto, Otjozondjupa, Erongo, Omaheke and Hardap.The project directly benefits ten CSOs per region. CSOs involved in the project are active in the fields of culture and heritage, gender activism, as well as health, people living with disabilities, farming, substance abuse rehabilitation and vocational training. This year the project successfully implemented training modules in the fields of organisational, operational, financial and administrative skills, the enhancement of constituent engagement, public participation and lobbying. Two repeat trainings were successfully conducted during October for those CSOs that missed the initial training, while training in public-private partnerships (PPPs) will be conducted shortly. While cooperation and networking between CSOs and regional authorities has been fostered, this relationship needs to be further enhanced. Significant knowledge transfer also took place and CSOs gained skills in lobbying for funds, report writing, project management, leadership and stakeholder relationship management. CSOs received mentoring and support at their regional offices and have since developed their strategic plans, been registered and have also beefed up their founding documents. During the past 12 months, the number of funding proposals submitted by CSOs to KAS and other potential donors have increased. ELLANIE SMIT

Civil society critical - Katjavivi

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Namibian Sun 2024-11-25

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Civil society critical - Katjavivi

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Namibian Sun 2024-11-25

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