This study set out to examine the opportunities and constraints for Zimbabwean civil society participation in African Union policy initiatives. The work came up after a realisation that there are serious challenges that inhibit participation of Zimbabwean civil society organisations (CSOs) in the policy-making initiatives of the continental body. The problem arises from the structure of the African Union (AU) in that it is an inter-state organ and, as such, any engagement with the African citizens has to be done through the various governments of members‘ states. This means that for Zimbabwean CSOs‘ voices to be heard in the AU policy-making, they have to go through their Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Zimbabwean situation is a very unique and problematic one in that the government and CSOs are sworn enemies. The animosity arises from the allegations by the government that the CSOs are part of a well-orchestrated plot led by the United States of America and Britain to effect illegal regime change in Zimbabwe. It is the argument of the ZANU PF government that the West is sponsoring the opposition as a response to the land redistribution exercise. Given this background, it has been difficult for CSOs to make their representations to the government. This work therefore sought to determine alternative avenues for engagement by CSOs. The research was done through interviews of 20 CSOs involved in issues of democracy and good governance. It also utilised a lot of secondary information from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as well as the AU. The research came to the conclusion that CSOs need to improve their working relations with the government and also try to utilise other avenues for engagement like the Economic, Social and Cultural Council (ECOSOCC). The work further concluded that the ―cat and mouse‖ relationship between the government and civil society in Zimbabwe has created a situation where the latter has been demonised, if not totally criminalised to the extent of limiting its access into mainstream AU affairs. This, in brief, has presented a situation 5 where the feasibility of a democratic experience in Zimbabwe becomes increasingly remote and misty. Zimbabwe‗s contribution to African political and economic life has been disabled by the Zimbabwean government‘s next to single-handed approach to African and international affairs. The absence of the Zimbabwean civil society‗s voice in the African economic and political life reduces Zimbabwe‘s place in African affairs to a narrow and shallow location. The democratic doctrine of multiplicity of voices and diversity of opinions, which are important ingredients of democracy as it is globally perceived, are negated by the Zimbabwean government‘s enduring interest to collapse the civil society to dormant national shareholders whose role is theoretical at the expense of being real and meaningful. At a prima facie level, the Zimbabwean civil society is an isolated and hindered entity through legislation and economic and political conditions that the Zimbabwean government has caused. On the other hand, on a point of strategy and creative positive thought, this creates a window of opportunities and some interesting challenges to the actors and players in the Zimbabwean civil society to generate methods and approaches relating to the greater African economic and political reality without the co-operation, or the consent, of the Zimbabwean government. This presents a case study to the test of Africa and the globe that governance is not only a preserve of the governments, but is an all-inclusive process that must also involve non-state actors, lest it becomes a partisan and narrow meaningless affair. That, in the African context, can be summarised in a West African saying that ―no matter how big your hand is, it can not cover the sky‖. In this context, no matter how big the AU can be, it cannot adequately serve the interests of the whole of Africa without involving other key players like the civil society movement.

The concept of civil society has for so long been complex, elusive and debatable. Time and again it has increasingly dominated both political and academic discourses. For the last two decades, there has been proliferation of civil society organisations especially in developing world whereby the donor community regard them as a universal remedy for underdevelopment and authoritarianism. After failure of several development approaches to do away with poverty, underdevelopment and dictatorial regimes, civil society has been presented as the beacon of freedom, the fountain for the protection of civil rights and of resistance against state repression. It was also regarded as the mobilizing platform of society for the protection and projection of substantive interests, the compelling force for state moderation, the epitome of popular struggles and civil power as well as a centralforce in political and economic reforms. This report presents findings on a study of state-civil society relationship, the case of Uganda. The main objective of this study was to “describe and analyze the reality of civil society in Uganda in relation to the theoretical concept of civil society”, therein comprehending the functions, actors and relationship between state and civil society in Uganda. The study process consisted of a desk study of available documentation on civil society concept.  The main findings indicate that civil society organisations in Uganda are more active in the area of service delivery than policy advocacy. Therefore the bilateral function as service deliverers and policy advocates by civil society is far way from being a reality in Uganda. Findings also indicate that the state is less tolerant and uncomfortable with advocacy CSOs but largely cooperates with CSOs dealing in service delivery. The applicability of civil society concept in Uganda’s context is still far away from being achieved due to the fact that the political environment where civil society operates is constrained by the state. It was also revealed that donor funding is the cornerstone for civil society functioning in Uganda.

This thesis provides a critical analysis of how Islamic-based Civil Society Organisations (IBCSOs) contribute to poverty reduction in Egypt, through a qualitative study of four Civil Society Organisations (CSOs). The thesis closely examines case study IBCSOs’ organisational structures, their activities and the values that shape their conceptualisation of poverty. It reveals the similarities between IBCSOs’ poverty reduction work and official social protection, and discusses how their approaches to poverty reduction can be understood in terms of the various discourses justifying social protection (risks, rights and needs). The thesis also uses these case studies to examine the validity of Faith-Based Organisations (FBOs) as vehicles for poverty reduction and social protection. Finally, it discusses the relationship between these organisations’ poverty reduction activities and political mobilisation through an examination of the role they played in the recent political rise of the Islamist movement in Egypt, as well as the impact of recent political developments on their operations. A key purpose of this critical investigation of IBCSOs' approaches to poverty reduction is to explore more broadly their wider implications for development theory and practice by assessing whether they can contribute to existing knowledge on the means of civil society’s contribution to poverty reduction and development.

In Zimbabwe, reconciliation has become a contentious process and has been politicised at the international, national and community levels. Criticisms have been raised against the government related to its failure to implement inclusive reconciliation processes that can amend broken relationships in Zimbabwe, particularly at the community level. Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) that are traditionally assumed to have a role in bringing about reconciliation on the community level have, in Zimbabwe, become part of the politicisation of reconciliation in various ways. This research has explored the challenges of reconciliation in Zimbabwe, with the Nkayi District in Matabeleland as a case study, because it stands at the intersection of the conflicts that have occurred in Zimbabwe over the past three decades. It serves to illustrate the political debates behind the alleged failure of government to implement reconciliation processes at the community level. Research findings revealed that the complexity of reconciliation in the Nkayi District is rooted in the lack of consensual understanding among stakeholders as to who ought to be reconciled and how the process should occur. This complexity is enhanced by the lack of an enabling environment due to the polarisation of the community by government security agents, a lack of political will by political actors, shortage of resources and a lack of common voice in the undertakings by CSOs. The research concluded that the systematic marginalisation of the Matabeleland region and the fact that the Gukurahundi massacres were never dealt with by the government, undermines any attempts at reconciliation in this region. This research argues that reconciliation in the Nkayi District begins when the government acknowledges all incidents of violence that occurred. / Political Sciences / Dissertation (MA)--University of Pretoria, 2015. / Unrestricted

ABSTRACT From the 18th century, a considerable element of legislative democracy has been that of national budgeting. This has been substantially critical in assuring legislative statute over the government which has been controlled by kings. Predictably, the notion of public participation in budgetary processes has been disparate by governments in Africa. Due to its technocratic and elitist design, it is mostly a complex issue to recognise the making of national budgets by ordinary citizens in South Africa. However, topical developments have shown that the processes of creating national budgets should consider civil society’s role particularly in evaluating the impact of budgets on the poor. It is against this technocratic and elitist architectural backdrop of the state, regarding public budgeting and implementation, which this study employs the People’s Budget Campaign as a unique civil society organisation advocating for an alternative budget process in South Africa. This research has used a qualitative method in analysing data collected from primary and secondary sources, semi-structured interviews, as well as direct and participant observation of PBC activities.

Yes

This thesis analyses whether the European Union acts as a trigger for Turkey&rsquo / s democratisation process within the pre-accession period. This study claims that although Turkish civil society has practically been characterised as weak and inactive, the impact of the European Union&rsquo / s politics of civil society on Turkish civil society organisations is a substantial contribution to democratic consolidation in Turkey, where the weakness of democracy has always been an obstacle for the country&rsquo / s integration to the Union. In accordance with this claim, three civil society organisations, which have been previously awarded European Union funded grant, were selected and a printed media screening study covering the period from the Helsinki Summit of 1999, when the European Commission took Turkey&rsquo / s membership application into consideration, to Turkish General Elections of 2011, was carried out. Through this study, the main purpose was to observe to what extent civil society organisations, having been financed under European Union funded grant schemes, provided contribution to Turkey&rsquo / s democratisation process.

This thesis examines the relationship between the state and civil society in Zimbabwe. The relationship between the state and civil society is discussed under the categories of the concepts democratisation, good governance and sustainable development. The nature of the relationship between the state and civil society in Africa is examined to set out parameters for state-civil society debate in Zimbabwe. The discussion of the relationship between the state and civil society in Zimbabwe is synthesised into three parts, the post-independence era, the post-1990s and the post-2000. From these discussions it is argued that the relationship between the state and civil society was peaceful in the first decade of independence and this was because the state maintained dominance and control over all sectors of civil society. However, the 1990s saw a collapse of peaceful relations between the state and civil society in Zimbabwe. The collapse of the peaceful relationship between the state and civil society came as a result of the country’s economic decline and the authoritarian practices in Zimbabwe, which saw the emergence of a confrontational civil society towards the state. In the early 2000s, it is observed that the state became repressive towards civil society through the introduction of repressive laws which include Access to Information and Privacy Act (AIIPA) and the Public Order and Security Act (POSA). For peaceful relations between the state and civil society to exist in a sustainable manner, the state must continuously promote and practice democracy and good governance. In addition, the state should play a pivotal role of enhancing sustainable development in a manner that meets the socio-economic realities of its population. / Thesis (M.A. (Political Studies))--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2011

This thesis examines the relationship between the state and civil society in Zimbabwe. The relationship between the state and civil society is discussed under the categories of the concepts democratisation, good governance and sustainable development. The nature of the relationship between the state and civil society in Africa is examined to set out parameters for state-civil society debate in Zimbabwe. The discussion of the relationship between the state and civil society in Zimbabwe is synthesised into three parts, the post-independence era, the post-1990s and the post-2000. From these discussions it is argued that the relationship between the state and civil society was peaceful in the first decade of independence and this was because the state maintained dominance and control over all sectors of civil society. However, the 1990s saw a collapse of peaceful relations between the state and civil society in Zimbabwe. The collapse of the peaceful relationship between the state and civil society came as a result of the country’s economic decline and the authoritarian practices in Zimbabwe, which saw the emergence of a confrontational civil society towards the state. In the early 2000s, it is observed that the state became repressive towards civil society through the introduction of repressive laws which include Access to Information and Privacy Act (AIIPA) and the Public Order and Security Act (POSA). For peaceful relations between the state and civil society to exist in a sustainable manner, the state must continuously promote and practice democracy and good governance. In addition, the state should play a pivotal role of enhancing sustainable development in a manner that meets the socio-economic realities of its population. / Thesis (M.A. (Political Studies))--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2011

In recent years, EU’s development policy has undergone wide-ranging reform with the leading principle of responding to the circumstances and demands of the current world, but also for the sake of alignment to the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. In line with the reasoning that an empowered civil society can help in the exercise of EU’s development policy and in the pursuit of development policy goals, the organisation has formed a strategy of engagement with CSOs in its external relations. This study’s focus is specifically on EU’s performance in Colombia, a Latin American country encompassed by EU’s development policy. Since Colombian CSOs still face numerous barriers hindering their work, it cannot be simply asserted that EU’s strategy has been effective. Hence, this study’s purpose is to critically evaluate EU’s engagement with Colombian CSOs, by taking into account EU’s capabilities as a civilian power to identify both the limits and potentials of the organisation’s approach. The study concludes that it is not the choice of power instruments, but the way the EU uses them that causes the strategy’s ineffectiveness. Although the Union has managed to increase Colombian CSOs’ capacity, the latter cannot be fully utilised due to the unfavourable framework for such organisations. Nevertheless, considering recent improvements made to EU’s strategy, it is argued that symbiosis between the EU and Colombian CSOs is still a realistic prospect, but one that requires increased efforts from the Union.