D.Litt. et Phil. (Politics) / South Africa’s 1996 Constitution makes provision for relatively autonomous provincial administrations, which share responsibility with the national government for important functional areas while also exercising exclusive authority over others. Although the Constitution is not explicit on the distribution of foreign policy competence, the dominant interpretation among South African policy-makers is that this functional area is the exclusive domain of the national government. Consequently, the foreign policy-making process in the country has over the years been dominated by the national executive. Even so, since 1995 the interplay of a set of push and pull factors has encouraged all provinces to assume an active and direct international role, to the extent that provincial international relations or paradiplomacy has become an important feature of South Africa’s international relations. This study examines the paradiplomacy of the South African provinces of Gauteng, the North West and the Western Cape against the backdrop of a relatively weak scholarly and public discourse of the phenomenon in the country. Through an in-depth and empirically based analysis of the three case studies, the inquiry generates insight into the nature and meaning of paradiplomacy in South Africa, as a contribution to the development of alternative accounts of a phenomenon whose scholarship is still heavily dominated by Western perspectives. The study finds that paradiplomacy has evolved in South Africa as a predominantly functional project, which has little significance for the authority of the national government over the country’s foreign policy and international relations. The provincial governments in Gauteng, the North West and the Western Cape engage in international relations primarily as a strategy to harness the opportunities of globalisation and economic interdependence, in the interest of the socio-economic development of their respective jurisdictions. This ‘developmental paradiplomacy’ is conditioned to a large extent by the limited provincial powers on foreign affairs, strong centripetal forces in South Africa’s political system, as well as the pervasive influence of the post-apartheid discourse on socio-economic transformation. Thus, although all three provinces examined conduct their international relations with relative autonomy and in ways that have at times undermined the country’s international reputation and attracted Pretoria’s ire, these activities are consciously defined within the framework of the country’s foreign policy and, in some cases, are executed in close collaboration with the national government. In a sense, therefore, provinces conceive of their international role as that of agents or champions of Pretoria’s foreign policy agenda. The key findings of this study, especially as they pertain to the nature and significance of paradiplomacy in South Africa, highlight the North-South geopolitical cleavage in the manifestation of the phenomenon. On the one hand, the South African case resonates with the experience in other developing countries like India, China, Malaysia and Argentina, where paradiplomacy evolves under the shadow of national foreign policy processes. On the other hand, the findings contrast with the experience in most countries in Europe and North America where questions of nationalism, sub-national identity and the sovereign authority for international representation have contributed to defining the international agency of sub-national governments.

The ending of apartheid and the transformation process in South Africa, the transition to democracy brought with them fundamental changes to the form and function of the State. In particular, they bring a restructuring of co-operative governance and intergovernmental relations. The responsibilities, functions and powers of the three spheres of government (national, provincial and local) were changed and streamlined as stated in the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa Act, 108 of 1996. The system of intergovernmental relations delineated in the Constitution differs significantly from that of the previous dispensation, particularly in its ambitions to advance democracy and to improve service delivery to all South Africans. Of particular significance is the respect in the fact that instead of the inherently conflicting intergovernmental relations that characterises most modern states, the Constitution actively promotes co-operation between different levels of government. The Intergovernmental Relations Framework Act, 13 of 2005 was promulgated on 15 August 2005. The Act provides for an institutional framework for the three spheres of government to facilitate coherent government, effective provision of services, monitoring the implementation of policy and legislation, and realisation of developmental goals of government as a whole. All spheres of government must provide effective, efficient, transparent, accountable and coherent government in order to ensure the progressive realisation of constitutional rights. One of the most pervasive challenges facing the country as a developmental state is the need for government to redress poverty, underdevelopment, marginalisation of people and communities and other legacies of apartheid and discrimination. This challenge can only be addressed through a concerted effort by government in all spheres to work together and integrate as far as possible their actions in the provision of service, alleviation of poverty and development of the communities. Co-operation and integration of actions in government depends on a stable and effective system of intergovernmental relations, one in which each of the spheres respect the relative autonomy of the other whilst appreciating the interrelatedness and interdependence of the three spheres. The study elaborated on the research as well as the research problem. In so doing, it further looked at the historical overview of the transition to a democratic South Africa which brought a significant change in the reconfiguration of the state. The studies further deals with a critique of co-operative governance and intergovernmental relations in the Eastern Cape and discuss the perspective on service delivery. In order to critically evaluate the notion of co-operative governance and intergovernmental relations in South Africa with specific reference to Eastern Cape, the study recommended that intergovernmental planning and budgeting, management of change, support and capacity building, communication and stakeholder engagement and institutional arrangement interventions be embarked upon. / Thesis (MBA)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2012.