This study looks at five departments in the Provincial Government of the Western Cape as case studies and examines the ways in which they have organized their M&E [monitoring and evaluation] function.

Includes bibliographical references (leaves 72-75)

Word processed copy. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 61-66). / The study unravels the nature of Cabinet decision making in African Public Sector systems, and discusses its implications on development policy implementation. The demands on the State, and its key machinery, the Public Service, have evolved over time. Many states, including Zambia and Malawi, have since independence seen a decline in the welfare of their citizens, despite the plethora of development policy instruments that have been put in place to address this worrying situation. Weak policy implementation has been cited as the problem.

Includes bibliographical references (leaves 130-143). / This dissertation explores dimensions of social capital and its links with democracy in Cape Town, using data from the Cape Area Study 2003. The main theoretical and empirical approaches to the study of social capital in relation to democracy are critically analysed. The paper offers a descriptive overview of social capital, analysing facets beyond the widely used measures of general interpersonal trust and formal associational activism. While general interpersonal trust and associational activism in Cape Town are low, higher rates of social capital exist in other forms, such as neighbourly trust and informal networks of association with neighbours and kin. Factor and Reliability Analyses are applied to test dimensionality in the data finding that, in Cape Town, social capital is a multi-dimensional concept made up of distinct attitudinal and structural components. These facets are used to analyse the link between social capital and certain hypothesized outcomes linked to democratic stability, namely tolerance of diversity, civic commitment and political participation. The dissertation finds that interpersonal trust is a weak predictor of these outcomes and that associational activism can only sometimes be linked hereto. Other facets of social capital play a significant role in determining these outcomes, but no single variable is a consistently strong predictor hereof. The findings suggest that the dimensions of social capital vary in their functioning and link to the outcomes of tolerance of diversity, civic commitment and political participation.

Includes bibliographical references.

Interactions between the state and Non-governmental Organisations have been heightened globally. This has led to states engaging civil society more than ever before. However, tendencies to control NGOs by the state seem common in African countries. This dissertation seeks to examine relations between the state and NGOs in Botswana. Botswana is a democratic country, which has been hailed as stable and a strong state, however, civil society in Botswana remains weak. This creates a problem of a dominant state and weak civil society. The dissertation employs Najam's theoretical framework in trying to understand the extent of state dominance in the relationship between the state and NGOs in Botswana.

Includes abstract. / Includes bibliographical references. / The dissertation explores how variations in fund performance can be explained. Certain hypotheses suggested in the literature are set out that have been advanced to account for the differential performance of principal recipients. The dissertation analyzes the performance of the various funding mechanisms by exploring systems and procedures; public or non-governmental status; implementation models; staffing issues; NGO and CSO involvement in project implementation; and the absorption of funds. The dissertation makes an assessment of the significance of each factor in improving or worsening the performance of a disbursement mechanism, and draws some broad preliminary conclusions about how differences in disbursement performance can be explained.

Includes bibliographical references.

This thesis examined the challenges facing the public sector implementation of community and home based early childhood development (ECD) programmes for vulnerable children aged 0-4 years in the Western Cape and Eastern Cape, South Africa. A qualitative case-study approach was used. The unit of analysis was the Department of Social Development (DoSD) as they are the public sector funders of non-profit organizations (NPOs) who deliver these services. The thesis included a literature review, a policy document review, and the collection and analysis of six interviews with officials involved in implementation of the National Integrated Plan for Early Childhood Development 2005–2010 (NIP for ECD). The data was organised using organizational coding and conceptually ordered displays, and analysed using the 5-C protocol of implementation as the overarching conceptual framework. The findings of the study showed that the main challenges facing the DoSD in the implementation of community and home-based ECD are: (1) Human resources that are stretched to capacity at the provincial and district level, primarily social workers who are unable to manage current services; (2) inadequate line item funding to scale up the provision of services in order to fulfill the mandate of the NIP for ECD (2005); (3) a shortage of NPOs to scale up services, current service providers already suffer with their own capacity constraints; (4) a lack of norms and standards for funding community and home-based ECD; (5) the social sector currently prioritizes centre-based ECD (in terms of funding and training) over community and home-based ECD. Another critical shortcoming is a lack of information regarding provision of services and a lack of South African evidence based research to assist implementers in making rationing decisions at the provincial level. Officials at the DoSD however display commitment to, and recognize the need to, support community and home-based ECD. The officials are however limited in doing so due to capacity constraints.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 88-92). / The municipal ombud is a relatively new concept in South Africa and only two municipal ombud offices currently operate within the country. While there is a growing body of literature on the organisational ombud, as well as established works on various classical ombud, the practice of 'ombudsing' within local government currently enjoys no consistent or comprehensive theoretical foundation, particularly in relation to the required structure or processes, institutional support systems, or legal frameworks for the effective or optimal operation of an institution of this nature. The ombud at the local level calls for a hybrid approach to the ombud practice, and further requires particular arrangements to ensure the independence and credibility of the institution. This paper explores some of these critical factors required for the effective operation of an ombud, such as its 'independence' and 'credibility'. Linked to these factors, are aspects relating to the ombud's 'accountability'. Whereas the office has to ensure organisational accountability to the public, it also has to report to the host organisation. The result is a form of dual accountability, which means that the office needs to optimise its credibility and legitimacy both in the public realm, and within the host organisation. This dissertation argues that while such paradoxes are not uncommon to oversight institutions, numerous problems arise as a result of the lack of a clear and coherent approach, and the lack of understanding of the basic requirements for the ombud's effective or optimal functioning.