Strengthening Democracy at the Local Level
Electoral Institute of South Africa (EISA)
- Program Civil Society
- Program Area Special Initiatives
- Grant Amount $100,000
- Grant Period April 1, 2005–December 31, 2006
- Location Johannesburg, South Africa
- Geographic Focus Eastern Cape, Province of
About this grant
The Electoral Institute of South Africa works to strengthen democracy at the local level by educating citizens on what constitutes free and fair elections, setting standards for codes of conduct for elections, and monitoring elections. This grant supports efforts to enhance the effectiveness of the ward committee system, which is the formal structure through which communities participate in local government.Multiyear funding will enable the institute to expand efforts to a district municipality and four local municipalities in the Eastern Cape. Objectives include building the capacity of new councilors and ward committee members who will enter local government structures after the next elections; encouraging the involvement of community development workers as resource people for ward committees and councilors; and strengthening and mobilizing citizens to effectively participate and engage in decisionmaking processes at the local level.During the past two years, the institute worked with ward committees from the Great Kei and Ngqushwa municipalities in the Eastern Cape province to build their capacity and strengthen operations.