What We Do.
Governance Institutions and Political
& Processes
While there are many forms of representative democracy and many criticisms of the system itself, the quality of the available choices offered to the voter on a ballot paper is often linked directly to the quality of the democracy itself.
What We Do.
Political Institutions
& Processes
While there are many forms of representative democracy and many criticisms of the system itself, the quality of the available choices offered to the voter on a ballot paper is often linked directly to the quality of the democracy itself.
Political parties, although nominally private entities, therefore, serve a very public function in democratic states as the intermediaries through which many public representatives are elected and selected for public office.
The role of legislatures as oversight bodies is crucial to ensuring that the interests of a country’s citizens are protected and advanced through effective legislation and adequate oversight and monitoring of the Executive.
The role of Election Management Bodies (EMBs) in managing and facilitating credible elections is central to the perception of trust (or lack thereof) that public representatives enjoy.
In the increasingly interconnected world of the 21st century, the importance of regional and sub-regional blocs encouraging and supporting a broad human rights agenda and strengthening democratic norms and standards is a necessary additional pillar to the foundations of representative democracies.
When a state fails to uphold its own obligations, it is sometimes through external reproval and dialogue that such failures are overcome.
While there has been progress in the participation of women in all aspects of political life since adoption of the Solemn Declaration on Gender Equality in Africa in 2004, women’s participation in many African states remains skewed in favour of male political representation at all levels of government and within political parties.
This is despite the existence of 50-50 quotas and targets at both African Union and sub-regional levels within Africa. Whilst quotas offer a useful measurement tool for progress towards gender equality, the discussion of political representation that results often reduces a set of complex societal and structural problems to a case of number counting.
Often, the barriers and impediments to full political participation of women begins at the local level, with societal norms, customs and stigmas limiting the full participation of women in the political life of their community. For example, during campaigning, which is often most effective after work hours to allow campaigning candidates to meet with their constituents, women face gender specific barriers as they are stigmatised for being “outside of the home” until late hours of the evening, when similar judgements are not applied to male candidates.
EISA continues to support political parties and legislatures to be more mindful of gender-specific barriers to the participation of women through its work on gender-inclusive policies and structures within political parties, and gender-supportive legislation for female candidates and contestants at all levels of the electoral process.
Africa has the youngest population globally. However, some of the world’s oldest – and longest running – leaders are found on the continent. The result of increasingly young national populations who are unable to identify with government leaders and feel unheard and unrepresented within the democratic system are left feeling apathetic about political participation.
EISA works with political parties and civil society groups to include young people in decision-making processes, creating a more knowledgeable and empowered future generation of democratic citizens and leaders.
While there has been progress in the participation of women in all aspects of political life since adoption of the Solemn Declaration on Gender Equality in Africa in 2004, women’s participation in many African states remains skewed in favour of male political representation at all levels of government and within political parties. This is despite the existence of 50-50 quotas and targets at both African Union and sub-regional levels within Africa. Whilst quotas offer a useful measurement tool for progress towards gender equality, the discussion of political representation that results often reduces a set of complex societal and structural problems to a case of number counting.
Often, the barriers and impediments to full political participation of women begins at the local level, with societal norms, customs and stigmas limiting the full participation of women in the political life of their community. For example, during campaigning, which is often most effective after work hours to allow campaigning candidates to meet with their constituents, women face gender specific barriers as they are stigmatised for being “outside of the home” until late hours of the evening, when similar judgements are not applied to male candidates.
EISA continues to support political parties and legislatures to be more mindful of gender-specific barriers to the participation of women through its work on gender-inclusive policies and structures within political parties, and gender-supportive legislation for female candidates and contestants at all levels of the electoral process.
Africa has the youngest population globally. However, some of the world’s oldest – and longest running – leaders are found on the continent. The result of increasingly young national populations who are unable to identify with government leaders and feel unheard and unrepresented within the democratic system are left feeling apathetic about political participation.
EISA works with political parties and civil society groups to include young people in decision-making processes, creating a more knowledgeable and empowered future generation of democratic citizens and leaders.