OUR KEYNOTE SPEAKERS
Day 1: 31 August 2021, 09:00am (South African Time)
Day 2: 1 September 2021, 09:00am (South African Time)
ABOUT THE CONFERENCE
‘GOOD GOVERNANCE, PARTICIPATORY DEMOCRACY, AND SOCIAL JUSTICE: CIVIL SOCIETY AS AN AGENT OF CHANGE AND INNOVATION IN AFRICA’
The Faculty of Humanities at the University of Johannesburg (UJ), through its Department of Politics and International Relations, with the support of the Ford Foundation, is proud to have hosted the ‘Good Governance, Participatory Democracy, and Social Justice: Civil Society as an Agent of Change and Innovation in Africa’ Conference (otherwise referred to as the African Civil Society Conference). The Conference took place on the 31st of August 2021 and the 1st of September 2021.
The conference brought together civil society actors and scholars from across Africa to review and assess the constructive roles that civil society has played and continues to play on the continent in addressing a range of political and socio-economic challenges. Focus areas include good governance, quality democracy, gender, the environment, youth, human rights promotion, technology, and active citizenship.
The African Civil Society Conference is part of UJ’s commitment to creating a collaborative and cohesive space that allows both scholars and practitioners to share ideas, experiences, to network, and form partnerships that can make meaningful and impactful contributions to society.
In an attempt to ensure that the African Civil Society Conference yields maximum impact, the conference organisers will be making arrangements for post-conference publications and a post-conference cross-sector exchange between academia, civil society and governance structures. To ensure that participation in these post-conference undertakings are accessible to all participants, the conference organisers will be offering additional publishing support to practitioners.
ORGANISING COMITTEE
Conference Organising Committee Chair
Dr Bhaso Ndzendze is a Senior Lecturer and Head of Department in the Department of Politics and International Relations at the University of Johannesburg. His books and journal articles focus on the patterns and outcomes of democratisation in Africa as well as technology dynamics in international affairs. He has conducted field work in East and Southern Africa in relation to both.
Dean of the Faculty of Humanities
Prof Kammila Naidoo is a Professor in the Department of Sociology and is the Executive Dean of the Faculty of Humanities and Professor of Sociology at the University of Johannesburg. She has taught at four South African universities, and has published in the areas of gender relations, family, violence, and the changing politics of communities-in-transition. She has served as a journal editor, guest editor of various special issues, and has sat on a number of review panels, both for universities and institutional bodies.
Conference Assistant
Sven Botha is an Assistant Lecturer in the Department of Politics and International Relations at the University of Johannesburg where he is also completing his MA. At present, Sven’s research interests include: terrorism, counter-terrorism, gender, security in the Global South, foreign policy and diplomacy. He has published a number of book reviews, academic articles, book chapters and is currently working on a textbook and a proposal for a new book series.
Conference Assistant
Heather Loeto holds a BA in Social Science in Communications and Media Studies and International Studies, a BA Honours in Social Science in International Studies and a Master of Philosophy in International Studies from Monash University. Her research interests include nuclear non-proliferation, NPT, nuclear weapons history, arms control and disarmament. Her master’s thesis titled “Nuclear Pariahs: A Comparison between North Korea and South Africa” draws a comparison on the nuclear weapons programmes of two nuclear pariahs, apartheid South Africa and North Korea. She is currently doing her first year of her Ph.D. in Politics and International Relations at the University of Johannesburg. Her current study focuses on nuclear latency/nuclear hedging and nuclear proliferation.
Chair Emeritus
Prof Victoria Graham specializes in democracy studies, diplomacy, policy making, and comparative politics.
SUPPORTED BY
