From Africa Recovery, Vol.14#3 (October 2000), Briefs page

Governance forum urges stronger African democracies

Democracy advocates and practitioners from across Africa recommended the curbing of executive power and greater equity among the different branches of government at a conference in Kampala, Uganda, in September. Representatives from 17 countries came for the fourth Africa Governance Forum organized by the UN Development Programme and the UN Economic Commission for Africa since 1997. Ugandan Deputy Speaker of Parliament Edward Kiwanuka Sekandi said poor governance had dashed Africans' high hopes after independence.

Participants identified greater parliamentary control of the budget as essential to limiting executive domination and improving governance overall. They urged some form of proportional representation in elections, to give a direct voice in parliament to more sectors

of the population, help build a culture of tolerance and permit the drafting of consensus legislation on national issues. The delegates also proposed measures to effectively free the media from control by a dominant ruling party or executive authority, so that minority parties and alternative opinions are not silenced. In addition, members of parliament must win the trust of their constituents by developing greater accountability.

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