This Wednesday, March 19, in Quelimane, the Round Table on "The New Cycle of Governance: The Role of CSOs in Monitoring Public Policies and Good Practices in Local Governance", promoted by IMD and FONGZA, took place as part of the Schools for Democracy initiative.
The event brought together representatives of the Provincial Executive Council, Provincial Assembly, State Representation Services, district administrators, civil society, social activists, political parties, academics, among other actors, with the aim of strengthening the dialogue on transparency, citizen participation and monitoring governance.
The opening session featured a speech by the Governor of Zambezia Province, Pio Augusto Matos, who stressed the importance of continuous dialog and information sharing between government and civil society. He also stressed the need for civil society to "occupy its space, becoming not only critics but also partners in supporting governance". For him, in the current political context, CSOs should be an element and factor of social stability.
For his part, Osman Cossing (IMD Program Coordinator) stressed that this new government cycle represents a unique opportunity to influence governance plans and public policies, thus strengthening collaboration between CSOs and local governance structures. Estevão Neves (President of FONGZA) stressed the role of CSOs in mobilizing communities and critically analysing policies. This civil society representative drew attention to the barriers faced by civil society in Zambezia and pointed to the opportunities emerging with the start of the new government cycle.
The initiative is part of the "Pro Civico and Human Rights" project, funded by Finland and implemented by IMD, MASC, CESC and CDD.
Embassy of Finland Maputo - Suomen suurlähetystö Maputo
IMD - Institute for Multiparty Democracy
Civil Society Learning and Training Center - CESC
