Namibia country report

2.11 Frameworks for interaction betweenthe state and civil societyCivil society organisations in the land reform sector are either non-existent or very weak.The point has been made that there are no advocacy groups lobbying government for a propoorland reform programme. But an official framework for such co-operation has beendeveloped. In 2005, government released a policy document on civic organisations andpartnership (NPC 2005). This policy was developed in recognition of the prominent rolethat civic organisations have played in the development of Namibia generally. It seeks todefine the sector as well as establish a framework for partnerships between governmentand civil society that is transparent and characterised by accountability (ibid.: 1).Research suggests that SWAPO has had a complex relationship with civil society organisations,which undoubtedly was shaped by the demands of the armed struggle. SWAPO’smobilisation strategy during the struggle did not provide much support to local communitybasedorganisations. According to Dobell (1995: 172), the focus on mobilising the internationalcommunity meant that little mobilisation was undertaken inside the country. This wasso because SWAPO was opposed to any form of community-based development workinside the country on the grounds that it might “divert energy and resources away fromthe political struggle for Independence”. Grassroots development projects, even thoughinitiated by members of SWAPO and/or allied institutions, were thought to “obscure theroots of oppression and poverty, encourage reformism and diminish revolutionary fervour”(Steenkamp 1995: 107). In addition, SWAPO feared that community-based developmentprojects might strengthen other civil society organisations and institutions relative to SWAPO,thereby “loosening its control and perhaps challenging its status as sole and authenticrepresentative of the Namibian people” (ibid.: 108). In the field of labour, Tapscott (1995:158) suggested that SWAPO’s interest in organised labour was instrumental largely in sofar as it was aimed at generating support for the liberation struggle rather than fighting forworkplace demands to be met.Pressure on SWAPO to agree to the provision of external aid and to support communitybaseddevelopment organisations’ efforts to mobilise and support local communitiesincreased. This pressure came from its internal wing and the Council of Churches inNamibia (CCN) which was closely aligned with SWAPO. Finally SWAPO agreed to suchaid being provided, subject to stringent conditions. These included that all foreign aidhad to be channelled through the CCN and had to be used for educational rather thansocio-economic projects. “The CCN [thus] became the conduit for SWAPO patronage”(Steenkamp 1995: 108).Roughly coinciding with this change in policy, the early 1980s witnessed an upsurge in theformation of community-based organisations (CBOs). This was partially due to a growingcynicism that Independence would not come within months or even years, which fuelledscepticism about the ability of external diplomacy alone to bring about Independence.Progressive activists also exploited the political space that opened up on account of SWAPO’s48 ● Livelihoods after land reform: Namibia country report (2010)