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Good governancefor achieving theMDGsThe African Civil Society Forum 2007Addis Ababa, Ethiopia21 March 2007The theme of this meeting – “Democratizing Governance at regionaland global level to achieve the Millennium DevelopmentGoals (MDGs)” - resonates with any well-informed observer of Africansocieties because it underscores the important role of popularparticipation in achieving the MDGs. It also indicates at the sametime that African countries cannot go it alone in their quest for developmentbut need to work together at the regional level and inpartnership with the rest of the international community.Most of the MDGs are people specific and success in achieving themis dependent on genuine ownership and participation, which in turncan only be guaranteed by inclusiveness and equity, the cornerstonesof democratic governance. As the only continent that is noton track to achieve all the MDGs by the target date of 2015, Africatherefore has a particular interest in ensuring the democratisationof governance to achieve the MDGs. This is however not a job forgovernments alone nor is it limited to the national level.It is evident that African countries have made major strides in democratisinggovernance, notably since the 1990 Arusha Conference,which produced the African Charter for Popular Participation in Developmentand Transformation. The Arusha document was a milestoneas it identified the lack of popular participation in developmentas central to the dismal state of African economies and also asIntegrating Africa281