Billy Ntaote
A GERMAN organisation is set to launch a M64 million programme aimed at creating dialogue between government and citizens to enhance democracy in the country next Tuesday.
The three year programme dubbed the Participatory Initiative for Social Accountability (PISA) will be launched in Mohale’s Hoek by the Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ).
According to a statement released yesterday by GIZ Communications Specialist, Retšelisitsoe Sekake, the PISA project is a programme for civic education in Lesotho initiated by the European Union (EU) and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) together with the government of Lesotho.
It is co-funded by the EU and BMZ for a period of three years and it commenced in June 2016. GIZ is a German government organisation that implements development projects globally.
Mr Sekake said the PISA project has established ten centres in all districts of Lesotho, with libraries furnished with reading material on government policies, the constitution and laws to increase their civic knowledge.
“The specific objective of the programme is to contribute to increasing citizens’ capacity and motivation to participate in democratic and developmental processes, while the expected results are; enhanced citizens’ knowledge on how to participate in democratic and developmental processes; active participation of citizens and community structures in dialogue forums; and improved opportunities for citizens to participate in public policy processes at community level,” Sekake said in the statement.
Sekake said the launch would be characterised by an open discussion under the theme “Speak up 4 Lesotho” in cooperation with Alliance Francaise on a topic “What Makes a Good Citizen?
He said the discussion would be facilitated by a panel of speakers drawn from the private sector, academia, government and civil society.
EU Ambassador Michael Doyle and German Honorary Consul, DM. Heinz Fiebig are expected to grace the launch.