The Mapungubwe Institute for Strategic Reflection (MISTRA) and the University of Johannesburg (UJ) in partnership with the Presidency are the proud hosts of the 25 Years of Democracy Conference scheduled to take place from 23 to 24 July 2019. The conference aims to facilitate reflective national discourse through research and social dialogue on the nation’s evolving democratisation process.
The multi-stakeholder conference will offer South Africans a platform to engage and share varied experiences in a post-apartheid democracy for democratic consolidation and rebuilding participatory citizenship. Participants will be encouraged to anchor their written and oral submissions on a deep conception of democracy, which transcends formal political or civil liberties.
The conference will be guided by four central questions:
- What lessons for governance, socio-economic transformation and nation building can we learn from our recent past?
- What are some critical success factors and challenges for realising the democratic promise?
- What will be the key drivers of change in the next 25 years of our democracy?
- Where will South Africa be in another 25 years?
The two days’ conference will use a range of interactive formats to facilitate both high level research and deep dives into policy and lived realities. The expected outcomes of the two days will include a report on conference proceedings and input into the Presidential Macrosocial Report that will be launched in the year 2022.
The initiative is supported by MultiChoice, Coca Cola, Nedbank, Anglo American, Business Leadership South Africa (BLSA) and Youth Lab.
SPEAKERS
Prof. Alison Gillwald
Executive Director of Research ICT Africa (RIA)
Anri van der Spuy
Manager of Research ICT Africa’s Digital Policy Project
Anelile Gibixego
Honours degree in environmental science at North West University
Asiphe Mxalisa
Master of Arts Research Candidate at the Nelson Mandela University
Dr. David Mohale
PhD in Development Studies from the University of South Africa
Dr Dawn Nagar
Doctorate Degree of Philosophy in International Relations from WITS
Dhesigen Naidoo
CEO of the Water Research Commission (WRC)
Diana Sanchez Betancourt
Senior Researcher at the HSRC
Dr. Charles Nwaila
DLITT (English) from the University of Pretoria
Dr Sithembile Mbete
Lecturer in the Department of Political Sciences at the University of Pretoria
Dr. Steven Gordon
Senior Research Specialist at Human Science Council of South Africa
Graeme Gotz
Director of Research at the Gauteng City-Region Observatory
Michael Sachs
Adjunct Professor at the Southern Centre for Inequality Studies at Wits
Kahinde O. Omotoso
post-doctoral research fellow at the DST/NRF SARChI
Kelebogile Leepile
University of Johannesburg two times graduate
Miyelani Mkhabela
Executive Director and Economic Strategist of Antswisa Management Group
Mthokozisi Alex Madlalay
Researcher at the Gauteng Provincial Legislature
Neil Coleman
Co-Director of the Institute for Economic Justice (IEJ)
Ntakuseni Razwiedani
Former Student Representative Council member at UFS
Prof. Garth le Pere
Extraordinary Professor in the Department of Political Studies at the University of Pretoria
Prof. Michael Kahn
Policy analyst and evaluator of research and innovation.
Prof. Mike Muller
Engineer and visiting adjunct Professor at the Wits University School of Governance
Prof. Mills Soko
Professor of International Business and Strategy at Wits Business School
Prof. Tshilidzi Marwala
Scholar with multi-disciplinary research interests
Mr. Risenga Maluleke
Statistician-General of South Africa and the head of Statistics South Africa
Thembani Mbadlanyana
Researcher at the Parliament of South Africa
Xolelwa Kashe-Katiya
Researcher and project manager for various institutions
TK Pooe
Lecturer at North West University’s School of Governance
SEE MORE FROM OUR LAST CONFERENCE
For video recordings, press releases and more, see our media section.
For more information on the
Macrosocial report contact:
For more information on the
25 Years of Democracy Conference contact: