The Gambia

Democratic Governance

In recent years, it has become increasing apparent that good governance, which provides an effective and efficient framework for public management, is indispensable to reducing poverty and empowering citizens to exercise their rights and participate in national affairs. The critical importance of establishing democratic governance especially in developing countries was highlighted at the Millennium Summit where world leaders resolved to “spare no effort to promote democracy and strengthen the rule of law, as well as respect for all internationally recognized human rights and fundamental freedoms, including the right to development”.

In line with these principles, UNDP supported a National Governance Programme (2000-2004) which has helped to extend and deepen widespread understanding of the concept of good governance and contributed to enlightened decision-making processes aimed at facilitating community engagement and participation in sustainable poverty reduction initiatives. The Programme has also assisted in short and medium-term capacity development within key national institutions and has been instrumental in finalizing various private sector oriented bills designed to provide a business and investment friendly environment in the Gambia.

Specific achievements include:

• Establishment of a National Governance Secretariat within the Policy Analysis Unit, Office of the President to oversee and monitor activities and progress of governance institutions and to coordinate donor assistance for governance. Indicators on good governance have also been adopted through establishment of Secretariat.
  
• Enactment of the legislative frameworks, i.e Local Government Act 2002 and Local Government Finance and Audit Act 2004 for the operationalisation of local government reform and decentralization programme. Multi-disciplinary Faciltation Teams (MDFTs) were established and together local government staff were trained in facilitating the decentralization process. Technical Advisory Committees (TACs) were formed and made fully operational with 26 Village Development Committees(VDCs) and 15 Ward Development Committees (WDCs) participating in independent resource mobilisation initiatives.
  
• Revision and modernization of the rules of the High Court and Subordinate Courts to combine due process of law and efficiency
  
• Integration civic education into the formal curricular and syllabuses of the education system and over 400 communities in rural and urban areas covered in the National Council for Civic Education (NCCE’s) strategic mass campaigns and sensitizations.
  
• Capacity of National Assembly structures, systems and processes were strengthened to enable it perform its legislative and oversight functions more effectively and efficiently.

A key lesson learned from programme implementation is interventions must have a strong capacity building component especially in the areas of gender and women participation. UNDP CO was also perceived as a neutral and trusted partner both by national counterparts and the donor community. This is considered crucial in any governance-related interventions, where sensitivities are high.

Against this background and following extensive consultations, the CPAP (2007-2011) was developed indicating new opportunities for cooperation in the area of Governance and Human Rights. Throughout the implementation period, the focus will be on creating an enabling policy environment and framework for implementing pro-poor growth whilst deepening the democratic processes through establishing a system of transparency and accountability at national and local levels.

As detailed in the CPAP (2007-2011), the UNDP will employ a holistic approach to governance and human rights to strengthen the democratic process in the Gambia through enhanced capacity building, improved opportunity for gender equality, mainstreaming human rights into national policies, strengthened key governance institutions and sustainable and transparent electoral processes and systems to sustain democratic principles. To implement this strategy, the following programmes and projects have been prepared and signed with the government: