Collaborative Governance and the Social Compact during the Covid-19 pandemic
Date
2023
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg
Abstract
South Africa has a strong history of tripartite co-operation and collaborative governance since democratic rule in 1994. As a democratic developing country, through the constitution, South Africa aims to follow the principles of good governance and promotes broad social actor (labour, business and civil society) inclusion as a means to develop a more equal and inclusive society. This form of governance is used across the various tiers of government in South Africa namely national, provincial and local, taking on a range of different institutional forms. It has also been used to tackle a diverse range of issues in sectors including but not limited to health, environment, economic and education.
The purpose of this research study was to investigate collaborative governance in the local manufacture of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and the insights this has provided on the challenges, obstacles and prospects for establishing a social compact for a South African economic recovery post the COVID-19 pandemic. This was done by exploring the understanding of collaborative governance and social compacting and the perspective of different social actors to the success of using these forms as a means to achieve successful collaborative outcomes for society during the pandemic. The study then considered what insights this process of collaborative governance has provided to guide the development of a social compact. Lastly the study explored if social solidarity plays any role in collaborative governance and what this enables within such an institutional setting.
The outcome of the research has revealed the importance major external shocks such as a global pandemic play in creating a context of shared risk, creating the potential for uniting social actors in the pursuit of solutions which serve the broader society. This has been contrasted by findings in relation to the effects of sectoral interests on the outcomes of collaborative governance, as well as the layered complexity of social actor groupings within South Africa and its impact on long term societal gains. It appears that this, along with a number of other challenges, poses significant obstacles to the development and implementation of a more society-centred social compact for South Africa, which is supported by implementation and accountability across social actors aimed at real societal transformation
Description
Submitted in partial fulfillment of the degree Master of Management from the School of Governance at the University of the Witwatersrand (WITS), Johannesburg 2023
Keywords
Covid-19, Collaboration, Social Compact, Social Solidarity, Governance, UCTD
Citation
Gilbert, Adele. (2023). Collaborative Governance and the Social Compact during the Covid-19 pandemic [Master’s dissertation PhD thesis, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg].https://hdl.handle.net/10539/40155