| Project | Synopsis |
|---|---|
Audit of pre-trial detainees in Malawi and Zambia |
The project aims - through an audit of eight police station/court/prison precincts in Malawi and Zambia - gather information on both the legal status of awaiting trial detainees and issues pertaining to conditions of incarceration in those two countries. |
Boosting capacity of Law Society of Zimbabwe |
The main goal of this project is to provide core funding to the Law Society of Zimbabwe to support self regulation, maintain the independence of the legal profession in Zimbabwe and influence policy decisions and institutional reforms of key institutions in the country and to protect and promote the rule of law and human rights defenders. |
Core funding for African Network of Constitutional Lawyers |
The main goal of this project is to provide core funding to the African Network of Constitutional Lawyers (ANCL) to conduct its day to day activities and to advance academic discourse on constitutionalism and constitutional law in the region and to influence policy on constitution making. The ANCL will publish a bi-annual journal on Constitutional Law in Africa. |
Crime and Violence Prevention in Mozambique |
Crime and violence prevention has long been recognized by civil society organizations internationally as a key component, along with law enforcement, of an effective response to promoting safety. However it was not until recently that key lending institutions began to make explicit links between violence prevention and development and not simply to view it as a security issue. |
Disability Rights and Law School Project |
In southern Africa, there is lack of awareness about disability issues, and inadequate implementation of disability policies, amongst lawyers. None of the region’s universities offer courses with a focus on disability rights and anti-discrimination law. The first phase of the disability rights and law school project, carried out by OSISA’s Law Programme, produced a report, based on nine southern African countries, that found “...no...‘stand alone’ courses on disability rights” in the region. |
Medico-legal Pilot Project to more Effectively Prosecute Crimes of Sexual Violence in the East Congo. |
Tens of thousands of east Congolese women and girls remain victims of sexual assault. OSISA has invested heavily in the mobile gender courts in this region, and while conviction rates have been good (over 80 percent), the use of forensic evidence remains marginal. The majority of rape trials rely on witness accounts that are not as reliable as forensic evidence. The absence of forensic evidence is due to the lack of necessary skills, of local lawyers, police and health professionals, to collect such evidence. |
Promoting disability rights and education in law schools in Southern Africa |
|
Support for SADC Lawyers Association |
The main goal of this project is to provide funding for core programme activities and the funds under this grant will be used to cover institutional expenses including salaries, administration and essential equipment. The beneficiaries of SADC LA’s work generally and under this project are the lawyers and human rights defenders in the SADC Region, and hopefully as a consequence the women, children, youth and the citizens of SADC. OSISA will provide a grant to SADC-LA, which is the representative body of lawyers, law societies and bar associations in the 15 member SADC region. |
Support to the Polytechnic of Namibia to Develop and Conduct a Crime and Violence Prevention Training Course |
In the World Development Report 2011, published by the World Bank, it is noted that more than 1.5 billion people live in countries affected by violence. It continues to highlight the negative impact of repeated cycles of violence on a country’s development prospects. Crime and violence in Namibia are increasingly serious problems that require immediate attention. Official crime figures, in categories such as rape, are among the highest in the region. |
Violence Prevention in Namibia |
Community and Local Authority-based Violence Prevention Project (CLAB-VPP) in Namibia Urban Trust Namibia and its partners will work with state and civil society partners to promote the crime and violence prevention agenda in Namibia. The project will contribute to knowledge through the learning from this pilot project on the nexus between law enforcement and crime prevention with a view to developing a sound national strategy for the management of crime and safety in Namibia. |
© Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa, All Rights Reserved.
