State top down, people bottom up

There's a disconnect between how the state interacts with citizens and how citizens engage with the state, which hampers governance

- Mmabatho Mongae

Citizen engagement — the process by which people are involved in public issues — is at the centre of democratic governance.

Through voting, protests, attending community meetings and contacting local councillors, citizens can enhance effectiveness, accountability and transparency. But what are the consequences when citizen participation is disregarded?

Democratic participation is meant to influence decision-making processes. But its effect on local governance appears limited. One contributing factor may be how the government interacts with citizens.

For example, planning and budget documents presented by the local government are often lengthy, use technical terminology and are released shortly before public consultations. As a result, the timeframe available for citizens to read, interpret and respond to them is constrained, which restricts the potential for informed input into planning, budgeting, and service delivery.

From a data perspective, there is an overall decline in civic engagement. But what does this suggest, what modes of civic interaction are declining and what does this tell us about political behaviour in South Africa?

Civic engagement encompasses multiple political and civic activities. The type of civic interaction that most South Africans participate in may give insight into how they are choosing to engage with the state.

The 2025 Afrobarometer report identifies 10 indicators for civic participation: voted in the last election; feel close to a political party; discuss politics; attended a community meeting; joined others to raise an issue; contacted a traditional leader; contacted a local councillor; contacted a political party official; contacted an MP; and participated in a protest.