Aspekte van die openbare beleidproses in Suid-Afrika met spesiale verwysing na die waterbeleid (1994-1999)

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT:This dissertation presents aspects of the public policy process in South Africa withspecific reference to water policy between 1994 and 1999. For the purposes of thisresearch, the definition of water policy coincides with the government's definitionas contained in the Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP), theGrowth, Employment and Redistribution Programme (GEAR), white papers, billsand legislation.Water policy is a broad subject and is approached from a social sciences focus inthis study, in that it uses the fulfilment of human needs as a point of departure.Water policy that applied before 1994 was based on water legislation of 1956, aswell as some eighty different Acts that were fragmented between a number ofinstitutions. The focus was on water rights, linked to property rights from whichthe majority of South Africans were excluded. In the implementation of policyattention was mainly paid to engineering achievements.The acknowledgement that water resources are limited in South Africa, as well as inthe rest of the world, and the increasing demands on these sources, focused theattention anew on responsible water policy.Since South Africa's transition to an inclusive political democracy in 1994, a varietyof far-reaching changes took place with regard to political decision-making and thepublic policy process. Not only did the policy-making process change, but policygoals, actors, structures and organisations also changed. It is clear that the policyagenda differs significantly from that of the period preceding 1994. In this study,the context within which policy renewal took place in South Africa since 1994, hasbeen presented, and the policy process that new water legislation was subjected to,is described. The role of policy actors and communities - in line with the principlesof the Constitution of 1996 that encourage public participation in the democracy - isconsidered. The implementation of the new water policy could unfortunately notbe evaluated as it has only been promulgated a year ago.This study serves as an introduction to a research area which has received littleattention thus far and that has potential for further research.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University