HSF & NID kick-off
Political Party Capacity Building Programme

In the year 2016 the focus is on enhancing participant’s leadership abilities through developing the knowledge, attitudes, skills and behaviours of those individuals in workshops. In Namibia there are a wide range of parties numbering sixteen to vote for in elections, but for those elections to be meaningful, all parties need to be competitive. This is what the programme is about.

In participating, individuals will be able to contribute towards and ensure the desired development of the organisational needs of their political parties, provide them with the necessary technical capacity to be competitive in elections, and with the long-term view of growing as political entities.

So far, two trainings have taken place in Okahandja at the Rock Lodge in March and April 2016, with two further training weeks to occur in June and July of this year. The trainings in March and April were focusing on Transformational Leadership in Political Parties and Accountable Governance of Democratic Institutions. In the first workshop participants were introduced to the concept of leadership and the ethics around the development of party members. The second workshop introduced vital state institutions and non-state institutions to participants.

Mentorship is a further component of the programme, which came into effect for participants after they have attended the first trainings in March and April. Each participant will attach him or herself to a mentor to shadow in their political party with a pre-determined set of goals for their own personal development.

The final segment of the programme will take place in October 2016, where participants will return to provide their solutions to one challenge within their political party that they have identified.