Peer Review Under Scrutiny

The African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) has evolved from a concept into a multifaceted system with 29 member states, providing candid governance diagnoses and opening political space for reform. However, the institution currently faces significant crises of confidence regarding the transparency of its leadership selection, a lack of a CEO since June 2007, and the marginalization of civil society.

• The APRM has successfully transitioned from a concept to a functional system, attracting 29 of the 53 African states, which represents over three-quarters of the continent's population. It is a voluntary process where countries are compared against their own potential rather than being ranked against each other.
• The mechanism's reports have provided accurate and sober analyses of governance issues, including predicting ethnic violence following Kenya's 2007 elections and warning about xenophobia in South Africa prior to outbreaks in May 2008 and 2009.
• There are grave concerns among APRM Focal Points regarding the transparency and integrity of the governance of the process, specifically concerning the selection criteria for the four new members of the Panel of Eminent Persons.
• The APRM faces severe operational and structural hurdles, including the absence of a CEO since June 2007, capacity constraints in the Midrand-based Secretariat, and a 'bifurcated system' where half of the members have completed a review cycle while others have not yet started.
• Civil society has been largely neglected and ignored within the APRM process, often facing vilification when raising concerns about the integrity of the mechanism.

APA

South African Institute of International Affairs (2010). Peer Review Under Scrutiny. https://saiia.org.za/research/peer-review-under-scrutiny/

Chicago

South African Institute of International Affairs. Peer Review Under Scrutiny. 2010. https://saiia.org.za/research/peer-review-under-scrutiny/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=South African Institute of International Affairs |title=Peer Review Under Scrutiny |date=7 February 2010 |url=https://saiia.org.za/research/peer-review-under-scrutiny/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{southafricaninstituteofinternationalaffairs2010peer, author = {{South African Institute of International Affairs}}, title = {{Peer Review Under Scrutiny}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, year = {2010}, month = feb, url = {https://saiia.org.za/research/peer-review-under-scrutiny/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }