SAIIA Roundtable: The African Peer Review Mechanism – Progress and Prospects

The document reports on a February 2010 roundtable discussing the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM). It highlights the mechanism's success in attracting 30 member states and producing 12 comprehensive Country Review Reports (CRRs) that diagnose governance failures. However, it identifies critical weaknesses, including a 'crisis of leadership', insufficient funding, and a lack of systematic implementation of National Programmes of Action (NPoAs). The discussion emphasizes the need for greater transparency in the Panel of Eminent Persons and more robust civil society engagement to ensure the APRM's long-term credibility and impact.

• The APRM has seen significant growth in participation, with the number of acceding states increasing from a few in 2003 to 30 by 2010, representing 76% of the continent's population.
• Twelve countries have completed the full review cycle, resulting in Country Review Reports (CRRs) that provide frank assessments of governance challenges such as corruption, unemployment, and land disputes.
• There is a notable gap between the diagnostic phase of the APRM and the implementation of National Programmes of Action (NPoAs), which are often poorly integrated into national budgets and development plans.
• The APRM faces a 'crisis of leadership' and institutional immaturity, evidenced by the fact that a hosting agreement for the Secretariat was only signed seven years after its establishment.
• Civil society engagement is perceived as limited and potentially exclusionary, particularly at the continental level and within APRM Forum meetings.
• The mechanism has struggled to translate identified 'best practices' into a systematic learning model that other member states can easily adopt.

APA

Gruzd, S. (2010). SAIIA Roundtable: The African Peer Review Mechanism – Progress and Prospects. South African Institute of International Affairs. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/Occasional-Paper-59.pdf

Chicago

Gruzd, Steven. SAIIA Roundtable: The African Peer Review Mechanism – Progress and Prospects. South African Institute of International Affairs, 2010. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/Occasional-Paper-59.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Gruzd |first1=Steven |title=SAIIA Roundtable: The African Peer Review Mechanism – Progress and Prospects |publisher=South African Institute of International Affairs |date=April 2010 |url=https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/Occasional-Paper-59.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{gruzd2010saiia, author = {Gruzd, Steven}, title = {{SAIIA Roundtable: The African Peer Review Mechanism – Progress and Prospects}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, year = {2010}, month = apr, url = {https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/Occasional-Paper-59.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }