Maintaining Momentum? Civil Society and the APRM in Zambia

This policy briefing examines the decline in momentum of the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) in Zambia, focusing on the waning involvement of civil society and challenges in implementing the National Programme of Action (NPoA). While Zambia initially pioneered innovative civil society engagement, the process has since struggled with funding, coordination, and a lack of integration into national development planning.

• The APRM process in Zambia has experienced a loss of momentum, characterized by a lack of funding and a failure to maintain sustained involvement from civil society.
• Zambia's civil society was initially very active, establishing an independent APRM Civil Society Secretariat in 2007, but enthusiasm declined significantly after this Secretariat was disbanded in 2011.
• Several factors contributed to the distancing of civil society from the APRM, including a lack of internal coordination, dependence on donors, insufficient funding, and a failure to institutionalize the APRM within the programs of participating organizations.
• The APRM has failed to become a central part of Zambia's governance discourse; major issues such as corruption, elections, and the constitution-making process are discussed publicly without reference to the mechanism.
• There are significant discrepancies and contradictions regarding the budget for the National Programme of Action (NPoA) in the Country Review Report (CRR), with figures ranging from approximately $4.9 million to over $80 billion.
• The Zambian government's Ministry of Justice clarified that the $80 billion figure was an ambitious cost derived from the Country Self-Assessment Report (CSAR) and that $4,945,600 is the correct figure, though actual costs are expected to rise as institutions budget according to current circumstances.
• The document recommends that the APRM be integrated into future national development plans to raise its profile and ensure implementation, and that civil society and government collaborate to increase public awareness through the media.

APA

Turianskyi, Y., & Gruzd, S. (2014). Maintaining Momentum? Civil Society and the APRM in Zambia. South African Institute of International Affairs. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Policy-Briefing-114.pdf

Chicago

Turianskyi, Yarik, and Steven Gruzd. Maintaining Momentum? Civil Society and the APRM in Zambia. South African Institute of International Affairs, 2014. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Policy-Briefing-114.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Turianskyi |first1=Yarik |last2=Gruzd |first2=Steven |title=Maintaining Momentum? Civil Society and the APRM in Zambia |publisher=South African Institute of International Affairs |date=November 2014 |url=https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Policy-Briefing-114.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{turianskyi2014maintaining, author = {Turianskyi, Yarik and Gruzd, Steven}, title = {{Maintaining Momentum? Civil Society and the APRM in Zambia}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, year = {2014}, month = nov, url = {https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Policy-Briefing-114.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }