Launch of the 2019 sustainability index 

The report, which Zimbabwe is part of the identified countries reports on developments in 2019 across seven key dimensions affecting the sustainability of the CSO sectors in thirty-two countries. One new country, Cameroon, is included in this year’s Index.

The dimensions used to score the level of sustainability of CSOs are Legal environment, financial viability, organization capacity, advocacy, service provision, sectoral infrastructure and public image.

In 2019, civil society across sub-Saharan Africa continued to be shaped by and respond to major political and economic developments, including elections and changes in governments, insecurity, economic stress, and efforts to close civic space.

Despite these often turbulent contexts, CSO sectors in a number of countries made notable advances in their advocacy and public image, frequently in the face of harassment by government officials, politicians, and media outlets.

While these developments are largely in line with trends affecting CSO sustainability in the region over the past few years, the world has changed dramatically since the end of 2019, when the novel coronavirus began to spread globally.

The pandemic had created a sense of cognitive dissonance between the situations described in the reports contained in this Index and the current realities at the time of publication in late 2020.

Next year’s edition of the Index will describe vastly different landscapes for CSOs. Given the devastating impact of the pandemic, dramatic declines are to be expected in CSOs’ financial viability, organizational capacity, and ability to travel, while public demand for CSOs’ services is likely to increase.

In 2019, civil society sectors across Africa faced challenges that made them vulnerable but also built their resilience to the challenges to come. The following summary highlights some of the trends observed in this pre-pandemic world.

We do hope you will spare some time to go through this comprehensive report and reflect on what needs to be done to enhance Civil society sustainability.