Public Service Accountability Monitor - PSAM

23/07/2026

Check out these inspiring reflections and actions being taken in Tanzania by rural youth champions to enhance access to education through our Kuyenda Collective project supported by Global Partnership for Education

Participating as an Online Delegate in the 8th Southern Africa Youth Forum (SAYoF 2026), held in the Republic of South Africa from 21–23July 2026, represents a significant opportunity to strengthen my commitment to youth empowerment and leadership across the Southern African region.

My journey with the Kuyenda Collective from 2022 to date has taught me that young people are not merely beneficiaries of development initiatives, they are capable leaders who can influence policies, mobilize communities, and create sustainable solutions.

Through youth-led initiatives such as the School Notice Board Initiative, school feeding advocacy, and education financing campaigns, I have worked alongside parents, school committees, local government leaders, and civil society organizations to promote transparency, accountability, and inclusive participation in education.

These experiences have demonstrated that when young people are equipped with knowledge, leadership skills, and meaningful opportunities, they become catalysts for positive change within their communities.
SAYoF 2026 offers a unique platform to exchange ideas, learn from fellow young leaders, and build regional partnerships that advance youth-led development.

I am eager to share Tanzania’s experiences while learning innovative approaches that can strengthen youth participation in governance, climate resilience, food security, and sustainable development.

I am committed to returning from the forum with practical knowledge, stronger regional networks, and renewed inspiration to empower more young people to become responsible leaders, active citizens, and champions of inclusive development.

Together, we can shape a future where youth are recognized not only as the leaders of tomorrow, but as the leaders transforming Africa today.

Author: Emmanuel Kavula, Rural Youth Collective from Tanzania Mbogwe Immanuel Kulwa Kavula

Kuyenda Collective

20/07/2026

According to Kruuse, the pattern is structural, not incidental. The municipality’s control environment has effectively collapsed: record-keeping, asset registers and internal controls have failed year after year, not as isolated mistakes but as a system with no working checks left. Consequence management has failed alongside it…

Makana Local Municipality accumulated nearly R1 billion in financial irregularities over seven years as audit failures, procurement breaches and governance failures deepened.

22/06/2026

Join us on Friday 26 June 2026 at 11am SAST for a public finance webinar that considers the International Budget Partnership Open Budget Survey results for South Africa. PSAM Director Jay Kruuse will present the survey findings and a panel discussion will include inputs from representatives of National Treasury, Budget Justice Coalition and the Collaborative African Budget Reform Initiative.

17/06/2026

Some telling observations by Chris Yelland in this article, describing the impacts that Eskom's curtailment process is having on renewable energy producers. Some questions and observations require targeted exploration and oversight by Parliament of the Republic of South Africa and input from NERSA to help address access to information and reduce the potential for conflicts of interests.

In this week’s edition of the Energy Report, Chris Yelland details how a massive spike in "curtailment" instructions has left South Africa’s renewable energy producers facing severe financial risk. With Eskom refereeing a game where it is also the biggest player, independent producers are waitin...

10/06/2026

South African Human Rights Commission calls on Zolile Williams Eastern Cape MEC for Cogta Eastern Cape and Premier Mabuyane to consider dissolving Makana Local Municipality finding that “the evidence demonstrates persistent governance failures, institutional incapacity and ineffective implementation of corrective measures which have materially impaired Makana’s ability to provide basic municipal services in a sustainable, effective and accountable manner.”

Will the provincial executive continue its practice of shielding repeat contraveners of multiple laws?

03/06/2026

Just released: 2025 Open Budget Survey Results for 33 Sub-Saharan African countries now available. We undertook the research for South Africa - check out the Questionnaire with answers and the Country Summary at:

The Open Budget Survey (OBS) is the world’s only independent, comparative and fact-based research instrument that uses internationally accepted criteria to assess public access to central government budget information; formal opportunities for the public to participate in the national budget proce...

02/06/2026

Tomorrow is the release date for findings and recommendations related to the 2025 Open Budget Survey. 33 countries situated in sub Saharan African participated in the survey that measures national level budget transparency, oversight and public participation. Register for the regional launch webinar at http://internationalbudget.org/events/accountability-at-a-crossroads/

20/05/2026

Some points of emphasis from rural youth we have been supporting and learning with across 4 countries of implementation.

There is a difference between complaining about a broken education system and understanding how it broke. The Rural Youth Collectives in the Kuyenda Collective network do the second thing.

They track education budgets. They ask whether funding is reaching the right schools. They engage with the officials responsible for planning and hold them accountable — with evidence, not just frustration.

We wrote about who they are and how they work. It is worth a read.
🔗 https://www.kuyendacollective.org/article/who-holds-education-accountable-meet-the-rural-youth-collectives/

18/05/2026

Speaking up against corruption can cost you everything. But we need whistleblowers to protect our democracy, our constitutional rights and our society. But t...

31/03/2026

See our press statement on the Middle East conflict.

31 March 2026 – Public Service Accountability Monitor (PSAM) notes with concern the escalating Middle East crisis involving Israel, the USA, and Iran, which threatens civilians, human rights, and global economies. Oversight Needed US elected representatives must hold President Donald Trump account...