Financial disclosure requirements in South Africa 2004 - 2008: Holding elected politicians accountable

The paper is a product of a three-year research project undertaken by the ISS Corruption and Governance Programme.

To control potential conflicts of interest and ensure greater accountability many democracies, like South Africa, have introduced financial disclosure regulations, which set obligations on elected public officials to publicly declare their personal financial and non-financial interests. By making this information publicly available the conduct of public officials is made more transparent, thereby allowing democratic institutions and citizens to hold politicians accountable. Drawing strongly on empirical data, the paper examines and evaluates the various aspects of the implementation process of financial disclosure for South Africa’s elected officials. These include the scope and content of disclosure requirements, compliance by elected officials, institutional support and capacity for disclosure, monitoring and oversight mechanisms and public access to information. The paper is a product of a three-year research project undertaken by the ISS Corruption and Governance Programme.

About the authors

Collette Schulz-Herzenberg is a senior researcher in the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) Corruption & Governance Programme in Cape Town. She is currently leading a project on conflicts of interest in public life. She holds a Doctorate specialising in South African voting behaviour and an MSc in Democratic Governance from the University of Cape Town. She also holds a BA Honours in the Politics of Africa and Asia from the University of London. She has worked as an elections analyst for the South African Broadcasting Corporation during elections and as a researcher on governance issues with the Institute for Democracy in South Africa. She has also worked in Parliament and lectured on South African politics.

Rosemary Vickerman worked as a commissioned researcher in the Corruption and Governance Programme at the ISS in Cape Town. She has an MSc and Honours in South African and Comparative Politics from the University of Cape Town.