Traditional institutions of governance in a democratic South Africa

Abstract

Tha background of the apartheid legacy and the current constitutional and legilastive context is important to understand the intense debates around traditional leadership in South Africa. Constitutional and legislative developments around traditional institution in South Africa are probably the most advanced and detailed in Africa, and may point to solutions in other African countries. The second part of the chapter offers an analysis of a survey in two traditional communities in Giyani (Limpopo province) and Matatiele (Eastern Cape province). Although the two communities cannot claim to be representative of the complex relationships between traditional and modern institutions and modern institutions of governance, they share many aspects, such as constitutional and legislative frameworks, traditional institutions of governance at the level of chief, and a national debate on the role of traditional leadership.