{"id":7645,"date":"2026-10-29T09:54:21","date_gmt":"2026-10-29T07:54:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/?p=194928"},"modified":"2026-10-29T09:54:21","modified_gmt":"2026-10-29T07:54:21","slug":"south-african-communities-to-put-their-priorities-directly-to-political-parties-at-national-democracy-convention","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/mail\/south-african-communities-to-put-their-priorities-directly-to-political-parties-at-national-democracy-convention\/","title":{"rendered":"South African Communities to Put Their Priorities Directly to Political Parties at National Democracy Convention"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_89 ez-toc-wrap-center counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title ez-toc-toggle\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/south-african-communities-to-put-their-priorities-directly-to-political-parties-at-national-democracy-convention\/#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\" \/><\/svg><svg class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\" \/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><\/nav>\n<\/div>\n<p><em>Kagiso Trust\u2019s People Build Democracy initiative will bring civil society and political parties together on 29\u201330 October to turn community demands into a shared agreement for action and accountability.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>&nbsp;<\/strong><strong>At a glance<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>&nbsp;<\/strong>29\u201330 October 2026: Kagiso Trust will convene the People Build Democracy national convention at Birchwood Conference Centre.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Community voices: Civil society organisations, social movements and community formations will consolidate priorities raised by South Africans.<\/li>\n<li>Five years of community engagement: <em>Isivumelwano \u2013 The Agreement<\/em> draws on community manifestos, action plans, protest memoranda and dialogue reports.<\/li>\n<li>Political accountability: Invited political parties will be asked to respond publicly to the consolidated community priorities.<\/li>\n<li>Non-partisan platform: The convention aims to strengthen active citizenship and keep community concerns central to democratic decision-making.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>South African communities will have an opportunity to put their priorities directly to political parties at a national convention aimed at securing greater accountability and action on issues affecting their daily lives.<\/p>\n<p>On 29 and 30 October, Kagiso Trust will bring civil society organisations, social movements and community formations together for the People Build Democracy national convention at Birchwood Conference Centre.<\/p>\n<p>With service delivery challenges, declining public trust and political accountability remaining pressing concerns, the convention will put community priorities at the centre of discussions with political parties.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Community_priorities_shaped_by_five_years_of_engagement\"><\/span><strong>Community priorities shaped by five years of engagement<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>At the heart of the initiative is <em>Isivumelwano \u2013 The Agreement<\/em>, a document informed by five years of community engagement, including manifestos, action plans, protest memoranda and dialogue reports.<\/p>\n<p>These priorities will be brought together in a shared agreement that political parties will be invited to respond to, providing a basis for continued public engagement and accountability.<\/p>\n<p>Rev. Zwoitwaho Nevhutalu, Chairperson of the Board of Directors at Kagiso Trust, says democracy cannot begin and end at the ballot box.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDemocracy extends beyond the ballot box. We all need to be active citizens to achieve a democracy that works for us all. Through People Build Democracy, we want communities to recognise the power they have to shape their own future and hold those in leadership accountable.\u201d<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Political_parties_to_respond_to_community_demands\"><\/span><strong>Political parties to respond to community demands<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><strong>The convention will take place over two days:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>29 October: Participating civil society and community organisations will review and refine <em>Isivumelwano<\/em>, consolidating the priorities they want political leaders to address.<\/li>\n<li>30 October: Invited political parties will have an opportunity to respond to the agreement through a structured, non-partisan public engagement.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Building_active_citizenship_beyond_elections\"><\/span><strong>Building active citizenship beyond elections<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>The initiative builds on Kagiso Trust\u2019s #StartWhereYouAre campaign, which encourages South Africans to become active citizens by identifying challenges in their communities, speaking up and taking practical steps towards solutions.<\/p>\n<p>Boichoko Ditlhake, Civil Society Support Programme Head at Kagiso Trust, says the convention will help ensure that community voices are heard at a national level.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEvery day, people in our communities come together to talk about the challenges they face, share ideas and imagine a better future for their children. These conversations produce real solutions, but too often those voices are not heard beyond their communities.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPeople Build Democracy brings these voices together nationally. We want the issues communities have raised and the solutions they have proposed to form part of a shared agreement that keeps their priorities at the centre of South Africa\u2019s future.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>For Kagiso Trust, which marked 40 years in 2025, the initiative reflects its commitment to Igniting Human Capacity, supporting communities to take an active role in shaping the country\u2019s development.<\/p>\n<p>Under the theme <em>From Citizen Voice to Shared Action and Accountability<\/em>, the convention seeks to ensure that community concerns are heard beyond election periods and remain part of ongoing engagement with political leaders.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Event_details\"><\/span><strong>Event details<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Event:<\/strong> People Build Democracy: Isivumelwano \u2013 The Agreement Convention<\/li>\n<li><strong>Theme:<\/strong> From Citizen Voice to Shared Action and Accountability<\/li>\n<li><strong>Dates:<\/strong> 29\u201330 October 2026<\/li>\n<li><strong>Venue:<\/strong> Birchwood Conference Centre<\/li>\n<li><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Media opportunity:<\/strong> Journalists are invited to cover the convention, including discussions on community priorities on 29 October and engagement with invited political parties on 30 October.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Website: <\/strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.peoplebuilddemocracy.org.za\/\">www.peoplebuilddemocracy.org.za<\/a><\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Social_media\"><\/span><strong>Social media:<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Facebook: People Build Democracy<\/li>\n<li>Instagram: peoplebuilddemocracy<\/li>\n<li>X: People Build Democracy (@SAPeopleBuild)<\/li>\n<li>Titktok: @peoplebuilddemocracy<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>#PeopleBuildDemocracy #Isivumelwano #StartWhereYouAre<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Images\"><\/span><strong>Images:<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<figure id=\"attachment_194929-2\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-194929-2\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/?attachment_id=194929\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-194929 size-full lazyload\" alt width=\"683\" height=\"1024\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 683px) 100vw, 683px\" src=\"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Dean-Zwoitwaho-Nevhutalu-scaled.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Dean-Zwoitwaho-Nevhutalu-scaled.jpg 683w, https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Dean-Zwoitwaho-Nevhutalu-417x625.jpg 417w, https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Dean-Zwoitwaho-Nevhutalu-200x300.jpg 200w\"><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-194929-2\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dean Zwoitwaho Nevhutalu. Photo: Supplied by Client<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_194930-2\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-194930-2\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/?attachment_id=194930\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-194930 size-featured lazyload\" alt width=\"800\" height=\"600\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" src=\"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Boichoko-Ditlhake-800x600.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Boichoko-Ditlhake-800x600.jpg 800w, https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Boichoko-Ditlhake-550x413.jpg 550w, https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Boichoko-Ditlhake-350x263.jpg 350w, https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Boichoko-Ditlhake-260x195.jpg 260w\"><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-194930-2\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Boichoko Ditlhake Photo: Supplied by Client<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Links\"><\/span><strong>Links:<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/South African communities to put their priorities directly to political parties at national democracy convention\/2\/\">Boilerplate and Editor\u2019s Notes<\/a><\/strong>.<br \/><strong>More Info on <a href=\"https:\/\/peoplebuilddemocracy.org.za\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">South African communities to put their priorities directly to political parties at national democracy convention<\/a> here:<\/strong><br \/><strong>X<\/strong>: <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/fyfeturck\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">https:\/\/x.com\/fyfeturck<\/a><br \/><strong>LinkedIn<\/strong>: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/alison-fyfe-turck-19377169\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/alison-fyfe-turck-19377169<\/a><br \/><strong>Facebook<\/strong>:<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/save-with-myprs-monthly-flat-fee\/\">CLICK HERE to submit your press release to MyPR.co.za<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><!-- Genesis Simple Share error: This location ( after ) has already been used. --><strong><\/p>\n<h3>Track Your Press Release HERE:<\/h3>\n<p><\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"mypr-visibility-box\" readability=\"4.3362831858407\">\n<h4>Check Online Visibility<\/h4>\n<p>Verify where this release is currently indexed:<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/p>\n<div class=\"entry-pagination pagination\">Pages: <span class=\"post-page-numbers current\" aria-current=\"page\"><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Page <\/span>1<\/span> <a href=\"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/south-african-communities-to-put-their-priorities-directly-to-political-parties-at-national-democracy-convention\/2\/\" class=\"post-page-numbers\"><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Page <\/span>2<\/a><\/div>\n<p><em><strong>A MyPR Featured Press Release: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/south-african-communities-to-put-their-priorities-directly-to-political-parties-at-national-democracy-convention\/\" target=\"_blank\">CLICK HERE<\/a> to read the original.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Table of Contents Kagiso Trust\u2019s People Build Democracy initiative will bring civil society and political parties together on 29\u201330 October to turn community demands into a shared agreement for action and accountability. &nbsp;At a glance &nbsp;29\u201330 October 2026: Kagiso Trust will convene the People Build Democracy national convention at Birchwood Conference Centre. Community voices: Civil &hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7030,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","autoblue_enabled":true,"autoblue_custom_message":"","autoblue_shares":[{"did":"did:plc:revymtt5qssww7e7avbruzic","date":"2026-10-29T08:37:52+00:00","uri":"at:\/\/did:plc:revymtt5qssww7e7avbruzic\/app.bsky.feed.post\/3myyugarxtu2l","response":"{\"uri\":\"at:\/\/did:plc:revymtt5qssww7e7avbruzic\/app.bsky.feed.post\/3myyugarxtu2l\",\"cid\":\"bafyreickpp66cnjb2p7atuqej74hmjpfn6j76xknklatxaqqnnga7dpije\",\"commit\":{\"cid\":\"bafyreihxq34hmteacfvdgvbib2f6dxourt3btka7g4j3logrdwzcwa6kx4\",\"rev\":\"3myyugas7nu2l\"},\"validationStatus\":\"valid\"}"}],"autoblue_post_url":"","autoblue_publish_document":false,"republication-tracker-tool-hide-widget":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[28,3],"tags":[38,34],"class_list":["type-post","category-featured","category-news","tag-featured","tag-mypr","entry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/mail\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7645","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/mail\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/mail\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/mail\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/mail\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7645"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/mail\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7645\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/mail\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7030"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/mail\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7645"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/mail\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7645"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/mail\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7645"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}