Global governance experts will gather in Johannesburg to examine how stronger public institutions can turn political decisions into functioning services and better outcomes for citizens.
The New South Institute (NSI) will host Statecraft 2026, an International Congress on Democracy and Public Institutions, on 22 and 23 September 2026, bringing together policymakers, public servants, academics, institutional leaders and governance practitioners. NSI currently lists the congress at the Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) in Johannesburg.
At the centre of the gathering is a challenge that directly affects communities: governments may develop policies and make political commitments, but capable public institutions are needed to translate those decisions into functioning schools, reliable infrastructure, healthcare, responsive municipalities and sound management of public resources.
“Democracy does not survive on elections alone,” said NSI Director Ivor Chipkin.
“It depends on something far less visible: the machinery that transforms political decisions into functioning schools, reliable infrastructure, effective healthcare, responsive municipalities, sound public finances and institutions that citizens can trust. That machinery is public administration.”
Statecraft 2026 is being positioned around “The Machinery of Democracy”, reflecting the role public administration plays in determining whether governments can deliver consistently and effectively.
The concept of statecraft itself refers to the practice of governing well. While political processes determine who governs, effective statecraft is concerned with how institutions are built, managed and strengthened so that governments can fulfil their responsibilities to citizens.
That distinction has particular relevance for South Africa as the country continues efforts to reform and professionalise its public service.
For NSI, strengthening public institutions requires attention to accountability, merit-based administration and protecting public officials from inappropriate political interference. Its broader public-service reform work focuses on building administrations capable of serving citizens effectively.
Rather than operating as a conventional conference dominated by prepared speeches, Statecraft 2026 is intended to create a working environment where practitioners and researchers can examine what makes institutional reform succeed or fail.
Participants will compare international experiences, explore practical reform challenges and consider which lessons could be applied across different democratic contexts.
Issues expected to be examined include the appointment of senior public officials, the independence of the civil service, governance of state-owned enterprises, leadership development, urban governance, public participation, political accountability and the future of democratic institutions.
The congress will draw international perspectives from South Africa, South Korea, Chile, Slovakia, Nigeria, Tanzania, Serbia and other countries.
Among the participants will be Professor Pan Suk Kim, who will share lessons from South Korea’s experience of civil-service reform.
The international dimension is important because institutional weakness is not unique to South Africa. Different democracies have confronted questions around political interference, public-sector capability, accountability and the ability of governments to maintain institutions that continue functioning through political and leadership changes.
For citizens, these debates can appear distant from everyday life, but the outcomes of public administration are experienced daily.
The ability of a municipality to maintain infrastructure, a government department to administer a programme effectively or a public institution to manage resources responsibly can determine whether policies ultimately deliver their intended social impact.
NSI says its purpose is to strengthen democracy by improving the accountability and performance of government, with its work focused on reforms that can be implemented and sustained.
Statecraft 2026 will therefore shift attention away from democracy as an electoral process alone and towards the institutions responsible for making democratic government work between elections.
Chipkin said the congress is intended to bring together people prepared to engage openly with what has worked, what has failed and what meaningful reform requires.
“If we want stronger democracies, we have to build stronger institutions.”
Over two days, delegates will examine what it takes to build institutions that are resilient, ethical, accountable and capable of delivering for citizens.
Ultimately, the social impact of better government is measured not in administrative systems themselves, but in what those systems make possible: functioning public services, reliable infrastructure, responsible use of public resources and institutions that citizens can trust.
