The Open Society Foundation for South Africa is a grant-making organisation, and is a member of the International Soros Foundations Network.
The OSF-SA is committed to promoting the values, institutions and practices of an open, non-racial and non-sexist, democratic, civil society. It works for a vigorous and autonomous civil society in which the rule of law and divergent opinions are respected.
OSF-SA Programmes
General Grants Portfolio
The General Grants Portfolio programme began operations in 2005.
While areas of support and construction of programme priorities are evolving a key question influencing the direction of support is that of whether open societies can be promoted and sustained amidst high levels of inequality and low levels of economic growth and development.
Support to date has emphasized education for entrepreneurship, the role of provincial and metropolitan governments as drivers of economic change as well as research and assessing the impact of growth coalitions between government, civil society and business on influencing economic growth, with equity.
Criminal Justice Initiative (CJI)
The CJI is both a grant - making and operationalised programme. The goal of the CJI is to build accountability within the individual agencies of the criminal justice system (i.e. police, courts, prisons), with the intention of ensuring a broader humanity, efficiency and accountability within the criminal justice process as a whole.
Overall Objectives:
Human Rights and Governance Programme
The Human Rights and Governance Programme seeks to promote the culture and values of an open and democratic society. To date, the Human Rights and Governance Programme has focused on the following areas:
Media Programme
The Media Programme currently focuses on four areas:
The OSF - SA Mission And Strategy
The Foundation's strategy is to support and engage in activities that focus on the delivery of a needed service. In doing so it has decided it will:
- act in a limited number of priority areas and with projects which will initiate change and produce demonstrable results within two years
- seek major ventures or fresh ideas that would not see the light of day without the resources and assistance of the Foundation
- seek to act in co-ordination and co-operation with other organisations and funding agencies to ensure that resources are optimally used
The Foundation will seek to ensure that in its work all projects should have:
- an ongoing institution-building impact
- an emphasis on sustainability
- a mutually reinforcing impact wherever possible
How do we operate?
The Open Society Foundation was founded by George Soros in April 1993 to promote the ideal of an open society in South Africa; an ideal which includes democracy, a market economy, a strong civil society, respect for minorities and tolerance for divergent opinions.
The foundation has been established in the conviction that the collapse of a closed, apartheid society will not lead automatically to the emergence of an open society in South Africa. In its work the foundation will encourage new approaches and ideas which will contribute to the creating of an open society in South Africa.