Sao Tome and Principe - Governance

The Transformational Potential:

• Strengthen State’s capacity to improve governance by delivering services in a more efficient and transparent manner in the areas of Public Finance Management and Justice Reform.
• Provide citizens with the tools to hold government accountable, and to keep youth and women engagement and digitalisation as cross-cutting topics.  
• Strengthen partnerships in digital transformation and governance, in line with the main priorities of the new EU global Strategy towards Africa.

The Team Europe Proposal, is focused on two pillars: 1) Modernisation and reform of the justice system & 2) Promotion of sound economic and financial governance (public sector accountability, rule of law and human rights promotion and protection):

1. PFM governance: awareness raising; capacity building to empower citizens in budget transparency, oversight, and scrutiny; forum for Government and CSOs; platform on participatory budgeting in water and sanitation incl. gender-sensitive budgeting; broadening ownership to oversight institutions: the Parliament and the Supreme Audit Institutions; policy dialogue.

2. Justice sector governance: strengthening accountability, civilian participation, oversight, and control; improving access to justice (support for most vulnerable, youth and women at risk of violence); capacity building in the areas of justice and security; promote independence of the judiciary.

3. Digital Governance (cross-cutting): improve public services access, transparency, and accountability; enhance citizen protection by implementing and enforcing public services digitalisation (fight against corruption).