Djamila Sahabi

West Africa Civil Society Institute (WACSI)

The West Africa Civil Society Institute (WACSI), was established by the Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA) in 2005, to reinforce the institutional and operational capacities of civil society in the sub-region. WACSI's mission is to strengthen the institutional and operational capacity of Civil Society Organizations to engage in policy intervention and the promotion of democratic values and principles in West Africa. The Vision is to strengthen civil society organizations as strategic partners for the promotion of democracy, good governance and national development in the sub region. The role of WACSI is to serve as a resource centre for training, research, experience sharing and dialogue for CSOs in West Africa Regional focus: Having understood the challenges that development practitioners face in the West African sub region, our creative and custom-made interventions continue to respond to operational and institutional challenges of national and regional civil society actors and institutions in Liberia, Nigeria, Togo, Benin, Ghana, Sierra Leon, Guinea, Cote d'Ivoire and Senegal. In the near future, the Institute will also focus on invigorating, the capacities of development practitioners in Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Gambia, Cape Verde and Guinea Bissau.