Human and Social Studies Public Policy, Politics and Democratic Citizenship

Examine Law And Structures In Terms Of Their Promotion Of Human Rights And Democracy Training

SAQA US 119659 | NQF 5 | Credits 8 | Duration 5 Days
From $1,242 per delegate

Description

This course equips learners with the ability to critically examine legal frameworks and institutional structures in South Africa to assess their effectiveness in promoting human rights and democracy. Participants will gain insight into the constitutional, legislative, and policy mechanisms that underpin democratic governance and human rights protection, enabling them to apply this knowledge in professional and civic contexts.

Learning Outcomes

  • Analyze the relationship between law, human rights, and democracy within the South African context.
  • Evaluate the effectiveness of legal frameworks and institutional structures in promoting and protecting human rights.
  • Apply constitutional principles to assess the alignment of laws and structures with democratic values.
  • Critique the role of key institutions (e.g., courts, commissions) in upholding human rights and democratic governance.
  • Demonstrate understanding of the impact of law and structures on marginalized groups and social justice.
  • Develop recommendations for strengthening legal and institutional mechanisms to enhance human rights and democracy.

Target Audience

This course is designed for legal professionals, policy analysts, government officials, NGO workers, and any individuals seeking to deepen their understanding of how law and structures support human rights and democracy in South Africa.

Prerequisites

None — open enrollment

Course Outline

Day 1: Foundations of Human Rights and Democracy in South Africa

Objectives:
• Define key concepts of human rights and democracy within the South African context.
• Understand the historical development of human rights in South Africa.
• Identify the core principles of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996.
• Recognise the role of international human rights instruments in shaping domestic law.

Topics:
• Introduction to human rights: definitions, categories, and universality.
• Democracy: principles, types, and the South African model.
• Historical context: apartheid and the struggle for human rights.
• The Constitution as the supreme law: Bill of Rights and foundational values.
• International human rights frameworks: UN Declaration, African Charter.
• Interaction between international law and South African law.

Day 2: The South African Legal System and Human Rights Protection

Objectives:
• Describe the structure of the South African legal system.
• Explain the functions of key institutions that promote human rights.
• Analyse the role of the judiciary in upholding human rights.
• Understand the concept of justiciability of human rights.

Topics:
• Sources of law: Constitution, legislation, common law, customary law.
• Separation of powers and checks and balances.
• The courts: hierarchy and jurisdiction, especially the Constitutional Court.
• Independent institutions: South African Human Rights Commission, Public Protector, Commission for Gender Equality.
• Access to justice: legal aid, public interest litigation.
• Enforcement of rights: direct application, limitation clauses, remedies.

Day 3: Analysis of Laws and Policies for Human Rights Compliance

Objectives:
• Evaluate legislation and policies against constitutional human rights standards.
• Identify potential violations and gaps in legal frameworks.
• Apply a human rights-based approach to policy analysis.
• Understand the impact of laws on vulnerable groups.

Topics:
• Methodologies for human rights impact assessment.
• Case studies: analysis of specific laws (e.g., Promotion of Equality and Prevention of Unfair Discrimination Act).
• Addressing systemic discrimination: race, gender, disability, LGBTI+ rights.
• Socio-economic rights: housing, healthcare, education, water.
• Balancing rights: limitations and proportionality.
• Participatory law-making: public consultations and civil society engagement.

Day 4: Democracy in Practice – Institutions, Participation, and Accountability

Objectives:
• Examine democratic institutions and their effectiveness in promoting participation.
• Analyse mechanisms for citizen engagement and accountability.
• Understand the role of civil society in strengthening democracy.
• Evaluate electoral systems and their impact on representation.

Topics:
• Democratic institutions: Parliament, provincial legislatures, local government.
• Electoral system: proportional representation, independent electoral commission.
• Public participation: petitions, public hearings, participatory budgeting.
• Accountability: oversight committees, Chapter 9 institutions, media.
• Civil society: advocacy, watchdog functions, social movements.
• Challenges to democracy: corruption, political intolerance, misinformation.

Day 5: Practical Integration and Application of Human Rights and Democracy

Objectives:
• Synthesise knowledge to assess real-world scenarios.
• Develop strategies to promote human rights and democratic values.
• Apply critical thinking to current human rights challenges.
• Create an action plan for advocacy or compliance in a professional context.

Topics:
• Case study analysis: recent human rights and democracy issues in SA.
• Group exercise: designing a human rights compliant policy or programme.
• Role-play: interacting with institutions to address rights violations.
• Developing advocacy strategies: communication, coalition building.
• Reflection: personal and professional responsibility.
• Course review and assessment.

Practicals

No practicals for this training.

This course is made up of exercises and case studies delivered alongside the theory — no separate practical sessions are required to complete it.

Summatives

Each delegate is assessed continuously throughout the course and a final summative test at the end.

Daily Exercises — 30%

Every training day ends with a multiple-choice exercise scored out of 100%. The scores from each daily exercise are averaged across the duration of the course to produce a Daily Average mark, which contributes 30% to the final total.

Final Test — 70%

On the last day a final summative test is written. It is a multiple-choice paper with multiple-answer questions: each question may have more than one correct option, and a single wrong selection on a question marks the entire question wrong — no partial credit. The final test is scored out of 100% and contributes 70% to the overall mark.

Final Total
Component Out of Weight
Daily Average (multiple choice) 100% 30%
Final Test (multi-answer multiple choice) 100% 70%
Final Total 100%

All marks are recorded on the AATICD LMS and visible to each learner under their account.

Certificate

Certificate of Completion

Awarded to delegates who achieve an overall mark of 50% or higher on the Final Total (Daily Average 30% + Final Test 70%).

How it works
  • Certificates are auto-generated on the AATICD LMS as soon as the marks pass the 50% threshold.
  • Each certificate is a branded PDF with the delegate's name, the course title, the unit standard ID, NQF level, credits, and the date of issue.
  • You can download or print your certificate from your LMS dashboard at any time after issue — there's no reissue fee and no expiry date.
  • If you scored under 50% you can sit the final test again at the next scheduled session at no extra cost.
Where to find it

Sign in to the LMS, open your dashboard, and your certificates appear under My Certificates. Each entry has a View / Download button and a print option.

Training Discounts

Group discounts apply automatically — the more delegates you enrol, the greater the saving. Discounts are calculated at 3% per 5 delegates, scaling up to 40% off for 100+ delegates.

Delegates Discount
5 3% off
10 6% off
15 9% off
20 12% off
25 15% off
30 18% off
50 30% off
75 35% off
100 40% off

3% discount per 5 delegates, up to 40% off for 100+ delegates. Contact us for a custom group quote.

Upcoming Training Sessions
Online training — attend live sessions from anywhere via our virtual classroom.
Start End Delivery Season Price Action
Mon 07 Sep 2026 Fri 11 Sep 2026 Virtual Spring 2026 $1,242 Register
Mon 28 Sep 2026 Fri 02 Oct 2026 Virtual Spring 2026 $1,242 Register
Mon 19 Oct 2026 Fri 23 Oct 2026 Virtual Spring 2026 $1,242 Register
Mon 07 Dec 2026 Fri 11 Dec 2026 Virtual Summer 2026 $1,242 Register
Mon 11 Jan 2027 Fri 15 Jan 2027 Virtual Summer 2026 $1,242 Register
Mon 15 Feb 2027 Fri 19 Feb 2027 Virtual Summer 2026 $1,242 Register
Mon 01 Mar 2027 Fri 05 Mar 2027 Virtual Autumn 2027 $1,242 Register
Mon 08 Mar 2027 Fri 12 Mar 2027 Virtual Autumn 2027 $1,242 Register
Mon 15 Mar 2027 Fri 19 Mar 2027 Virtual Autumn 2027 $1,242 Register
Mon 07 Jun 2027 Fri 11 Jun 2027 Virtual Winter 2027 $1,242 Register
Mon 28 Jun 2027 Fri 02 Jul 2027 Virtual Winter 2027 $1,242 Register
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Mon 18 Oct 2027 Fri 22 Oct 2027 Virtual Spring 2027 $1,242 Register
Mon 06 Dec 2027 Fri 10 Dec 2027 Virtual Summer 2027 $1,242 Register
Mon 27 Dec 2027 Fri 31 Dec 2027 Virtual Summer 2027 $1,242 Register
Mon 17 Jan 2028 Fri 21 Jan 2028 Virtual Summer 2027 $1,242 Register
On-Campus training — face-to-face sessions at our training venues across Africa and beyond.
Showing all 492 sessions across 26 venues
Start End Venue Season Price Action
Mon 10 Aug 2026 Fri 14 Aug 2026 Durban, South Africa Winter 2026 $2,916 Register
Mon 10 Aug 2026 Fri 14 Aug 2026 Abu Dhabi, UAE Winter 2026 $5,238 Register
Mon 10 Aug 2026 Fri 14 Aug 2026 Pretoria, South Africa Winter 2026 $1,863 Register
Mon 10 Aug 2026 Fri 14 Aug 2026 Dubai, UAE Winter 2026 $5,238 Register
Mon 10 Aug 2026 Fri 14 Aug 2026 Cape Town, South Africa Winter 2026 $3,078 Register
In-House training — we bring the trainer to your organisation, tailored to your team.
Start End Delivery Season Price Action
Mon 14 Sep 2026 Fri 18 Sep 2026 Your Premises Spring 2026 $1,615 Register
Mon 05 Oct 2026 Fri 09 Oct 2026 Your Premises Spring 2026 $1,615 Register
Mon 26 Oct 2026 Fri 30 Oct 2026 Your Premises Spring 2026 $1,615 Register
Mon 14 Dec 2026 Fri 18 Dec 2026 Your Premises Summer 2026 $1,615 Register
Mon 18 Jan 2027 Fri 22 Jan 2027 Your Premises Summer 2026 $1,615 Register
Mon 22 Feb 2027 Fri 26 Feb 2027 Your Premises Summer 2026 $1,615 Register
Mon 08 Mar 2027 Fri 12 Mar 2027 Your Premises Autumn 2027 $1,615 Register
Mon 15 Mar 2027 Fri 19 Mar 2027 Your Premises Autumn 2027 $1,615 Register
Mon 22 Mar 2027 Fri 26 Mar 2027 Your Premises Autumn 2027 $1,615 Register
Mon 14 Jun 2027 Fri 18 Jun 2027 Your Premises Winter 2027 $1,615 Register
Mon 05 Jul 2027 Fri 09 Jul 2027 Your Premises Winter 2027 $1,615 Register
Mon 26 Jul 2027 Fri 30 Jul 2027 Your Premises Winter 2027 $1,615 Register
Mon 13 Sep 2027 Fri 17 Sep 2027 Your Premises Spring 2027 $1,615 Register
Mon 04 Oct 2027 Fri 08 Oct 2027 Your Premises Spring 2027 $1,615 Register
Mon 25 Oct 2027 Fri 29 Oct 2027 Your Premises Spring 2027 $1,615 Register
Mon 13 Dec 2027 Fri 17 Dec 2027 Your Premises Summer 2027 $1,615 Register
Mon 03 Jan 2028 Fri 07 Jan 2028 Your Premises Summer 2027 $1,615 Register
Mon 24 Jan 2028 Fri 28 Jan 2028 Your Premises Summer 2027 $1,615 Register
Training Discounts
Delegates Discount
5 3% off
10 6% off
15 9% off
20 12% off
25 15% off
30 18% off
50 30% off
75 35% off
100 40% off

3% off per 5 delegates, up to 40% for 100+

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