PSI in Africa and Arab countries
Africa and Arab countries is one of the four regions in the PSI structure.The 153 affiliated organisations in over 43 countries have a total membership of around 1,500,000 people. The languages of the region are English, French, Arabic and Portuguese. Since the PSI World Congress in Yokohama in 1997 and the African Regional Conference in Johannesburg in 1998, the region has acquired full
regional status, including a Regional Executive Committee. The regional secretariat is based in Lomé, Togo since 1999. More 
 
Programme of events
Projects and analysis
The following section contains links to projects, articles and opinion pieces of strategic interest to trade unionists operating in the Africa and Arab countries region.
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Sierra Leone: Nurses refuse underwear search
Early one morning last August, nurses from the Emergency Hospital in Freetown, Sierra Leone, walked out in protest against the humiliating treatment imposed on them by management.
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IMF: the wrong business model - or the wrong business?
Outstanding loans to the IMF have fallen from $90 billion to $66 billion in 18 months and are forecast to fall to $35 billion by the end of 2006. The reduction has been sharply increased by Argentina and Brazil, who have both decided to repay their loans early. This poses a problem for the Fund which relies on interest from its lending to fund its operational costs. Jubilee Research, UK, has published a paper that argues that it is not just a question of whether the IMF is using the wrong business model, but whether the Fund is the wrong institution trying to do the wrong job in the wrong way.
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Paying your dues
 It is simple enough in theory. Trade unions collect fees in order to do whatever their membership collectively decides should be done. In practice, however, the first part of the equation is becoming increasingly difficult. In many countries unions are under attack, and employers are creating obstacles at the point where fees are collected. To what extent does this represent an “Achilles heel” for the trade union movement? This article looks at three countries’ experiences, and the lessons the movement is learning.
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The people's hospital
The story of how PSI affiliates in South Africa are trying to deal with a failing public service makes a fascinating case study in how unions can address both job quality and service quality in a single initiative.
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What makes a good job?
Job satisfaction was once a hot topic in academia. From the 1960s through till the late 1980s, management theorists looked at the question from every angle they could think of, trying to find ways to create a contented labour force: “one less concerned with money rewards and less inclined to unionise”. Researchers expected to find a strong correlation between job satisfaction and productivity. But when these results proved elusive, research funding dried up. Unions have never let the question drop.
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Measuring resistance to privatisation
 The process of privatisation in water and energy has proved hugely unpopular and encountered strong political opposition around the world. A new report from PSIRU examines the role of popular opposition in delaying, cancelling, or reversing the privatisation of water and energy.
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Trade union reform
 In this article (and linked resources) PSI looks at unions’ attempts to reform themselves and to adapt to an environment where change is the only constant.
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West Africa - Trade Union Development and Organising
Working in Ghana, Nigeria and Sierra Leone with 14 affiliates. Commenced in 2002, sponsored by FNV (Netherlands) to strengthen the capacity of unions to effectively service their membership and safeguard their interests. A first for PSI in West Africa as previously Nigeria trade uions faced interference from a military regime and Sierra Leone struggled with civil conflict.
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Publications
PSI has produced a large range of publications relating to public
sector unionism in Africa and Arab countries. Below is a selection. We
are still adding to this list, so watch this space.
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Directory of affiliated unions for Africa and Arab countries - September 2009
Contact information including contact names, addresses, phone, email, website and fax information for PSI affiliates in Africa and Arab countries. For corrections or updates to this information please contact Amelie.Mermet@world-psi.org or fax 00 33 (4) 50 40 73 20.
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Gender profiles of South African public sector unions
The research on the union gender profiles in South Africa was part of the Women’s Project programme for the Southern African sub-region. This programme started in 1998 in co-operation with FNV, IMPACT and the PSI.
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Good governance and corruption
Corruption seems to be endemic in the African and Arab countries and impedes development, as it is a drain on the already depleted resources. African leaders have often been accused of living beyond their means and plundering their state coffers.
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Introduction to PSI
This Powerpoint presentation is intended as a basic introduction to Public Services International. It explains who we are, what we campaign for, and how we work.
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NEPAD: A step forward for Africa?
The New Partnership for Africa’s Development is a plan for the regeneration of Africa at a
political, social and economic level. According to the document, NEPAD “differs in its approach
and strategy from all previous plans and initiatives in support of Africa’s development, although the problems to be addressed remain largely the same.”
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New ITUC report on workers' rights in Cameroon and Gabon
2 October - The ITUC released a new report today on core labour standards in Gabon and Cameroon. This report coincides with both countries´ trade policy reviews at the WTO and highlights important shortcomings in the application and enforcement of core labour standards, with many contradictions between the principles of these binding legal instruments and their application in both countries.
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Poster May Day
Worker solidarity against racism and xenophobia in Southern Africa.
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Poster on Water - A human right
We need quality public services for a sustainable development.
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Poster on women's work
Celebrate women's work - 9 August 2001
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Poster the key to sustainable development
Quality Public Services: the key to sustainable development.
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Action for Southern Africa (ACTSA) has launched an urgent action and petition to stop the Public Services Bill in Swaziland. The action will be running until 6 September 2010. The different actions taken, together with the petition, will be handed over to the High Commission on 7 September – the first global day of action on Swaziland.
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On 18 August, more than one million public sector union members in South Africa began taking strike action, demanding a wage increase and changes to housing allowances and medical subsidies.
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PSI has 650 affiliated unions in 148 countries and territories, representing a total of 20 million women and men working in the public services around the world.
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At a ceremony in Washington on 3rd August 2010, representatives of the Independent General Union of Real Estate Tax Authority Workers (IGURETA) and the Center for Trade Union & Workers' Services [CTUWS] were presented with the annual George Meany-Lane Kirkland Human Rights Award by the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO).
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The European Parliament has published a new study that evaluates the comparative advantages of public-private partnerships (PPPs) and public-public partnerships (PUPs) in urban water services in Africa. The study concludes that there are notable differences between what PPPs and PuPs can offer.
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The COSATU (Congress of South African Trade Unions) public service unions, representing more than 56% of employees in the public service, met on 28 July to consolidate their way forward on the current wage impasse. The public service unions, which include a certain number of PSI affiliates, appreciate the economic challenges in the country and have shown a lot of patience during this year’s wage negotiations avoiding up until now a strike. However, the strike now seems inevitable.
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Representatives of the five major public service unions in Botswana were granted an interim order by Lobatse High Court judge, Onkemetse Tshosa, stopping the government from de-recognising them. The five public sector unions had taken the government to court over a new law which the unions said required them to reapply to receive recognition as representative trade unions.
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Public Services International (PSI) requests affiliates to take immediate action on the UN General Assembly resolution titled The Human Right to Water and Sanitation. By declaring water and sanitation a human right, this historic resolution is a critical step to addressing the misery and deaths that result from not having clean water and sanitation. The right to water and sanitation is supported by many PSI unions and allies.
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Many PSI affiliates held important conferences and conventions in recent months.
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In an historic move, the United Nations General Assembly voted unanimously on 2 July 2010 to create a new entity to accelerate progress in meeting the needs of women and girls worldwide.
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 Sub-regional offices in Africa and Arab countries
Information on regional staff
Each sub-region has its own action plan. In order to facilitate activities in the region, PSI has introduced 4 sub regions:
Arab countries
Algeria, Comoro Islands*, Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Mauritania, Palestine, Somalia*, Sudan*, Tunisia, Yemen.
English-speaking Africa (East & West)
Eritrea*, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau*, Kenya, Liberia, Nigeria, Uganda, Sierra Leone, Tanzania.
French-speaking Africa
Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Djibouti, Gabon, Guinea, Equatorial Guinea*, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Rwanda, São Tome & Principe*, Senegal, Chad, Togo.
Southern Africa
South Africa, Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, Swaziland, Zambia, Zimbabwe.
(*countries that don't yet have affiliates at PSI)
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