---
title: Electoral Institute for Sustainable Democracy in Africa (EISA)
type: research
status: active
country: ZA
website: https://www.eisa.org
logo: /assets/org-logos/eisa.jpg
contact:
  checked: 2026-07-30
  email: info@eisa.org
  form: https://www.eisa.org/contact
  phone: '+27113816000'
  source: https://www.eisa.org/contact
summary: A Johannesburg-based independent non-profit supporting credible elections
  and strong democratic institutions across Africa — conducting election observation,
  technical assistance, and governance programming in 16+ African countries since
  1996.
concepts:
- representative-democracy
- democracy
- accountability-sink
location:
  latitude: -26.2041
  longitude: 28.0473
  name: Johannesburg, South Africa
  precision: city
rss_feed: https://www.eisa.org/feed
events:
- date: '1996-01-01'
  title: Founded as the Electoral Institute for Sustainable Democracy in Africa, Johannesburg
  url: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electoral_Institute_for_Sustainable_Democracy_in_Africa
  quote: founded in 1996 in Johannesburg
  proof_level: high
  url_checked: '2026-08-10'
  notable: true
activity:
  dod:
    checked: 2026-07-05
    date: 2026-07-05
    note: Site confirmed active; news article dated 23 June 2026
  rss:
    checked: 2026-08-17
    date: 2026-06-23
    note: 'Latest post: The Complaint She Never Files'
    url: https://www.eisa.org/the-complaint-she-never-files/
last_checked: '2026-07-05'
---

EISA (Electoral Institute for Sustainable Democracy in Africa) is an independent, non-partisan organisation founded in 1996, headquartered in Johannesburg with a regional office in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire. It works across sub-Saharan Africa supporting electoral processes and democratic institution-building.

EISA has supported and observed over 100 electoral and political processes across the continent, operating field presence in 16+ African countries. Its work covers two main areas: Elections and Political Processes (EPP), and Good Governance programming.

## What they do

- Long-term and short-term election observation missions
- Electoral technical assistance and capacity-building for election management bodies
- Parliamentary strengthening and political party development
- Good governance programming at national and regional levels

## Links

- Website: [eisa.org](https://www.eisa.org)

## See also

- [Representative Democracy](../concepts/representative-democracy.md)
- [Democracy](../concepts/democracy.md)
- [Accountability Sink](../concepts/accountability-sink.md)