Explores the role of NGOs as mediators in crucial litigation cases on women's rights in South Africa.

Reem Wael is a social science researcher with a geographic focus on the Middle East and Africa. She co-founded the first gender consulting firm in the Middle East to focus on research and policy, trainings and media; she worked on numerous research projects on gender cross-cutting with health, education, data and information, law, and violence. In her most recent fulltime position, Reem was the Executive Director of HarassMap, an NGO based in Egypt, using an online-offline integrated approach to end social acceptability of sexual harassment in Egypt. She holds a Ph.D. from the University of London, where she conducted socio-legal analysis on gender-based violence in South Africa.

1. Introduction; 2. South Africa: formal law and the constitution; 3. Informal justice: a favourable alternative?; 4. From politics to law-making: NGOs and the state in South Africa; 5. The justice system: space for negotiating human rights; 6. The art of litigation: tactics and impact; 7. Access to justice and NGOs: awareness, guidance and empowerment; 8. Disabling factors for socio-legal development: insights from Egypt; 9. Conclusion.