CIAO DATE: 03/2014
January 2014
Danish Institute for International Studies
Social accountability focuses on the demand-side of good governance by aiming to strengthen the voices of citizens to demand greater accountability and responsiveness directly from public officials and service providers. As such, social accountability can be broadly defined as citizen-led action to demand accountability for providers. It can be understood as institutional arrangements that aim to ‘facilitate the participation of ordinary citizens in the public policy processes’. Donor support and experiences Support for social accountability mechanisms in rural Sub-Saharan Africa has increased over the past decade and is becoming firmly anchored in government policies and donor and NGO strategies. This study argues that social accountability is not simply a technical issue. Technical social accountability initiatives often ignore the political context and power politics in which they take place. However, invited political space can enhance access to and the quality of service. New intermediary political spaces, created by local associations and social movements that are involved in democratic mediation, emerge as a source of change and are viewed as having democratic potential. However, this requires political support and technical collaboration from local government.
Resource link: Social Accountability and Public Service Delivery in Rural Africa [PDF] - 98K