The analytical frameworks designed to assess enabling environments for civic engagement examine and describe external conditions such as policy and regulatory provisions, political processes, socio-cultural and economic factors, as well as the internal dynamics of civil society which include governance structures, power relationships, capacities, skills, legitimacy and trust. Such analysis attempts to answer four fundamental questions:
- How can civil society fulfill its functions as a partner and agent in development ?
- What kind of conditions - laws, regulations, policies, capacities, other institutional factors are necessary?
- How can stakeholders deepen understanding of these conditions?
- What actions can the Bank, partners, clients, other stakeholders, take to improve conditions for civic engagement?
In the context of the growing importance of social accountability to improving development effectiveness, it is important to direct this analytical work towards this end. Country assessments are currently under way in Ghana, Sierra Leone, Ecuador and Mongolia, and are planned for Mozambique and Cameroon. Their aim is to promote a better understanding of existing constraints and opportunities for social accountability, and to inform recommendations for institutional reforms and capacity building.
These tools and methods share the following characteristics:
- Participatory and inclusive
- Multi-stakeholder approaches
- Action-Research orientation
- Integrative (with other SD tools) and adaptive
- Outreach/collaboration with peers
- Focus on learning
anization for delivering services to the poor and contributing to improve the country's governance.
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