There are few that would disagree that a world free from poverty and injustice would require transformational change. We see leaders, government and non-government organisations, multi-lateral institutions make recurrent commitments towards such an end. While the idea of ending poverty is not controversial, how one does it certainly is. One prominent approach towards ending poverty entails participatory democracy. Emerging technological changes have opened up avenues for citizen – state interaction where increasingly citizens can engage with representatives to make their voice heard and be a part of a dialogue for bringing about transformational change. Such initiatives have led to mixed reactions – while some governments have welcomed this change and have used it to work collaboratively with citizens to develop inclusive and progressive policies others have clamped down on citizens’ freedom of thought, expression and assembly. Despite these mixed reactions from governments, civil society organisations are increasingly finding ways to reinvent themselves and be innovative in creating spaces for public dialogue and action centred on citizen agency. These initiatives not only need to be shared for learning but also celebrated, especially in a context where the repercussions can often be severe and drastic. This article summarises some promising innovations from civil society from around the world.
How is civil society promoting and protecting civic space in light of the overall worrying trends of repressive laws and shrinking civic space? Civil society is playing a host of different roles, using a range of different tactics to promote and protect citizen voice and deepen democratic practice.
Some exciting approaches include the case of Uganda, where, Oxfam, Action AidMore and better information about aid helps partner countries and donor institutions plan and manage aid resources more effectively, parliaments and civil society to hold governments accountable for t... and a range of local partners are using the newly developed global civic charter in November 2016 as an entry point to start a structured engagement with the Ugandan policy on civic space and the freedom to access information, associate, organise, and participate in public decision-making.. Civil Society is endeavouring to shape the strategies of multi-lateral institutions to ensure civil society organisations (CSOs) are not only consulted but are invited to the table to discuss the development corporation agenda between government and donors/multi/bilateral institutions. This would promote mutual trust and information sharing amongst all the actors. There are planned structured engagements with emerging development partners such as China whose investment portfolio constitutes a significant part of Uganda’s FDI. In essence, this has involved making a business case for CSO and for citizen engagement on development processes. This has resulted in civil society organisations and leaders working more concertedly in deepening their engagement with government by sharing technical expertise with them and working jointly towards a shared vision and creating spaces for engagement and collaboration.
In Kenya, civil society has tried various methods to claim and create space for civic action and engagement. From public protests against the Public Benefits Organisation Bill (PBO) in 2013, civil society organisations are now focussing on reinventing itself and working towards being more accountable and transparent in order to build greater legitimacy with the citizens and the government. Initially divided, organisations have come together to create space on social media to open a dialogue with Kenyan citizens to better understand gaps within civil society. CSOs realised over time that greater self-regulation was key in winning trust and building legitimacy and be better placed to represent the voices of the marginalised. CSOs are now working towards putting in place key systems that will improve accountability towards citizens, communities they work for and to donors. The outcome of such an initiative could transform the nature of citizen- state interaction and deepen the trust across both leading to a more constructive and collaborative approach to policy making. Other approaches that Kenyan CSOs have used to protect civic space include litigation to counter repressive laws and victimization of targeted groups, building networks across sectors and providing capacity buildingEnhancing the skills, abilities, and processes of public servants, civil society, and citizens is essential to achieving long-lasting results in opening government. Technical specifications: Set of ac... support to citizens and organisations to improve policy influencing skills. Increasingly national CSOs have reached out to regional and international organisations to build solidarity and support across the sector to create and claim civic space.
In Vietnam civil society organisations are navigating a new context of shifting space for civil society. They have found innovative ways to open and deepen limited civil society space through multi stakeholder processes and grassroots consultation to influence policy decisions. Oxfam also supported the development and piloting of a civic space assessment as part of developing a national conversation about the role of civil society. This serves as a baseline to assess impact of work to open and protect space, as well as, as tool to influence public dialogue about perceptions of the role of civil society in Vietnam. In Cambodia, in May 2015 a national coalition of CSOs and active citizens launched an innovative campaign called Stop & Consult! Which was aimed at pressuring government to create platforms for inclusive consultation for law development, specifically targeting the restrictive law on associations and NGOs. Using social media, public protest, expert analysis, and various forms of local and international influencing, the Stop & Consult campaign was critical in making the NGO law less restrictive and in generating support for the issue of space for civil society both nationally and in the region.
In Brazil, the movement for land reform brought together some of the most marginalized groups from across the country. Civil society organisations convened and brokered a dialogue and strategic discussion between different elements of the broader rural movement to define shared influencing and advocacy towards the Brazilian government. The process to build consensus and solidarity across the civil society sector led to a more targeted and focused campaign for the landless.
These examples are a snapshot of how civil society has adopted a range of roles to protect civic space and action. In some cases it has taken up the role of being a convenor and a catalyst for opening political space, in other cases it has focussed on targeted capacity building of grassroots movements, especially those that do not have international networks and support. Organisations are carrying out the much needed humanitarian work, integrating life-saving responses while striving to build long-term resilience for sustainable living. Funds are being raised to nurture progressive, innovative and often risky ideas and public support is being garnered for bold initiatives that protect the voice of the most marginalised and socially excluded groups. Increasingly, civil society organisations are recognising the need to become knowledge-based, using evidence to influence policy and change behaviour. While none of these strategies are new, they are certainly improved and more targeted in order to create space for citizen action and to deepen democratic practice. In light of these initiatives, the Open Government PartnershipThe Open Government Partnership (OGP) is a multi-stakeholder initiative focused on improving government transparency, ensuring opportunities for citizen participation in public matters, and strengthen... More is a welcome platform that supports continual citizen-state interaction by setting up channels for engagement with the aim of securing clear commitments from member governments for greater accountability and transparencyAccording to OGP’s Articles of Governance, transparency occurs when “government-held information (including on activities and decisions) is open, comprehensive, timely, freely available to the pub... More towards citizens. Over 70 countries are now signatories of the OGP and will now be taking up the national action planAction plans are at the core of a government’s participation in OGP. They are the product of a co-creation process in which government and civil society jointly develop commitments to open governmen... development process. Through these plans, citizens have the power to shape their future and participate in decision-making processes that affect them.
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