1. Social Accountability
Enhancing citizen voice and client focus in governance and service delivery
Reiner Forster, SDV
January 25th, 2005
Note: This interactive learning module, designed by Social Impact, was commissioned by the World Bank’s PREM Poverty Group and developed in collaboration with SDV, WBI and the PREM Public Sector Group. Supported by a concept paper, it is a generic introductory-level module which may be adapted to suit different target audiences and time frames.

2. What is Accountability?
Accountability is the obligation of power-holders to account for or take responsibility for their actions.
Power-holders: holding political, financial or other forms of power, e.g. public officials, private employers, donors, service providers, traditional leaders, NGOs.
Key area: government or public accountability
builds on the implicit ‘social contract‘ between citizens and public officials.
obligation of public officials and the right/ entitlement of citizens

3. What are public officials responsible for?
Their conduct—they must obey the law, rules, procedures and not abuse their powers.
Their performance—they must serve the public interest in an efficient, effective and fair manner.
All states have some form of mechanisms to promote or ensure accountability of public actors.

4. How can accountability be ensured ?
Rules and Regulations – administrative procedures, audits, code of conduct…
2. Bring in Market Principles – privatization or contracting out to private sector and NGOs
3. Independent Agencies – ombudsman, vigilance committees …
There has been vary-ing success with these. What has been learnt is that suc-cess often depends on direct parti-cipation of the people
4. “Social Accountability”

5. What is Social Accountability?
SAc is an approach towards building accountability
that relies on civic engagement,
where ordinary citizens and/or their organizations participate directly or indirectly in exacting accountability
SAc mechanisms can be initiated and supported by the state, citizens or both, but very often they are demand-driven and operate from the bottom up.
SAc mechanisms include many actions and tools that citizens, NGOs and media can use to hold public authorities accountable.

6. Social Accountability Mechanisms include...
Social audits
Independent budget analysis by CSOs/ Think Tanks
Public budget hearings
Citizen juries
Civil society monitoring of performance of public agencies
Investigative journalism
Right to information movements
Election Watch

7. Why is Social Accountability important ?
Good Governance
Empower-ment
Development Effectiveness

8. WDR 2004: Making Services Work for the Poor
A framework of accountability relationships
Poor people
Providers
Policymakers
Social Accountability Mechanisms
Voice
Service Compact
Client Power

9. Social accountability
Related Concepts in Democracy and Governance
Democracy &
citizenship
Civil
society
Participatory
development
Social accountability
Transparency/
Anti-corruption
Rights
Decentralization &
public sector reform

10. Participatory Public Expenditure Management Cycle
Budget Formulation Porto Alegre, Brazil
Performance Monitoring Citizen Report Cards India and Philippines
Budget Review & Analysis Gujarat, India
Civic Engagement
Expenditure Tracking Uganda

11. Community Scorecards Process
Preparatory Groundwork
Community Gathering
Performance Scorecard
Self-Evaluation Health Staff
Interface Meeting
Feedback and Dialogue
Accountability
Better Services
Immediate Improvements
Issues for Follow-up
Transparency
More drugs available
Instit. Reforms

12. Building Blocks of SAc Advocating and negotiating change
Rallying support and building coalitions
Going public
Building an information/ evidence base
Mobilizing around entry point

13. SAc Critical Success Factors1.
Political context and culture  2.
Access to information 3.
The role of the media 4.
Civil society capacity 5.
State capacity 6.
State-society synergy 7.
Institutionalization

14. Potential Benefits and Risks of SAc
Improved governance
Poverty reduction
Citizen voice and empowerment at the macro level, especially for the poor
Enhanced transparency
Reduced corruption
Strengthened social capital
Strengthened public sector reforms and decentralization
Risks
Raised citizen expectations
Lack of sustainability or institutionalization
Mechanisms may not result in service improvements
Depth of citizen involvement may be superficial
May involve a small group of “well behaved” NGOs, professionals and centrist politicians

15. Final Thoughts
Social accountability has potential to improve the responsiveness of governments and other power holders to the needs of local people – especially those with ‘less voice’.
There is a wide range of social accountability mechanisms arising from specific needs, power relations and a desire for improving services. All sectors/regions have some relevant experience.
Each social accountability mechanism has a specific social, political and economic context with attendant benefits and risks. The success of one mechanism in a local context in no way guarantees success in another.