ANSA EAP and the social accountability approach

As a regional networking and learning facility, the Affiliated Network for Social Accountability in East Asia and the Pacific (ANSA-EAP) aims to mainstream  the social accountability approach – capable citizen groups constructively engaging with governments to monitor the decisions and actions of public officials towards better public services, improved protection of people’s rights, and enhanced people’s welfare.  The network now operates in four (4) countries (Cambodia, Indonesia, Mongolia, and the Philippines) through five (5) national and sub-national networks (consisting of 39 citizen groups) and two (2) thematic networks (on public procurement and the extractive industries).  Since 2008, ANSA EAP has built a rich portfolio of experiences and results from social accountability advocacy, learning, and ground-level initiatives.

Mainstreaming social accountability would require partnerships from the different stakeholders and other development practitioners, to facilitate genuine linkage between theory and practice.  Social accountability, in ANSA-EAP’s appreciation requires an enabling environment that rests on four (4) pillars: access to information, responsive government, capable citizen groups, and cultural appropriateness.  Proper consideration of these pillars within the context of the diverse governance and development settings within the East Asia and Pacific region can help generate a more nuanced understanding and practice of social accountability.

A regional strategy for influencing policy on social accountability

Entering its new phase of network consolidation, ANSA EAP has been developing innovative and effective ways to pursue its goal for social accountability mainstreaming.  These new strategies build on  the regional network’s accomplishments during the initial establishment phase, and strive to make social accountability knowledge more accessible to stakeholders in the region.

One of these emerging strategies is that of influencing policy and decision makers, both at the country and regional levels, towards adoption of social accountability tools and approaches and strengthening of the enabling environment for social accountability work. 

This strategy will have the following components:

  •  More systematic research on different aspects of the social accountability environment, innovative social accountability initiatives and/or techniques, and social accountability project results and impact.  It is envisioned that such studies will be carried out through: 1) Formal learning processes on social accountability in connection with the network’s other strategic objective of formalizing and lodging social accountability courses with academic institutions; 2) Research partnerships with good governance practitioners and development organizations; and, 3) Project-based monitoring and evaluation of social accountability initiatives implemented by ANSA EAP and/or partners.
  • Providing policy inputs and strategic steers to stakeholders (government policy makers, social accountability practitioners, good governance advocates, champions within donor agencies, academic institutions, and development organizations) towards strengthening social accountability practice in target countries, based on results of researches outlined above.  Mechanisms for this will include: 1) Development of a social accountability index as a practice-based evaluative tool for practitioners and advocates; 2) Development and delivery of customized formal courses and other learning events for policy makers and advocates; and, 3) Publication and dissemination of knowledge products (policy briefs, discussion papers on thematic concerns, research reports, e-magazine).
  • Partnership-building or collaboration with academic institutions, think-tanks, research-oriented organizations, and advocacy groups in pursuing the activities outlined above. This will be undertaken in line with the other strategic objectives of ANSA EAP for the next phase (which include formalizing SAc learning, supporting country innovations on social accountability, building a shared agenda for SAc learning in the EAP region, and developing an institutional sustainability model).
  • Documenting and communicating the lessons and experiences in pursuing this whole strategy on influencing policy for social accountability towards systematizing knowledge in policy advocacy work for SAc, and contributing to SAc practice in other regions.

Proposed areas for studies on the enabling environment for SAc:

  1. Recognition of the role of citizen groups and regulation of their activities
  2. Enhancing literacy on civic responsibilities, good governance, public finance
  3. Spaces and mechanisms for citizen participation in governance
  4. Availability of government documents and citizen access to information
  5. Media’s role in promoting social accountability and regulation of its activities
  6. Government accountability in and citizen monitoring of public procurement
  7. Funding or resource mobilization mechanisms to support SAc initiatives
  8. Citizen monitoring of basic public services and poverty-reduction programs

Proposed priority areas for studies on SAc innovations:

  1. Social accountability in the extractive industries
  2. Use of information-communication technologies (ICTs) in SAc
  3. Social accountability in private-public partnership (PPP) projects
  4. Social accountability application in local or sub-national governance

Proposed areas for project-level studies on results and impact:

  1. Looking at SAc’s key result areas:
    1. Increased citizen awareness of their rights and responsibilities
    2. Increased citizen awareness of public programs and demand for better services
    3. Enhanced government feedback-response and performance assessment systems
    4. Better delivery and quality of public services from SAc
    5. Improvement in people’s lives and welfare through SAc
  2. Results and impact of SAc learning interventions
  3. Sustainability and scaling up of SAc interventions

To get more information and/or to explore partnership opportunities, please contact us:

Strategic Objective 2 Cluster (ANSA EAP):
Randee Cabaces (rcabaces@ansa-eap.net)
John Aldrich Telebrico (jatelebrico@ansa-eap.net)