CIVIL SOCIETY PARTICIPATION IN THE
Date
2011-06-10
Authors
Saili, Gregory Chitambo
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Abstract
Beginning in the late 1990’s, the Sector Wide Approach or SWAp
has become an important part of development cooperation in the
social sectors, particularly in health, education, and agriculture.
Over the years, although the approach largely focused on
government-donor collaboration there are indications that the
approach could support the participation of civil society
organisations. However, there is limited research regarding the
extent to which the SWAp can support the participation of civil
society organisations. Therefore, the primary purpose of this
exploratory study is to gain a better understanding of the health
sector government-donor platform (SWAp) as a mechanism for
facilitating effective civil society participation in policy processes.
Although no universally accepted definition of SWAp exists, the
term refers to an approach in development cooperation largely
representing a shift from a project-based approach to a
programmatic focus in policy implementation. The study finds that
the level of participation in the SWAp is limited to service-delivery
issues whereas the advocacy and policy influence roles are
marginal. Another important finding is that the SWAp structure and
processes provide opportunities for civil society participation.
However, these are underutilised by civil society organisations.
Further, the report argues that the SWAp typifies a policy network.
There appears to be limited recognition in literature and practice
that the SWAp is a political structure with inherent challenges akin
to policy networks. Given this scenario, it appears that this will
remain the trend given the lack of coherence and intracoordination
among civil society organisations in the policy
network – the SWAp.
Description
MM - P&DM
Keywords
Public health, Civil society, Zambia