Joint Staff Training Poverty Reduction Strategies

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Joint Staff TrainingPoverty Reduction Strategies

• Module 3
• The Political Economy of the PRS Process

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Module objectives

• By the end of the session, participants will
• Be equipped with a framework for analysing the
  political economy of the PRS process
• Have deepened their understanding of their roles
  as political actors
• Have begun to analyse the political economy of
  the PRS process in their own country context

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Why politics matters . . .

• Poverty reduction is a political objective
• PRS approach often interpreted technocratically,
  but also has political agenda
• State effectiveness and political systems are key
  factors in success or failure
• The PRS seeks to influence domestic political
  processes, and is itself shaped by them

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Accountability as an entry point

• Relationship between the bearer(s) of a right and
  the agent(s) responsible for respecting that
  right
• Two-way power relationship
• Represents a duty to deliver in exchange for
  delegation of a task, power or resource

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How accountability works...

• Transparency Decisions taken openly and
  information available to others
• Answerability Decision-makers have to answer
  for their actions publicly justify their
  decisions
• Controllability Sanctions exist to control the
  actions of those held accountable
• Formal controls (Audit offices, Justice system)
• and informal .such as public shaming

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4 dimensions of accountability
Elites social groupings
Electorate/ Society
Government State Political/Administrative
System
UN, ASEAN, Regional Bodies Bretton Woods
Institutions Donor Agencies
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Vertical State held to account by Non-State
agents

• Electoral accountability citizens elect
  representatives and hold them to account through
  elections
• National or local elections
• Elections within political parties
• Societal accountability leaders held to account
  by the groups of society they represent
• Religious, ethnic or language groupings
• Trade unions and Business associations
• Wider society acting through the media, civil
  society organisations, and through popular
  protest.

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Horizontal State agents held to account by
other State agents

• Legislature holds Executive to account
• Through control of Law-making process
• Through Parliamentary oversight
• Judiciary holds Executive and Legislature to
  account through Legal Courts and watchdogs -
  Auditors, Anti-corruption commissions, etc.
• Executive maintains internal accountability
  between sub-entities President, Cabinet, Central
  Ministries, Sector Ministries and agencies

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External National State accountable to
International Bodies

• National State held to account according to
  international or regional treaties and
  obligations
• United Nations, International Court of Justice,
  WTO
• European Union
• ASEAN
• National State accountable to Bretton Woods
  Institutions for economic management
• National State accountable to Donor Agencies for
  specific bi-lateral agreements, project accords
  and loan conditions.
• Donors thus become a political actor in the
  domestic process.

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Key questions for 4 Dimensions . . .

• Who is seeking accountability?
• From whom?
• Where? (Through which mechanism)
• For what?
• How effectively do these accountability
  structures work, in terms of
• Transparency?
• Answerability?
• Controllability?

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ExerciseAnalysing accountability
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Tanzania Study of Patterns of Accountability
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Tanzania Conclusions from the local level

• Dominant mechanism of accountability is vertical
  to the electorate greatest worry of all local
  government councillors and Members of Parliament
  is how to be re-elected !
• Process of re-election is party-based, since
  candidates cannot stand if they are not chosen by
  their parties.
• This leaves the CCM, as the dominant political
  party, in a highly influential position.
• The structures of Local Government function
  evidence that mechanisms of horizontal
  accountability are in operation.
• They would work better with more transparency
  over decision-making and better flows of
  information.

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Tanzania Conclusions from the national level

• The Executive, operating through President and
  small group of Ministers, is highly dominant in
  national policy-making.
• Parliament exercises its powers of scrutiny but
  with CCM in a large majority, the process becomes
  formalistic.
• CCM party can change policy where it is seen as
  likely to be unpopular Party structures
  represent most effective form of democratic
  restraint over the Executive.
• There are important informal rules which are
  respected and place limits over exercise of
  Presidential patronage.
• Influence of Donors is deeply resented by MPs but
  it is domestic political factors which exert the
  dominant influence over policy.
• Civil society is respected (especially
  faith-based groups) but weak as a source of
  societal accountability.

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Tanzania Recommendations to strengthen
accountability

• Formalise the rules controlling Presidential
  powers, to safeguard the independence of the
  Judiciary and the civil service.
• Open up space for new voices in Parliament and
  Local Government, e.g. allowing independent
  candidates to stand
• Continue to strengthen Parliament and its
  Committees.
• Continue drive towards decentralisation, through
  accelerating the implementation of the Local
  Government Reform Programme.
• Improve transparency at the local level by
  identifying innovative ways of enhancing the
  availability of information.
• Donors should play a more effective role in
  information dissemination to media, to
  Parliament and to political parties, whilst also
  developing improved channels for political
  dialogue.

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What does this imply for donors and the PRS

• Tread cautiously and use analysis to improve
  understanding
• History matters and will influence the direction
  of change
• but so does the political moment political
  cycles can suddenly throw up opportunities for
  change.
• Dont get carried away with the politics its
  not the only constraint !
• Put your own house in order! Donors have their
  own roles in disseminating information and
  promoting domestic accountability.