improving wb and cs relations

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Issues and Options for

Improving EngagementBetween the World Bank

and Civil Society

Organizations

External Affairs, Communications and

United Nations Affairs

Environmentally and Socially Sustainable

Development Network

Operations Policy and

Country Services Network

The World Bank

March 2005



Issues and Options fo

Improving Engageme

Between the World Banand Civil Socie

Organization

External Affairs, Communications

United Nations A

Environmentally and Socially Sustai

Development Ne

Operations Polic

Country Services Ne

The World



©2005

The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development/The World Bank1818 H Street, NW

Washington, DC 20433 USA

This material may be copied, translated, and disseminated as long as no profit

is derived therefrom.

Civil Society Team

The World Bank

1818 H Street, N.W.

Mail Stop: MC3-309Washington, D.C. 20433

USA

Phone: (202) 473-1840

Fax: (202) 522-7131

E-mail: [email protected]



Abbreviat ions and AcronymsAcknowledgments v

Execut ive Summary

1. Int roduct ion

2. New Players, New Scenarios: Defining Broader

Engagement with Civil Society

3. Rationale and Policy Framework Governing the

Bank’s Engagement with CSOs

4. A Framework For Engagement : Expansions And Const raint s 1

5. Rising Influence of CSOs in International Development:

Changing the Engagement Landscape 1

6.Civil Society Protests and Advocacy Campaigns: Who, What, Why? 2

7. Issues and Opt ions for Achieving More Effect ive

Bank-CSO Engagement 2

8. Conclusion 3

References 3

Annex A 4

Table of Contents



QAG Quality Assurance Group

SAPRI Structural Adjustment Participatory Review InitiativeSDV Social Developm ent Departm ent

UN United Nations

WBI World Bank Institute

WSF World Social Forum

WSSD World Summit on Sustainable Development

WTO World Trade Organization



Acknowledgments

This paper was prepared by the External Affairs,Communications and United Nations Vice

Presidency (EXTVP), th e Environm entally and

Socially Sustainable Development Network (ESSD-

VP) Vice Presidency, and the Operations Policy and

Country Services Network (OPCS) Vice Presidency

of the World Bank. The drafting team was led by

Carolyn Reynolds Mandell and included William

Reuben, Jeff Thindwa, John Garrison, Cynthia

Gears, and Carmen Monico. Drafts of this paperwere reviewed by Bank senior management and an

array of staff across the Bank Group, as well as the

Board of Executive Directors, and the paper was

revised in response to th eir com ments. Members of

the Bank-wide Civil Society Group and Civil Society

Country Staff provided extensive feedback. The team

would like to thank in particular James Adams, Ian

Goldin, Ian Johnson, Mats Karlsson, Vinay Bharga-

va, Steen Jorgensen, John Underwood, KatherMarshall, Paul Mitchell, John Mitchell, Steph

Commins, and Veena Siddh arth for their com me

and guidance. Iris David, Joaquin Lopez and Karo

na Ordon also provided invaluable support.

This paper also ben efited from pub lic comm e

sought between October 2003 and February 2004

an electron ic discussion as well as a videoconferen

and face-to-face discussions with civil society rep

sentatives in Argentina, Egypt, Ghan a, Ind on esMozambique, West Bank and Gaza, and Washi

ton , D.C. We would like to thank those who part

pated in these discussions and provided feedback

matrix of comments provided by civil society rep

sentatives on this paper is attached in Annex A. T

paper and annexes can be downloaded from

Bank’s website for civil society engagement

http://www.worldbank.org/civilsociety.



The purpose of th is paper is to assess the World

Bank’s recent relations with civil society

organizations (CSOs), and to propose

options for promoting more effective civic engage-

ment in Bank-supported activities and managing

associated risks in the future.

This paper analyzes the Bank’s extensive experi-

ence over the past few years in engaging CSOs in

a broad range of development operations and in

pol icy dialogue at the local, national and transna-

tional levels. The Bank’s member governments re-

main the institution’s owners, clients and decision

makers, and its ultimate accoun tability is to these

shareholders. Yet they have suppo rted the expan -

sion of Bank-CSO engagemen t from the early 1980s

to today in recognition of the benefits for develop-

ment effectiveness and poverty reduction. During

Mr. Wolfensohn’s tenure as Bank President from

1995 to the present, the Bank has placed a high p ri-

ority on strengthening engagement with CSOs, in-

cluding appointing staff in m ost of the Bank’s coun-

try offices to facilitate these relations. Civic

engagement is now an integral piece of the Bank’s

strategy to strengthen the investment climate and

promote empowerment in developing countries,

and is part of the Bank’s business mod el. The im -

portance of such an empowermen t and participato-ry approach to development has been reflected in

Bank operation al po licies and staff guidelines, re-

cent IDA Replenishment reports, and the 2000 and

2004 World Developm ent Reports, and it un der-

pins th e Com prehensive Developm ent Framework

(CDF) and Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper

The Bank today is taking deliberate steps

engage a wider, and more complex, spectrum

organizations and constituencies within glob

national and local civil society. The Bank rec

nizes the differing situations between cou ntries

well as the different en viron men ts—legal, insti

tional, political and social—that shape the oppor

nities for civic engagement. To frame the d iscussi

this paper provides a definition of CSOs as no t-f

profit, non-governmental institutions, coverin

wide range of organizations from developme

NGOs and th ink tanks to trade unions, foun datio

faith-based organizations, disabled persons orga

zations, community-based organizations, me

(independent and non -profit), and business asso

ations. The paper then scans the autho rizing fram

work for Bank-CSO relations an d som e of the i

plications of chan ges that h ave occurred in side a

outside th e Bank since the 1998 review entitled T

Bank’s Relations with N GOs: Issues and Directio

which discussed the evolution of Bank-civil soci

relations from 1981–1998.

The Bank’s engagement with CSOs can

grouped into three categories of activity: facili

tion, dialogue and consultation, and partnership.

a facilitator, the Bank supports civic engagement

countries that are designing Poverty ReductiStrategies, and in implementing and monitoring

array of Bank-financed projects, ranging fro

HIV/AIDS treatmen t and prevention to microcre

schemes. Through dialogue and consultation,

Bank directly engages CSOs an d seeks their views

issues of m utual interest, such as th e Bank’s ope

Executive Summary



through which resources are channeled to CSOs to

implement social service programs. The Bank alsomanages an array of grant mechanisms and donor-

suppo rted trust funds that provide direct support for

CSO-initiated projects.

While the overall trend has been o ne o f broaden-

ing and deepening engagement of CSOs in the

Bank’s work, approaches to engagement vary

widely, and some significant constraints exist.

Some member governments and Bank staff remaincautious abo ut CSO engagement, which can be at-

tributed to many factors, including concerns about

the roles, representation and accountability of

CSOs. Other institutional constraints to effective

civic engagement include: a lack of reliable and/or

easily accessible data to mo nitor an d evaluate the

Bank’s engagemen t with CSOs; insu fficient guid -

ance to staff on good practices and procedures to

follow when engaging with CSOs; disclosure andtransparency issues; weak in centives for Bank staff

to engage CSOs; and funding and procurement lim-

itations. Cost-benefit con siderations are of particu-

lar concern for the Bank, as it aims to improve the

cost effectiveness of its operations and to redu ce the

costs for developing country clients of doing busi-

ness with the Bank. Likewise, some CSOs are wary of

engaging with the Bank because they find it cum -

bersome to do so, or they do no t believe it will yieldmuch benefit. Bank managemen t has acknowledged

the need to address many of these internal and ex-

ternal concerns.

An important consideration for the Bank and its

member governments is that the dramatic expan-

sion in the size, scope and capacity of CSOs

around the glo be since the early 1990s has already

had a major impact on global development, andthat impact is likely to grow in the future. These

changes have been aided by the p rocess of global-

ization and the expansion of democratic gover-

nan ce, access to telecomm unications, market trans-

formations, and econom ic integration. CSOs have

become significant players in global developmen t fi

opinion leaders increasingly re

mation, sectoral expertise and/

As the influence of CSOs con

are also attracting greater pub

ing calls for greater accounta

ment authorities, notably parli

oping countries, have begun to

represent and how much weigh

their views vis-à-vis the views o

other stakeholders. There has bfrom within the civil society se

governments and donors, in

codes of conduct, accreditation

of benchmarking that encoura

suit of good practice in perform

and transparency in their man

tions. At the same time, many

ternational agencies have taken

changing civil society and govsome cases including civil soci

national delegations or policy s

turn has led to calls for the Ba

norms and mechanisms for en

mainstream participation in

search an d analysis, policy dial

and to encourage member go

space for civic engagemen t in

making and programm ing.

The changes in civil society

an evolution in the styles of C

the Bank and other multilater

cent years. On one han d, unp

of CSOs are involved in impl

ported projects, as contractors

On the other hand, CSOs have

protests and advocacy campaigother international meetings

viewed by some as evidence of

dence in multilateral institut

warrant measured analysis. So

in growing public concerns abo

persistent social and econom ic



get attention and force chan ge than targeting the

government involved. There was an overall shift to-ward more peaceful engagement in the wake of the

violence which occurred in 2000 and 2001 at the in-

ternational m eetings in Prague, Quebec, and Genoa,

and particularly after the September 11, 2001 terror-

ist attacks, but experience shows that some groups

remain committed to using obstructive tactics or

even violence. With these more militant groups,

there is little basis for the Bank to expect that con-

structive relations are possible or desirable. Howev-er, the evolution of the World Social Forum (WSF)

and other civil society forum s suggest that even some

of the m ore radical social movements may be m a-

turing, recognizing the need to move beyond using

protest as an advocacy tool and engaging policy

makers in serious debate about policy alternatives.

Recent Bank/IMF Annual and Spring Meetings,

where substantive dialogue has occurred as wellas protests, demonstrate the complex relations

that often exist between CSOs and the Bank. It is

important for the Bank and its member govern-

ments to recognize that m any CSOs feel it is appro-

priate to play dual roles as critics and allies. Critical

advocacy and peaceful p rotest have played im por-

tant roles in the past in promoting effective reform

and policy changes, such as the adoption of ex-

panded debt relief, environmen tal and social safe-guard policies, information disclosure and the In-

spection Panel. Today, CSOs are appealing to the

Bank to tackle a new generation o f developm ent

challenges, such as ensuring debt sustainability af-

ter debt relief has been provided, tho rough applica-

tion of safeguards, protection of human rights, and

increasing the voice and participation of develop -

ing country governments and their citizens in glob-

al decision-making processes. Many of these issuesare at the heart of the evolving relationship am ong

the Bank, its member governments, CSOs, and the

private sector, and relate to difficult questions of

country ownership, sovereignty, and political pow-

er. The Bank and its member governmen ts sho uld

seize the opportunity to strengthen relations with

As CSOs become more influential actors in pub

policy and in development efforts, the Bankbusiness case for engaging CSOs grows strong

as a key component of an effective institution

strategy for poverty reduction. Civic engageme

including the integration of poor people’s voi

and citizen participation into public policy, is

important m eans for the improvemen t of service

livery schemes and accelerating progress toward

MDGs, as outlined in the World Development R

port 2004: Making Services Work for Poor People. Asinter-governm ental institution, the Bank’s challen

is to promote civic engagement that helps mem

governm ents exercise their leadership role to p

mote sustainable development and achieve t

MDGs in a cost-effective, participatory, equita

and accoun table manner.

The analysis in this paper points to four main

sues and challenges for the Bank as it seeksachieve more constructive and effective enga

ment with CSOs in the future:

ISSUE 1:

Promoting best practices forcivic engagement

The Bank’s mainstreaming of civic engagement h

led to a wide variety of approaches and practicsome more effective than others. This variety can

sult in dissatisfaction among Bank staff, mem

governments and CSOs in terms of the quality a

outcom e of the engagemen t. The solution lies

finding better ways of promoting and sharing go

practices across the Bank, and also in soliciting r

ular feedback from m ember governm ents and CS

on the strengths and weaknesses of the Bank’s

gagement practices.

ISSUE 2:

Closing the gap betweenexpectations, policy and pract ice

The gap between the Bank’s messages and cor



ISSUE 3:

Adapting to changes in global andnational civil society

Significant changes in global and nation al civil soci-

ety have occurred over the last several years, which

warrant adjustments in the ways the Bank engages

with CSOs institutionally.

ISSUE 4:

Achieving greater Bank-widecoherence and accountability

The decentralized respon sibility in the Bank for en-

gaging CSOs is a major challenge that poses both

opportunities and risks. This calls for reviewing the

management and staffing arrangements and im-

proving the mechanisms to achieve greater Bank-

wide coherence, coordination and accountability.

To address these i ssues, 10 priority actions are

proposed:

• Establish n ew global mechanisms for Bank-CSO

engagement to help promote mutual under-

standing and cooperation.

• Establish a Bank-wide advisory service/focal

point for consultations and an institutional

framework for consultation management and

feedback.

• Pilot a new Bank-wide mon itoring and evalua-

tion system for civic engagement.

• Conduct a review of Bank fu

il society engagement in odialogue, and explore possib

structuring.

• Review the Bank’s procurem

a view toward facilitating

CSOs.

• Institute an integrated learn

staff and member governm e

CSOs more effectively, as w

ing for CSOs on how to wor

Bank and its member gover

• Hold regular meetings of

and periodically with th e B

civil society relation s.

• Develop and issue new gui

on the in stitution’s approac

a framework for engagemen

• Emph asize the importancgagement in th e guidance

preparation of the CAS as w

toring and evaluation.

• Develop tools for analytical

ciety to assist Bank country

termining the relevant CSOs

issue, project o r strategy.

A number of other optionBank’s engagement with CSO

cussion am ong Bank managem

ments and CSOs, and are out

this paper.



1. The purpose of this paper is to assess the

World Bank’s (hereafter the Bank) 1 recent re-

lations with civil society organizations

(CSOs), and to propose options for promot-

ing more effective civic engagement in Bank-

supported activities and managing associated

risks in the future. This paper was initially

drafted by the Bank’s Civil Society Team (CST)

anchor2 as a follow-up to an October 2001

meeting of Bank Vice Presidents, at which time

it was agreed that recent in ternal and external

developm ents warranted a strategic review of

the status of the Bank’s relations with CSOs.

2. Strengthening Bank-CSO relations is impo r-

tant to various Bank sector strategies, in sup-

port of implem enting the institutio nal Strate-

gic Framework and the global development

agenda set forth in the Millennium Develop-

ment Goals (MDGs) and international sum-

mits in Monterrey, Doha, and Joh annesburg.3

This paper serves as a follow-up to the 1998 pa-

per The Bank’s Relations with N GOs: Issues and

Directions, which reviewed the h istory of Bank-

civil society relations from 1981–1998 and

some o f the lessons learned during that p eri-

od .4 Since the Bank’s Board of Directors adopt-

ed th e first operational d irective on working

with NGOs in 1981, the Bank h as com e to rec-

ognize the development effectiveness and risk

management benefits of engaging CSOs, and

has steadily expand ed this engagemen t bo th in

operations and in policy dialogue. This trend

has been supported over the years by the cre-

as promoting partnerships and stakehold

participation have become part of the Ban

business model.

3. Civic engagement has in creased substantia

during the last few years in Bank-support

investment and programmatic lending op

ations, as well as in the design, implemen

tion and monitoring of national poverty

duction strategies. This is evident in t

expanded use of social accoun tability6 and p

ticipatory techniques for budget allocation a

service delivery, the growing incidence of C

participation in the design and monitoring

Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSPs), a

the em ergence of operational innovations a

partnerships with CSOs, examples of which

referred to later in this paper. This paper

meant to complement other documents wh

provide much more detailed discussions

Bank-CSO engagement in specific region

country, or issue-based contexts.7 This p ap

focuses on various cross-country issues,

recognition that as CSOs become more co

nected around th e globe, the way in which

sues and relations are managed at the local l

el often affects relations at the global

institution al levels, and vice-versa. The auth

also have consulted many recent exter

reviews on global civil society trends an d Ba

CSO relations.8

4. It can be argued that the Bank is now in

third generation of engaging CSOs in pove

Introduction1



late 1999 the Bank has entered a new phase in

which external an d in ternal changes are forcingits relations with CSOs to expan d and evolve. At

the same time, there has arisen a new set of chal-

lenges to Bank-wide coordination and coher-

ence that is examin ed in th is paper.

5. Because Bank-CSO relations are inherently

dynamic, the issues and actions put forward

in this paper warrant ongo ing review by Bank

management, member governments and in-terested CSOs. This paper is intended to pro-

mote d iscussion o f next steps. To frame th e dis-

cussion, the paper begins with a working

definition of CSOs, briefly reviews the ration-

ale and auth orizing framework for engaging

CSOs in policy dialogue and operations, and

describes the different types of Bank interac-

tions with CSOs. The paper then examines

some of the reasons for CS

ence on global an d n ationnature of recent high-prof

paigns against the Bank, a

and concerns voiced by C

engage with the Bank. Fi

out four sets of issues and

with th e ob jective of im p

ness of future civic enga

and increasing its impact

The paper also suggests ations which could be tak

issues, but on which fur

consensus-building may

proposals should be seen

nor as comprehensive, bu

Bank, its mem ber governm

can support to h elp impro

ty of engagement.

Notes

1. In this paper, the term World Bank and the recomm endation s herein refer to the Internatio

tion an d Development ( IBRD) and the Internatio nal Development Association ( IDA), but n o

which comprise the World Bank Group (International Finance Corporation, Multilatera

Agency, and the International Center for Settlement of Investmen t Disputes).

2. The Bank’s core Civil Society Team (CST) curren tly comp rises 7 full-time p rofessional staff

(EXT), Environmentally and Socially Sustainable Development (ESSD) and Operations Poli

Network (OPCS) vice presidencies at Bank headquarters. The CST serves as an institutional society relations, replacing what was formerly called the NGO and Civil Society Unit.

3. See the World Bank’s Strategic Directions for External Affairs: Facing Challenges, Defining New O

2001f), and Empowering People by Transforming Institutions: An Implementation Plan for Social D

ations (World Bank 2005a).

4. The Bank’s Relations with NGOs: Issues and Directions (World Bank 1998b) , presented to the B

key reference document on Bank-civil society relations. It summarizes the history of Bank-NG

stantial progress made over nearly two decades, and key issues going forward.

5. The Bank-wide Civil Society Group ( CSG) is an informal grouping of app roximately 120 staf

country offices and across various departments in Bank headquarters in Washington. This inc

have been designated for out reach to specific constituencies, e.g. trade un ions, faiths, foun datand disabilities. It should be n oted however that mo st of these staff are not full-time d edicat

men t; they have operational or other responsibilities in th eir respective un its.

6. Social accoun tability is an approach towards building accountability which relies on civic e

it is o rdinary citizens and /or CSOs who participate directly or ind irectly in exacting account

tution s. Social accountability mechanisms are hence dem and-driven an d operate from th e b

23 for more discussion on this topic.

7 F l W ld B k Ci il S i E R i f Fi l Y 2002 2004 (W l



foun d amo ng CSOs, particularly contrasting

large global or national CSOs with commu-nity-based organizations. CSOs located in

Northern countries or even som e in capital

cities of developing countries may have multi-

million d ollar budgets and b e invited regular-

ly to meet with national and global policy

makers, whereas CSOs in grassroots commu-

nities in Southern coun tries working on beh alf

of po or p eople generally have less access and

fewer resources available to them . These obsta-cles may prevent th em from participatin g as

effectively in policy debates as th eir coun ter-

parts in the capitals. CSOs in developing and

transition countries more generally are often

constrained by th e lack of approp riate policy,

legal and regulatory fram eworks for civic en-

gagemen t, limited internet access, and/ or by

restrictions on free press or forums for public

debate in their countries. In some cases, localCSOs may rely on their allies in richer coun-

tries to ad vocate on their behalf. In o ther cas-

es, local CSOs are actually branches of interna-

tional CSOs and partly fi

national organization.

9. The diversity and compl

society pose challenges

ment with go vernments a

ganizations. In h is Februa

Lecture at the Bank, Dr.

tary-General an d CEO of

this diversity is an asset, b

fundamental questions abheard and in which venue

accessed an d d istributed,

for whom .”12 Navigating t

quires more targeted stak

participatory approaches,

reason why over time the

ized much of its relationsh

CSOs to the country lev

creasing transnational netwrequires consistent strateg

global level. These challen

ther in Sections 5 an d 6 of

Notes

9. Note: There is no universally accepted definition of the term civil society, which can be traced

the Scottish p hilosoph er Adam Ferguson. What is im portant is not that everyone agrees who

in som e abstract sense, but to have a working definition to guide the Bank’s decision m akinggovernmental” and “not-for-profit” are key indicators; “for-profit” business or the “private s

rate. For furth er discussion, see The Bank’s Relations with NGOs: Issues and Directions (World B

World Bank, Consultations with Civil Society: A Sourcebook (World Bank 2001a).

10. It is acknowledged tha t “media” comprise both for-profit publishing and b roadcasting corp

ates, Internet service providers, public radio and television, and not-for-profit entities. So

owned o r state-controlled. It is not surprising, therefore, that there is debate wheth er media,

media, should be considered part of civil society. We acknowledge the validity of the debate

paper elect to include indep endent and non -profit med ia as part of civil society.

11. Edwards 1999, p.1; Alan Fowler also notes th at by this definitio n, no t all forces present in ci

role in development; for example, there are organizations which are in favor of social or culinked to organized crime, see his January 2000 UNRISD paper, Civil Society, NGDOs and Soc

the Rules of the Game?

12.Naidoo 2003.



10. The Bank’s member governments are the in-

stitution’s clients, owners and decision mak-

ers, yet Bank Management and member gov-

ernments alike have recognized that engaging

proactively with a variety of other stakehold-

ers, including CSOs, improves development

effectiveness. This participatory approach to

development has been reflected in at least 15Bank operation al po licies or guidelines to staff,

including Good Practice (G.P.) 14 .70 on Involv-

ing NGOs in Bank-supported Activities; recent IDA

Replenishment reports; the 2000 and 2004

World Development Reports; the Bank’s 2001

Strategic Framework Paper and subsequent

Strategy Update Papers; and is embodied in

the Comprehensive Development Framework

(CDF) and Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper(PRSP) app roaches. Add itionally, th e Bank’s

Empowerment Framework iden tifies public access

to information, inclusion and participation,

accountability and local organizational capaci-

ty as four key elements of an effective empow-

erment strategy.13

11. Engaging with CSOs contributes to poverty

reduction in a number of ways, including:

• promoting public consensus and local owner-

ship for reforms and for nation al poverty re-

duction and developm ent strategies by creat-

ing knowledge-sharing networks, building

common ground for understanding encour-

• strengthening and leveraging impact of de

opment programs by providing local kno

edge, identifying potential risks, target

assistance, and expan ding reach, p articula

at the commu nity level;

• bringing innovative ideas and solutions

development challengesat both th e local aglobal levels;

• providing professional expertise and incre

ing capacity for effective service delive

especially in environmen ts with weak pub

sector capacity, in post-conflict situations

in humanitarian crises; and

• improving public transparency and accoun

bility of development activities, and thcontributing to the enabling environm

for good governance.

12. The Bank’s staffing arrangements ha

evolved in recent years to support the d

mands for broader engagement of civil so c

ty. As noted above in paragraph 2, the Bank h

a small anchor Civil Society Team (CST), co

prising EXT, ESSD and OPCS staff at headq uters (replacing what was formerly known as

NGO and Civil Society un it), which serves as

overall institutional and global-level focal po

and resource for Bank man agement, staff a

CSOs o n Bank-civil society engagement. T

Bank’s regional departments and most coun

Rationale and Policy FrameworkGoverning the Bank’s Engagemewith CSOs

3



(CFP); indigenous peoples (ESSD); and poor

people’s networks (PREM). All of these staff actbo th a s direct interlocutors for the Bank with

CSOs and also to provide advice and support to

the Bank President and senior management

team, country and sector directors, and task

man agers for their engagements in operations

and policy dialogue with CSOs.

13. The benefits of engaging CSOs are supported

by a number of Bank studies over the pastdecade, as well as by anecdotal and case study

experience. A few references deserve specific

mention in this paper. First, the 1994 final re-

po rt of th e Bank’s Participatory Developm ent

Learning Group, endorsed by the Board of Di-

rectors, concluded that, “There is significant ev-

idence that participation can in m any circum -

stances imp rove the quality, effectiveness, and

sustainability of projects, and strengthen own-ership and commitment of government and

stakeholders.”14 Then in 1998, OED concluded

in its review, Non-governmental Organizations in

World Bank-supported Projects, that a majority of

projects studied showed potential for success

because their preparation and early implemen-

tation were highly participatory.15 In the 1999

DEC policy research report, Assessing Aid: W hat

Works, What Doesn’t and W hy, the authors foun din one study that government agencies that ac-

tively sought to en courage involvement o f ben-

eficiaries achieved a 62 p ercent success rate in

their projects, while those that did no t achieved

just a 10 percent success rate.16 The 2000 World

Developm ent Report, Attacking Poverty, and the

contributing study series, Voices of the Poor, lay

the foundation for the empowerment, security,

and inclusion framework, and documen ted thekey role played by comm unity groups in pover-

ty reduction efforts.17 Also in 2000, ESSD pub-

lished From Confrontation to Collaboration, which

described how improved relations in Brazil

among government, civil society, and the World

Bank resulted in mo re accepted p ublic policies

ments also have shown a

tween overall project qualticipation.20 The World B

gagement: Review of Fisc

illustrates how con sultatio

CAS preparation can incre

ity to engage in the natio

bate and can yield impo rt

ommendations that im

quality of the CAS.21 OED’

of Development Effectivenethe effectiveness of Bank

for sector an d th ematic ob

by the extent and quality o

ipation. The 2002 ARDE

mentation with outcome-

innovative partnerships w

untary organizations as

greater development eff

2004 evaluation of the BDevelopmen t also conclu

participation in project d

tinuing basis throughou

leveraging of local CSO c

CSOs that can partner wit

they can “go it alon e” are

successful Bank-financed

Development Report 2004

nificant percentage of senon-state providers (inclu

such as health, where in

percent or m ore of expend

state sector. The centralit

sion was reinforced in a

study of services in six co

docum ented th e large pro

livery by non-state provid

in health, education, waFurthermore, the WDR 20

tablishment of accoun

among policy makers, se

poo r people, and do cume

that citizens and CSOs ca

pliers and clients o f servic



15. Recent Bank experience has shown that civic

engagement in public policy can enhance thetransparency of public institutio ns. The Bank’s

“social accountability” agenda seeks to build lo-

cal institutions that u tilize civic engagemen t to

improve policies and programs, and to facilitate

accountability, transparency and performance of

public services. In the context of decentralization

and Community-Driven Development, social

accountability helps to strengthen links between

citizens and local governm ents, and assists localauthorities and service providers to be more re-

sponsive to the priorities of poor people. A

prom ising m odel o f social accoun tability is the

Peru Programmatic Social Reform Loan (PSRL),

which is supporting the national medium-term

social reform program. While seeking to make

the social spending policy more open, th is loan

pursues a more effective use of public anti-pover-

ty expenditures. The Peruvian government haspiloted a “report card” to evaluate how citizens

rate the performance of selected social services.

This is expected to result in a substantial increase

in poor people’s access to health and education

services, and greater pro tections for vulnerable

groups during hum anitarian crises.26

16. Despite this body of experience supporting

the role of civic engagement in developmenteffectiveness, many Bank staff and their coun-

terparts in government remain cautious about

engaging CSOs. One of the contributing fac-

tors is the lack of clarity, fragmen tation, and the

ad-hoc nature of the existing operational guide-

lines for staff. Existing good p ractices encourage

staff to con sult or oth erwise engage CSOs, but it

is optional for staff to avail them selves of best

practices, advice or training in this area, and in-centives to do so are often weak. Focal po ints

that have been established during the past few

years to prom ote engagemen t with specific con -

stituencies like faiths, children and youth, dis-

abilities, foun dations and trade union s are lo-

cated in different vice presiden tial un its across

17. Bank-CSO engagement that fits within t

Bank’s purposes is entirely permissible undthe Bank’s Articles of Agreement, so long

the general provisions of the Articles a

observed.27 In general, the Bank’s activit

must relate to economic considerations,

cludin g the econ om ic implications o f soc

political and cultural factors that arise in C

engagement. More specifically, neither

Bank as an institution n or its staff mem b

may interfere in the p olitical affairs of memcountries. This limitation means, among ot

things, that the Bank cannot engage in, or

perceived as en gaging in, p artisan po litics. N

can the Bank and its staff members allow th

decisions to be influenced by the political ch

acter of m emb er countries. The governm

agency that serves as the Bank’s channel

commun ications in each country should

alerted to Bank interactions with CSOs in thcoun try. While these stipulations do n ot gen

ally pose a constraint on Bank-CSO enga

men t, there is still a need for guidan ce for Ba

staff in these sensitive areas.

18 . Also, concern about the legitimacy, tra

parency and accountability of CSOs are of

voiced by Bank staff and member gove

ments. Among the most common critiquheard is that CSOs are not elected and do n

represent anyone but themselves. Many parl

men tarians comp lain that CSOs are consul

at th e expense of parliamentary involveme

and established dem ocratic processes. Oth

critiques are that many CSOs are neith

democratic nor transparent in their own m

agement structures and practices, or that th

can undermine or circumvent government sponsibility to set policy or ensure delivery

social services.28 The Bank’s Voices of the Po

study team found that intermediary NGO

CSOs do not garner the same trust from po

people as do their own comm unity-based

ganizations 29 Som e intermediary CSOs may



19. Concerns are also expressed by Bank staff and

client governments that promoting civil soci-ety participation increases the cost of doing

business. OED’s participation study found that

engaging prim ary and secon dary stakeholders

can be resource- and time-intensive; for exam-

ple, the costs of con sultations for th ose CASs

studied by the OED team ranged as high as 30

percent of the CAS budget.31 Consultations and

other mechanisms of participation can also in-

troduce new tensions, such as competitionamong stakeholders with different interests, or

raising issues or expectations that cannot be ad-

dressed by the Bank or by a specific project or

task team. However, it should be noted tha t task

managers interviewed for OED’s participation

study reported that the benefits of participation

outweigh the costs.32 Likewise, OED’s recent re-

view of social developm ent activities within the

Bank foun d that higher upstream costs incurreddue to participation o f stakeholders are out-

weighed by the improved sustainability of the

projects.33 Task managers, however, report th at

they are looking for techn ical and finan cial sup-

port and guidance for where, when, and how to

engage.34

20. Summary of issues: Engage

wide variety of Bank activof the Bank’s operationa

This is based on more tha

quired institutional experi

quantitative and qualitati

strate the ben efits of engag

tice there is still a wide var

due to the ad-hoc nature

weak incentives, concerns

countab ility, and the tim ewith prom oting participat

ment. This disparity has a

otherwise beneficial effort

main stream the Bank’s en

at the country and project

have contributed to d issati

staff, governments and C

quality and outcome of

deed many Bank staff havfor more good practice g

when engaging CSOs.

Notes13. Narayan 2002, pp. 18–24.

14. World Bank 1994 . See also Participation in Development Assistance, OED, Precis No. 209, Fall, p

15.Gibbs 1998, p. 34.

16.Dollar 1999.

17. Narayan 2000; World Bank 2001h.

18.Garrison 2000.

19. World Bank 2001d.


21. World Bank 2005c; World Bank 2001g, p. 6; World Bank 2001d; World Bank 2000 c. See also W

opment Update (World Bank 2002g) at:

http ://lnweb18.worldban k.org/ESSD/sdvext.nsf/66ByDocName/ MonitoringCivicEngage

PolicyInstruments/$FILE/monitoring-civic-engagement.pdf

22. World Bank 2002b.

23 An OED Review of Social Development in Bank Activities (World Bank 2004a)



28. Moham med 1997; Transcript of World Bank Ann ual Meetings 2002, Semin ar’s Capston e Session with Foreign Mini

Trevor Manuel and Development Minister Jan Karlsson (World Bank 2002j).

29.Narayan 2000.

30. Edwards 2000.



33. World Bank 2004a.

34. Schiffler 2004.



21. Just as the actors involved in Bank-CSO rela-tions vary widely, so do the types of interac-

tion s. To provide a framework to examine the

Bank’s civic engagement activities, the Civil

Society Team has grouped them into three

categories of activity: facilitat ion; dialogue and

consultation;and partnership. Each set of activi-

ties may take place at the local, national and

transnation al levels. An individual CSO m ay be

involved simultaneously with the Bank in allthree categories, and at more than one of these

levels. Many CSOs con sider it entirely app ropri-

ate to engage in advocacy and accountability

activities while also acting as service providers.

Thus, it is important to recognize that positive

relations with CSOs in one area do not guaran-

tee positive relations in another. For example, it

is not uncommon for a CSO to be engaged in

dialogue as a critic of the Bank o n structural adjustment policy, yet still engage in an opera-

tional partnership with the Bank or receive

Bank funds for a project on environmental

resource management. It is also important to

recognize that CSOs traditionally have been

much more engaged in some sectors of the

Bank’s work, namely in social policy, social

services and the environment, than in macro-

economic policy, trade or finance. Indeed,knowledgeable CSOs often view some units of

the Bank quite differently from others, depend-

ing on such factors as th eir accessibility, per-

ceived open ness to n ew ideas and perspectives,

and track record in p roviding feedback.

to en gage constructively providing advice, resource

ing knowledge and best p

supporting multi-stakeho

encouraging and som etim

terms of engagement. D

project documents con

ESSD show that, in both

numbers, intended civil so

Bank operations has risendecade, from 21.5 percen

of pro jects in FY 1990 to 4

and 74 percent in FY 200

encouraging coun tries to

linking local CSOs and

Comm unity-Driven D eve

proaches, for which lendin

lion in FY 2003.35 CSO p

portant element of the BLow Income Countries U

Initiative, and it has been r

capacity-building across

help those countries buil

form and im prove social s

2004, the Bank piloted a C

ment Tool (CSAT) in th

(Angola, Guinea-Bissau

CSO capacities in those cways to draw on the resour

and to assist them in bui

needed.37

23. The Bank’s facilitation ro

A Framework for EngagemExpansions and Contraints

4



strategies to strengthen public sector trans-

parency and accountability and ensure popularparticipation in decision-making. In Tajikistan,

PRSP literature was disseminated in several lan-

guages to ensure that all citizens could access

the information . In Albania, Mongolia and sev-

eral other countries, the Bank has assisted the

formation of CSO working groups with govern-

ment officials as they are preparing the PRSP.38

The Bank is also playing a proactive role to h elp

bring specific constituencies such as tradeun ions, faith groups, parliamentarians, persons

with disabilities, and youth leaders into these

processes.39

24. The Bank has also expanded its facilitation

role into the area of promoting social accounta-

bility and strengthening civic engagement in

public policy and public life. Social accoun ta-

bility is an approach toward building accounta-bility which relies on civic engagement, i.e., in

which o rdinary citizens and/or civil society or-

ganizations participate directly or indirectly in

exacting accoun tability from ho lders of power.

Social accountability mechanisms are hence de-

mand-driven, and operate from the bottom up.

The Bank is working with an array of CSO part-

ners to help developing coun tries institutional-

ize mechanisms for transparency and accounta-bility as a means to improve governance and

public service delivery, while helping to em-

power citizens, especially poor peop le, wom en

and indigenous p eoples. Social accountab ility

initiatives include formalizing public consulta-

tion and participation of CSOs in all the stages

of th e governmen t’s budget cycle, policy and

budget formulation (e.g., Brazil); budget review

and analysis (India, South Africa, Kenya); pub-lic expenditure and input tracking (Ugand a and

Bolivia); and performance monitoring and

evaluation (India and Philippines). The Bank is

sharing knowledge about participatory budget

plann ing and mo nitoring processes with local

governments and CSOs; providing training and

Bank is also helping countries strengthen th

policy and legal frameworks to provide menabling environments for civil society a

civic engagemen t for social and econom ic

velopment and poverty reduction.41 For exa

ple, in 2003 the Bank conducted an analysis

the legal, political, economic and socio-cultu

constraints on the capacity of civil soci

groups in Senegal to engage in the d ecentrali

tion process, with the aim of improving lo

governance and service delivery.

42

The Bank ahas cond ucted a participatory assessment o f

legal and regulatory framework for civic

gagement in Albania to identify impedime

to a more effective role for civil society in

country’s social and economic developme

and develop policy and legal reform prioriti

25. Dialogue and consultation are areas where

Bank engages bilaterally with CSOs, with tknowledge and support of member gove

ments. Dialogue occurs in many forms a

venues, at local, nation al and transnation

levels, and may be initiated by Bank mana

ment and staff or by CSOs themselves. T

representatives on the Bank’s Board of Direct

also meet bilaterally with CSOs from the n

tional constituencies they represent, as well

with CSO representatives who may visit Baheadquarters in Washington to lobby them

specific issues. Engaging in such dialogue w

CSOs increases public awareness and und

standing of the Bank’s activities and objectiv

and brings to the Bank’s attention th e conce

and experiences of CSOs on topics of mut

interest, such as strategies for achieving

MDGs or imp roving p roject im pact. Dialog

also allows the Bank to respond to public quiries and to en gage critics in debate. Dialog

is not necessarily expected to result in specif

short-term outcomes, but it can lead to grea

developmen t effectiveness over time by imp r

ing und erstandin g of issues and en courag

cooperation At the coun try level mo st Bank



Cancun , Mexico. One o f the oldest examples of

a Bank mechan ism for dialogue with civil soci-ety is the former World Bank-NGO Committee,

created in 1982 as a global platform for interac-

tion with leading NGOs in the North and

South. For many years, the Bank-NGO Com-

mittee played a useful role in strengthening the

quan tity and quality of CSO participation in

Bank po licy dialogue and p rojects. Yet as the

Bank b egan to b roaden its engagement with

CSOs in different sectors, the Committee beganto lose its niche. In Decemb er 2000, the Bank

and CSO members of the Committee decided

that it was time to create a new platform for en-

gagement at the global level, which should be

more broad-based. A Joint Facilitation Com-

mittee ( JFC) com prising various global an d re-

gional CSO networks and senior World Bank

representatives was established as a transitional

mechan ism to lead th is effort.43

26. Consultation, as distinct from dialogue, is a

process focused on a specific topic or docu-

ment on which the Bank is soliciting feed-

back. The term consultation brings with it cer-

tain expectations amon g CSOs that th e process

will contribute to decision making, such as on

policy or project design, implementation or

evaluation. It should be noted that some con-sultations, such as those on Bank-finan ced proj-

ects and on PRSPs, are no t the sole respon sibil-

ity of the Bank; th us, the Bank’s role in them

may be as a facilitator. But consulting directly

with civil society has become a key input for the

Bank in preparation of most CASs, sectoral

strategies and operation al po licies.44 A notewor-

thy example was the series of consultations held

with CSOs around the globe in 1999 for theBank-IMF review of the Heavily Indebted Poor

Countries (HIPC) debt relief program. The in-

put gathered during those consultations helped

shape the decision by the Development Com-

mittee in September 1999 to enh ance the HIPC

framework and link debt relief to countries’

policy, with new categori

closed, and support for nprove the staffing and ope

Public Information Cente

tion of documents into th

project-affected peop les. F

Bank (jointly with IFC a

sioned a global, m ulti-stak

work in the extractive ind

the adoption of a new f

linking futu re extractive ito good governance and

impacts, and also steppin

port for investments in re

energy efficiency.45 Recent

IDA, forestry, HIPC, PR

peop les also have been in f

sultations.

27. The third major type ofment is partnership in o pe

cacy at the national, reg

tional levels. There ar

government-CSO partner

level in areas such as edu

microenterprise, health an

The term partnership sugge

and decision-m aking ove

plementation and use of operational engagements

meet th is test. An innovati

tional level includes the s

tiative in Argentin a, whic

nancing local CSOs to m

programs as a response to

An example of partnership

the Pakiv European Rom a

the Bank, European NGOgovernments to promote

nomic development of R

recent examples of transna

clude: the Glob al Alliance

partnership with the Bill

Foun dation o ther CSOs



independen t foundation, bringing together gov-

ernments, donors, companies and CSOs for

knowledge sharing and p artnership building on

the Internet; and th e International Forum for

Capacity Buildin g (IFCB), a CSO an d d on or-

supported initiative to build capacity of south-

ern CSOs to engage in international policy mak-

ing.47 In add ition, the Bank has placed particular

focus on supporting partnerships that are aimed

at promo ting global pub lic goods and standard-

setting, linked to the outcomes of the 2002World Summ it on Sustainable Developm ent in

Joh ann esburg. Examples include the Alliance

for Forest Conservation and Sustainable Use, in

which Bank and World Wildlife Fun d staff are

working together in more than 40 countries to

condu ct joint research, analysis and programs

in forest protection; the Africa Stockpiles Pro-

gramme, which is addressing the issues of pesti-

cide-contaminated waste; the Global WaterPartnership, which is promoting alliances and

information exchange on integrated water re-

sources management in line with the Dublin-

Rio principles; and the Global Reporting Initia-

tive, which is setting guidelines for repo rting on

econom ic, environmen tal and social perform-

ance of businesses, investors and nonprofit or-

ganizations.48

28. Numerous funding mechanisms have been

made available to support these different cat-

egories of Bank engagement with CSOs. Many

of the Bank’s client governments choose to work

with various CSOs as direct developmen t part-

ners and pass Bank project funds onto them or

contract CSOs for specific types of work. One

good example of this is the Multi-Country AIDS

Program ( MAP). Out o f MAP’s $1 b illion budg-et, approximately $500 m illion has been set

aside in Bank grant funds to b e chann eled to

CSOs. As of m id-2004, at least 20,000 small-

scale CSO projects have been funded by these

grants in order to carry out AIDS treatment, sur-

veillance prevention and education activities

policy design and implementation. Donor g

ernment trust funds play a major role in su

porting the Bank’s work on promoting parti

patory approaches to public budgeting

capacity building for PRSPs; in some cas

CSOs can even access these resou rces direc

with the spon sorship o f a Bank department. T

Bank also now has a number of direct gr

mechanisms, one of the most important

which is the Small Grants Program (SmG

Though modest, this program is highly valuby the Bank country teams as a source of oft

critical seed finan cing for local CSOs to p

mo te inn ovative civic engagemen t, empow

ment, capacity building, and partnerships. P

jects supported by the SmGP can be

important entry point for future governme

CSO collaboration.50 Other important Bank

nan ced resources to foster engagement o f CS

include the Global and Coun try-level Develmen t Marketplaces (DMs), Post-Conflict Fu

(PCF), Information for Development (

foDev), and th e Critical Ecosystems Partners

Fund. The Global Environment Facility (GE

and the Con sultative Group to Assist the Po

est (C-GAP) also work directly with CSO

In August 2003, the Bank established a n

grantmaking facility called the Global Fund

Indigenous Peoples, which provides seed m oey for small, innovative projects proposed a

implem ented by indigenous peoples’ group s

developing countries.52

29. However, this array of funds appears insu

cient to meet the current internal and ext

nal demands for engagement, and access

resources can be difficult, particularly for

cal CSOs. Many of these funds are limitedtheir size, scope and flexibility, and they can

time-consuming and cumbersome for Ba

staff or CSOs to access.53 Task managers int

viewed for OED’s 2001 participation review

ed inad equate funds as a significant o bstacle

promoting consultation and participation



and staff as inflexible, or even b iased against

the involvement of CSOs, particularly against

local groups that have limited resources. Efforts

are und erway to address som e of the procure-

ment limitations, but have been slow to meet

internal and external demand. As long as civic

engagement activities are seen as dependent on

raising funds additional to the regular budget,

there is a dan ger that in the eyes of clients, these

efforts will be regarded as m arginal, and will

not be valued or prioritized by Bank staff. Thedecision to allocate a significant percentage of

IDA-13 and IDA-14 resources to grants has

raised th e p ossibility of greater flexibility for

client governm ents to engage CSOs using Bank

funds, although the Bank will continue to

channel IDA funds through sovereign govern-

ments, and the grants will be subject to Bank

procurement procedures.55

30. Another constraint is the pressure to respond

to client needs and disburse funds quickly,

which conflicts with the goal o f instituting

participatory processes that will promote de-

velopment effectiveness. The fixed nature of

the project cycle in op erations suppo rted by the

Bank often does not permit adequate time nor

sufficient resources to bu ild comm unity and lo-

cal governm ent capacity to take ownership o f developmen t programs. Too often the needs for

capacity building and participation are igno red

or marginalized early in project planning, and

comm unities and their representatives also may

lack the skills and to ols to assume leadership

roles on ce the Bank’s involvement ends. There

are also cases where limited government capac-

ity to absorb Bank resources leads to a backlog

in d isbursements, while capable local organiza-tions that could be enlisted to get resources pro-

gramm ed in po or commu nities are not p ursued

as viable alternatives. These omissions can put

at risk the sustainability of the Bank’s develop-

ment efforts.

ing system measures only

involvement. 56 Competin

staff, and disincentives suc

ance and p oor systems for

uating participation, fuel

task managers to “tick the

been involved, rather than

to en sure engagemen t is v

by all stakeholders. The la

stitution -wide, outcome-b

evaluation system weakenficiency and stakeholder su

It is also an obstacle to lev

involvement in efforts t

reach the MDGs.

32. The ad hoc institutional

tations is a source of frict

lations. While consultatio

times required and is emthe Bank today, OED, Ban

ty representatives report th

consultations remains un

guidelines are not widely f

ists but is not mandatory.

often left to design consu

can, with insufficient exp

sources to do so effectively

occur in an arbitrary fashiotice and/or very late in the

as a systematic opportun

shape po licies and progra

nalized. On some operati

for example, internal Bank

ly been formed by Manag

the Board o f Directors bef

sultations with CSOs, lim

range of acceptable input cases, little or no feedbac

comm ents received from

CSOs with little appetite to

dialogue or consultation w

they do not see how thei

CSOs cite the lack of clea



country publics to the internet. On the oth er

hand, some member governments have viewed

the long periods of consultation on some poli-

cies or initiatives as evidence that the Bank

is more con cerned abo ut CSO o pinion s than

the need to make timely decisions. In sum,

poorly managed consultations can pose a sig-

nificant obstacle to constructive relations with

CSOs, and can create both an o perational an d

a reputational risk management challenge for

the Bank.58

33. There also has been frustration expressed by

global CSO networks regarding the outcomes

of a n umber of high-profile stakeholder en-

gagement processes that were jointly initiated

with the Bank. Three recent processes in partic-

ular—the Structural Adjustmen t Participatory

Review In itiative (SAPRI),59 the World Com mis-

sion on Dams (WCD)

60

and the Extractive In-dustries Review (EIR) 61—have been the subject

of scrutiny. Each process has had its own dis-

tinct and innovative elements: SAPRI involved

CSOs, government officials, and Bank staff in

joint analysis of the impacts of structural ad-

justment; the WCD was an in ternational, multi-

stakeholder pan el; and the EIR was led by an in-

dependent secretariat that organized a global

consultation involving CSOs, governm ents andrepresentatives of extractive industries. Despite

good in tention s in all three processes, each h as

led to some d issatisfaction am ong the various

parties concerned, as a result of differing as-

sumptions an d expectations of what ou tcom es

each process would yield. In the case of both

SAPRI and the WCD, the Bank helped launch

the process but was later perceived by some

CSOs as having ignored or distanced itself fromthe recom men dations. Lesson s learned from

these processes include the need to establish

clarity of purpose and process up front; to

recognize the heterogeneity of organizations in-

volved and to manage their varying expecta-

tions; to be clear on the roles and responsibili

34 . Disclosure and transparency are also ma

issues for Bank-CSO relations. The Ban

own Empowerment Framework identifies

cess to information as a key element to p

mote empowerment and effective partici

tion, which in turn contributes to bet

governance and pub lic accoun tability.62 M

CSOs recognize that the Bank has ma

important steps forward in expanding disc

sure since the Bank’s information policy w

first approved in 1993, b ut th ey feel that

Bank should do its part to increase public

cess to information before decisions are m a

CSOs view greater and more timely disclos

as a key step toward operationalizing the E

powerment Framework so that interes

groups have the background they need to

gage in dialogue with their government rep

sentatives. In countries where such access to

formation is no t permitted, CSOs often appto th e Bank to intervene with governm ents a

promote disclosure. In other cases, Bank m

agement is perceived by CSOs as being the

stacle to imp roved disclosure.

35 . Summary of issues: Over th e years, Bank-C

engagement h as expanded and d eepened acr

the th ree main categories of facilitation, dialo

and consultation, and partnership. Interviews aresearch point to m uch activity and innovati

but also a persistent gap between expectatio

policy and practice, which hamp ers the Ban

ability to strengthen relations with CSOs

numb er of proposals to close this gap have be

identified in the past by EXT, OED and oth

but h ave not yet been implemented.63 Lack

reliable data, limited finan cial resources, a

limits on disclosure of information all pconstraints on the Bank’s ability to engage CS

early, perform effective monitoring and eval

tion o f their involvement, and redirect hu m

and finan cial resources as needed to align w

the Bank’s institution al priority to promote e

powerment



Notes

35.The assessments of civil society involvement, which are based on a review of Project Appraisal DReports, are ‘actual’ for the identification, preparation, and appraisal stages of the project cycle, and

mentation, monitoring, and evaluation. See World Bank-Civil Society Engagement: Review of Fiscal

Bank 2005c).

36. World Bank 2003c; Board d iscussion on LICUS Initiative imp lementation on January 9, 2003.

37. The Civil Society Assessment Tool (CSAT) is an analytical to ol designed to assess a) relatio nsh ips

amo ng civil society, governmen t and dono r organizations, b) in stitutional rules and cultural nor

and c) CSO role in delivering services to the poor and improving the country’s governance. See CSA

Bank 2004b) .

38.The Bank’s Social Development staff provide operational support and knowledge management

engaged in the PRSP process. Key references include: Good Practices and Lessons Learned in PR

(http//:www.worldbank.org/participation/PRSP/goodless3.htm); the draft internal document

Processes in the PRSP (www.worldbank.org/participation/ partprsp.pdf ); an d Participation in Poverty

A Retrospective Study (World Bank 2002f).

39. See Egulu, L. 2004. Trade Union Participation in the PRSP Process. Social Protection Discussion Pape

ton, D.C.

40.Inaugural and current partners in the CSBI are the International Budget Project (USA), Center for

Institute for Democracy in South Africa, IDASA (South Africa); the Ford Foundation, FUNDAR, M

Network, the National Center for Advocacy Studies, India, and the Municipality of Porto Alegre,

provided by the Department for Internation al Developm ent in t he UK (DFID) an d the Swedish In

Agency.

41. These activities are discussed further o n the new website on civic engagement and law at: http :

way.org/civic.

42. Beck, L. and Thin dwa, J., Civil Society in Senegal: The Dem and Side of Decentralizatio n, 2003 .

43. See CIVICUS 2003. Joint Facilitation Com mit tee, Terms of Reference for the World Bank–Civil Soci

mittee. http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/TOPICS/CSO/0,,contentMDK:20133856

220476~theSitePK:228717,00.html

44. World Bank 20 01g; World Bank 20 05c.

45. Striking a Better Balance—The World Bank Group and Extractive Industries: The Final Report of the E

World Bank Group Management Response, September 17, 2004 (World Bank 2004e).

46. These and other examples are listed o n the civil society page on the Bank’s website: http:/ /www.w

47. For these and other partn erships, see The World Bank’s Approach to Global Programs: An Independent

August 1, Annex D (World Bank 2002i); The World Bank’s Partnerships: An Update, FRM (World B

http:// wbln0023/rm c/rmc.nsf/DO Cs/PATS+Documents/$File/SecM2002-0427A.pdf

48. See “Partnerships—The Next Step in People, Planet an d Prosperity: Outcomes of the World Summ

opm ent” (World Bank 2003d).

49. Presentatio n by Keith Han sen, Man ager, ACTAfrica o f the World Bank, to t he Civil Society-Strat

HIV/AIDS, June 2004 (World Bank 2004d).

50. Chem on ics Intern ation al 2001. World Bank Small Grants Program (SmGP) Evaluat ion , FY 1998–Bank 2001l).

51. See Resources for Mobilizing Funding for Development Projects, pp. 21–43. (World Bank 2001e).

funding/ngo-grants.pdf.

52. The 1 2-member board overseeing the Fund in cludes six representatives from indigenous p eoples

53. Ashm an 2003. “Seeing Eye to Eye?” Stud y condu cted for InterAction and The World Bank, Just A

54 Th W ld B k 2001d 3



59.Development Gap 2004. The Structural Adjustment: The SAPRI Report. The Policy Roots of Economic Crisis, Poverty and Ineq

ity. London: Zed Books.

60.World Com mission on Dams 2000. Dams and Development: A New Framework for Decision-Making. World Commission

Dams. London: Earthscan Publications.

61. See Public Letter to James D. Wolfensoh n from NGOs in February of 2004.

62.Narayan 2002.

63. IDA Review Report o n Cou ntry Con sultatio ns, OED, p. 3 (World Bank 2001c).



36. A major factor in Bank-CSO engagement has

been the expansion in the size, scope, and ca-

pacity of CSOs around the glo be since the ear-

ly 1990s, aided by the process of globaliza-

tion and the expansion of democratic

governance, telecommunications, market

transformations and economic integration.

As illustrative figures, the n um ber o f interna-tional NGOs was reported to increase from

6,000 in 1990 to 26,000 in 1999. More than

one million CSOs have been recorded in India

alone.64 The number of foundations nearly

tripled from 22,088 in 1980 to 56,582 in

2000.65 The recent dynamism of this sector has

been widely documented (see References). The

evolution of Bank engagement with CSOs has

been affected by this tremendous growth of CSOs and their increasing role in national and

global affairs.

37. CSOs have become significant players in glob-

al development finance. Organization for Eco-

nom ic Cooperation and Developmen t (OECD)

statistics for 2003 report that the private com-

pon ent of NGO/ CSO grants totals some $10

billion ann ually, a dou bling since 1990, andabout 15 percent of the value of current ODA.66

In addition, OECD members report contribu-

tions by governm ents to NGO/ CSO p rograms

accoun t for at least $1 billion ann ually, while

official aid channeled th rough NGOs/CSOs is

ments.68 Development N

years reportedly provided

port to developing count

agencies combined.69 Betw

grantm aking by U.S. foun

tions for internation al pur

$760 m illion to $3 billio

the econom ic activity of inety is enormo us and grow

kins University Comparat

Project reported that the n

countries studied accounte

expenditures as of the mid

natio nal CSOs h ave glob

that of the Bank or have p

may rival or exceed tho se o

agency partners.72

38. CSOs’ influence on sha

pol icy has grown over t

began n etworking across

two centuries ago, the pa

seen the emergence of wh

lysts are now calling a tra

civil society, which is more

before.73 Transnational adCSOs began m obilizing in

through p arallel sum mits

United Nation s con ference

cacy camp aigns on issues s

mines and prom oting deb

Rising Influence of CSOs iInternational DevelopmenChanging the Engagement Lands

5



finan ce (including the IFIs); to strengthen their

economic literacy and analytic capabilities; to

build broad-based coalitions including al-

liances with friendly governments; and to be

comb ative when necessary.75 The Campaign to

Ban Landmines and Jubilee 2000 mobilized

thousands of suppo rters aroun d the globe and

drew attention from n ational and international

po licy makers at the h ighest levels, as well as in-

tensive m edia coverage and celebrity support.

There are also man y cases of government lead-

ers, such as in Brazil and the Philippines, who

have worked in civil society and have pursued

similar social change agendas in governm ent.

39. CSOs have become important channels for

delivery of social services and implementa-

tion of other development programs, espe-

cially in areas where government capacity is

weak or non-existent. Economic and fiscal pol-

icy reform s in m any coun tries have led to d e-

centralization or even privatization of social

service delivery, which can result in a larger role

for CSOs.76 In countries that are experiencing

economic stress, political upheaval, conflict or

post-conflict situations, CSOs are sometimes

the best viable alternative for delivering social

services to needy populations.77 In addition,

public policy challenges ranging from environ-

mental protection to disease control have

grown m ore complex at the global and n ation-

al levels, and existing inter-governmental mech-

anisms have been insufficient to address these

problems effectively. As knowledge and capaci-

ty in the non-profit sector have expanded, and

as CSOs build alliances with academics, econo-

mists and other experts in their areas of interest,

the expertise and capacity in civil society can betapped for the public benefit, and may rival or

even exceed the capacity of government or the

private sector in a given area.

40. The increasing focus among policy makers

and their publics on good governance and

en . . . It includes formal insti tutions a

regimes empowered to enforce compliance,

well as informal arrangements that people a

institutions either h ave agreed to, or perceive

be, in their interest.”78 In both developed a

developing countries, there have been calls

new models of public-private cooperati

transparency and oversight that give a grea

role to CSOs in public life. Anthony Giddens

the London School of Economics describes t

phenomenon as the result of a deepening

democracy, reflecting a more cosmopolit

form of society that acknowledges a new

emerging power structure where governme

the m arket and civil society all need to be c

strained in the in terests of social solidarity a

social justice.79 CSOs are involved in accoun

bility and quasi-regulatory functions, such

the International Accounting Standards Boa

which has brought CSOs into the process of

veloping harmonized accounting standards

industry. Participatory budgeting and monit

ing processes being used in countries fro

India to Ghana are helping to ensure that go

ernmen t fund s are focused o n citizens’ nee

and are actually spent on the programs

which they were intended.80 In sum , involv

CSOs in developm ent an d strengthening th

“watchdog” role is now widely accepted by

international comm unity as an im portant co

ponent o f promoting good governance.81

41. As CSOs’ expertise and influence grow, corp

rations, parliamentarians, media and o pini

leaders seek them o ut for information, adv

and partnerships. Leading m ultinational c

porations today seek alliances with CSOs a

central part of their business strategy. This is idenced, for example, by the recent growth

corporate social responsibility (CSR) themes

comm ercial advertising for th e ph armaceutic

technology and energy industries. Grow

numb ers of investors and consumers alike

looking for products and investments that m



lawmakers in many countries was critical to

mo bilizing executive branch support in favor of

debt relief. Mainstream media covering global

and national policy debates regularly seek out

the views and com men ts of camp aigners and /or

think tanks.

42. International surveys demonstrate a trend to-

ward greater public trust in CSOs than gov-

ernments or for-profit corporations. In a

numb er of coun tries, governm ents and political

parties face lower levels of credibility amo ng

their populations than do CSOs. Recent global

surveys suggest that there is greater public trust

in NGOs/CSOs than in government, private

sector corporations or international organiza-

tions to promo te and protect ethics and moral

values.83 Since 2000, the annual Edelman Trust

Barometer has found that NGOs/CSOs outpace

governments, business and the media in public

trust and being perceived as a source of credible

information, particularly on the environm ent,

health, and human rights issues.84 A 1997

Gallup study in Argentina found that the level

of confidence in public institutions in Argenti-

na , for example, was extremely low; public reac-

tions to th e recent econom ic crisis in th at coun-

try suggest that th ose concerns deepened over

time.85 The Bank’s own Voices of the Poor study

also speaks to a crisis of credibility for govern-

ment institutions; the study team found that

CBOs are often trusted by the poor more than

government to address their needs.86 In both de-

veloped and developin g countries, recent cor-

porate governance scandals as well as govern-

ment responses to terrorism have elevated

public skepticism and distrust of private sector

corporations an d government.

43. CSOs are attracting greater public scrutiny as

their capacity and influence grow. Donors,

governments, parliamentarians and citizens are

demanding that CSOs demonstrate they are

well managed cost effective publicly account

by donor agencies to self-

strate their legitimacy a

development advocates on

munities in developing c

dard-setting is not a new

civil society. For example,

nation al NGO coalition I

its PVO Standards in 198

membership.89 In the Phili

ed code of conduct for CS

the early 1990s, and was l

a self-managed system tha

pliance with standards req

by the Securities and Exch

eligibility for tax exemptio

an Accountability Partner

Geneva aims to in crease

hu manitarian agencies to

the SPHERE standards is a

charter to set sector-spe

formance standards in di

past three years in particu

no ticeable growth in the n

ferences, writings, and tra

ed to the topics of how org

lish and maintain legitim

and best management an

tices.91 In response to the g

expectations, some CSO

with international benchm

party accreditation.92 The

un ion movement, which

tablished systems of elect

involving large membersh

to distinguish itself from

sure that policy makers u

tured accountability system

44. These trends point to the

streaming civic engagem

analysis, policy dialogue

growing capacity of CSOs

portunities to harness th

and poverty reduction effo



Notes64. Dierckxsens 2000.

65. The Foundation Center 2001.

66. ODA includes grants m ade by bilateral donors to NGOs, but no t grants made by NGOs using private fund s.

67. OECD 2003. OECD n otes that th ese figures are likely underestimates because not all do nors report contributio n

t t NGO ’ d l b t h lf th d t th i f d h l d th

to make more informed and strategic choices

about which groups to engage on which issues,

with the goal of empowering the poorest com-

munities and other primary stakeholders. An

appropriate enabling environment for civic en-

gagemen t is also key. In addition to a conducive

political and economic environment, countries

need legal frameworks that bu ild up civil socie-

ty and create opp ortun ities for CSOs to en gage

in national development efforts, whether in

service delivery, monitoring of public services,

advocacy or pub lic education . They should pro-

vide for free access to information and facilitate

CSO fundraising, among other p riorities. Press

freedom is another important aspect of this en-

abling environment.93 The degree to which

these civic engagement issues are elevated and

mainstreamed into the Bank’s country work

varies widely and usually depends on th e expe-

rience and perspectives of individual Bank

country directors and task managers, and of

counterpart governmen t officials.

45. Other international organizations, as well as

many of the Bank’s member governments,

have begun to respond to the changing civil

society and governance landscape. Beyond the

Bank, there has been a general trend am ong in-

ternational organizations du ring the past sever-

al years toward improving participation and

opening doors wider to civic groups. For exam-

ple, many governm ents now include CSOs on

their official delegations to UN con ferences and

provide financial and/or political backing for

parallel civil society forums, and CSOs are also

included in high-level sessions. At the 20

Cancun WTO Ministerial, for example, ma

CSO representatives were included on gove

men t delegations. The ADB, IADB and UN

all recently have adopted new participati

strategies.94 The Global Fund to Fight AIDS,

berculosis and Malaria has 5 voting seats

CSOs on its governing board.95 A High-Le

Panel on UN-Civil Society Relations, appoin

by UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan a

chaired by former Brazilian President Cardo

made a series of recomm endations in 2004 th

aim to give CSOs a greater voice in global go

ernance and to strengthen the level of civil so

ety engagement across the UN system.96 At

same time, some governments have been tak

steps to monitor the activities of civic organi

tions as part of their anti-terrorism efforts, g

ing rise to concerns th at th e activities of leg

mate CSOs could be adversely affected.97

46. Summary of issues: The changes in global c

society highlighted in this section h ave sign

cantly impacted global development and pov

ty reduction efforts, and warrant higher prior

and greater understanding by Bank staff, m

agement an d th e Board. These chan ges have i

plications for the Bank’s internal and exter

learning and capacity-building program

mechan isms of engagement with CSOs in op

ations and on policy issues, relations w

member governments, as well as collaborati

with other international agencies and the bu

ness sector.



73.Kaldor 2001; Florini 2000.

74. Pianta 2001; Clark 2002; Vayrynen 2000, p. 83.; Florini 2000.

75. Wahl 1998, p . 5; Goose 2000.

76. Pianta 2001; Florini 2000.

77. World Bank 2002l.

78.Commission on Global Governance 1995. Our Global N eighborhood. Oxford University Press.

79.Giddens 1998.

80.For example, see Ghana HIPC Watch. First Report Card on Government of Ghana’s Performance Un

Send Foundation.

81. Giddens 1998, p. 79; Giddens 2000, p. 51.

82. Race to the Top: Attracting and Enabling Global Sustainable Business, Business Survey Report (World B

83. Gallup Internation al 2002; Environics 2003; Environics 2001, p. 3.

84. On January 25, 2005, th e Sixth Glob al Op inion Leaders Study was launched by Edelman Public Re

nom ic Forum in Davos, Edelman’s Trust Barometer 2005.

85. Gallup Internation al, Argentina 1997; Bain 2002.

86.Narayan 2000, p.143.

87. For example, the views expressed by th e finance min ister of South Africa and developm ent m inis

discussion at the 2002 Bank/IMF Annual Meetings (World Bank 2002j). See Seminar’s Capstone

http://www.worldbank.org/annualmeetings/ . Also see 2003 American Enterprise Institute (AEI)

papers on NGO account ability at: http:// www.aei.org/events/eventID.329,filter./event_detail.asp.88. Fox and Brown 1998. Chapter 12; Hud ock 1999.

89.For details on InterAction’s PVO Standards, see http://www.interaction.org/.

90. See Philippine Coun cil for NGO Certification at http:// www.pcnc.com.ph ; Ball and D unn 1995;

by Jeff Thindwa, World Bank, Achieving Development Results Through Legal Frameworks that Enhance

ety Organizations, ESSD Shan ghai, China.

91. See, for example, agendas from conferences at Harvard, CIVICUS General Assemb ly and In terAct

an d The Global Accountability Report (On e World Trust 2003).

92. See SGS Benchmarking of No n Governmen tal Organisations at http:// www.sgs.com and , and no

Lunch Discussion on Civil Society Accountability on November 10, 2004 at www.worldbank.org/93. World Bank 2002n. The Right to Tell: The Role of the Mass Media in Economic Development, WBI, W

94.IADB 2000. Citizen Participation in the Activities of the Inter-American Development Bank, Octob

UN DP and Civil Society Organizations: A Policy Note on Engagement. http://www.undp.or

UNDP%20CSO%20Policy.pdf ; Asian Development Bank (ADB) 2002. http://www.adb.org/NGO

95.http://www.theglobalfund.org/en/partners/ngo/

96.United Nations 2004, We the Peoples: Civil Society, the Un ited N ations, and Global Governance, A/58/ 8

The United Nations System Collaboration with Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), CEB High-Level Co

CRP.5, September.

97. Naidoo 2002. pp. 42–43.



47. The public demonstrations held alongside

many of the international meetings in the pe-

riod immediately after the 1999 WTO Minis-

terial in Seattle prompted much debate about

the status of Bank-CSO relations, particularly

at the global level. These protests, including

those that were mobilized during the 2000

IMF/Bank Spring Meetings in Washington andthe 2000 Ann ual Meetings in Prague, attracted a

great deal of public attention an d, at times, have

cast a shadow o n th e man y more constructive

interactions occurring between CSOs and the

Bank.

48. Protests that have occurred around World

Trade Organization, Bank, IMF and other in-

ternational summit meetings in recent yearshave focused on a plethora of issues, includ-

ing deno uncing the war in Iraq and o ther con-

flicts, and particularly on the negative effects

they perceive resulting from globalization.

They are concerned about economic instability

and the loss of jobs, local control, and cultural

heritage. Althou gh many informed analysts and

the protest organizers themselves argue that

“social justice” and not “anti-globalization” isthe more appropriate term to describe them,

globalization is nonetheless the bete noire for

what these groups perceive as the excessive

power of capitalism, multinational corpora-

tions and political elites in developed and de-

participants and international media, oft

provide a convenient target around which

tivists can mobilize and b e heard.

49. Many activists continue to attribute the pro

lems o f globalization to the Bank’s po licy a

lending decisions, which they perceive

harmful to poor countries and their peopWhile some o f their criticisms have been bas

on past actions of the Bank that may no lon

be relevant, others do relate to current Ban

supported policies or activities. Major rally

issues for protestors and campaigners inclu

debt relief, human rights, governance, corr

tion, trade in agricultural com modities, land

form, privatization of basic services such as w

ter, and dams or other large infrastructuprojects believed to have caused harm to lo

pop ulations or the environm ent. Even when

sponsibility for the decision or process in qu

tion rests with an individual governm ent (su

as with the PRSPs), CSOs often believe that t

geting the Bank, with its political and finan c

clout and internation al media scrutiny, is mo

likely to force change than appealing d irectly

the government in question. This phenom enhas been referred to as the “boomerang effe

because when local civil society activists ta

their case to the global stage, the pressu

“curves around local state indifference and

pression to put foreign p ressure on local pol

Civil Society Protests andAdvocacy Campaigns:Who, What, Why?

6



on the streets at recent internation al meetings

have been overwhelmingly from the North,

they do have growing links with activists in th e

South, fueled by the empowerment and

transnational networking of civil society dis-

cussed in Section 5 of this paper. Many of the

protesters have been strategic in using these

public events to build support for their respec-

tive causes, even if the issues have no thing to do

directly with the Bank.100 With respect to global-

ization and international finance issues, al-

liances have been formed am ong what analysts

Desai and Said refer to as “isolationists,” in-

cluding groups which have called explicitly for

abolishing the Bretton Woods Institutions, and

“alternatives” who may have little first-hand

knowledge about the Bank but espouse a com-

bination o f “anti” and reformist views on glob-

alization and are con tent to use the Bank as a

target even if it is not responsible for the deci-

sion being challenged.101 Som e of the m ore mil-

itant groups involved in these protests have

dem onstrated little interest in con structive dia-

logue with, or reform of, the Bank. Their mes-

sages and tactics at times may be con fron tation-

al, or even obstructionist, such as forming

human chains to attempt to block officials’ ac-

cess to meetings or using bicycles to block com-

muter traffic. Some have been willing to use vi-

olence and destroy property, or to tolerate and

suppo rt such actions by others.

51. With the more militant groups involved in

protests, the Bank should no t expect to build

constructive relations. The Bank has made

clear its intention not to engage with individu-

als or groups that have espoused violence or

property destruction, such as the so-called Black

Bloc or Anti-Capitalist Convergence. There is

also little basis for the Bank to expect that con-

structive relations are possible or desirable with

obstructionist-minded groups, unless their

aims and tactics change significantly. The Bank

does not oppose peaceful law abiding protest

sages and activities, as on

necessary to respond thr

waves or oth er forums.

52. The 5th World Social Fo

January 2005 in Porto A

attracted at least 150,00

around the world, accor

event website—points to

social movement attemp

influencing change beyon

was first held in January

protest against the ann ual

rum in Davos. Anti-estab

the first WSF was very high

with global po licy makers

link between p articipan ts

Davos disintegrated in to s

cusations and epithets fr

side. After the Septem ber

tacks in New York an d W

scape an d tolerance for h

and protests began to shif

ful approaches102 and some

ers recognized the need t

sages and tactics in res

political realities.103 The W

mittee has since encourag

mu ch wider spectrum of C

globe, creating a category

included Bank staff, and

sentatives to speak in som

United Nations and like-

officials. Nevertheless, m

tions involved in WSF are

constructive dialogue with

po licy makers. Whether t

enough to become a spac

scope and pace of econom

mains to be seen. It will d

of key organizers to find co

in the “large tent” of civil

ated, to be able to en gage i

with decision makers in



instead of confrontation, are focused on em-

powering poor people, and have the analyti-

cal and/or operational capacity to contribute

to achieving the MDGs. These groups would

include what some an alysts have termed as the

“hearts”—groups which advocate generally

peaceful and constructive approaches—or “re-

formers,” which are inform ed critics of the Bank

but are also interested in dialogue toward fur-

ther reforming, not abolishing, the internation-

al financial institutions.104 Many of these groups

supp ort the Bank’s messages to focus on achiev-

ing the MDGs and strengthen ing local empow-

ermen t and voice. Yet they also may be sympa-

thetic to the protesters because they perceive a

persistent “rhetoric-reality gap” between the ex-

pectations raised by the Bank’s messages and its

research, an d actual Bank practice in man y cas-

es. They point to important gaps in the imple-

men tation o f Bank o perational po licies which

are supposed to promote stakeholder participa-

tion and empowerment of poor peoples. They

appeal to the Bank to be less arrogant as an in-

stitution, to adm it its mistakes, and be m ore

open-minded to alternative approaches to de-

velopm ent an d poverty reduction. They also are

concerned abo ut the ab ility of poo r coun tries to

achieve debt sustainability and equitable

growth. Although th ey may agree that the Bank

has changed its approaches, they perceive that

the Bank is still promoting an economic model

that does not give proper weight to human

rights and social protection issues. They believe

that public institutions such as the Bank should

become m ore accountable to the public.105 They

feel that the Bank’s governance structure—and

indeed the global governance framework of

which the Bank is an impo rtant player—is bi-

ased in favor of the rich coun tries at the expense

of the poo r ones, and needs to be reformed. Of-

ten it is such analyses by generally constructive

Bank critics that provide much of the intellectu-

al credence to the messages carried by the m ore

radical movements

monize or encourage violence or obstructi

At the 2000 Annual Meetings in Prague, for

amp le, som e CSOs felt obliged to denounce

violence that occurred at the hand s of som e r

icals in the “S26” coalition. In 2001, at inter

tional m eetings in Quebec and in Geno a, v

lence, property destruction, and ultimately

death of a protester finally led some groups

take a public stand against violence.106 Ma

CSOs with more experience lobbying the Ba

understand very well the distinctions in ro

between the Bank and its government owne

and can distinguish when it is necessary to

ply pressure to one or th e other. However, th

are many more that do not follow the insti

tions closely and do not distinguish betwe

these roles, so they may stay focused on t

Bank regardless of whether or not it is the

propriate target.107 Studen ts and youth in par

ular have been easily recruited to the anti-Ba

bandwagon, when they hear simplistic m

sages that Bank staff are responsible for de

sions tha t actually rest with governm ents. Ma

of the m ore knowledgeable group s which

engage with the Bank nevertheless have been

luctant to enter the public debate about t

roles of the m ultilateral institutions, leaving i

ages of violence and protest to capture m e

attention and creating the false impression t

the Bank’s relationship with civil society

mostly conflictual.

55. Now that the Bank has agreed to actio

aimed at helping developing countr

achieve the MDGs and all partners fulfilli

MDJ commitments, it wil l be even more cr

cal for the Bank to base its work on a stro

understanding o f civil society concerns a

capacities, and an analysis of potential ro

blocks. While international institutions a

governm ents have generally hailed th e glo

development compact between rich and po

countries, many CSOs have expressed dis

pointm ent that the com mitmen ts were vag



be requ ired across the Bank, since d ifferent de-

partments of the Bank interact with different

groups on imp lementin g different goals (e.g.,

HD on education for all; ESSD on agriculture;

ESSD/INF on access to water; DEC/PREM on

lifting trade barriers for poor coun tries).

56. Many constructive-minded CSOs are frustrat-

ed by what they view as unmet promises to

enhance citizen participation in develop-

ment processes, particularly in the PRSPs.

Constructive governm ent-CSO collabo ration is

critical to achieving genuin e coun try owner-

ship. Many CSOs in both the global and na-

tional arenas believe the Bank has an impo r-

tant and proactive role to play in helping

governmen ts design an d institutionalize new

mechanisms to work with CSOs, such as

through the PRSPs. They view borrowing gov-

ernment willingness to open up the PRSP

process to m ore m eaningful participation as a

key measure of comm itment to local owner-

ship an d p ro-poor reforms. Althou gh PRSPs

are intended to be country-owned and coun-

try-driven, local an d internation al CSOs alike

want to h old th e IMF and Bank accountable for

ensuring participatory processes that involve a

broad base of no n-governmen tal stakeholders;

in fact, many view it as the IFIs’ responsibility

to en sure this. Bank, CSO, and don or reviews

of th e PRSP pro cess du ring th e last few years

show th at wh ile CSO participation in PRSPs

has been expan ding and creating new spaces

for civic engagemen t, the record is qu ite un -

even and significant constraints to meaningful

participation remain in many countries.108 Re-

cently, the 2004 PRSP Good Practices leaflet list-

ed a num ber of “good p ractices” that shou ld be

considered. These include: engaging stakehold-

ers during the implementation and monitor-

ing of the PRSP; the supp ort o f capacity-build-

ing initiatives that enable civil society and

oth ers to engage m ore effectively in policy de-

bate and imp lementation; and providing time

prom ote social change an

and balance on the activiti

of publicly funded institu

A certain level of tension

government an d Bank rela

Bank will always attract

CSOs, no matter how succ

ing engagement or com bat

Bank’s global reach, resou

an inter-governmental fi

built on the p rinciples of

logue and partnership, h

healthy tension that resu

policies, programs and go

ple, sustained, critical adv

national environm ental N

1980s and 1990s was ins

ing” the Bank, getting the

participatory approaches

cies, as well as to adopt th

an accountability mechan

advocacy of CSOs such as

and Oxfam International

leadership of Mr. Wolfe

played a critical role in get

ber governments to adopt

program in 1996. CSOs a

through the 1999 HIPC

process, in winning agree

men t of the HIPC progra

rectly to poverty reduction

58. Recent IMF/Bank Ann

demonstrated that while

occur outside, there can

dialogue with CSOs ins id

al Meetings in Washington

CSO representatives atten

sions with Bank and IMF s

from poverty reduction st

lief to H IV/AIDS and extra

of the CSO representatives

nual Meetings are prepare

institutions on an in depth



59. The Bank’s recent efforts to engage very dif-

ferent constituencies within civil society

point to some of the challenges and opportu-

nities ahead. The Bank has in stituted a regular

process of dialogue with the international trade

union movement that includes leadership-level

meetings approximately every two years and

mo re frequen t working level meetings on par-

ticular policy concerns. This high-level, substan-

tive engagement not only creates expectations

that the Bank will respond to labor’s concerns

(such as on privatization and pension reform),

but also creates opportunities for new partner-

ships on areas of joint interest (such as utilizing

un ion p resence in the workplace to h elp pre-

vent th e spread of HIV/AIDS). The Bank has cre-

ated an office to liaise with co-hosted four meet-

ings with leaders of faith and development

institutions, with the goal of strengthening and

scaling up the global fight against poverty. On -

going activities have included speaking engage-

ments, writing articles, organizing formal dia-

logues, co-hosting inter-faith events, and

identifying areas for collaboration and mutual

learning. For example, the Bank has sponsored

workshops to d iscuss ways to combat H IV/AIDS

with key faith communities and national AIDS

councils from a wide range of West and East

African countries. The Bank also is trying to

forge more constructive relationships with the

major global foundations which want to build

new and d eeper partnerships with the Bank, but

have expressed frustration that the Bank often

views them only as sources of funding rather

than valuing their ideas and experience.112 Two

years ago, the Bank hired the first-ever Disabili-

ty and Developm ent Advisor to ensure that the

voice of Disabled Peoples Organizations (DPOs)

are heard and that disability is mainstreamed

into the Bank’s economic development agen-

da .113 Likewise, the Bank established a unit

cused on children and youth and h as embark

on a vigorous effort to engage with global anational youth networks, with the goal of bet

targeting interventions that respond to t

needs of youth in developing coun tries, and g

ing youth a voice in policy debates.114

60. Summary of issues: CSO-led protests and ad

cacy camp aigns in recent years point to th e ne

for the Bank to distinguish better amo ng dif

ent actors in civil society, to understand their

spective motivations and concerns, and to i

prove mechanisms for engagement that w

suppo rt shared objectives of empowerment a

poverty reduction. There may be untapped

portun ities to develop mo re constructive re

tions with groups that m ay have significant co

cerns about the way the Bank operates, yet

also interested in engaging with the Bank a

have substantive analytical and operation al

perience to bring to the table. Seizing these

portunities, however, will require the Bank

take further steps to close the gap between

pectations, policy and practice, and to fi

mo re effective platforms for engagemen t th

can instill trust, confidence and reasonable

pectations on all sides. The Bank must al

weigh the costs and benefits of developing

lateral engagements that cater to the needs

specific constituencies within global civil soc

ty, versus creating forums to engage these c

stituencies in a collective fashion, and in a

partite relationship with m ember governm en

Finally, th is experience suggests the need

more effective organizational and staff

arrangemen ts and incentives for Bank-civil so

ety relations, to promote best practices a

bring abo ut greater Bank-wide coherence a

coordination on CSO engagement.



Notes

98. Desai and Said 2001, pp. 64 and 189.99. Keck and Sikkink 1998, p. 200.

100. See for exam ple Mobilizat ion for Globa l Justice website regardin g linkages of the DC hosp ita

Bank’s Adjustment Lending Policy. http://sept.globalizethis.org/

101. Desai and Said 2001, pp. 74–75.

102. Pianta 2001; Bretton Woods Project 2001: http:// www.brettonwoodsproject.org/ ; Financial Time

103. Globin 2001. “The Anti-Globalization Movement after Septemb er 11,” Council o f Canadian s ; h

org.

104. Desai and Said 2001; Clark 2002, p. 11.

105. Kanbu r 2001; Bank Information Center 2001; Oxfam Internation al 2000a.

106. For example, see petition for a “code of cond uct” circulated by the New Econ om ics Foun datio n

107. Jubilee 2000.

108. World Bank 2003e. Poverty Reduction Srategy Papers (PRSPS)-Progress in Implementation; Wor

critiques from CSOs on www.worldbank.org/strategies/ or http://www.eurodad.org/

109. World Bank 2004c. Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers: Good Practices 2004 can be ordered on -line

poverty/strategies/review/order.htm

110. Naidoo 2003.

111. See, for example, Bank Inform ation Center a t www.bicusa.org; Wade, Robert, “Greening th e Ba

Environmen t, 1970–1995” in The World Bank: Its First Half Century; Lon g, Carolyn, Participation o

2001, Chapt er 2.

112. Strategy Paper: New Models for Promoting Partnerships with Foundations (World Bank 2005b ).

113. For mo re information go to h ttp:// www.worldban k.org/disability

114. For mo re information go to h ttp:// www.worldban k.org/childrenand youth



61. The Bank’s corporate priorities today center

around promoting more respon sible coun try-

level and lo cal-level decision-making, while

also improving global issues management—a

framework that makes it more important for

the Bank and its member governments to

strengthen relations with CSOs simultane-

ously at local, national and transnational lev-els. There are oppo rtunities for new an d im -

proved alliances with many CSOs around

shared o bjectives of increasing developmen t as-

sistance and market access for poor countries,

strengthening good governance, and achieving

the MDGs. Steps toward more proactive en-

gagemen t of these groups not only can help the

Bank meet its objectives, but also m ay encour-

age a more informed and constructive nationaland international public discourse about the

Bank’s role in promo ting poverty reduction an d

development. Improved engagement with

CSOs is also an important demonstration o f the

Bank’s commitment to promoting greater cor-

porate social responsibility, and to managing

development risks responsibly. As CSOs have

become more influential actors in pub lic policy

and in development, the business case for thisengagement con tinues to grow stronger. Under-

standing these trends and their implications is a

key com pon ent of an effective developmen t

and poverty reduction strategy.

the Bank going forward revolve aroun d h ow

improve the “norm s” and m echanisms of

gagemen t with CSOs, and how to close the g

between its messages, policies and practic

The Bank shou ld aim to prom ote civic enga

ment that both empowers citizens and a

helps member governm ents exercise their le

ership role to promote sustainable develomen t and achieve the MDGs in a cost-effecti

socially responsible, and accountable mann

This requires an institutional framework

civic engagement that responds to the chan

ing environments described in this pap

and provides greater clarity and direction go

forward.

63. The following is a summary of the four maissues iden tified througho ut this paper, an

set of 10 priority actions for the Bank to a

dress these issues:

ISSUE 1: Promoting best practices for civic

engagement

The Bank’s mainstreaming of civic engagem

has led to a wide variety of approaches a

practices, some more effective than others. T

has sometimes resulted in dissatisfactiamong Bank staff, member governments a

CSOs alike in terms of the quality and outco

of the engagement. The solution lies in find

better ways of promoting and sharing go

practices and also in soliciting regular feedba

Issues and Options for AchievingMore Effective Bank-CSOEngagement

7



Bank-CSO engagement. Taking further steps to

close this gap can help to promote more con-

structive and effective relation s in th e future.

ISSUE 3: Adapting to changes in global and

national civil society

Significant changes in global and national civil

society have occurred over the last several years,

which warrant adjustments in the ways the

Bank engages with CSOs institutionally.

ISSUE 4: Achieving greater Bank-wide

coherence and accountability

The d ecentralized respon sibility in the Bank for

engaging CSOs is a m ajor challenge that p oses

both opportunities and risks. This calls for re-

viewing the management and staffing arrange-

ments and improving the mechanisms to

achieve greater Bank-wide coherence, coordina-

tion and accountability.

64. Priority Action 1: Establish new global mech-

anisms for Bank-CSO engagement to help

promote mutual understanding and coo pera-

tion. This action item respond s to Issues 1, 2

and 3. Since the phasing out of the World Bank-

NGO Committee in 2000, the Civil Society

Team has been working with leading CSO net-

works to explore new venues for dialogue on

policy and process at the global level. A Joint

Facilitation Committee (JFC) was established

as a transitional mechanism to help the Bank

shape a new platform for civil society engage-

men t at the global level. At an initial meeting of

the JFC in October 2003, representatives of 14

transnation al CSO networks and Bank m anage-

ment agreed on an agenda for action for wider

consultation amo ng CSOs around the world.

The JFC has been examining issues of access to

the World Bank (particularly for CSOs from the

developing world), and methods of engage-

ment, accountability, transparency and respon-

siveness, but also to h ow the Bank an d civil so-

ciety can work together more effectively in

pursuit of common agendas such as in advo

• Several other processes

prom ise for imp roving

men t with CSOs, but cport, time and resourc

ment are critical facto

Som e processes that h

are: earlier and more s

consultation around th

Reports (as was done fo

series of thematic video

linking CSOs in both d

oping countries with Washington; and “str

shops” during which

agers on a given issue e

counterpart experts or

civil society to examin

specific policies and e

mon ground ( such wor

icy, rural livelihoods, H

have been h eld to date)

• Thematic Forums are

form to chan nel dialog

ommendations for acti

The Bank’s Latin Ame

(LCR) Region holds an

rum involving the Vic

Management Team and

ety, government, and tives from the region. E

ed by a substantive p

funded by the regiona

Europe and Central Asi

ing Group and the Wo

gional management tea

gional forum s bringing

across the region for n

ing together with themem bers of the ECA R

Team, and laying out

stantive engagemen t.

• Another innovative effo

tive which is led by Eur



65. Priority Action 2: Establish a Bank-wide advi-

sory service/fo cal point for consultations and

an institutional framework for consultationmanagement and feedback. This action item

responds in particular to Issues 1, 2 and 3. The

goal is a more systematic, Bank-wide approach

to con sultations based on best practice. Recent

Bank and external reviews of consultations h ave

already provided a basis for this work, and de-

man d has been growing. Bank coun try and task

teams will continue to take responsibility for

man aging consultations, but the role of the newadvisory service/focal point will be to provide

these teams with clearer guidan ce on how to

structure consultations, technical assistance,

monitoring, and knowledge management sup-

port. The focal point can help reduce schedul-

ing overlaps caused by competing consultation

schedules, and also can help address some of

the root causes of “consultation fatigue” often

experienced by Bank staff, government officials,and CSOs. It also can help lighten the load on

Bank teams undertaking consultations, and

promote better quality consultations, by pro-

viding guidance on design of the con sultation

process, targeting key stakeholder groups, as-

sessing possible risks, training on how to con-

duct effective consultations, and establishing

more systematic, timely and transparent

processes for feedback. Key deliverables would

include preparing management-endorsed con-

sultation guidelines for staff, and improving

and expan ding the use of existing tools such as

the Consultations Sourcebook and the Stakehold-

er Consultation training course. The focal poin t

will work with the Civil Society Group to pro-

mo te best practices and also to strengthen insti-

tutional knowledge management, ensuring that

consultation in puts and outcomes are shared

with relevant departments across the Bank, to

inform and improve future consultations. This

more coordinated and strategic approach can

be expected to im prove Bank relations with a

variety of constituencies including CSOs and

66. Priority Action 3: Pilot a new Bank-wide mo

itoring and evaluation system for civic e

gagement. This responds in particular to Issu1 and 2 . It is time for the Bank to determine i

is useful and cost-effective to move beyond

limited M&E process for civic engagem

which has been in place for nearly t

decades—an annual desk review of PADs t

tracks only intended involvement of CSOs

Bank-financed projects—and to see if it can

replaced with a mo re informative and use

system. The goal is to measure the scope aquality of civic engagement throughout

project or strategy implementation cycle, to

sess progress and cost effectiveness. This shou

be integrated with regular reporting systems

that it does not add significantly to the burde

placed on task teams. A baseline study will

sist in monitoring future engagemen t and gu

ing future strategy. Results and trends will

reported an nually to the Bank’s senior m anament, the Board, CSOs and to the general p

lic throu gh a periodic progress report on Ban

civil society relation s. ESSD will lead this eff

in close coordination with EXT, OPCS and

Bank-wide civil society focal po ints.

67. Priority Action 4: Conduct a review of Ba

funds for civil society engagement in ope

tions and in po licy dialogue, and explore p

sible realignment or restructuring. This

sponds to Issues 2 and 3. The goal is to bet

match resources to strategic demands for

gagement, and to lessen the transaction co

on Bank teams and member governm ents se

ing resources to engage CSOs. It is qu ite di

cult to get an adequate picture of available

sources for Bank-civil society engagem

because there is currently no Bank-wide syst

of disaggregating these funds across the vario

channels that exist, and civil society enga

ment has largely been mainstreamed into Ba

operations. Some funding mechanisms t

Bank staff and man agers have advocated as i



the corporate level has been supported or aug-

men ted by b ilateral trust funds. While a full cost

accounting of Bank-CSO engagement will notbe possible, this review can help Bank man age-

ment and the Board to assess whether the cur-

rent fund ing levels and m echanisms available

for CSO engagement are adequate, whether

these mechanisms are cost effective or different

mechanisms may be needed, and whether

Bank-finan ced projects should formally include

an explicit participation and communications

budget. The Civil Society Team will lead th is re-view with inp uts and supp ort from other un its

in the Bank as needed.

68. Priority Action 5: Review the Bank’s procure-

ment framework with a view toward facilitat-

ing collaboration with CSOs. This responds

to Issues 2 and 3. The expansion of Bank lend-

ing into social services activities, new develop-

men t assistance mo dels that prom ote greaterlocal ownership, and the expansion of grant fi-

nan cing have introduced new op portun ities for

CSO collaboration on Bank-financed projects.

These chan ges also h ave exposed oth er con-

straints and tensions, such as a perceived lack

of flexibility in th e Bank’s procuremen t frame-

work, which was designed primarily for con-

tracting with private sector firms. There have

been some recent experiments to clarify andstreamline procurement procedures for CSOs,

such as for CDD programs and for HIV/AIDS

initiatives funded by the MAP, and the Bank’s

procurement an d con sultant guidelines were

also modified in May 2004. O PCS will mo ni-

tor these experiences and continue to consult

with both international and local CSOs to

identify and address remaining obstacles or

concerns as needed, in order to facilitate CSO

participation in Bank-supported activities.

OPCS also will expan d its efforts to provide ca-

pacity-bu ilding for Bank staff, governm ent offi-

cials and CSO representatives to u nd erstand

and imp lement the modified procuremen t and

on how to work with th

ments. This responds to

Bank’s Civil Society Team larly host forums to expose

ment, and Executive Direc

tives on issues and innova

engagement. However, th

tary and sporadic. Given t

stantly changing global ci

there is need for a more st

program in which compon

il society are included inprograms and retreats fo

and Man agers, RMTs, You

oth er Bank staff, particula

operations, as well as for

and their staffs. Importan

skill-building include part

strategic communication

political risk managemen t

ronm ent for civic engagemecono my o f civil society.

clude reinstating support

program for the Civil Soc

Society Country Staff acro

building a stronger “comm

volving Bank staff, CSOs

ers, such as the newly lau

Practice in Social Account

addition, join t training, staondm ents have proven to

building mutual understa

structive relations amon g

agers, and these should

aggressively, with incenti

agement. Furthermore, t

man d for capacity-buildin

to help them und erstand

the respective roles of Ba

ment officials, the proje

analysis, and how to get i

tions o r project implem en

ety Team will collabora

sources WBI OPCS and



the existing channels, will occur regularly, per-

hap s either quarterly or semi-ann ually. These

meetings will be an opportunity to monitorprogress, assess risks, discuss key issues and

constraints, and set policy and strategy direc-

tions, strengthen institutional coherence and

provide guidance to staff on civic engagemen t.

Management also will provide the Board with

period ic reviews of progress on Bank-CSO en-

gagement.

71. Priority Action 8: Develop and issue newguidelines for Bank staff on the institution’s

approach and best practices for working with

civil so ciety. This responds in particular to Is-

sues 1 and 4 . Much o f the tension th at exists in

Bank-civil society relations results when there is

failure to clarify up front the objectives, param-

eters, and outcom es of engagemen t. The guide-

lines will enable Bank staff to make more in-

formed judgmen ts on which CSOs to engageon specific objectives or activities, includ ing a

framework for engagemen t that is based on best

practice and m utual respon sibilities. The guide-

lines also will clarify that m ember governm ents

are the Bank’s decision-makers, and that en-

gagement with CSOs is an im portant part of

improving governance and developmen t ou t-

comes. These guidelines will supersede the ex-

isting GP 14.70 on Involving NGOs in Bank-Sup-

ported Activities. The new guidelines will be

cross-referenced in existing operational policies

and business procedures (OP/ BPs), while mo re

specific good practice notes will be p repared for

new o r revised OP/BPs where participation is a

critical factor, such as the new OP/BP on devel-

opment policy lending. The Civil Society Team

will lead this work in coordination with OPCS

and the Bank-wide civil society focal points.

72. Priority Action 9: Emphasize the importance

of civil so ciety engagement in the guidance to

Bank staff on the preparation of the CAS as

well as in CAS monitoring and evaluation

civil society in the preparation of the countr

PRSP. OPCS will lead this effort with supp

from the Civil Society Team and the Bank-wcivil society focal points.

73. Priority Action 10: Develop tools for analy

cal mapping of civil society to assist coun

and task teams in determining the releva

CSOs to engage on a given issue, project,

strategy. This responds in particular to Issue

and 3. A comm on dilemma for Bank staff

well as for m ember governments is how to tget civic engagement, given the size and d ive

ty of civil society at the national and global l

els. The process of targeting is often ad h

based on ease of access or existing relationsh

rather than on tailored analysis. There is cont

uing dissatisfaction amon g Bank staff, gove

men ts and CSOs alike that civil society grou

in developin g coun tries, particularly tho se

cated outside of capital cities, often do no t hathe sam e access and influence as those wit

presence in Washington or major Europe

capitals. With development effectiveness as

overarching goal, some b asic criteria tha t can

used as a guide for selecting which CSOs to

gage on a given issue or project are: credibil

competence, local or thematic knowledge, tra

parency, and accountability.116 Of course, these

teria must be adapted and weighted for the tor ob jective at hand ; for example, it may be n

essary to reach out to a certain group because

its influence or its networking capacity. Th

the Bank’s civil society and external affairs s

cialists play a critical role to help country a

sector team s navigate the constantly chan g

civil society landscape and target engagem

on a case-by-case basis. Many of these staff p

vide th is guidan ce already, although it could

utilized more effectively by their colleagues. T

goal should be for the Bank to use its conveni

power to engage a broad spectrum of persp

tives from both developed and develop

countries on any given issue or initiative ES



A number of other options for improving the

Bank’s engagement with CSOs are under discus-

sion. These are grouped below in relation to theissues identified within the paper.

Close the gap between expectations, policy

and practice:

74. Expand and deepen efforts to promote more

enabling environments for civic engagement

in PRSPs, PRSCs and other country-basedoperations, including through Poverty and So-

cial Impact Analysis and social accountability

mechanisms. Implementing the Bank’s empow-

ermen t agenda requires expan ding th e Bank’s

political and financial support devoted to h elp-

ing governments improve their dialogue and

collaboration with CSOs, promoting analysis

and public debate around economic and social

policy options that will lead to pro-poor out-comes, and strengthening systems of social ac-

countability. This also requires investments in

analytical work and in public advocacy to pro-

mote more conducive institutional frameworks

for civic engagement. Civil society stakeholders

often refer to the Bank’s comparative advantage

in helping to remove institutional barriers to

their participation . Critical steps are increasing

the available time, flexibility, opportunities andresources to facilitate civic engagemen t, both up-

stream in design and decision-making, and also

downstream in monitoring and evaluation. Tar-

geted capacity-building for local CSOs, especial-

ly for poor people’s networks and community-

based organizations, is also critical. The Bank

also should encourage external reviews of stake-

holder participation in PRSPs, as a tool for pro-

moting greater public ownership in the future.

75. Take additional steps to in crease transparen-

cy and information dis closure in Bank-sup-

ported po licy dialogue and lending opera-

tions For m any CSOs disclosure is a major test

PICs (public information

tion of Bank documents i

and disclosure of m inutes a number of countries, Ba

with governments to pilo

disclosure of analytical wo

documents—in some ca

owned and government

While these steps have be

(and the Bank’s own em

work) argue th at real em

providing stakeholders waccess to information—we

made—so that they have a

tribute their inputs and t

views to their government

Bank’s disclosure obstacl

clude the u navailability of

sufficient disclosure in

points, the highly technic

formation, and lack of cBank staff as to th e intent

icy and their own roles an

der the policy. There is nee

continu ous learning progr

closure po licy for all Bank

especially those working o

as a mechan ism to which

are not provided with info

be p ublicly available un de

76. Conduct a review of the B

ness procedures, practice

CSO engagement to ide

straints, particularly for c

rying out their desired c

CSO engagement, and

Placing emph asis on mo

ment of CSOs in the desistages can improve the qua

alytical and lending prod

added costs of revision at

min imize risks to th e ins

may explore inter alia gov



er and more effective civic engagement, and to

harm on ize where po ssible. There is particular

need to look at constraints to participation bypoor peoples’ networks and community-based

organizations. There can be significant o bsta-

cles to meaningful participation by these

groups due to inadequate time and resources to

receive information ab out a consultation op-

po rtunity, access inform ation , or travel to the

appointed venue.

Adapt to changes in global and nationalcivil society:

77. Adopt formal rules or principles for Bank-

CSO engagement. Some governments and

CSOs have expressed interest in going beyond

the good p ractice guidelines described in Prior-

ity Action 8 to adoption of formal agreements

that define rules of engagement, a code of con -duct or an agreed set of principles for Bank-CSO

engagement, particularly in policymaking

processes. Others have proposed that the Bank

adop t a transparent system of year-roun d ac-

creditation for CSOs (beyond just the Ann ual

Meetings), as som e oth er mu ltilateral institu-

tions have done, to govern access and define

certain p rivileges. Still oth ers have caution ed

that it is not app ropriate for the Bank to be tooprescriptive in this area, and that such rules or

criteria for participation are best defined by

governments and CSOs at the n ational level, or

perhaps through the u se of international bench-

marking or third-party certification .

78. Explore the feasibility of a comparative review

of CSO engagement practices with other

MDBs and multilateral and bilateral agencies.

The goals wou ld be to elicit best practices across

the international commu nity and to build on

existing efforts at donor harmonization and

collaboration. Several of the MDBs have recent-

ly reviewed and strengthened their own frame

and this network could assist in this review. T

Bank also could use its existing partnerships

civic engagement with bilateral agencies atrust fun ds, and convene a forum on lesso

learned from those initiatives.

Achieving greater Bank-wide coherence anaccountability:

79. Develop a more proactive Bank-wide a

proach, building o n the corporate watch lto assess and manage risks emanating fro

lending and non -lending activities that m

attract a high degree of civil society inter

and/or criticism. Som e issues or projects gen

ate m ore in terest an d controversy from civil

ciety than others, and if not well-manag

these can result in complaints being filed w

the In spection Panel or h igh-profile advoc

campaigns that use up extensive Bank resourand may endanger the success of operations

more proactive approach to risk assessmen t a

management would encom pass an early wa

ing system to identify such projects, assign

experienced external relations/civil society re

tions staff to prom ote early and sustained e

gagement with local and international CSO

and work closely with task teams to try to

dress CSO concerns up front. This civic engament component should be integrated into

integrated risk managemen t framework, wh

considers strategic effectiveness, operatio

efficiency, stakeholder support, and finan c

soundness.117 Lessons could be drawn from

analysis of the role of CSOs in recent Inspecti

Panel cases, and from the experience of invo

ing CSOs and other external stakeholders in

Bank’s East Asia and Pacific (EAP) Region ’s Scial Operation al Review.

80. Conduct a review of the Bank-wide mana

ment and staffing matrix for civil society re

tions with a view toward establishing a mo



and region s have CSO working group s, while

others do not. Som e sectors have regular meet-

ings with CSOs working in their fields, whileothers consult only occasionally. Som e coun try

offices and headquarters departments have ap-

po inted full-time, experienced civil society focal

points; others have staff who only spend part of

their time on this role; and still others have no

established focal point. Further complicating

the picture is that IFC and MIGA have different

approaches to civic engagemen t than IBRD an d

IDA. This complex matrix of responsibilitiesand accoun tability hinders Bank-wide informa-

tion sharing, coordination and strategic man-

agement. It can b e confusing and frustrating

both for CSOs seeking to engage the Bank, as

well as for Bank staff or government officials

looking for guidance on h ow to engage CSOs. A

management review of these arrangements

could examine ways to provide clearer report-

ing systems and/or alignment, in order toachieve a better balance between decentraliza-

tion and flexibility to manage civil society rela-

tions in response to specific sector/country/re-

gional contexts, and the need for better global

coordination and coherence.

81. Explore the feasibility of a Bank-wide knowl-

edge management system for civil society

engagement. This option

ing dem and s from Bank

ping of civil society’s intand better tracking of the

ment with a specific grou

complished through a sh

aged by the Civil Society

Bank-wide civil society f

larly contribute an d also

ports about various CSOs

This could become a va

memory of correspondenctations, partnerships or o t

system can help improve

and quality of respon ses

for information and inter

ground briefings; lighten t

seeking such information

sistency and follow-up. Te

ists to sup port this, but it w

and man agers view it as atheir work m ore effective.

management could impr

porting on Bank-civil so

track whether regional, se

cy-based civic engagemen

dinated and aligned; and

tial risks as well as opport

resources across the Bank

Notes

115. Com mu nity of Practice on Social Accountability (COPSA) Propo sal (World Bank 2003b).

116. Note th at these criteria are similar to tho se identified in The Bank’s Relations with NGOs (W

117. An in tegrated risk man agemen t framework for the World Bank was discussed with Execu

2003.



82. The international consensus that has been built

aroun d the MDGs and the Monterrey-Doh a-Jo-

hannesburg global development agenda pres-

ents an historic opportunity to make sustained

progress in the fight against poverty, and for

governments an d international organizations

such as the Bank to team up effectively with

CSOs in this fight. Over the past two decades,

the Bank has steadily expan ded its engagement

in dialogue and in partnership with CSOs

around the globe, and it has learned that thisengagement can improve developm ent imp act

by empowering citizens to participate in their

country’s development. Today, the growing ca-

pacity and influence o f civil society, the recent

trends in globalization , the Bank’s own reforms,

and the lessons learned abo ut th e benefits of

participation and empowerment all warrant

having the Bank take additional institutio

steps to engage civil society in more consiste

strategic and effective ways. This also is warra

ed in response to growing internal and exter

deman ds on the Bank to demo nstrate grea

corporate social responsibility and accountab

ity for its own actions.

The analysis, issues and option s put forward

this paper are aimed at h elping the Bank i

prove its approach to engaging CSOs in the ture, particularly by helping to close the gaps

expectations and practice, and providing the

sis for establishing new “norms” and more

fective mechanisms for engagement. Th

steps can help the Bank to better serve its me

ber governments in the effort to achieve

MDGs.

Conclusion8



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Locat ion Summary of Comment World Bank

1. New York, NY The World Bank/IMF can be a force for global change by This generalsuppo rting asset recovery and repatriation in the 21st century. beyond the

In the Post-Terror Era, mega-billions can be made available

for hum an developm ent and security purposes. This is the

new mission for Bretton Wood s, under able leadership of

the UN General Assembly and Security Council.

2. Washington, DC-USA There is a need for mo re clarity on what the Bank wants to An overview

do with CSOs. The paper does no t give mu ch insight into of, and ratio

the Bank’s inten tion s in terms of the new “Bank-CSO with civil so

partnership” direction. The paper is somewhat silent on paragraphs

the fact that the Bank, as an investor, is willing to use CSOs

as a too l in order to achieve its objectives and goals of

poverty eradication .

3. St. Petersburg, Russia On e thing that I think is missing in the Issues and Option s The concept

paper is the statemen t that civic engagement is impo rtant upstream in

nearly at all stages of the Bank’s pro ject cycle, especially at Bank po licy

the early stages. It might also be important to write up a discussed in

simple reporting (feed-back) mechan ism to those who were 76. The need

consulted: how, why and to what extend their positions feedback fro

(interests) were taken or no t taken into accoun t in a new addressed inpolicy document or project. 56, and 65.

4. Paris, France African NGOs have limited access to net-based resources. The limited

or even part

work by som

case African

paragraphs

5. Berlin, Germany The report provides a good overview and strategy ou tline The pap er is

but it falls a bit short in analyzing past and ongoing World synth esizing

Bank-Civil Society relation s with reference to (1) types of in Bank-civi

partnerships, (2) types of partner organizations, (3) experience at the globa

in different sectors, (4) shifting trends, (5) good and not so levels. It doe

good practices in policy dialogue and programm ed describe in d

implementation. happening a

t l

Annex AOnline Comments




6. No co ntact information The paper does no t clearly define the CSO constituency The complethat the Bank intend s to work with. In an attempt to define man y varied

the intend ed Bank-CSO partnership, it is necessary to bring Northern vs

to the fore the serious considerations of differentiating undertaken

Civil Society Organ izations as Sou thern vs. Northern . It is also and 73. The

expected that CSOs will be seen, no t as a new theme for the mo re empo

Bank, but rather as a new strategy that is mo re result oriented approach w

and peop le centered. It shou ld encourage sustainab ility in close the ga

developm ent, especially comm un ity centered developmen t. expectation s

Dialogue mu st therefore be central in this appro ach. practice.

7. No co ntact information How man y peop le in Civil Society know anything abou t The improv

the role of the World Bank? Or, how man y peop le know the overall comm

role of the World Bank? This should be the starting po int for civil society

this paper. What can the World Bank do and what can it no t paragraphs

do? Is the World Bank accountable to Civil Society as 10 no tes tha

ben eficiaries? Or, does the World ban k serve on ly Member Articles of A

States, and their interest groups? primary clie

however, en

have been re

important cdevelopmen

poverty redu

also notes s

ways in whi

has been ref

policy guida

8. Argentina The way in which the Bank presently approaches Civil The no tion

Society engagemen t is largely consultative and takes place civic engage

at levels far remo ved from actual Bank pro jects which is ana lysis, po

where most of the true concerns lie and where the partici- operations i

pation could potentially make a large difference. Generally paragraph 4

speaking, the Bank seeks “opinions” abou t strategies, and addresses th

abou t completed projects, best/worst practices, or in some “upstream”

cases, in environm ental impact assessments in instances civil society

where tha t op inion has little effective relevance to prevent CASs. The B

or change inherent prob lems in real projects. Appro aches to nature of CS

engagemen t are uneven across the institution and lack reliable addressed in

data to mon itor and evaluate engagemen t. There are disclosure and 65. The

and transparency limitations, weak incentives for staff, and and evaluatipoo r fund ing to foster participation . What is mo st crucial is paragraphs

that present engagement mechanisms are missing the point.

They are tangential to pro jects and country op erations,

sometimes lying entirely outside the b oundaries of project

design and implementation.




do the Bank, the mem ber countries and the CSOs far mo re Paragraphs 4good if all the staff of the Bank’s Civil Society division at overview of

least participate in a rotational six mo nth internship with of the Bank,

civil societies organ izations…and when I say CSOs, I do n’t space CSOs

mean the BIG and MIGHTY…think of the lesser known when they p

ones…for every “Narmada Bachao And olan” in India there constructive

are at least thousand s of lesser groups fighting their lone Bank and ye

battle of survival. certain polic

staff exchan

for Bank sta

priority acti

10. Washingto n, DC-USA CSOs and the Bank have engaged in dialogues on man y Paragraphs 6

levels, yet there still remains the prob lem of a lack of of option s f

“mean ingful participatio n”. This is referred to by Jorge’s CSO engage

message, that CSOs are no t asking to work on a Bank-CSO ensure mo re

project bu t, rather, to be included in the making of real Bank participation

projects. The Bank mu st work with its client coun tries to feedback me

incorporate CSOs into mean ingful discussions on projects, discussed in

government budgets, and other government decisions that and 65. Par

put the respective CSO’s country into mo re debt. A the merits a“meaningful dialogue” mean s that the Bank would stop joint Bank-C

suppo rting joint stud ies and in itiatives with CSOs, if it is

not going to follow through by accepting and implementing

their recommendations and findings. The question then is,

what can the Bank do in order to have “meaningful

participation” and “meaningful engagements” with Civil

Society?

11. Montreal, Canada The “Issues and Option s…” paper contains several elements The acknow

that shou ld be reviewed and recon sidered, beginning with empo werme

the basic assumption s that the goal of improved relations Bank-Civil S

with CSOs is “developmen t effectiveness and risk management is addressed

ben efits.” This pro cess will be strengthened if it recognizes and 11. The

explicitly tha t the goal of better relations with civil society is inform ation

one of empowerment of the peop le affected by World Bank addressed in

programs and projects. Emp owerment of civil society can be and 75.

viewed as the goal of a process that begins with the basics—

access to information—and then elements of consultation

and dialogue, but d oesn’t stop there. Rather, it should

continue to expand, so that inclusion in the policy processbecomes strengthened, even b eyond elements of policy

inpu t so that in th e end the goal is policy choices, direction

and management ultimately derived from civil society itself

(either directly or via representative government). The Bank

shou ld m ove to expand its capacity to respond to civil society

d d f i f i d i



Locat ion Summary of Comment World Bank Response

1. Argentina It is correct to thin k about new ways to increase civil The imp ortan ce of involvin

society participation and engagement in World Bank in a CAS or project preparat

policies, but the issue can no t be resolved if superficial paragraph s 44, 72 and 76. T

measures are adopted. To be meaningful, civil society some of the existing constra

participation should begin in the project’s preparation such as timing and costs, an

stage. to address these.

2. Argentina CSO shou ld be systematically engaged in the The draft paper has been w

dissemination of all the proposals contained in this the Bank, and it has been ppaper. Disseminat ion activities shou ld be carried out also sent out in the Bank’s c

in a dou ble direction: i)within the WB; and ii) to civil e:newsletter to solicit pub lic

society at large. has been revised to reflect t

and Bank management inte

formal dissemination of the

outside the Bank throu gh v

channels, and also welcome

dissemination to interested

stakeholders.

3. Argentina CSO shou ld receive feedback and a final respon se to This comm ents matrix is in

th e p ro po sals raised d urin g th is meetin g. feed back mech an ism. Th e B

Team is available for furthe

the issues raised in this pap

comments to civilsociety@

4. Argentina World Bank-civil society relations can be characterized The expectations gap, which

as suffering from an expectation s gap: Bank’s main consultatio n fatigue, is raise

policies and instruments do not reflect discourse. For 32–34, 53, 56, 60, 62, 63, a

examp le, many consultations with civil society have been to carry out bindin g consul

organized by the Bank during the last few years (e.g., seeks to achieve consensus

CAS consultations), but these exercises are not binding it consults, consultations by

ones. As a result, CSOs hold the shared perception that binding, and cannot be, as

they are utilized as chann els to collect valuable into account the views of a

inform ation , which severely affects Bank’s credibility. stakeholders who may disag

another. The Bank’s role th

consultations in a learning

learnings where it is possibl

feedback on how civil socie

incorporated, and if not, w5. Argentina If the World Bank’s renewed interest in civil society The new political landscape

participation means stronger partn erships with CSO structure between Governm

in the design and implementatio n of projects, the role CSOs, is raised in paragraph

of the Governmen t in this partnerships shou ld be clarified. of the Bank to act as a facili

and governmen t in light of

Argentina




7. Argentina It is controversial to support the idea that CSOs have had In Sections 3 and 5, the pap

a strong impact in developm ent. There is a prime necessity growing evidence of the imp

for this to occur, but so far this has not been the case. The development policy and pra

world is under a process of rethinking the tradition al Bank’s approaches. More rig

social-institutional divisions. The three-dim ension al better results indicators are

division of private sector, State and civil society has caus- dimension al division of the

ed several difficulties in pursuin g concerted social efforts. and civil society is discussed

These divisions are currently outd ated. The Bank should Bank’s involvement as facili

help to design social structures that can contribute to the governm ent and CSOs is di

pursuit of shared pub lic goals. Civil society has the will 22–24 and 56.

to m ake these changes, but its resources are scarce. Privateactors have the resources but n ot always the will. The State

is called to play a key role but no significant developments

seem to be occurring in this direction. The Bank can play

a key role in facilitating the dialogue among all social

actors to achieve the n ecessary convergence.

8. Argentina The challen ge to incorporate NGOs into the active fight Priority Action 8 is to provi

against poverty begun in the ’70s. The Inter-American guidelines for staff on civic

Foun dation played a key role in this process. The switch mo re upstream engagement

in the Bank’s mission towards poverty reduction and CSOs play a key role in pov

fighting occurred in the ’90s. Thus, the Bank should

provide clearer paths to deeper civil society engagement

in its activities. CSO’s engagemen t in Bank’s instrum ents

should be specified in bidding documents (e.g., Loan

agreements).

9. Argentina It is remarkab le to learn that the Bank is rethinking See the priority actions out l

CSO engagement and that it is leading the international 63–73.

community to incorporate many new topics on the

development agenda. But a wider agenda requires clearer

strategies and more precise instruments and legal provisions.

10. Argentina Tradition al political actors’ legitimacy is today question ed Agreed. The challenges to b

in the majority of developing coun tries. Consequen tly, it civil society legitimacy are n

seems to be a positive step to include CSOs as new 18, 42, and 43. As discussed

partn ers. But CSO’s decreased legitimacy shou ld no t be the Bank is helpin g several

overlooked. In fact, we are un der a crisis of representatio n an enab ling environmen t fo

that includes all sectors of socio-political activity. which includes legal and re

11. Argentina Increased transparency is a crucial requisite to better Agreed that transparency of

governan ce. In many ways, CSO can contribute to operat ions is imp ortan t. Issincrease public oversight. But feeble transparency is and legitimacy are addresse

also a prob lem for CSOs them selves, and this shou ld 15, 23, 24, 34, 75, and 18,

be addressed if legitimacy is to be increased.

12. Argentina Training of CSOs to perform the new role as global The need for trainin g of Ban

development partner shou ld be stressed The State’s and governm ent officials to wor




14. Argentina Bank’s po licies towards students and youn g professionals The Bank’s focus on engage

shou ld be clarified and stressed because in developing discussed in paragraph s 12,

coun tries, youth is a key partn er for the execution of This is also an area where th

enduring developm ent projects. significant steps forward, re

voices shou ld be h eard in p

youth organizations can he

development projects.

15. Argentina In this draft docum ent, the Bank seems to be mo stly The Bank’s need to review i

concerned with lowering the risks of engaging with for engaging CSOs is addre

CSOs. To do so, the Bank shou ld carefully select 32, 44, 73 and 76. Of cours

whom to engage with. CSOs have grown in number process for engaging groups

but no t necessarily in capacity and commitm ent. The ho lders may vary. Agreed th

main quality an organization shou ld have in order to apply to CSOs as well as the

be selected as a partn er is transparency. The Bank increased scrutiny on CSOs

should not only increase its own transparency, but paragraph 43.

demand that CSOs do the same.

16. Argentina If the Bank’s renewed commitm ent to build partnersh ips The need for more systemat

with CSO is to produce lasting outcom es, efforts shou ld in CAS creation is discussed

be don e to: i) include detailed provisions for CSOs’ and 76. Task Manager traini

participation within Coun try Assistance Strategies; and engagement is prop osed as ii) train Task Managers on provisions and tools to foster paragraph 69.

this p articipation.

17. Argentina Civil society needs constan t feedback on the prop osals The imp ortan ce of a feedba

mad e to the Bank and the Governmen t. Timing of part of an overall improved

responses shou ld be revised to meet local agendas consultatio ns, is addressed

and situational realities. and 65.

18. Argentina The Bank’s strategy and discourse has incorpo rated in The Expectations Gap is dis

the last years many concepts whose concrete policy 32–34, 53, 56, 60, 62, 63, a

imp lications have never been clear to civil society,

such as em powerment, PRSP, etc. This con tributes

to the already referred to “expectations gap.”

19. Argentina There is a considerab le lack of knowledge amon g CSOs The importance of transpar

of WB’s mission and policies. The Bank’s communi- paragraphs 15, 23, 24, 34 a

cation strategy is feeble and shou ld be revised. This in paragraph s 64, 69 and 75

can co nsid erab ly co ntrib ute to tran sp aren cy. to impro ve co mmun icatio n

CSOs, including training fo

work with the Bank.

E t A d W t B k & G




1. Egypt Requested addition al information on the role of the The role of the JFC is brie

Joint Facilitation Comm ittee (JFC) and the selection paragraphs 25 and 64. Ad

criteria/process for engagemen t of civil society in can be foun d on the Bank

Count ry Assistance Strategies (CASs) and oth er society at www.worldb ank

WB operations. There is no single or system

for engaging CSOs in the

operations, but the p aper

from Bank staff and m emb

clearer guidance in this are

2. Egypt There is a need for a model of civil society The distinction between th

engagemen t within the field of poverty reduction. types of engagement with

There is a vagueness abou t the paper’s definition (facilitation, dialogue and

of the ph rase, “engagement of civil society,” which partn ership) is discussed i

can be better distinguished between participation , Section 2 of the paper exp

facilitation, consultation and other functions definition of civil society,

un dertaken by civil society. There is also a need 6 describe the ind ependen

to recognize civil society as an ind ependen t sector, society and the need for th

which the Bank should be more actively involved with. mo re actively and strategic

3. Egypt Requests that mo re emph asis be mad e throu ghout Media organizations have

the document on the role of the media. The Bank paper’s definition of civil

shou ld also recognize the value consultation inp ut 6, and the role of a free pr

to developm ent processes. She no tes that the the enabling environm ent

impo rtance of gend er is mad e within the paper, and is no ted in paragraph 44.

tha t it also refers to the possibility of engaging civil actively engaged in provid

society in WB operation s based on a them atic and suppo rt for journalist

approach. She recom men ds that the Bank review countries. The paper’s disc

the guidelines for consultations prepared by the to improve consultations Arab Media Forum. ensure diversity in the sele

(including gender sensitivi

in paragraphs 32, 44, 73,

4. Egypt There is a need for a mo re flexible framework to Section 4 of the paper po i

engage civil society, given the diversity within civil greater flexibility within th

society players and the different roles that they in order to better engage C

undertake. Bank’s relations with CSO

very decentralized manner

speaks to the n eed to ensuaging these relations while

the overall quality and app

practices in civic engageme

5. Egypt There is a need to move beyon d NGOs while Agreed. The Bank’s recogn

mo bilizing civil society players and investing mo re engage different actors be

Egypt And West Bank & Gaza




6. Egypt The WB shou ld introduce a mo re user friendly version Agreed. The need to streng

of the Bank’s products (pub lications and otherwise) Bank staff to engage with

in order to attract civil society as a partner. Also there paragraphs 65, 69, and 71

is inadequate capacity within the Bank itself to guide also makes the case for im

civil society partn erships, particularly at the coun try and transparency.

level.

7. Egypt Inad equate funding for civil society engagemen t is a The pap er discusses the ex

challenge for the Bank. Also lacking are resources to and makes the case for a r

un dertake a periodic assessmen t of the dynam ic local restructuring in paragraph

civil society in light of its dynam ic features, which The impo rtance of better m

makes the Bank dependent on the assessments of evaluation is addressed inother organizations who might be somewhat biased and 66.

or restricted.

8. West Bank & Gaza The paper is gender blind. This seems to be the case The Bank strongly supp ort

with many of the Bank’s Policy Papers and other ment and the mainstream

documen tation . The Bank appears to shy away from in developm ent. This pape

focusing proactively on the emp owerment of women, discussing a broad overvie

perhaps due to the poten tial changes in social without going in-depth int

dynam ics it may create. However, a serious of organization s or sectora

advancement of social developm ent can on ly be prom ote women’s empowbased on a recognition of gender roles. How does target aud ience described.

the Bank foresee its ability to advocate for real reform, that women’s organization

when the efforts to implement reform are main ly disadvantage vis-a-vis oth e

centered on form al institutions that, them selves, are society and so should be a

often gender blind? A positive element in this paper men t. The various action i

is that the CSO term has been expand ed to include 64–81 discuss the need to

a wide range of representations (not only techn ocrats with better guidance for th

and NGOs). with CSOs, and gender co

included.

9. West Bank & Gaza A major issue no t taken into accoun t is the diversity Section 2 of the paper des

tha t exists between various forms/kinds of civil and complexity of civil so

society—no distinction is made between Sou th the differences that may e

and North or West and East, while these specificities and Southern CSOs. The B

are very critical if a serious engagemen t is to be the enab ling environ men t

advanced. Similarly, this paper does no t pay due and prop osals to step it up

attention to the diversity that is generated by the paragraphs 44, 73 and 74

various governance structures existing in various

regions/countries. The situation of civil society in

the South is very different from its equal in th e Northdue to limited d emocratic systems. This situation

merits a m ore targeted approach to civil society

engagement and an effort on part of the Bank to

introduce improvements on the enabling environm ent

for civic engagement. It is important to prioritize

L t i S f C t W ld B k R




10. West Bank & Gaza Since the Board of Executive Directors of the World The Bank acts as a facilitat

Bank is composed main ly of governments (who are between governments and

often no t CSO friendly), how realistic is it for the in paragraphs 22–24 and

Bank to formally institutionalize relationsh ips with men ts are the Bank’s prim

civil society groups? On the oth er han d, the Bank accepts that it shou ld and

possesses the needed credibility and standing to civil society groups and ot

influence policy change, and transformation of legal beyond government to ach

systems to ensure mo re transparency in governance reduction ob jectives. The n

structures. The formal training of Bank Staff is mostly Bank’s pro curemen t policy

linked to exposure to formal institution s. On capacity un ique needs of CSOs is a

buildin g: there is a need to emphasize the imp ortance paragraph 68.of bu ilding capacity in smaller NGOs, poten tially

through promo ting partnerships between small and

big NGOs. This is somethin g the Bank is do ing

through its ongoing support of the NGO p rogram in

West Bank and Gaza. As for procurement: WB

procuremen t procedures are way too comp lex and

they need to be simplified in line with the capacity of

NGOs as many of their contractual arrangements are

different from th ose carried ou t by public institutions.

There is a clear inverse correlation between fasterdisbursements an d d egree of engagement with CSOs.

11. West Bank & Gaza Issue No. 2 in the paper focuses on th e perceived gap The gap between expectat

between the messages of the Bank and reality. This practice is one of the majo

issue canno t be grouped as one of four, the others effective civic engagement

being qu ite different—two of them dealing with 53, 56 and 60 discuss som

internal procedures and the third dealing with a frustration, leading to con

reality that con stitutes the terrain, so to speak. In this Paragraphs 62–64 and 74–

context, it is important to optimize on using the right for improvement.

“media” instrum ents to convey a better un derstand ingof the messages. Moreover, invitation, as a process

of engagemen t is critical for in forming civil society

representatives of the many issues at hand and which

constitute the content for the debate on developm ent

issues. Through these processes, it is hoped that the

“gap” between the messages and the reality will be

bridged.

Ghana




1. Ghana He identifies with the evolution of the Bank-CSO The evolution of Bank-CSO

relationsh ip illustrated in the paper. Accountab ility of discussed in paragraph s 2–5

CSOs is still an issue that needs to be worked on . The of civil society in discussed

paper’s definition s of civil society seem to be a bit too 73. They include the imp or

engineered. He agrees that the tensions between between Northern and Sout

Northern an d Southern CSO is an important issue

to address, and th at there is not m uch of an institution-

alized dialogue between CSOs and the Bank.

2. Ghana The Bank needs to institute a trainin g program for its Priority action 6 in paragrap

staff on how to work effectively with civil society. need for mo re structured Ba

Alternatively, CSOs need to increase their capacity, program on how to engage

especially in terms of un derstand ing the Bank. imp ortan ce of engaging CS

Bank-CSO engagement needs to occur thro ughou t CAS and projects is address

a project planning process—upstream and downstream. and 76.

3. Ghana There is a discrepan cy between the analysis in paragraph s This paper provides a brief

73 and 84—the implementatio n of CSO engagement and Bank engages with civil soc

disclosure rules. The paper shou ld expand its sections to discuss the local or natioon the Bank itself, because it now assumes familiarity Good practices are imp ortan

with the World Bank. Boxes on “good practices” at the captured in oth er pub lic do

local level would be a good addition to the paper. The Consultation Sourcebook a

paper needs to keep in min d that CSOs are not just for greater dissemination of

target groups, but also individuals, studen ts, etc. The inform ation in order to hel

paper should reflect mo re on what is going on at the und erstand the Bank is add

local level. 34, 64 and 75.

4. Ghana To make the paper mo re relevant at the local level and HIPC mo nitoring in Ghana

for the Board , you shou ld take a concrete example of 40 as an example of CSO in

debt relief, explain what hap pened, and the part CSOs accountab ility” work.

played. A good example is the Ghana HIPC water project.

This would serve as a model.

5. Ghana Partnering of local governm ent and civil society is Agreed. The need to examin

constrained by the need for capacity building and is propo sed as a priority act

funding. while the need to strengthe

engagement is proposed as

in paragraph 69.

6. Ghana SAPRI was an example of governm ent and CSO Paragraph 33 specifically reinvolvement, however, the governments didn ’t take the encountered in the SAPRI p

process seriously. The World Bank has an impo rtant role examine lesson s learned for

to play in ensuring that governm ents are serious. roles as facilitator in the tria

between governments, CSO

addressed in p aragraphs 22

Ghana

Indonesia




1. Jakarta, Indo nes ia (Com men ting on the Extractive Indu stries Review in Paragraph 33 specifically ci

th e con text of Bank/ CSO engagem en t) th e EIR an d oth er h igh -prof

This process was set up and financed by the World engagement processes, whe

Bank, and was viewed as a good practice which elicited have been disappo inted tha

the participation of civil society. However, the prob lem accept all of the recomm end

occurs when a good, transparent mechan ism is establish- issue of the expectations ga

ed, yet the recommend ations collected are still not paragraphs 53 and 56, 60, 6

adopted.

2. Jakarta, Indo nes ia (Referring to the Consultative Group for Indon esia Paragraphs 76 and 80 men t

(CGI). This type of mechanism is no t on ly attracting greater coherence between t

feedback from civil society, but from sectoral groups MIGA in terms of civil socie

as well. There seems to be a contrad iction in the Bank’s practices.

practices. On one hand the Bank is working to improve

the environmen t yet, on the oth er hand, th e political

interest is such that a real positive impact is not possible.

If the Bank is to make a real impact on the forestry

industry in Indonesia, it must bring all of the relevant

actors to the table. It must also streamline its ownpolicies with respect to its other entities such as the

International Finance Corporation (IFC). The IFC does

not engage with civil society in the same way that the

Bank does.

3. Jakarta, Indo nes ia How are you going to act based on the feedback you This comm ents matrix is in

collect from civil society? There are many Bank mechanism to dem onstrate

consultatio ns with civil society, but it is unclear as received and addressed in th

to whether these really lead to any change in policy. action items are outlined in

paper, along with a n umberdiscussion. There are a num

where civil society consulta

changes in Bank policy or a

in paragraph 57.

4. Jakarta, Indo nes ia What is the status of the NGO working group, Paragraphs 25 and 64 briefl

NGO/Bank relations in Indon esia and on the of the previous Bank-NGO

Indo nesia CAS? We recomm end that the Bank refer launch of the Join t Facilitat

to civil society as being “involved” and not just being process to shape a new plat

“consulted.” Civil society views shou ld be incorpo rated society engagement at the ginto the CAS process. Indo nesian NGOs had already Paragraphs 12 and 80 briefl

prepared a mappin g of civil society which shou ld be the Bank is organized to wo

shared with the rest of the Bank. How is the Bank More inform ation on these

organ ized to work with civil society? th e Bank’s website for civil

worldbank.org/civilsociety.

Indonesia





5. Jakarta, Indo nes ia Is it possible for the Bank and CSOs to work together Yes, there are many opp ortu

to prom ote a consultation process that is based on CSOs to work together to p

accountability and transparency? Can the Bank involve accountab le and transparen

CSOs in project imp lemen tation ? Is it possible to consultatio n. Priority action

develop an alternative (Bank) fund ing channel in cases imp rove the Bank’s approac

where corruption is high? including these aspects. On

27, 28 and 67 describe how

developed many different ty

indirect fund ing mechanism

engagement and CSO invol

implementation. Communidevelopment ( CDD) p rogra

being used as a m echanism

endemic corruption and get

down to the village level.

6. Jakarta, Indo nes ia Can the Bank stop a project in cases where corruptio n This issue goes beyond the

has taken place? Furthermore, can the Bank suspend there are mechanisms in pla

o peratio ns u ntil legal refo rm is ach ieved ? su sp en d o r sto p p ro jects o r

corruption is identified. For

go to the website for the Ba

Institutional Integrity at h tt

worldbank.org/acfiu/acfiuw

7. Jakarta, Indo nes ia Can you add capacity building for trade union s, so Yes, trade union engagemen

they could have a more detailed understand ing of capacity bu ilding of un ions

the Bank’s mission and role in poverty reduction? paragraphs 23 and 59. The

Why did you change the terminology from NGO definition of NGO to CSO

to CSO? How can civil society be more involved in paragraphs 6–9. Upstream

the project cycle? within the project cycle is d

72 and 76.

8. Jakarta, Indo nes ia How can Bank operat ions/ processes be imp roved when Agreed that CSOs shou ld be

there is no regular mechanism for mo nitoring and mo nitoring and evaluation,

evaluation? CSOs shou ld be involved in mo nito ring a number of examples wher

and evaluation as well. “social accountability” initi

expenditures in p aragraphs

for mon itoring and evaluati

engages with civil society is

paragraphs 31 and 66, an d

actions in the pap er.

9. Jakarta, Indo nes ia The Bank shou ld also prioritize capacity bu ilding for Agreed. The need for capaci

CSOs, because CSOs need to better understand how staff to engage CSOs, and v

the Bank works. It is also impo rtant to increase the in paragraphs 22, 56, and 6

commitment of Bank staff to work with CSOs.

10 Jakarta Indonesia Can the Bank encourage CSOs to be an equal partn er? As explained in paragraph s

Mozambique




1. Maputo, Mozambique The Bank needs to imp rove and standardize the The need to imp rove the Ba

selection criteria it uses to involve CSOs in its criteria and the mann er in w

consultatio ns. A new consultatio n group shou ld consultatio ns is discussed in

be created to take into consideration the different and 73. The aim is to achie

sensibilities among CSOs coun trywide. The group standards, while allowing fo

should be limited in num ber so as to guarantee focus. countries and sectors.

2. Maputo, Mozambique The time allotted to a consultat ion also affects the Agreed. Timin g is no ted as

quality of the dialogue between the Bank and the consultations need to be imCSOs. By providing more time, the um brella NGOs discussed in paragraph s 32,

can consult with th eir members and associates,

mo stly located away from the m ain urban areas.

3. Maputo, Mozambique When engaging in consultation on impo rtant WB The need for earlier disclosu

documen ts, such as CAS, ESW, Coun try Econo mic participan ts, as imp ortan t s

Memorand um , etc., the coun try office needs to consultatio n process, is rais

publicize (including in the local newspapers) the 35, and 65.

timeframe and schedule o f the entire consultation

process. Such a measure will contribute not only to

raised interest, but will also enable the CSOs to become

acquainted with the issues before the discussions,

e.g., by requesting the previous documents, etc.

4. Maputo, Mozambique The language barrier is a major obstacle for a better Paragraphs 34 and 75 discu

CSO engagement. WB docum ents need to be increased transparency and

translated into Portuguese. Regarding the discussion Paragraphs 26 and 75 refer

papers used to obtain feedback from Mozambicans, documen ts into local langu

you should not exclude the possibility of translating recently adopted a new fram

d ocum en ts in to a m ore accessible lan gu age— th is.

translating into regional languages as well.

5. Maputo, Mozambique Regarding the triangular relationship (described as The triangular relationship

somewhat ambiguou s) between the Governmen t, civil society and the Bank is

CSOs, and WB, in order to secure a quality debate on paragraph s 40 and 56. The

issues, the WB needs to be mo re inclusive in its facilitator role in governm e

approach. For instance, by making sure that some well as to engage in direct d

meetings bring together both Government officials consultation, as discussed i

and CSOs. This will avoid what is called “the ping-

pong effect,” in which Government Officials, when in

discussion with CSOs, tend to blame the WB for allbad policies and, in the same way, CSOs tend to

blame th e government when d iscussing with the

Bank. This situation is not conducive to a genuine

and quality debate.

q




6. Maputo, Mozambique The knowledge gap between African CSOs and their The lack of a level playing f

counterparts in the West can be addressed with the North and South is noted a

Bank’s assistance. The Bank can make its facilities paragraph s 8 and 73. The B

available (in ternet, VC, etc.) to facilitate contin uous engagement, as discussed in

information sharing among CSO and NGOs world- 74. A single consultation pl

wide. This idea responds to the need to establish a desirable, but the Bank is ex

worldwide consultatio n platform . Such a platform variety of new ways to cons

would be advantageou s because, mo st of the time, and natio nal levels, as discu

governmen ts in developing countries, such as 64 and 65.

Mozambique, are no t keen on sharing their policies

with CSOs. On many occasions, NGOs based locally

are not granted access to Government policy

documents. The only way to access these documents

is through foreign NGOs.

7. Maputo, Mozambique A studen t association would like to know what The Bank’s growing focus o

the Bank’s policies are toward studen ts in general, youth is no ted in the Execu

and mo re particularly, about student associations iv, and in paragraphs 12, 16

in Africa. Youth and youth organizati

constituency within civil so

have a voice in developmen

decision-making at the glob

Washington, DC




1. Washington , DC The paper raises many imp ortan t and timely issues. Paragraphs 32–34, 65 and 7

It acknowledges many recent improvements in WB- frustration over limits on ac

CSO relations. For example, mo re inform ation from well as the ad-ho c natu re an

the Bank is available thro ugh the disclosure policy, consultatio ns. The priority a

and the PRSP process prom ises mo re voice to CSOs. is to create a Bank-wide con

There are still a number of roadblocks and counter- point/advisory service that

pressures in the institution, however. Draft Bank some of these prob lems, an

documents are still not disseminated soon enough proposes additional steps to

to allow for informed part icipat ion and decision- and disclosure.making by CSOs. The quality of participation is still

a major problem, and there is a sense of huge trans-

action cost for participation. CSOs question some

recent policy conversions in the Bank and the impact

of their participation. Many CSOs want to see many

of the issues put forward in the pap er quickly handled,

and some of the coun ter-pressures removed. No on e

has interest in an empty process.

2. Washington , DC Why are there on ly seven issues highlighted in the The priority issues selected paper when many oth ers are ident ified? which there is already conse

man agemen t team to m ove

paper did not recommen d a

however, during internal dis

general agreement to ou tlin

prioritized (paragraphs 62–

options still subject to discu

man agemen t or staff as app

3. Washington , DC The Bank shou ld adm it that these are the “WB’s Agreed that this is primarilyissues and agenda,” and differ from the issues on an internal WB aud ience, w

the minds of CSOs. CSOs would focus on a whole in paragraph 1. As such, it’s

different process, agenda, and nature of engagement the issues and agendas mo s

from what the paper contains. internal discussion. Howeve

recommendations in many c

perspectives of CSOs, gather

several years.

4. Washington , DC There are concrete ou tcomes of other discussions and This paper is focused on ho

processes like SAPRI, WCD, EIR and o thers, which are process of Bank-CSO engag

on the table with concrete outpu ts, calling for specific to address every issue of con

actions. Are these suggestions going to be included in Those are dealt with in othe

the paper? messages of the paper is tha

current processes that are in

frustrations. Paragraph 33 sp

g




6. Washington , DC The same set of prob lems was experienced in the Noted .

U.S. at th e federal level. I suggest you look at the

decisions made by the U.S. administration to see if

the Bank might be able to app ly the same solutions.

7. Washington , DC The problem CSOs have is not in the num ber of The ad hoc institutional app

consultatio ns, but in the way their inputs are is discussed in sections 32-3

incorporated into Bank policy. How does the Bank A review of current Bank bu

prepare its indicators of involvement by CSOs? The includin g staff incentives, is

paper no tes grievance procedures, early warning systems paragraph 76.

in the Bank, and the issue of staff rewards and incentives,

all of which are important. There is a need for a goodsystem o f staff rewards and accountability.

8. Washington , DC Has the team con sulted any protesters regarding the The paper was posted on th

paper’s section on the protest movemen t? There isn’t civil society at www.worldb

enough analysis in the paper about the rationale for late October 2003, and com

the protests, and there is little men tion of the protests society organizations and o

in the South. After four years of the PRSP process, the solicited thro ugh the end o

same big policy issues are not being discussed and the Civil Society Team also invi

legitimacy prob lem still exists. coun try offices to host discu

with CSOs based in their coaddresses CSO protests aga

discusses the rationale behi

paragraphs 47–6 0.

9. Washington , DC It is good that the paper addresses the WB-CSO- The complexities of the tria

Government three dimensional relationship, and between the WB, Governme

protests in the South. However, the Bank needs to discussed in paragraphs 22–

decide on its formal role regarding the three sector

relationship, because CSOs are currently very

frustrated over the lack of one.10. Washington, DC Propo sed time for further discussion on the JFC The paper refers to the JFC

process. 64. Further background on

available on the Bank’s web

engagement at www.worldb

11. Washington, DC Spoke on his organization’s experience of engage- The Civil Society Team and

ment with the Bank, and the lack of coheren t lines society focal poin ts are ther

of communication to follow-up on the man y engagement and follow-up.

initiatives taken with CSOs.

12. Washington, DC There is frustration with the Bank’s statemen ts on The comp lexities of the tria

how it works with governm ents but is yet unable to between the WB, Governme

influence the governm ent’s resistance to working discussed in paragraph s 22–

with CSOs. IFC and MIGA on the oth er han d have variance between the Bank,

no relationship with governmen ts that can pose a acknowledged in paragraph




13. Washington, DC Civil society groups need to be coordina ted regarding The paper refers to the JFC

the JFC. Prior to stepping into the process, civil society and add itional inform ation

shou ld have undergone a legitimate participatory Bank’s website for civil soci

process to choose whether it wants to participate or worldban k.org/civilsociety.

not. Accountability is a key question in the decision

on wh ether or not CSOs shou ld be involved in the

JFC. This is yet another mechanism for engagement,

while many others have resulted in noth ing. He noted

that the issue of representativeness of the JFC has been

discussed by its members during the initial meeting.

14. Washington, DC There is very limited participation and involvement Paragraphs 32, 44, 59, 73 aof the disabled comm unity in man y discussions need to be mo re inclusive a

and consultations. consultation process. The d

one of the examp les of new

Bank is targeting, which ha

hiring of a disability coordi

15. Washington, DC Can the Bank formalize in writing the requirem ents Paragraph 72 makes a speci

for CSO consultatio ns in the prepara tion of CASs? emp hasize civil society part

There needs to be a fully transparent process in preparation and in CAS mo

which CSOs and commu nities affected by Bank evaluation.projects can know specifically who is responsible

for what decisions.

16. Washington, DC Someth ing fund amental is missing in this discussion The focus of the paper is to

based on the Bank’s thin king that civic participation trends in, and quality of, th

is a privilege and no t a right. The notion of the right the WB and CSOs. Hum an

to participate and the right to inform ation is missing has surfaced as an area of te

in this paper. relations and the paper ack

issue that many CSOs have

to add ress mo re openly. Th

the role of the Bank in prom

is ongoing and goes beyond

paper. The Bank had made t

participation as a critical el

ment and development effe



Civil Society Team

The World Bank

1818 H Street, N.W.

Mail Stop: MC3-309

Washingt on, D.C. 20433

USA

Phone: (202) 473-1840

Fax: (202) 522-7131

E-mail: civilsociety@world bank.org