Citizen Participation In Policy Research Articles

Development, Informal Sector and Policy Making: An Assessment of the Role of Policy Formulation in the Operationalization of Informal Groups in Harare Urban

The major thrust of this paper is to understand an interaction between development and its major irreducible determinants; that is public participation and policy formulation. Development is a term that has a multifaceted forms and definitions (Rodney 1982; Saul 2006). It is a process of bringing about desirable change and citizenry participation is critical in such processes that bring positive changes in the socio-economic lives. From an Interactionist perspective, it can be argued that, human relations from a micro-view point are characterized by multidimensional interactions imbedded in various symbiosis. Such explains the interaction between citizens and institutions of power and ideology. Conventionally, disparities in terms of development are due to natural distribution of resources (Weiss 2007; Okupu et al 2018), but this paper conceptualizes it largely as a neglection on the part of institutions, dearth of unity among the citizens and also limited interaction between the development agencies and the people. Development remains a peculiarity within boundaries of the propulsive growth poles while some parts are lagging behind due to lack of positive symbiosis between citizens and institutions. Contemporary researches demonstrate largely that policy formulation and implementation lack correlation and the intended development is jeopardized to the detriment of the welfare of the people. Saliently, there is need for the prioritization of the citizen participation in policy making so that implementation would be feasible and easier. The reciprocity between the infrastructure, (physical enablers and population) and the superstructure (decision makers, intellectuals and researches) must be explored with much consistence and coordination. In Zimbabwe, particularly in the Harare’s informal sector and in deed in many African countries such is missing, thus, making poverty levels cyclical, structural and endemic.

Effectiveness of County Communication Approaches in Facilitating Public Participation in Kenya’s Devolved Governments

Purpose: The aim of this research was to evaluate the efficacy of county communication frameworks in fostering public participation in Kenya’s 47 devolved governments. Effective communication is both a function and proof of good governance. Thus the significance of county communication facilitating enduring citizen participation in policy making and implementation processes cannot be overstated. The evaluation of county communication approaches was conducted in alignment with overall objectives outlined in the County Government Act of 2012. These objectives include: creating awareness on devolution and governance; promotion of peace and cohesion; advocacy for development, and promotion of the freedom of the media.
 Methodology: The present study adopted a qualitative research approach. The research targeted 8 counties clustered in county economic blocs of North Rift Economic Bloc (NOREB), Lake Region Economic Bloc LREB, Frontier Counties Development Council (FCDC) , South Eastern Kenya Economic Block (SEKEB), Mt Kenya and Aberdares Economic Bloc, Jumuiya ya Kaunti za Pwani( JKP), Narok and Kajiado Economic Block(NAKAEB) and Nairobi City County. The counties purposely selected to represent each of these economic blocs include: Trans Nzoia, Kisumu, Mandera, Makueni, Meru, Kwale, Narok and Nairobi. This study used both primary and secondary methods to collect data. In-depth interviews were used to collect primary data from 26 participants, specifically, from Council of Governors, Sub-County Administrators, County Assemblies Forum, County Directors of Communication and Community Based Organizations. They were purposively chosen for their role in communicating, facilitating, and monitoring public participation. Secondary data was collected mainly from national dataset, surveys, and reports from ministries, departments, and agencies.
 Findings: The findings show that concept of public participation is deeply rooted in the Constitution of Kenya 2010. County communication frameworks embed strategic communication approaches for policy making and implementation in devolved governments. The finds show that the level of understanding of devolution among Kenyans varies. Those in urban and city counties have a greater appreciation of decentralization while those in rural counties have limited understanding of devolution and its implication. Majority of Kenyans have difficulty distinguishing functions of devolved governments from those assigned to the national government by the CoK 2010. Additionally, county governments are required to promote peace and cohesion among the residents. The findings show that this objective receives less emphasis and is not a priority of counties, with the exception of frontier counties. However, counties promote development in their jurisdiction recognizing that they have a responsibility to stimulate investments that create jobs for unemployed and generally improve living standards of the residents. Finally, county governments have a role to play in ensuring media practice remain free from any interference even though this responsibility lie with the national government. 
 Implications to Theory, Practice and Policy: Based on the review of the literature and findings of this study, the study recommends that county governments should meaningfully engage citizens in governance by first, empowering them to understand their responsibility and secondly, allowing them to engage meaningfully in issues that affect them. To achieve this, county governments should establish mechanisms that promote civic education, public participation and access to information as provided in the County Government Act 2012.

Jérôme Duberry, Artificial Intelligence and Democracy: Risks and Promises of AI-Mediated Citizen–Government Relations (Cheltenham/Northampton: Edward Elgar, 2022)

The book structurally and thematically spans across several important issues which AI as a digital technology brings into the citizen-government relations, methodologically relying on literature and policy review, workshops, focus groups and semi-structured interviews with authorities in citizen participation, online platforms and artificial intelligence. It begins with the conceptualization of AI and ends with the ramifications of civic tech as the technology used to increase citizens participation and civic engagement. In between, it explores the most common positive and negative effects which algorithms, automation and big data exert over citizen participation in policy making. In fact, given that the participation of citizens in policy-making is a direct expression of popular sovereignty and this participation is based on the assumption that citizens are (1) well informed (2) consulted and (3) included in the decision process, the author presents in separate chapters how the use of AI contributes to these assumptions. The findings, in brief, show that AI creates filter bubbles and echo chambers alongside the digital space allowed for people’s opinions and initiatives; AI assists in ‘digital listening’ and mass-surveillance of these practices not only for national security purposes, but for pure profit; and finally, it also capitalizes via digital advertising on people’s online presence, particularly by gearing their opinion with (individually optimized) propaganda.

Mathieu Landriault, Jean-François Payette and Stéphane Roussel (eds.), Mapping Arctic Paradiplomacy – Limits and Opportunities for Sub-National Actors in Arctic Governance (Abingdon and New York: Routledge, 2022)

The book structurally and thematically spans across several important issues which AI as a digital technology brings into the citizen-government relations, methodologically relying on literature and policy review, workshops, focus groups and semi-structured interviews with authorities in citizen participation, online platforms and artificial intelligence. It begins with the conceptualization of AI and ends with the ramifications of civic tech as the technology used to increase citizens participation and civic engagement. In between, it explores the most common positive and negative effects which algorithms, automation and big data exert over citizen participation in policy making. In fact, given that the participation of citizens in policy-making is a direct expression of popular sovereignty and this participation is based on the assumption that citizens are (1) well informed (2) consulted and (3) included in the decision process, the author presents in separate chapters how the use of AI contributes to these assumptions. The findings, in brief, show that AI creates filter bubbles and echo chambers alongside the digital space allowed for people’s opinions and initiatives; AI assists in ‘digital listening’ and mass-surveillance of these practices not only for national security purposes, but for pure profit; and finally, it also capitalizes via digital advertising on people’s online presence, particularly by gearing their opinion with (individually optimized) propaganda.

The Role of Public Participation in Governance towards Achieving Sustainable Development. Part 2

Public participation aimed at improving the effectiveness of governance by involving citizens in governance policy formulation and decision-making processes. It was designed to promote transparency, accountability and effectiveness of any modern government. Although Kenya has legally adopted public participation in day-to-day government activities, challenges still cripple its effectiveness as documented by several scholars. Instead of reducing conflicts between the government and the public, it has heightened witnessing so many petitions of government missing on priorities in terms of development and government policies. Results show that participation weakly relates with governance hence frictions sustainable development. Theoretically, public participation influences governance efficiency and development, directly and indirectly, thus sustainable development policy and implementation depends on Public participation and good governance. However, an effective public participation in governance is has been fractioned by the government. Instead of being a promoter/sponsor of public participation, the government of Kenya has failed to put structures that would spur participation of citizens in policy making and other days to activities. This has brought about wrong priority setting and misappropriation of public resources; The government officials and political class interference ultimately limit public opinion and input effects on decision-making and policy formulation, which might be an inner factor determining the failure of public participation in Kenya. The study suggests the need for strengthening public participation by establishing an independent institution to preside over public participation processes.

The Role of Public Participation in Governance towards Achieving Sustainable Development. Part 1

Public participation aimed at improving the effectiveness of governance by involving citizens in governance policy formulation and decision-making processes. It was designed to promote transparency, accountability and effectiveness of any modern government. Although Kenya has legally adopted public participation in day-to-day government activities, challenges still cripple its effectiveness as documented by several scholars. Instead of reducing conflicts between the government and the public, it has heightened witnessing so many petitions of government missing on priorities in terms of development and government policies. Results show that participation weakly relates with governance hence frictions sustainable development. Theoretically, public participation influences governance efficiency and development, directly and indirectly, thus sustainable development policy and implementation depends on Public participation and good governance. However, an effective public participation in governance is has been fractioned by the government. Instead of being a promoter/sponsor of public participation, the government of Kenya has failed to put structures that would spur participation of citizens in policy making and other days to activities. This has brought about wrong priority setting and misappropriation of public resources; The government officials and political class interference ultimately limit public opinion and input effects on decision-making and policy formulation, which might be an inner factor determining the failure of public participation in Kenya. The study suggests the need for strengthening public participation by establishing an independent institution to preside over public participation processes.

Public Participation in the Policy Making Process: An Evaluation of Makueni County, Kenya

The purpose of the study was to evaluate public participation in the policy making process in Makueni County. This was so because, despite the Makueni County Government generally accepted framework for public participation, there is limited information on how that framework has impacted or been used in the policy making process. Specifically, the study sought to assess the extent of awareness by the residents of Makueni of their democratic right and opportunities to participate in the policy making process; analyzed the levels of citizens involvement in policy making processes in Makueni County; established the perception towards public participation in policy making process by residents and management in Makueni County; and determined the barriers to public participation in policy making process by residents and management in Makueni County. The study was anchored on Stakeholder Theory, Arnstein’s Ladder and the Multi Streams Model. The study was hinged on descriptive survey research design and targeted the 884,527 residents of Makueni and the 217 County Public service Departmental staff in Makueni County. Stratified sampling was used to delineate 117 staff in terms of their positions, whether management or operations excluding the subordinate staff. Simple random sampling was used to get 396 residents. Focus Group Discussions and questionnaires were the primary data collection instruments. Quantitative data was analyzed using descriptive statistics in form of percentages and frequencies. Linear regression model analysis was also used to analyze data. The results established that the residents were unaware of their democratic right and opportunities for participation in policy making process in Makueni County. There were also low levels of citizens’ involvement in policy making processes in Makueni County. Further, perception about public participation by residents was both negative for those who felt let down by the county management and positive for those who mainly felt hopeful that despite those challenges, things improve for the better in terms of public participation in policy making process in Makueni County. Additionally, financial, physical resource, human resource and technological barriers were identified as having considerable negative impact on citizen participation in policy making process. The study thus recommends that Makueni County management should embark on renewed promotional strategies to create awareness among citizens of their democratic right and opportunities for participation in policy making process in Makueni County. Further, the citizens themselves should be proactive and employ necessary mechanisms of obtaining information from the county government and demand participation. The Makueni County management should on the other hand, formulate a framework that stipulates the measures to be applied towards fully involving the citizens. The Makueni County management should also be more transparent and accountable in order to help build a positive perception about public participation amongst the residents. Moreover, the Makueni County management should engage in robust resource mobilization of finances, physical, human and technological resources that advance public participation in policy making process. On a policy level, the County Assembly should amend existing public participation legislation to make it more responsive to the needs of citizens. The executive should on their part robustly implement public participation processes going forward.

Human rights referendum: Dissonance between ‘the will of the people’ and fundamental rights?

Referendums and popular initiatives have proliferated in many parts of the world as part of the effort to improve the quality of democracy and enhance citizen participation in policy making. However, even before the surge of populist nationalism in the 2010s, referendums have become a sort of weapon to restrict various rights. Furthermore, the juxtaposition between ‘the will of the people’ and human rights has once again brought back the classical criticism against direct democracy that it constitutes ‘a tyranny of the majority’ that could erode minority rights. With these concerns in mind, this paper is written to analyse the dissonance between human rights referendums and international human rights law through a positivist lens. The overall goal is to determine whether States have an ex ante obligation to prevent a referendum on a subject matter that is contrary to human rights.

Citizen Participation Policy Making for Environmental Issues: A Literature Review

Developing countries, like Iran, have challenging environmental problems – the need to improve the state of the environment, for human beings and other living creatures, is among the most serious challenges for comprehensive development in such countries. Governments and local organizations could not single-handedly tackle the destruction, and its associated problems in the environment. Consequently, the value and role of public participation in administrating nations and developing democratic societies has drawn attention to the idea of citizen participation in management. Involvement of citizens in environmental issues is considered as one of the key realms of governmental strategic planning. Lack of systematic knowledge and sufficient awareness among officials and major decision makers has become a main source of challenges and problems in this area. This has resulted in a poor assessment of current situations and the consequent inability to provide the best conditions for employing the resources of civic engagement in environmental issues. This research aims to review related studies covering the topic of citizen participation in policy making, with regards to the environment.

Moving towards hybridity in causal explanation: The example of citizen participation

AbstractThe puzzle of causal explanation is a core issue for social science. Searches for causal patterns can be overly mechanistic, seen for example in the desire for the magic bullet in policy, or the lionising of the celebrity policy interventions of the moment. Emphasis in policy interventions on transferable practice is often dismissed as naive for failing to recognise the importance of context, contingency, and complexity. However, a focus on highly context‐specific narratives, drawn from single cases, can be equally problematic and exacerbate rather than help the problem of reification of knowledge. This paper makes a reflective theoretical contribution to the debate on the need to tackle the dilemma of contingency versus certainty in causal explanation in the social sciences. It attempts to address this issue through the lens of a specific concrete puzzle of explanation; that of citizen participation in policy. Citizen participation is a salient policy topic, which demands a thorough understanding of causation. Using extended empirical examples of citizen participation in policy serves to highlight the intractability of different traditions of causal explanation and grounds the need for greater compatibility in approaches. The paper then offers two propositions centring on the notions of transdisciplinarity and hybridity in research practices and methodologies. It concludes with a discussion of more and less desirable forms of hybridity.

Bringing the Power Back in: Insight into the Puzzle of Indonesian Decentralisation Reform

This paper attempts to review the features of power relationship between central and local governments in Indonesia since the early independence up to the post Suharto regime. Its central aims are to cast light on the issue of why Indonesia thought that decentralisation is necessary; and how the controversy between the so-called ideological vs technical orientation has emerged since the very beginning (early independent). Overall, I would like to argue that even though the answer to the question of whether the Indonesian decentralisation and regional autonomy policies have actually managed to save the nation-state is still contested, the introduction of both concept and policy reforms in the post Suharto's period have, to some extent, reduced the region dissatisfaction upon the centre, and have opened up the political space for citizen participation in policy making process, and in governing their own communities. What the Indonesia should do in the near future is to put decentralisation on the right track and to prevent that of on-going democratic decentralisation process from the central government desire "to bring the centralised power back in".

Participatory mechanisms and inequality reduction: searching for plausible relations

Brazil is known for being one of the most unequal countries in the world. Since the 1990s many scholars, both in Brazil and those analyzing the country¹s trajectories from abroad, have been describing a decrease in country¹s inequalities. In this article we discuss the possible role of expanding citizen participation in policy making processes and overseeing their implementation in inequality reduction. To do so we explore the connections between the participatory mechanisms and the implementation of policies that are expected to reduce inequalities in two different participatory experiments that have taken place in Brazil: São Paulo municipal health councils and the country¹s participation in the Open Government Partnership (OGP). We argue that, despite their thematic and historical differences, there are good reasons to believe that these two participatory experiences sustained the expectations concerning their role in contributing to reduced inequalities. However, these cases suggest that their contributions were less determined by the quality of the participatory process, as defined by the deliberative democracy literature, than by the nature of political alliances and mobilization processes that supported these spaces.

Going online. Does ICT enabled-participation engage the young in local governance?

ABSTRACTLocal governments increasingly use online strategies to strengthen political participation of citizens in policy and politics. Young people, however, are generally under-represented. This article studies age patterns of participation across offline and online forms of action to test whether online initiatives are able to overcome this age bias. We first report a case study of online and offline problem reporting to local authorities. We find that simply going from offline to online participation reinforces rather than mitigates age bias. We then report a case study of message posting on an online political forum. In this case, age bias disappears. In contrast to the traditional instrumental modes, a forum is an expressive form of online participation. The young seem to value the act of participating over the outcomes of participation. For practice, these findings suggest a need for participation policies that speak to these expressive needs of young. In recent years, social media have reinforced the potential for expressive participation.

Participatory policy making under authoritarianism: the pathways of local budgetary reform in the People’s Republic of China

Citizen participation in policy making is essential in democracies, but there is much less understanding of the process and substance of it in non-democratic states. Taking local budgetary process as an example, this article compares three pathways of participatory reform undertaken by the communist regime in China, namely the representative pathway, the consultative pathway and the transparency pathway. All three are initiated and administered by the local governments, but differ in a number of crucial aspects from the level of institutionalisation to the form of state–citizenry interaction. These three pathways provide directions the Party-state might consider for nationwide policy reform.

Current status of citizen participation in policy making and execution by local government

Current status of citizen participation in policy making and execution by local government

Assessing the Implementation Process of Consulting Citizen Participation in Policy and Housing Delivery in South Africa

This article aims to assess the implementation process of consulting citizen participation and conflicts involved in housing delivery against the environment of the South Africanhousing need and housing policy. In this way the study wants to clarify the relationship between housing policy and housing practice. The article is based on the legislations and policies designed to foster and promote public participation in South Africa. These include legislation at both the national and local government levels and a survey of planning departments measuring the types of public participation strategies used by local governments. The article’s findings indicate that South African Municipalities need adopt a broader range of public participation techniques related to: voluntarism and public engagement, neighbourhood and strategic planning, and e-government. In contrast, the article’s findings indicate that South African Municipalities are more likely to crumple if they do not promote public participation through mechanisms such as annual community meetings and referendums on public issues. The conclusion of the article offers recommendations for expanding the scope of public participation and developing strategies that maximize citizen input in community development activities in both the Provincial and local spheres of government. The survey was conducted to identify the scope of public participation techniques used by local governments and the Department of Housing in Tyutyu housing project located in the Buffalo city metropolitan municipality. It is an initiative which was started in the year 2000 with the aim of alleviating housing shortage in the area. Formerly, the area was made up of mud houses that were constructed by the former Ciskei government. Later on, shacks were added in the area. Originally, <br />these structures were meant to form agricultural rural village settlements. One limitation of this methodology is that it does not gauge the effectiveness of the participation techniques used by local governments and the department of housing or the intensity of public engagement. However, the results from this study provide future researchers with a mechanism for focusing future analysis. The findings can assist in identifying new directions for enhancing public participation in South Africa and globally.

What Public Servants Really Think of E-Government

Drawing on 240 completed web surveys from six New Zealand core government agencies, and using qualitative and quantitative measures, we investigate public servants' views on three aspects of e-government, situated within an overarching rhetoric of ‘transformation’. First, the degree to which e-government is supporting ‘joined-up’ government is assessed. Second, we canvas views as to what degree e-government measures are promoting new ways of working for public servants such as flexible work. Third, we seek public servant views on whether e-government measures are allowing greater ‘e-participation’ from the public. We find that public servants exhibit considerable nuance in their views on e-government, including some scepticism towards its role in increasing flexible work, in ‘joining-up’ government, and in increasing citizen participation in policy making. The vagueness of transformational rhetoric is highlighted. We suggest the more considered views of public servants on the costs, as well as the benefits, of e-government, provide a useful antidote to much heated rhetoric and ‘dangerous enthusiasms’ exhibited towards e-government across the world.

Collaborative Governance in South Korea: Citizen Participation in Policy Making and Welfare Service Provision

Kim, Sunhyuk.2010.Collaborative governance in South Korea,Articles,[Hong Kong]The University of Hong Kong,26

Public Meetings and the Democratic Process

Public meetings are frequently attacked as useless democratic rituals that lack deliberative qualities and fail to give citizens a voice in the policy process. Do public meetings have a role to play in fostering citizen participation in policy making? While many of the criticisms leveled against public meetings have merit, I argue that they do. In this article, I explore the functions that city council and school board meetings serve. While they may not be very good at accomplishing their primary goal of giving citizens the opportunity to directly influence decisions made by governing bodies, they can be used to achieve other ends, such as sending information to officials and setting the agenda. As a complement to deliberative political structures, public meetings have a role to play by offering a venue in which citizens can achieve their political goals, thereby enhancing governmental accountability and responsiveness.

Democratization and Environmental Policy–Making in Korea

Democratization in Korea since 1987 has led to the gradual establishment of a diverse set of institutional arrangements—competitive electoral systems, local autonomy, freedom of the press, and freedom of association—that facilitate the articulation of diffuse environmental interests in policy–making processes. Yet, as illustrated by the cases of the Youngwol Dam project and the Wichon Industrial Complex, the policy–making system is still unsettled by numerous environmental protests and by difficulties in resolving distributional conflicts among different groups and communities. To resolve these difficulties, Korea needs to overcome some adverse legacies from its authoritarian era and to develop multiple channels and mechanisms for citizen participation in policy–making and for conflict resolution among different groups and communities. The experience of Korea illustrates the complex dynamics between democratization and environmental policy–making.