Formal Accountability Mechanisms Research Articles

Accounting for solidarity: trust and results as a replacement of contracts in water operators’ partnerships

ABSTRACT Water operators' partnerships (WOPs) differ from other types of collaborations in that they are ‘solidarity-based’. By focusing on two partnerships between utilities from the Netherlands and Malawi, this article examines how accountability is addressed in solidarity-based WOPs. The article finds that the solidarity-based nature of these partnerships makes accountability between partners through contractual arrangements challenging. In such a setting, multiple and diverse lines of accountability exist. In particular, trust appears to complement more formal accountability mechanisms. At the same time, this trust relationship is only possible as long as the partnerships produce the desired operational results. The cases furthermore suggest that rather than think about optimal accountability mechanisms, ensuring accountability mechanisms that are sufficient and accepted by both partners is already an achievement.

Political responsiveness and centralized religious leaders: lessons from the Catholic Church

AbstractAre centralized leaders of religious organizations responsive to their followers' political preferences over time even when formal accountability mechanisms, such as elections, are weak or absent? I argue that such leaders have incentives to be responsive because they rely on dedicated members for legitimacy and support. I test this theory by examining the Catholic Church and its centralized leader, the Pope. First, I analyze over 10,000 papal statements to confirm that the papacy is responsive to Catholics' overall political concerns. Second, I conduct survey experiments in Brazil and Mexico to investigate how Catholics react to responsiveness. Catholics increase their organizational trust and participation when they receive papal messages that reflect their concerns, conditional on their existing commitment to the Church and their agreement with the Church on political issues. The evidence suggests that in centralized religious organizations, the leader reaffirms members' political interests because followers support religious organizations that are politically responsive.

The Invisible Safeguards of Judicial Independence in the Israeli Judiciary

AbstractThe Israeli democracy regulates the operation of the judiciary through the constraints of formal rules that check the political actors, the individual judges, and the judiciary. Basic laws, laws and regulations prescribe the operation of every subject. Yet beyond these formal rules, informal institutions and practices are sometimes equally important in the operation of the judiciary, as they are in any constitutional system. In Israel, some of these informal institutions are crucial for the flourishing of democracy and the rule of law, through their protection of judicial independence from external political interference. The imminent possibility that political actors may set some of them aside is nothing less than a potential transformation in the constitutional order. Over the past few decades, judges and court administrators have introduced other internal informal institutions in the administration of the Israeli Judiciary, which qualify formal judicial accountability mechanisms in ways that may prove to be detrimental to democratic principles. This article discusses informal institutions that are important in the operation of the Israeli judiciary, separating the former external kind that are conducive to the rule of law—such as the illegitimacy of political and partisan considerations in judicial appointments—and whose disregard may signal democratic decay from the latter internal kind that may prove detrimental to the courts—such as opaquely changing who is responsible for court administration. Lastly, the political attempt to change informal institutions, detailed herein, can be seen as a harbinger of the current attempt to change formal institutions in the constitutional status of the judiciary in Israel.

Co-creation and self-evaluation: An accountability mechanism process in water, sanitation and hygiene services delivery in childcare centres in Nairobi's informal settlements.

Accountability strategies are expected to enhance access to water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) service delivery in low-and middle-income countries (LMIC). Conventional formal social accountability mechanisms (SAMs) for WASH service delivery have been inadequate to meet the needs of residents in informal settlements in LMICs. This has prompted growing interest in alternative informal SAMs (iSAMs) in Nairobi's informal settlements. To date, iSAMs have shown a limited effect, often due to implementation failures and poor contextual fit. In childcare centers in Nairobi's informal settlements, co-creation of the iSAMs process, where parents, childcare managers, researchers and other WASH stakeholders, contribute to the design and implementation of iSAMs, is an approach with the potential to meet urgent WASH needs. However, to our knowledge, no study has documented (1) co-creating iSAMs processes for WASH service delivery in childcare centers and (2) self-evaluation of the co-creation process in the informal settlements. We used a qualitative approach where we collected data through workshops and focus group discussions to document and inform (a) co-creation processes of SAMs for WASH service delivery in childcare centers and (b) self-evaluation of the co-creation process. We used a framework approach for data analysis informed by Coleman's framework. Study participants co-created an iSAM process that entailed: definition; action and sharing information; judging and assessing; and learning and adapting iSAMs. The four steps were considered to increase the capability to meet WASH needs in childcare centers. We also documented a self-evaluation appraisal of the iSAM process. Study participants described that the co-creation process could improve understanding, inclusion, ownership and performance in WASH service delivery. Negative appraisals described included financial, structural, social and time constraints. We conclude that the co-creation process could address contextual barriers which are often overlooked, as it allows understanding of issues through the 'eyes' of people who experience service delivery issues. Further, we conclude that sustainable and equitable WASH service delivery in childcare centers in informal settlements needs research that goes beyond raising awareness to fully engage and co-create to ensure that novel solutions are developed at an appropriate scale to meet specific needs. We recommend that actors should incorporate co-creation in identification of feasible structures for WASH service delivery in childcare centers and other contexts.

Why government supported smart city initiatives fail: Examining community risk and benefit agreements as a missing link to accountability for equity-seeking groups

This paper utilizes concepts from a critical social justice discourse on smart cities to identify factors behind resistance to new smart city initiatives from equity-seeking groups. The broader critical discourse is examined based on relevance to the eventual failure of the initiatives selected as case studies. It highlights institutional failure within government-supported initiatives due to the lack of consideration given to equitable distribution of risks and formal accountability mechanisms. It describes outcomes surrounding smart cities in which the benefits accrue to some groups within the city while risks increase for other groups. Finally, we examine the integration of “risk” as an adaptation to the existing practical mechanism of Community Benefit Agreements, for use of this framework to support value sensitive design approaches in future smart city initiatives.

A pragmatic approach to identifying implementation barriers and facilitators for a novel pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) delivery model at public facilities in urban Uganda

BackgroundScalable HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) delivery models for resource-limited settings are critical for improving PrEP coverage and interrupting HIV transmission. This research uses technical assistance (TA) reports to evaluate implementation barriers and facilitators for a novel delivery model integrating PrEP and antiretroviral therapy (ART) delivery for HIV sero-different couples in public health facilities in Kampala, Uganda.MethodsWe used data from the Partners PrEP Program (PPP)—a stepped-wedge cluster randomized trial that is launching PrEP delivery through an integrated model of oral PrEP and antiretroviral therapy (ART) delivery for HIV sero-different couples at public health facilities in Kampala and Wakiso, Uganda (NCT03586128). Technical assistance teams, comprised of PPP program staff, conducted monthly TA visits to implementing facilities where they identified and addressed implementation challenges in collaboration with health facility staff. Findings were recorded in TA reports, a standardized form structured using the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR). We used a conceptual content analysis approach to evaluate TA reports completed from January to December 2019 and identify implementation barriers and facilitators.ResultsAmong 39 reports from the 8 implementing facilities (~ 5 per facility), we identified 11 CFIR constructs. Key implementation facilitators included sensitizing and educating facility staff about PrEP (knowledge and beliefs about the innovation); establishing formal and informal feedback and accountability mechanisms (reflecting and evaluating); and empowering facility staff to address implementation challenges (self-efficacy). Key implementation barriers were related to ineffective recruitment and referral of sero-different couples to and from nearby facilities (cosmopolitanism) as well as stockouts of laboratory resources and testing supplies (available resources).ConclusionsThis analysis featured a robust implementation science framework to assess the relationship between early implementation determinants and outcomes of this innovative PrEP delivery model. Further, we have provided important descriptions of early implementation barriers and facilitators that will inform scale-up efforts for PrEP delivery within and beyond Uganda. Future work will refine the analysis of pragmatic program data, qualitatively investigate the identified key themes, and explore strategies for addressing implementation barriers.

Managing the Regulatory Space: Examining Credit Union Accountability to Government in a Lightly Regulated Context

ABSTRACT This paper examines how credit unions manage accountability to government in the lightly-regulated context of Indonesia. Adopting a qualitative methodology involving a case study approach, two credit unions are examined, through focus group discussions with credit union management and review of credit unions’ annual reports and strategic plans. Findings reveal few formal compliance-based accountability mechanisms in relation to government, and limited emphasis on these mechanisms by credit unions. However, informally, credit unions involved government in various strategic ways to demonstrate accountability and legitimacy, and seek support from them, thereby managing the regulatory space to maintain a lightly-regulated context. This paper provides insights into how credit unions adopted a predominantly co-operative approach to manage and negotiate a space of limited regulation by actively demonstrating legitimacy and accountability. Presented in the form of an engagement pyramid involving four levels (i.e. compliance, self-regulation within the sector, engaging with regulators, and selectively challenging regulation perceived as unfair or unhelpful), this approach is particularly important given the seemingly less effective regulatory frameworks in more developed countries. It provides a reference for other organisations, both within the third sector and beyond, to consider how their actions might respond to and constructively shape the regulatory space, beyond comply or evade.

A validated measurement for felt relational accountability in the public sector: gauging the account holder’s legitimacy and expertise

ABSTRACT The effectiveness of formal public sector accountability mechanisms is largely predicated on the individual perception of accountability. In particular, the individual’s experienced relationship to account holders is key in understanding the effects of formal accountability mechanisms. This article develops a measurement instrument for felt relational accountability in public administration. We measure perceived legitimacy and expertise of the account holder, as crucial relational dimensions applicable to various accountability relations. The instrument was tested and cross validated among two samples of Dutch public employees. We discuss theoretical implications of studying accountability at the actor-level and provide practical applications of the instrument.

The crowded space of local accountability for maternal, newborn and child health: a case study of the South African health system.

Global and national accountability for maternal, newborn and child health (MNCH) is increasingly invoked as central to addressing preventable mortality and morbidity. Strategies of accountability for MNCH include policy and budget tracking, maternal and perinatal death surveillance, performance targets and various forms of social accountability. However, little is known about how the growing number of accountability strategies for MNCH is received by frontline actors, and how they are integrated into the overall functioning of local health systems. We conducted a case study of mechanisms of local accountability for MNCH in South Africa, involving a document review of national policies, programme reports, and other literature directly or indirectly related to MNCH, and in-depth research in one district. The latter included observations of accountability practices (e.g. through routine meetings) and in-depth interviews with 37 purposely selected health managers and frontline health workers involved in MNCH. Data collection and analysis were guided by a framework that defined accountability as answerability and action (both individual and collective), addressing performance, financial and public accountability, and involving both formal and informal processes. Nineteen individual accountability mechanisms were identified, 10 directly and 9 indirectly related to MNCH, most of which addressed performance accountability. Frontline managers and providers at local level are targeted by a web of multiple, formal accountability mechanisms, which are sometimes synergistic but often duplicative, together giving rise to local contexts of ‘accountability overloads’. These result in a tendency towards bureaucratic compliance, demotivation, reduced efficiency and effectiveness, and limited space for innovation. The functioning of formal accountability mechanisms is shaped by local cultures and relationships, creating an accountability ecosystem involving multiple actors and roles. There is a need to streamline formal accountability mechanisms and consider the kinds of actions that build positive cultures of local accountability.

Accountability matters: beyond commitment, the role of accountability mechanisms in implementing plans in mixed income communities

This article explores the role of formal accountability mechanisms as a necessity to fulfill HOPE VI plan goals and the limitations of participant commitment during plan implementation. The presence of accountability mechanisms, such as a consent decree, often influences participation level, unit mix, tenant selection, design, and community building efforts during plan implementation. This article draws from a comparative case study of two mixed-income planning efforts in Chicago. This qualitative research illustrates the differences in project plan trajectories relative to their accountability mechanisms. My findings indicate a range of commitment varying across phases of development. In short, commitment matters at earlier stages of development, while accountability matters at the later stages of development. However, without accountability mechanisms in place, projects moved further away from intended project plans. Overall, this research suggests several ways to embed accountability mechanisms in the development of mixed-income housing.

Ambient accountability: intelligence services in Europe and the decline of state secrecy

In the 1990s, judgments in the European Court of Human Rights concerning state surveillance forced many West European countries to introduce new parliamentary bodies and formal systems for accountability. Promising both greater transparency and lawful intelligence, these frameworks were then energetically rolled out to Central and Eastern Europe. Although officials boasted about their effectiveness, these formal accountability mechanisms have failed to identify serious abuses over the last decade. Moreover, the security regime in much of Central Europe still remains largely unreconstructed. The article argues that a robust culture of accountability cannot be conjured into existence merely by introducing new laws and regulations, or indeed by the increasing tide of media revelations about intelligence. However, it suggests that we are now seeing the rise of a more complex pattern of ‘ambient accountability’ which is at last challenging the secret state across Europe.

Entry into force and then? The Paris agreement and state accountability

ABSTRACTThe entry into force of the Paris Agreement on climate change brings expectations that states will be held to account for their commitments. The article elaborates on why this is not a realistic assumption unless a broader multilevel perspective is taken on the nature of accountability regimes for international (legal) agreements. The formal accountability mechanisms of such agreements tend to be weak, and there are no indications that they will be stronger for the recent global goals adopted in the Paris Agreement. Looking beyond only peer review among states, national institutions, direct civil society engagement and internal government processes – while each coming with their own strengths and weaknesses – provide additional accountability pathways that together may do a better job. Scientific enquiry is, however, required to better understand, support and find improved mixtures of, and perhaps to move beyond, these accountability pathways.Policy relevanceThis perspective provides something of a clarion call for a variety of different types of actors at both global and national levels to engage in ensuring that states keep the promises they made in the Paris Agreement. It particularly highlights the importance of national institutions and civil society to step up to the task in the present world order, where states are reluctant to build strong accountability regimes at the global level.

Social accountability in primary health care in West and Central Africa: exploring the role of health facility committees

BackgroundSocial accountability has been emphasised as an important strategy to increase the quality, equity, and responsiveness of health services. In many countries, health facility committees (HFCs) provide the accountability interface between health providers and citizens or users of health services. This article explores the social accountability practices facilitated by HFCs in Benin, Guinea and the Democratic Republic of Congo.MethodsThe paper is based on a cross-case comparison of 11 HFCs across the three countries. The HFCs were purposefully selected based on the (past) presence of community participation support programs. The cases were derived from qualitative research involving document analysis as well as interviews and focus group discussions with health workers, citizens, committee members, and local authorities.ResultsMost HFCs facilitate social accountability by engaging with health providers in person or through meetings to discuss service failures, leading to changes in the quality of services, such as improved health worker presence, the availability of night shifts, the display of drug prices and replacement of poorly functioning health workers. Social accountability practices are however often individualised and not systematic, and their success depends on HFC leadership and synergy with other community structures. The absence of remuneration for HFC members does not seem to affect HFC engagement in social accountability.ConclusionsMost HFCs in this study offer a social accountability forum, but the informal and non-systematic character and limited community consultation leave opportunities for the exclusion of voices of marginalised groups. More inclusive, coherent and authoritative social accountability practices can be developed by making explicit the mandate of HFC in the planning, monitoring, and supervision of health services; providing instruments for organising local accountability processes; strengthening opportunities for community input and feedback; and strengthening links to formal administrative accountability mechanisms in the health system.

The new frontier of strategic alliances in health care: New partnerships under accountable care organizations

Accountable care organizations (ACOs) and similar reforms aim to improve coordination between health care providers; however, due to the fragmented nature of the US health care system, successful coordination will hinge in large part on the ability of health care organizations to successfully partner across organizational boundaries. Little is known about new partnerships formed under the ACO model. We use mixed methods data from the National Survey of ACOs, Medicare ACO performance data and interviews with executive leaders across 31 ACOs to examine the prevalence, characteristics, and capabilities of partnership ACOs and why and how ACO partnerships form. We find that a striking percentage of ACOs – 81% – involve new partnerships between independent health care organizations. These “partnership ACOs” generally report lower capabilities on care management, care coordination, and health information technology. Additionally, under Medicare ACO programs partnership ACO achieved somewhat lower quality performance. Qualitative interviews revealed that providers are motivated to partner for resource complementarity, risk reduction, and legislative requirements, and are using a variety of formal and informal accountability mechanisms. Most partnership ACOs were formed out of existing, positive relationships, but a minority of ACOs formed out of previously competitive or conflictual relationships. Our findings suggests that the success of the ACO model will hinge in large part upon the success of new partnerships, with important implications for understanding ACO readiness and capabilities, the relatively small savings achieved to date by ACO programs, and the path to providers bearing more risk for population health management. In addition, ACO partnerships may provide an important window to monitor a potential wave of health care consolidation or, in contrast, a new model of independent providers successfully coordinating patient care.

Gendering Justice in Humanitarian Spaces: Opportunity and (Dis)empowerment Through Gender-Based Legal Development Outreach in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo

Why have women in eastern DR Congo increasingly turned to domestic courts in the aftermath of sexual violence, despite the fact that the state has consistently failed to provide basic goods and services to its citizens? Moreover, how do victims of violence interpret their first encounters with state law in an environment characterized by institutional fragility and humanitarian governance? This article analyzes the experiences and reflections of 50 self-reported victims of sexual violence in eastern DR Congo. We find that human rights NGOs have served as critical mediators in persuading victims of violence to pursue legal remedy for sexual crimes. However, rather than being socialized to prioritize formal accountability mechanisms in precisely the ways that the architects of legal outreach programs intended, we find that victims of violence have turned to the law for a combination of material and ideational factors. Some appear to have internalized emerging norms of punitive criminal justice, while others have adopted the language of law instrumentally, in order to access crucial socio-material benefits. We identify a paradox of opportunity and disempowerment, therefore, that characterizes our interviewees' experiences with the law.

Mediating multiple accountabilities: variation in formal and perceived accountability among international and domestic actors in the health sector in Peru

Based on a comparative case study of bilateral and multilateral donors, this article examines individual and institutional accountabilities among donor officers, implementing agencies, government officials and intended beneficiaries. It explores how multiple accountability demands interact, the extent to which they conflict, and how development actors mediate among them when they do. Institutionally there was substantial alignment of objectives and little goal conflict between international donors and the state; however, there was poor harmonisation across the many donors and numerous projects they were pursuing. There was greater variation within rather than between bilateral and multilateral donor chains, with perceived accountability differing more based on individuals’ positions within their organisation than by the type of organisation for whom they worked. Most informants cited multiple entities to whom they felt accountable. They more frequently acknowledged outward accountability when there existed formal accountability mechanisms, although intended beneficiary groups were conceptualised in different ways.

Governing Global Democracy

Global Governance, Global Government: Institutional Visions for an Evolving World System. Edited by Luis Cabrera. Albany, NY: State University Press of New York, 2011. 338 pp., $24.26 paperback (ISBN-13: 978-1-438-43590-9). Building Global Democracy? Civil Society and Accountable Global Governance. Edited by Jan Aart Scholte. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2011. 424 pp., $32.39 paperback (ISBN-13: 978-0-524-14055-3). Global Democracy: Normative and Empirical Perspectives. Edited by Daniele Archibugi, Mathias Koenig-Archibugi, Raffaele Marchetti. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2012. 310 pp., $31.49 paperback (ISBN-13: 978-0-521-17498-5). There has been a concerted attempt over the past 20 years to address the emergence of the democratic practices of global institutions. Much of the attention has focused on the problem that global institutions lack the democratic structure of their institutional counterparts at the nation-state level. For the three books under review, such a dearth serves as the basis of a distinctive, yet evolving global dimension of democracy: the link between democratic accountability and new mechanisms to facilitate the coordination of global institutions and nonstate actors. The project of global democracy, in this sense, is a process rooted in not only the transference of sovereignty to the global level, but also the increasing ethical responsibility and novel capacity of global actors to legislate, administer, and enforce public goods (Rosenau 1995; Etzioni 2004; Price 2008; Franceschet 2009). As we shall see, the books under review offer differing yet systematic approaches to understanding and explaining the changing dynamics and unmet challenges of this project. Jan Aaart Scholte's edited volume investigates the accountability of global institutions through the influence and activities of civil society organizations (CSOs). As Scholte states in chapter 1, “the contemporary growth in influence of global governance processes has not been accompanied by a corresponding development of formal accountability mechanisms which link these agencies directly to the publics they affect” (p. 25). One of the central questions guiding this book is, who is accountable to whom and for what? If accountability in global civil society is derived from the consent of states, and not the people affected, then how do we assess the influence of mediating agents/mechanisms in the international and global spheres (Coicaud 2002)? The book addresses these questions by applying four variables—consultation, transparency, evaluation, and correction—to test and evaluate the legitimizing influences of CSOs on …

Stopping the legal flow of weapons

This article examines sending state compliance with arms embargoes. Arms embargoes are one of the most frequently used types of economic sanctions but they are perceived as one of the least effective. One major problem with arms embargoes, many argue, is sending states’ failure to implement them. Yet studies tend to focus on cases of arms embargo violations, not compliance in the context of arms export practice more broadly. Using a series of new arms embargo variables, I conduct a statistical analysis of the relationship between arms embargoes and small and major conventional arms transfers from 1981 to 2004. Contrary to popular expectations, I find that arms embargoes on average restrain sending states’ arms exports. If arms embargoes do indeed have difficulty changing targets’ behavior, or achieving other measures of ‘success’, additional explanations must also be considered. I suggest that arms embargo target selection and the intractable challenge of cutting off illicit arms flows are two important plausible alternatives. This finding also provides optimism for compliance with international commitments in the absence of institutionalized enforcement mechanisms. Major exporters overall appear to implement sanctions, despite strong economic incentives to ignore them and a lack of formal accountability mechanisms to punish violators.

The Struggle against Corruption during the Democratic Transition: Theorising the Emergent Role of CSOs

This article argues that civil society organisations (CSOs) play an increasingly prominent role in combating corruption in countries that have recently democratised. Democracy cannot survive without accountability, but in transitional democracies the formal accountability mechanisms associated with democratic governance are typically ineffective. “Horizontal accountability” in the form of check-and-balance mechanisms between various state institutions usually does not function well due to the poor capacity of state institutions. “Vertical accountability” through general elections very often fails to bring state actors to account. In such circumstances, we should not be surprised that corruption becomes endemic. In order to reduce corruption, therefore, emerging democracies need far-reaching political reforms to develop sound systems of accountability. But because many state and business actors represent groups with a vested interest in corrupt activities and which generally resist reform initiatives, this article proposes that initiatives for such reform are best generated by organisations based on political movements within the broader community, namely ‘civil society organisations’.

Bangladesh Politics: Confrontation, Monopoly and Crisis in Governance

Despite the restoration of parliamentary democracy in Bangladesh since 1991, political governance of the country is still mired by innumerable ills. It broadly features a wide array of confrontation, competition, monopolization of state institutions and resources by the party in power. This trend of politics has tremendously weakened the formal accountability mechanisms and put governance in crisis. This article depicts the nature of confrontational politics in Bangladesh, its causes and impacts on governance with supportive evidence from both primary and secondary sources. As case examples, it shows how bureaucracy and local government institutions are grossly politicized as a result of confrontational politics and their impact on governance.