This policy briefing offers an empirical contribution to evolving thinking on governance within the international development landscape. Using the example of media, the brief argues that interventions designed to foster demand-based accountability may not be as successful in some fragile settings as more discursive platforms that aim to tackle problem-solving collectively. The paper thus underscores the need for locally embedded approaches to governance support that are both adaptive and reflective.
The brief draws on learning from BBC Media Action’s implementation of one project in particular – working to support media in three African countries: Angola, Sierra Leone and Tanzania. The briefing draws on quantitative and qualitative research, as well as insights from those implementing the projects, in order to shed light on some of the political realities that surround media as an institution that helps hold those in power to account. It documents both the successes of the project and some of the shortcomings.
Key findings: