No democratic government can afford not to listen to the voices of its citizens. There a three reasons for this. First, it is a matter of common sense. Involving people in discussions about how to tackle a problem that affects their lives is much more likely to generate successful solutions. If opportunities are made to…» more
State-society relations
Infomediaries and accountability
The term “infomediaries” – or information intermediaries – is used to refer to actors who “synthesize, translate, simplify and direct information on behalf of others”. There appears to be strong evidence of the link between free media and better governance and government responsiveness on a range of issues (e.g. public spending on education and health). A DFID review on ...» more
Linkages between taxation and stability
Tax reform agendas have traditionally focused on increasing public revenue in an economically efficient manner. However, Prichard (2010) argues that there is a case for linking revenue enhancement more explicitly to broader governance objectives. It should be noted that increased domestic revenue generation will only lead to improved development outcomes if the new revenue is ...» more
Private sector engagement in fragile and conflict-affected settings
The private sector and private sector development (PSD) are considered to have a crucial role to play in contributing to economic recovery and addressing a number of drivers of fragility. Key findings of the review include: Fragile and conflict-affected settings pose challenges for engaging with the private sector. Significant internal and external imbalances are ...» more
Mobile phone and social media interventions for youth development outcomes
Young people are often ‘first adopters’ of new technologies, particularly broadcast technologies such as mobile phones. The upsurge in ICT usage has had a direct impact on increasing civic engagement among youth, providing new avenues through which they are informed, shape opinions, organise, collaborate and take action. A number of barriers and challenges remain that must ...» more