The report draws on contributions from more than 30 experts on civil society as well as on inputs from members, partners, supporters and others in the global CIVICUS alliance. The varied contributions highlight changing global political dynamics, an emerging disillusionment with global frameworks of governance and a fundamental lack of accountability within international decision-making.
The report also contains the findings of a pilot project, based on research conducted with more than 450 Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), which assesses how well intergovernmental organisations (IGOs) engage civil society. The report represents critical thinking on the changing state of contemporary civil society and global governance.
Recommendations:
- There is a need to move away from the state-centric model of international governance towards a citizen-oriented model. Radical new forms of representation and oversight, such as citizens’ panels and assemblies with real power, should be explored. Current institutions should be audited and tested on their ability to respond to and achieve progress on issues identified by people rather than just governments.
- International governance institutions need to make their decision-making processes more open and democratic. This needs to be done on two levels: the promotion of equality between states and the removal of arbitrary veto powers that some states hold. Additionally, it should include efforts to create greater parity between official and civil society delegations and more opportunities for civil society to give input and exercise accountability. As part of this, attempts to involve civil society should actively broaden the involvement of various segments within the sector, and address imbalances in access between Northern and Southern civil society actors.
- Information on the work and mandates of international governance institutions should proactively be made available to enable greater civil society involvement and scrutiny of decisions and their implementation.
- In order to strengthen civil society participation, greater local outreach should be offered and dedicated spaces for civil society participation should be established, with civil society helping to define and govern these. Additionally, funds should be earmarked to enable broad civil society participation, and accreditation procedures should be simplified.
- International organisations should prioritise enabling civil society – at the local, national, regional and global levels – in law and in practice. Efforts should be made from the local to the global levels to ensure practical realisation of civil society rights enshrined in various international treaties and agreements.
- The larger, better resourced CSOs that have an established presence in key IGOs should take the initiative to democratise the space they hold and involve a wider range of civil society groups in engaging international governance institutions, including by sharing their organisational accreditation and financial resources.
- Strategic relationships should be forged with states that are more sympathetic towards global governance reform. Relations also need to be built with academia and the media to ensure that civil society advocacy is grounded in expert analysis and wins wide public support.