Communication in Governance PREM Core Course Public Sector Governance April 2007 Paul Mitchell

1. Communication in Governance PREM Core Course Public Sector Governance April 2007 Paul Mitchell Development Communication DivisionThe World Bank

2. Communication in Governance Several Approaches: • Political risks around the governance issue in country • Communication component in governance projects • Public Sphere • Communication as a sector in governance

3. Defining Political Risk “…effective political risk analysis is not just a question of evaluating a country risk. Instead, risk assessment must identify the implications of social, political and economic conditions of each particular development intervention. The key to analyzing the political risks facing a project is to identify the winners and losers and assess their relative ability to help or hinder a project, whether directly or by influencing others.”

4. Political risk is highly contextual • Issue • Time • Place • Who is involved • External environment

5. Dimensions of political risk • Who is involved? • What influence can they exert? • Will they use it and to what degree? • What impact will it have?

6. Political risk is DYNAMIC Unlike other analysis – financial, social, environmental Political risk analysis can change very quickly

7. Project Cycle Project Cycle Phase PRSP & CAS Identification Preparation Appraisal Approval Implementation Evaluation DevComm Program Phase Research Analysis Strategy and Communication Component Design Communication Program Implementation Monitoring and Evaluation Interventions and Products Country Portfolio Review • Communication Based Assessment • Socio Political Risk Assessment • Consultation schemes • Public Opinion Research • Project Document Inputs • Communication Program Implementation Plan • Capacity building • Technical Assistance • Advice • Supervision Communication Program Performance and Impact Evaluation • Client Survey KNOWLEDGE PRODUCTS

8. Communications Based Assessment Usually shows one or all of three issues needs to be changed: • Design of project • Process • Communication

9. Public Sphere Entry point for discussion about governance in a country: • Mediates between society and the state. • Ability of state to address and listen to citizens; citizens to form interest groups; free media; • Embedded in an environment that gives actors rights, duties and opportunities.

10. Power of Media in Development • Local media, particularly radio,carry information & encourage commercein geographically isolated markets • Growing global mediacan move currency marketsand international trade • Can provideinfo on political markets, exposing corrupt and unethical politicians and giving people platformto voice diverse opinions on governance and reform • Caninform poor and marginalized people, giving them a voice With higher literacy rates, lower printing costs, and new broadcast technologies, media can reach even further

11. Role of Media: Improving Governance • The media acts as the disseminator of information about government- expenditures, laws, right and obligations of citizens etc.and can also make transparent the information that government sends or puts out. It also acts as watchdog on government • It plays the important role of providing information to enable informed audienceswho can then participate in development policy discussions (National Plans, CAS) - it carries that information both about process and content • The media is useful in building trust in institutions(like the WB) and faith in the product (development)

12. Fighting Corruption: Another Look Anti-corruption: • Rely on legal and financial institutions–judiciary, police, financial auditors–to enforce and enhance accountability in the public sector. However, in many poor countries, these institutions are weak and among the most corrupt • A complementary approach takes the users of public services as a starting point.Rather than attempting to increase service providers’ accountability to policymakers alone, the idea is to also engage citizens at the bottom of the public service delivery chain by providing them with easy access to information on the workings of public programs intended for their benefit • In this way, citizens will be empowered to demand certain standardsand monitor and challenge abuses by officials they interact with in their daily lives • Improving public access to information is a crucial part in this bottom-up strategy

13. Empowered Communication Environment Communication as sector: • Reform government communication • Parliamentary communication • Decentralized communication • Improve functioning of private media • The legal environment for communication • How do people receive information

14. Empowered Communication Environment cont’d • How do people receive information • Civil society • Academia • Social media and the citizen journalist • New technology