Project overview
Principal investigator: Dr Mark Robinson, University of Sussex
Project abstract: Lessons from Civil Society Budget Analysis and Advocacy Initiative|(PDF)
Final report on ESRC website|
Outputs
-
IDS Working Paper published in September 2006 summarising the research results: 'Budget Analysis and Policy Advocacy: The Role of Non-Governmental Public Action', IDS Working Paper 279, Brighton:Institute of Development Studies.
-
Revised version of IDS working paper submitted to World Development for publication: current status Revise and Resubmit.
-
An edited book designed to reach a diverse audience of practitioners, policy makers, academics and students has been completed and scheduled for publication in early 2008 by Palgrave Macmillan. Provisional title is Budgeting for the Poor: Civil Society, Accountability and Transparency Civil Society.
-
ODI Briefing Paper, Budget Monitoring and Policy Influence: Lessons from Civil Society Budget Analysis and Advocacy Initiatives, March 2007.
-
Additional grant resources were mobilised for a workshop in Bellagio in April 2006 from the Rockefeller Foundation to disseminate the research findings. This week-long workshop brought together 25 participants from the research teams and budget groups around the world, along with representatives of three leading funding organisations, to identify the lessons for practice and their broader academic significance. The final versions of the case studies were posted in the website of the International Budget Project after the Bellagio workshop in June 2006 to reach a wider constituency of budget groups and policy research institutes. The research findings were also presented at a workshop attended by 25 participants at the CIVICUS World Assembly in May 2006 and the conference paper was made available on the CIVICUS website.
Aims and objectives of the research
This research project explores the impact and efficacy of applied budget work undertaken by independent civil society organisations. The research centres on the analysis and dissemination of budget data, advocacy initiatives designed to influence budget priorities, and efforts to improve the transparency of the budget process.
Key research questions and methods
Key questions to be investigated in the research are the impact of applied budget work on budget processes, priority setting, and expenditure outcomes; the strengths and limitations of approaches and methods for independent budget analysis and advocacy work; and the contextual factors and institutional features that explain successful impact and engagement. In particular the research will seek to determine how far government budget priorities and expenditure allocations and outcomes have been influenced by civil society budget initiatives in a manner that benefits poor and disadvantaged groups.
The overall research project will entail the production of six case studies of budget groups in Brazil, Croatia, India, Mexico, South Africa and Uganda, with ESRC resources covering the preparation of two cases and synthesis of the findings. The research will be carried out in collaboration with budget analysts and researchers associated with the International Budget project (IBP) of the Center for Budget Priorities and Policy in Washington D.C. Fieldwork and data gathering methods will include the analysis of budget data and information prepared and collected by budget groups, review of secondary documentation and media reports, and interviews with key informants.
Relation to the programme
This research project will contribute to the programme on 'Non-Governmental Public Action' in several complementary ways. First, the research is designed to generate fresh empirical knowledge through comparative case studies of non-governmental budget work, in which budget groups would be actively involved in the research process and directly benefit from the research findings. Second, the research draws on an inter-disciplinary approach rooted in the study of organisations and networks, citizen action in relation to the policy process, and non-governmental action to influence development policies and programmes. Third, the research focuses on an array of civil society budget groups that includes research institutions, non-governmental organisations and social movements working at national and local levels. Fourth, the research has both academic and applied value, in contributing to the generation of new knowledge on a form of public action that is under-researched, and to producing practical findings that have a direct bearing on organisational learning for budget practitioners.
Relevance of this research to user groups
The project will contribute to academic knowledge on the efficacy of non-governmental public action designed to influence tax and expenditure decisions. The findings from the research also have the potential to inform budget practitioners on which approaches, tools and methods are most effective in influencing budget priorities. A robust set of case studies and the resultant synthesis of the main findings could assist experienced and new practitioners within civil society, legislators and government officials responsible for budget formulation and execution, and donors that provide external assistance.
The outputs of this research will be tailored to two main groups of users. In the first instance the case studies together with a popular summary of the research findings will be made available through the IBP website for dissemination to budget practitioners and the donor community. The methodology developed through this exercise is also intended to inform the approaches of budget organisations interested in more systematic approaches to evaluating their work, and shared at regional and international meetings of the IBP.
Contact details
Dr Mark Robinson
Institute of Development Studies
University of Sussex
Brighton BN1 9RE
email: Mark-Robinson@dfid.gov.uk|
tel: 44-(0)1273-873715