Monitoring and Evaluation: Civil Society Organisations’
      Competitive Edge in Effective Poverty Alleviation

The role of Civil Society Organisations as preferred partners in development is strongly emerging across the globe. Among many reasons, one is reasonably good governance. The social sector has shown the acumen to learn and apply corporate management practices and international standards fast enough to start leading the competition. Notwithstanding the fact that a large part of development funding under soft loans and grants is channeled to the government, the CSOs receive a significant share directly and indirectly to implement development projects in communities. It has opened tremendous opportunities for CSOs to experiment and evolve new approaches in project management, community organisation, service delivery, product development, resource mobilisation and financial management. What makes the civil society organisations different from the public sector organisations? Fundamentally two things; these are non-governmental and nonprofit. However, the real difference is in the way civil society organisations are managed. It includes leadership, commitment, professionalism, systems and practices, thrust of work and most of all performance.

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Towards Building a Functional Whole-of-Government M&E System for Zambia: The Supply Side

Advances in Social Sciences Research Journal ◽

10.14738/assrj.88.10667 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 8 (8) ◽

pp. 163-195

Author(s):

Vincent Kanyamuna

Keyword(s):

Good Governance ◽

Monitoring And Evaluation ◽

Relevant Information ◽

Analytical Framework ◽

Management Approach ◽

Supply Side ◽

Demand Side ◽

Learning Mechanisms ◽

Civil Society Organisations ◽

The Government

Monitoring and Evaluation Systems have been identified the world over as powerful tools for good governance, they provide relevant information about development projects, programmes and policies. For that reason, governments, bilateral and multilateral development agencies, including civil society organisations have adopted M&E systems to better their performance through accountability, feedback loops and continuous learning mechanisms. This study investigated the functional status of Zambia’s public sector M&E system. Using a designated diagnostic checklist and analytical framework, the country’s whole-of-government M&E system was found to be weak in several aspects. Specifically, the study argues that for any M&E system to function satisfactorily, it is required that both its ‘supply-side’ and ‘demand-side’ are well developed and sustained. The diagnostic findings have revealed that Zambia’s whole-of-government M&E system had both its supply-side and demand-side weak. However, the study has not focused on both sides, instead, the supply-side has been fully explored and clear suggestions for improvement are made herein. Consequently, the study has proposed a new model which when implemented would holistically strengthen the Government –wide system for M&E. It remains to the powers that be to adopt and implement the recommended model. Government will need to strengthen and sustain its M&E political championship, restructure all government functions towards a results-based management approach—statistics, information technology, skills, policies, laws, etc to support an M&E regime. Likewise, the issues covered in the proposed model could also be of use to other organisations seeking to strengthen their M&E systems. Particularly, the methodology used to undertake the needs analysis could be of utmost applicability by others before embarking on a fuller process of building and strengthening their systems for M&E. Another study was underway to support the demand-side of Zambia’s M&E system.

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The role of Zambian civil society in evaluation

10.18296/em.0072 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 7 ◽

pp. 158-184

Author(s):

John Njovu

Keyword(s):

Civil Society ◽

Poverty Reduction ◽

Good Governance ◽

National Development ◽

Monitoring And Evaluation ◽

Aid Effectiveness ◽

Cultural Groups ◽

Paris Declaration ◽

Reduction Strategies ◽

The Government

Without active civil society and their evaluations, Zambia would still be a colonised nation. It is the welfare societies and cultural groups of indigenous Africans that were the foundation for the political movements that fought for its independence from the British. After political independence, civil society grew because of the 1970s global oil and financial crises. This was to mitigate the adverse effects on ordinary citizens of the conditionality of borrowing from the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, and developed nations. The increase in foreign development assistance led to an increase in development projects and programmes along with their associated internal management requirements for monitoring and evaluation (M&E). Government, during this time, also started to formulate plans and programmes that required components of M&E (for example, poverty reduction strategies). After the 2005 Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness, M&E rose to prominence in Zambia’s national development processes. Civil society played a major role in the return to multi-party democracy politics of Zambia in 1991. Post 1991, it began to also play a major role in M&E governance and ensuring that the democratic gains of 1991 were protected. Part of the demand for external M&E capacity development was to enhance its watchdog role over the Zambian government. Though the government recognises civil society as a partner in national democratic processes, it is sometimes mistrustful and hostile to evaluation revelations that are critical of government. There remains a need to strengthen this partnership to ensure that national evaluation capacities are developed. Improved capacities will in turn lead to good governance and public service delivery in Zambia. In this way, sustainable development goals will be attained, and no one will be left behind.

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Civil Society Organisations: Filling Up The Government Service Gap For National Development

International Journal of Scientific Research and Management ◽

10.18535/ijsrm/v6i3.sh01 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 6 (03) ◽

Author(s):

Popoola Michael Akin ◽

Omosebi Fredrick Adeola

Keyword(s):

Developing Countries ◽

Civil Society ◽

Good Governance ◽

Critical Role ◽

National Development ◽

The State ◽

Civil Society Organisations ◽

The Government ◽

Zero Sum ◽

Service Gap

Good governance is inextricably linked with development. That is why any government which is genuinely concerned about good governance makes the issue of development its central focus. However, the governments of many developing countries experience capacity deficit in the area of the requisite institutions, funds and capacity to foster comprehensive socio-economic development. This makes it imperative for the state to engage in collaborative relationship with civil society which can help to fill up the lacuna created by the lack of state institutional and technical capacity. The critical role of civil society in development is aptly appreciated by some donor institutions and western countries which channel their Official Development Assistance (ODA) to developing countries through civil society organisations for effective implementation. This research therefore, undertakes an analysis of the way and manner which civil society organisations can complement the development efforts of the state. What makes this research crucial is the belief in some quarters that the state and civil society are often mutually conflicting and perpetually locked in zero sum game. However, this paper discovered that both the state and civil society are mutually reinforcing entities and that development is enhanced when there is collaborative efforts, rather than contestation between them.

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TINJAUAN IMPLEMENTASI AKUNTANSI PEMERINTAHAN BERBASIS AKRUAL DI INDONESIA

AdBispreneur ◽

10.24198/adbispreneur.v2i3.16490 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 2 (3) ◽

pp. 217

Author(s):

Suryanto .

Keyword(s):

Financial Management ◽

Government Regulation ◽

Management Practices ◽

Accounting Standards ◽

Accounting System ◽

Literature Study ◽

Indonesian Government ◽

Government Accounting ◽

Accrual Basis ◽

The Government

ABSTRACTThe purpose of this study to determine the management of state finances in Indonesia associated with the government accounting system used. This research is a type of research of literature study using a qualitative approach. The data were obtained from various sources of reference, such as journals, expert statements, and media references. The results show that the Indonesian government in its accounting system is still based on Government Regulation No. 24 of 2005 which is the cash base toward accrual (cash toward accrual). However, Due to the growing demands of the community and the encouragement of international institutions to apply the accrual basis, the Indonesian government continues to improve its accounting system. It encouraged the government in 2010 through the Government Accounting Standards Committee to issue accrual based government accounting standards established through Government Regulation No. 71 of 2010 on Government Accounting Standards superseding Government Regulation No. 24 of 2005. The Government of Indonesia has implemented reforms in the field of accounting with the necessity setting up accrual basis accounting. The use of an accrual basis is one of the characteristics of modern financial management practices in the public sector that aims to provide more transparent information. But in reality, the application of accrual-based accounting system is still a lot of constraints on the human resources sector. Keywords : Accrual basis, cash basis, government accounting system ABSTRAKTujuan penelitian ini untuk mengetahui pengelolaan keuangan negara di Indonesia terkait dengan sistem akuntansi pemerintahan yang digunakan. Penelitian ini merupakan jenis penelitian studi literatur dengan menggunakan pendekatan kualitatif. Data diperoleh dari berbagai sumber referensi baik jurnal, pernyataan para ahli, maupun referensi dari media. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa pemerintah Indonesia dalam sistem akuntansinya masih berdasarkan Peraturan Pemerintah Nomor 24 Tahun 2005 yaitu basis kas menuju akrual (cash toward accrual). Namun, Karena adanya tuntutan dari masyarakat yang semakin kuat dan adanya dorongan dari lembaga-lembaga internasional untuk menerapkan basis akrual, maka pemerintah Indonesia terus berupaya memperbaiki sistem akuntansinya. Hal tersebut mendorong pemerintah pada tahun 2010, melalui Komite Standar Akuntansi Pemerintahan menerbitkan standar akuntansi pemerintahan berbasis akrual yang ditetapkan melalui Peraturan Pemerintah Nomor 71 tahun 2010 tentang Standar Akuntansi Pemerintahan menggantikan Peraturan Pemerintah Nomor 24 tahun 2005. Pemerintah Indonesia telah melaksanakan reformasi di bidang akuntansi dengan keharusan menerapan akuntansi berbasis akrual. Penggunaan basis akrual merupakan salah satu ciri dari praktik manajemen keuangan modern di sektor publik yang bertujuan untuk memberikan informasi yang lebih transparan. Namun kenyataannya penerapan sistem akuntansi berbasis akrual tersebut masih banyak kendala pada sektor sumber daya manusianya. Kata kunci : Basis akrual, basis kas, sistem akuntansi pemerintahan

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The Effectiveness of Initiatives to Promote Good Governance, Accountability and Transparency in the Extractives Sector in Zimbabwe

Journal of African Law ◽

10.1017/s0021855316000061 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 60 (2) ◽

pp. 230-263 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Tumai Murombo

Keyword(s):

Civil Society ◽

Good Governance ◽

Mining Sector ◽

Legal Reforms ◽

Official Policy ◽

Long Time ◽

The Government ◽

Global And Local ◽

Governance Transparency ◽

Transparency And Accountability

AbstractThe regulation of the extractives sector in Zimbabwe has recently come under scrutiny due to the uncertain social, economic and political environment. Zimbabwe's mining sector was under colonial legislation for a long time and that legislation has recently been reviewed. Existing extractives sector laws do not adequately promote transparency and accountability, an issue recognized by stakeholders throughout the mining sector. The advent of the new constitution and law reform processes indicates Zimbabwe's intention to incorporate good governance, transparency and accountability provisions in the mining sector. State driven reforms have been inspired by global and local civil society initiatives. Analysis shows that, for various reasons, the government does not readily embrace such initiatives, which are important drivers of official policy and legal reforms. Zimbabwean environmental civil society groups have been exceptional in this regard.

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The Impact of Civil Society on Governance in Lesotho

Insight on Africa ◽

10.1177/0975087820909333 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 12 (2) ◽

pp. 129-144

Author(s):

Mphonyane Rakhare ◽

Tania Coetzee

Keyword(s):

Public Policy ◽

Civil Society ◽

Political Parties ◽

Good Governance ◽

Democratic Institutions ◽

Independent Media ◽

The Government ◽

The Impact ◽

Democratic Country ◽

Civil Societies

The article acknowledges that Lesotho governance has been characterised by unstable democracy since its attainment of independence in 1966, which makes civil society and other democratic institutions unable to pursue their roles as expected. The proposed solution to overcome predicaments that Lesotho faces was to have active and vibrant democratic institutions such as civil societies, ombudsman, political parties, independent media, independent electoral commissions and the legislative, executive and judiciary. The article aims to bridge the gap by examining published literature and documentary review, which clearly elucidate how good governance can be achieved in a democratic country with the help of active democratic institutions. The article highlights the importance of active and vibrant civil society in governance and public policy. The article concludes by justifying that in deed the government of Lesotho should accept and allow participation of civil society so as to be able to realise its contribution and the important role played by it. Also, civil society in Lesotho must distance themselves from suspicions that they are political parties in disguise.

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The Requirement of Records Management Practices for Institutional Audits

International Journal of Engineering & Technology ◽

10.14419/ijet.v7i3.7.16357 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 7 (3.7) ◽

pp. 228

Author(s):

Nik Nurul Emyliana Nik Ramlee ◽

Saiful Farik Mat Yatin ◽

Mastura Md Zali ◽

Nurul Aiqa Mohd Zain ◽

Amzari Abu Bakar ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Management Practices ◽

Good Governance ◽

White Collar Crime ◽

Risk Mitigation ◽

Management Practice ◽

Records Management ◽

Government Sector ◽

The Government ◽

Relationship Of ◽

The Impact

Currently, the issues of corruption or white-collar crime rise in government sector and this issue raised during the audit checking. The organization itself do not take the initiative and follow the policy and standard assigned by the government when manage the records in their organization with the requirement of records management practices. This study also emphasizes the role of records management in conducting the risk mitigation in governance regarding the auditing process, the relationship of the records management and good governance and to analyse the general report of one organization in Malaysia which related with the audit department. With this study, hopefully the good governance and accountability could be achieved and the crime rate could be minimized as well as no litigation occur during the auditing process if the records management practices plays their roles. This study is to investigate the impact of the implementation of good records management practice in exercising good governance and to ease up the auditing process.

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Improving Monitoring and Water Point Functionality in Rural Ethiopia

Water ◽

10.3390/w10111591 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 10 (11) ◽

pp. 1591 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Carmen Anthonj ◽

Lisa Fleming ◽

Ryan Cronk ◽

Samuel Godfrey ◽

Argaw Ambelu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Management Practices ◽

Water Pressure ◽

Monitoring And Evaluation ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Knowledge To Action ◽

Related Data ◽

Rural Ethiopia ◽

Community Water ◽

Water Point ◽

The Government

This study examines the patterns, trends, and factors associated with functional community water points in rural Ethiopia and identifies potential areas of improvement in terms of practitioner response to functionality and functionality monitoring. It was part of an integrated WaSH and nutrition program implemented by UNICEF Ethiopia and the Government of Ethiopia. Cross-sectional surveys were conducted to collect WaSH-related data in communities and WaSH committees from four community-based nutrition (CBN) program groupings in Ethiopia. In all areas, CBN was implemented, but only in less than half of the areas, a WaSH intervention was implemented. Seventy-three representative kebeles, comprising 30 intervention and 43 control communities, were surveyed. Two structured surveys were conducted. The ‘community survey’ addressed community water points and their functionality and the main areas for improvement needed. The ‘WaSH committee survey’ investigated technical and management aspects of water points and their functionality. Data were analyzed using bivariate regression to identify community characteristics and management practices associated with functionality of water points and explore opportunities to improve water point functionality and monitoring. In the communities, 65% of water points were functional. Eighty percent of communities had a WaSH committee. The WaSH committee members reported that the most used water point types were protected dug wells and boreholes, and that 80% of their water points were functional. India Mark II pumps were more likely to be functional and communities with longer established WaSH committees had higher water point functionality. Communities suggested that the key factors for water point sustainability were improving water quality and water pressure, reducing water collection time, and speeding up repair times. Taking community leaders’ ‘priority lists’ into consideration offers sustainable opportunities for demand-driven, adaptive and targeted design and implementation of rural water supply programs, which, if they include the grassroots level as key informants and actors of change, can succeed. Interventions should integrate the ‘voice’ of the community, the WaSH committees, and other stakeholders and thereby facilitate transdisciplinary approaches at different stages of program management (planning, monitoring, and evaluation). This would help closing the knowledge to action gap and improve policy, programming, practice, and service delivery.

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Capital punishment and virtual protest: A case study of Singapore

First Monday ◽

10.5210/fm.v11i10.1407 ◽

2006 ◽

Author(s):

Yasmin Ibrahim

Keyword(s):

Civil Society ◽

Public Sphere ◽

Capital Punishment ◽

Online Community ◽

Virtual Community ◽

Authoritarian State ◽

Civil Society Organisations ◽

The Government ◽

Media Discourses

This paper analyses how the online community in Singapore protested against the hanging of a Vietnamese drug trafficker in December 2005. Singapore has upheld capital punishment in the island state despite pressure from local and global civil society organisations and diplomatic channels. This paper traces how the online medium was used by the public to protest against capital punishment in the quasi–authoritarian state. The virtual community protested against the hanging by maintaining a rigorous discursive protest on the Internet. These sustained discourses became enmeshed with those of the offline media in Singapore. This confluence of the online and offline media discourses is important in building a two–tier public sphere in Singapore. The first–tier public sphere is one dominated by the government-controlled media and the ruling party while the second–tier public sphere is a space where civil society organisations and social movements express viewpoints marginalised in the offline society. The confluence of these two tiers has a material significance for the political landscape of Singapore. This paper explores this phenomenon through the case study of online protests against capital punishment in Singapore.

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GOOD GOVERNANCE PERSPEKTIF MAQAASID ASY-SYAARI’AH KONTEMPORER

AKADEMIKA Jurnal Pemikiran Islam ◽

10.32332/akademika.v23i1.1195 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 23 (1) ◽

pp. 57

Author(s):

Muhammad Iqbal Juliansyahzen

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

Social Justice ◽

Civil Society ◽

Good Governance ◽

Business Sector ◽

Good Communication ◽

Human Rights Protection ◽

Rights Protection ◽

Pros And Cons ◽

The Government

AbstractGood governance is a concept for governance that should be run. Theoretically, the discourse of good governance reaps its pros and cons since it had been firstly introduced. However, as a concept and a strategic offer it deserves to be appreciated and re-examined. There are principles in good governance that are compatible with Islam such as accountability, transparency, deliberation, and others. Good governance will be achieved when it involves a good communication among the government, civil society, and the business sector. The author uses the perspective of contemporary maqaasid asy-shari'ah to view the discourse with more emphasis on development and right. The perspective is different from the old maqasid which emphasizes more on the protection and preservation. The result of the study shows that good governace needs harmonious relationship among the followers of religion, social justice, organized and equitable education, human rights protection, and the development of civilized law.Keywords : Good Governance, Maqâsid asy-Syaari’ah, DevelopmentAbstrakGood governance merupakan sebuah konsep tata kelola pemerintahan yang seharusnya dijalankan. Secara teoritis, diskursus good governace menuai pro-kontra sejak awal kemunculannya. Meskipun demikian, sebagai sebuah konsep dan tawaran strategis patut untuk diapresiasi dan dikaji kembali. Terdapat prinsip-prinsip dalam good governance yang berkesesuaian dengan Islam diantaranya akuntabilitas, transparansi, musyawarah, dan lainnya. Upaya mewujudkannya tidak hanya dilakukan oleh satu pihak saja, tetapi komunikasi antara pemerintah (goverment), masyarakat sipil, dan sektor dunia usaha. Dalam melihat diskursus ini, penulis menggunakan perspektif maqaasid asy-Syaari’ah kontemporer dengan lebih menekankan pada development (pembangunan; pengembangan) dan right (hak-hak). Berbeda dengan maqasid lama lebih pada protection (perlindungan) dan preservation (penjagaan; pelestarian). Berdasarkan hasil kajian tersebut bahwa dalam mewujudkan good governace diperlukan pembangunan dalam berbagai aspek seperti membangun hubungan harmonis antar pemeluk agama, mewujudkan keadilan sosial, penyelenggaran dan pemerataan pendidikan, perlindungan terhadap hak asasi manusia, pembangunan hukum berkeadaban.. Kata kunci: Good Governance, Maqaasid asy-Syaari’ah, dan Pembangunan

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