Download About civil society governance

Concept note for consultation workshop on
civil society governance
Background
Cord Cambodia and Cord Myanmar, with support from ActionAid Cambodia, is starting
a new research project to explore how civil society organisations can best be
governed. The project will use a participatory approach that engages communities called ‘cooperative inquiry’ - and it will examine options for developing and sustaining
viable models of governance that demonstrate accountability to constituents
(members and beneficiaries). The project uses Cambodia as a case study, but seeks
inputs and ideas from other contexts, specifically Myanmar.
About civil society governance
Governance is a critical challenge for development. Whilst this challenge is generally
understood to be focussed on national-level governance, there are also many
challenges for civil society governance. These challenges are related. State – civil
society interactions provide the context for, and interweave with, national
governance. Even more critically, the collective experience of being governed at a
national level helps to inform and shape the governance of civil society organisations.
Models of governance used in large Western corporations and international NGOs are
often assumed to be relevant to civil society organisations in developing contexts. Yet,
societies like Cambodia and Myamar which value the maintenance of social hierarchy,
harmony, and collectivist ideals may not be always served well by the wholesale
application of such models, especially given that these Western models are not
attuned to the challenges of governance in civil society in other contexts.
Most formal NGOs in developing contexts in Asia try to follow a Western model of
governance. They tend to have a board, although they may not have members. The
ideas or assumptions that inform this type of governance, sometimes called corporate
or policy governance, are that:
a. the board somehow ‘represents’ the stakeholders,
b. the board is independent of management, and
c. the board members are elected by members/stakeholders.
Corporate governance is the favourite model of many donors to Myanmar and it
comes from the West. Often, it is required by national governments too. (In Cambodia
and Laos, the government requires NGOs to have boards.)
Both traditional and radical alternatives to the dominant corporate governance model
exist. Hasan and Onyx (2008) have undertaken the only systematic review of
governance practices in Asian civil society, involving a team of researchers across six
countries: India, China, Thailand, Vietnam, Philippines, and Indonesia. Cambodia,
Laos and Myanmar were not included in this study.
Hasan and Onyx (2008) found that three models of governance are used to varying
degrees in Asian countries. These are the corporate model, traditional Asian models
and participatory democracy, based on principles of community development. These
models will be explained at the workshop.
Importantly, Hasan and Onyx (2008) also found the term ‘good governance’ is used
(and misused) indiscriminately in the countries of study, and that civil society actors
have difficulty distinguishing ‘governance’ from government or management. They
found that governance mechanisms vary in time, space and across cultures and that
the presence of boards is not necessarily a good indicator of governance practices.
They therefore concluded that alternative ways of understanding governance in the
context of Asian countries are needed.
Approaches to civil society governance that are relevant and useful to southeast Asian
NGOs and ideas about how these NGOs can best account to the people they serve are
far from clear. Yet, it is the way that NGOs hold themselves accountable to their
members, beneficiaries and peers (and to their values and vision) that mainly defines
the nature and legitimacy of NGOs as civil society actors.
In 2014, there is an exciting opportunity to create new models which mix together
existing and emerging models. Practical experimentation with such ideas has begun in
various international development contexts. Examples include Keystone, ActionAid’s
value-based Accountability Learning and Planning System (ALPS) launched in 2000
and the Humanitarian Accountability Partnership’s (HAP) 2007 Standard for
Humanitarian Accountability and Quality Management which created working
definitions of downward accountability and located them within quality management
policies for NGOs. Similarly, two international NGOs, Concern and Mango, have
together piloted a project called Listen First, focussing on systematic ways of
managing downward accountability.
There are also many new models which may further inspire new and creative thinking
for civil society governance in Myanmar, Cambodia and other countries. These include
self-organising systems, models focussed on emergent leadership which are drawn
from complexity science, generative governance, storytelling organisations, and
dialogue-based, learning organisations. These ideas and themes will be explored
further at the consultation workshop.
Objectives
The objectives of the consultation workshop are to:
1. Support and facilitate beginning reflections on the challenges and responses to
‘good governance’ within civil society in Myanmar
2. Showcase some alternative models of civil society governance
3. Explain a new research project that is exploring options for developing and
sustaining models of governance that demonstrate accountability to
stakeholders
4. Collect ideas and input for the research project
Expected outcomes
The expected outcomes of the consultation workshop are to:
1. Participants reflect and critically engage on the challenges and responses to
good governance within civil society in Myanmar
2. Participants develop awareness of some alternative models of governance
3. Participants recommend ideas and issues for the research team in Cambodia to
explore further (in order to ensure that findings can be relevant to Myanmar)
Participants
The organisers hope that around 40 participants will attend the consultation
workshop. Target participants are Myanmar nationals, who work in civil society
organisations in positions that are able to influence organisational governance.
Venue, date and time
The consultation workshop is proposed to be held from 9.00am until 5.00pm,
Friday 14 March at the Big Room in Sagawa Development Consultancy Co.,
Ltd., Tower E (2nd floor) | Diamond Condo | Pyay Road, Kamaryut | Yangon.
Draft agenda
The following agenda is subject to change at the organisers’ discretion.
Time
9.00 – 9.15
Topic
Welcome and introductions
9.15 – 9.45
9.45 – 10.30
Participatory exercise – what is governance?
Presentation on dominant models of civil society
governance, including time for Q&A (20mins)
BREAK
Panel presentations on different models of civil
society governance currently used in Myanmar
Small group reflections
Panel discussion of issues raised in small groups
Lunch
Response from donors
Introduction to research project
Small group reflections
BREAK to be incorporated into small group work
Plenary
Building consensus on recommendations for
research team
Next steps
10.30 – 10.45
10.45 – 11.45
11.45 – 12.15
12.15 – 1.00
1.00 – 2.00
2.00 – 2.30
2.30 – 3.00
3.00 – 4.00
4.00 – 4.30
4.30 – 5.00
Person responsible
Cord Myanmar
ActionAid Myanmar
Cord
Keynote speaker
(Louise Coventry)
Moderator
Panel members
Moderator
Moderator
TBC
Cord
Moderator
Moderator