Professional Documents
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Private sector is a profitable company that are more accountable in terms of their
'bottom line', accountability requirements in the public sector are generally more
myriad of legal, oral and ethical obligations that come with the
and vice-versa.
Summary
How can citizens affect service delivery and accountability? This paper, from the
University of Los Angeles, provides an overview of issues and experiences with
diverse forms of community participation in the provision of services. Service
provision arrangements linked to various forms of community participation may
improve MDG-related outcomes. Community participation also affects public
sector accountability at local, regional and national levels.
Widespread evidence shows that services are failing poor people in a large number
of countries with negative impacts on human development outcomes. One key
point is that the failure of services is not just technical, it is the result of the lack of
accountability of public, private and non-profit organisations to poor people.
Through understanding the importance of the connections between participation,
accountability and service delivery, as well as different aspects of context,
experiences in community participation, is necessary.
While there is no one right path to how services should be delivered or ways in
which community participation can be strengthened, lessons from experience can
guide policymakers and civic organizations: