The Civil Society Sector in the Developing World

International Journal of Scientific Research and Management, 2018

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...

International Journal of Advance Research and Innovative Ideas in Education, 2021

Governance is an imperative tool for sustainable development. It is understood that without an appropriate governance structure, developing countries will not be able to sustain either economic growth or a momentum towards rapid poverty reduction. It is trying to figure out why despite resource allocation and good policies, improvements in human welfare have not occurred and any improvement in services, freedom from hunger, illness and illiteracy remain elusive. The Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) could contribute to achieve the common goal of development.

2021

Civil society refers to space for collective action around shared interests, purposes and values generally distinct from government and commercial, for-profit actors. Civil society includes charities, developmental NGOs, community groups, women's organizations, professional associations, trade unions, social movements, coalitions and advocacy groups. However, civil society is not homogenous, and the boundaries between civil society and government or civil society and commercial actors can be blurred. There is undoubtedly no one civil society view, and civil society actors need to contend with similar issues of representations and legitimacy as those of other representatives and advocates. Despite its complexity and heterogeneity, the inclusion of civil society voices is essential to give expression to the marginalization and those who often are not heard. Civil society actors can enhance the participation of communities in the provision of services and in policy decision making. Different types of civil societies in the world Civil society can be understood as the " third sector" of society, distinct from government and business, and including the family and private sphere. By other authors, civil society is used in the sense of 1) the aggregate of non-governmental organizations that manifest the interests and will of the citizens or 2) individuals and organizations in a society which are independent of the government.

2011

Using the term civil society in the same breath as ‘conceptual ’ and ‘developing countries ’ might be regarded as bold. There is hardly any other term in social science that is more vague or Western-centric. “The history of thought over two hundred years has charged this designation with so many layers of meaning that it lacks sharpness of definition”1 bemoans Axel Honneth (1992, p. 61). “We have reached zero level in a history of semantic deterioration” states Volker Heins (2002, p. 17). Helmut Dubiel writes: “The uninterrupted boom enjoyed by the concept – despite synchronous ritual laments about its vagueness – is (...) a phenomenon in need of explanation. In spite of its limitless geographic, cultural, disciplinary and semantic dimension, it obviously still retains the aura of an unfulfilled theoretical promise ” (Dubiel, 2001, p. 135). Even though the boom enjoyed by the term ‘civil so-ciety ’ has its roots in the changes which have taken place in the East, the concept is of We...

Civil society’ has emerged as one of the essentially contested concepts in political modernity. It includes a variety of differing and conflicting views and perspectives. These are visible beyond the academic debate also in the context of political theory and struggles. For some, global civil society represents a forceful and promising response to the ‘democratic deficit’ as one of the hitherto most problematic aspects within the globalization process. But more critical objections are also prominent. They concern the enthusiasm about the notion of a global civil society (as well as the use of the concept of civil society as such) and the various developments it represents. These contradictory positions are inviting for further reflections. Most contributors to this special issue of Development Dialogue were part of a panel at the WSF in Nairobi 2007. The contributions to this volume testify to the contested nature of the concept of 'global civil society' and invite for further reflections.

Purpose of this paper is to explore the puzzles, paradoxes and limitation of civil society as a development agent in developing countries especially in Pakistani and Indian contexts. The concept of civil society is not new. In past many thinkers and Philosophers focused their attention to refine the idea of civil society in comparison to the state and the market. Hegel, Ferguson and Fukuyama (Hall, 1995) were the champions of the idea of the civil society as a development agent and brought this idea in the limelight in the last two decades when the state failed to provide development assistance to the poorer of the poor in third world countries.

2000

This report summarizes the basic empirical results of the latest phase of the Johns Hopkins Comparative Nonprofit Sector Project, the major effort we have had under way for a number of years to document the scope, structure, financing, and role of the nonprofit sector for the first time in various parts of the world, and to explain the resulting patterns that exist. This phase of project work has focused primarily on 15 countries in Africa, the Middle East, and South Asia, 13 of which are covered here. In addition to reporting on these 13 countries, however, this report puts these findings into the broader context of our prior work. It therefore provides a portrait of the "civil society sector" in 35 countries throughout the world, including 16 advanced industrial countries, 14 developing countries, and 5 transitional countries of Central and Eastern Europe. While important, the descriptive empirical results reported here do not exhaust the focus of the work we have under way. Rather, this work has also pursued two additional goals: first, to determine the causes of the diverse patterns of civil society sector development described here; and second, to assess the impact of the civil society sector. Subsequent products of this project will explore the findings on these latter two objectives. Even the present report is designed to be the overview chapter in a longer publication, moreover. This longer publication, the second volume of our earlier book, Global Civil Society: Dimensions of the Nonprofit Sector, will include chapters exploring in greater depth the contours of the civil society sector in each of the individual countries covered in this latest phase of our project. 1 We have chosen to make this overview of the basic descriptive results of this phase of our work available immediately in view of the considerable interest that has been shown in them throughout the world. As the body of this brief report makes clear, we use the terms "civil society sector" or "civil society organization" to refer to a broad array of organizations that are essentially private, i.e., outside the institutional structures of government; that are not primarily commercial and do not exist primarily to distribute profits to their directors or "owners"; that are self-governing; and that people are free to join or support voluntarily. This definition was formulated in collaboration with teams of researchers and advisors from around the world and has been used successfully to guide field work in over 40 countries. Informal as well as formally registered organizations are included within this definition as is the informal input of volunteers as well as the more formal effort of paid staff. Similarly, the definition embraces religious as well as secular organizations.

ABSTRACT Civil Society organizations are dynamic and essential for the preservation of democracy. Every government has an obligation to govern its people in a manner that promotes prosperity through application of legitimate means of governance. In a democratic country like Zambia it is a duty of government to rule following the democratic tenets which are; the respect for the rule of law, accountability and recognition of citizen participation in the governance process. It is therefore important that governments must continually be checked by the civil society organisations because they represent the governed majority who are voiceless. This research study looked at the role of CSOs in the the governance process of the country. The research was conducted at the Oasis forum in Lusaka. The study explains the role of the Oasis Forum in the governance process of the country, the challenges faced in the rapidly evolving contextual environment in which they operate and highlights on the measures that may be put in place to help harmonize the relationship between government and the Oasis Forum. The target population for this research was 150 where as the sample size was 30 respondents. The researcher used both primary and secondary data and the instrument used to collect primary data was questionnaires and interviews. Secondary data was a review of already written literature on the subject matter, Journal and newspapers This research work establishes that CSOs are key stakeholders in the governance process of the country for the role they play of promoting and protecting democracy. It is further revealed that CSO are the voice for the voiceless in society. CSOs are policy initiators because they influence policy formulation. Therefore an active and flourishing civil society movement is important if national development and democracy is to be achieved. In Zambia, the researcher found that there was a frustration of the work of the Oasis Forum because successive governments have for example been trying to introduce legislation that is targeted at regulating the Oasis Forum aimed at clamping on their roles rather than legislation that recognizes their roles in governance processes of the country. The study established that, though the Zambia government has made steady strides in democratization by embracing the civil society, the working environment remains generally not very conducive as there is mistrust between the CSOs and the government. It is recommended that CSOs need to become stronger; above all more representative, and to acquire the capacity necessary for them to engage both popular bases and the state in policy formulation and analysis, unlike the current situation where its activities are more concentrated in the urban areas and largely characterized as an elite phenomenon. The researcher recommends that there is need to create a harmonious working environment where trust can be created amongest the two. Government, especially the executive should embrace civil society organizations as partners in the governance process of the country and establish the spirit of tolerance. Civil society on the other hand needs to be open in their dealings as this is the only way government will trust them.