Publication: Managing for Results : Civil Society Monitoring in the Dominican Republic
Loading...
Date
2005-10
ISSN
Published
2005-10
Author(s)
Editor(s)
Abstract
Despite being one of the fastest growing economies in Latin America and the Caribbean during the 1990s, a series of unfortunate events drove the Dominican Republic in 2003, to a rapid decline in its socioeconomic conditions. Fraud and mismanagement at the Baninter Bank, one of the country's biggest commercial banks, weakened the economy, and triggered a financial, and economic crises sector-wide in the country. These crises also coincided with the 2004 presidential elections, with intensified socio-political pressures worsening the situation. Within this background, the Bank supported a multi-sector program responsive to the social needs, particularly those related to education, health, and social assistance. The note looks at the results management in the midst of social problems, seeking to prod a responsible civil society in the country. As shown, the program and reforms were a success, responsive to the basic needs of the poor, and strengthened as well the institutional framework of social sectors.
Link to Data Set
Citation
“Carlson, Samuel; Indu, John-Abraham. 2005. Managing for Results : Civil Society Monitoring in the Dominican Republic. en breve; No. 80. © World Bank. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/10319 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”
Associated URLs
Associated content
Other publications in this report series
Journal
Journal Volume
Journal Issue
Collections
Related items
Showing items related by metadata.
Publication Yemen Civil Society Organizations in Transition : A Mapping and Capacity Assessment of Development-Oriented Civil Society Organizations in Five Governorates(Washington, DC, 2013-06)Civil society in Yemen is vibrant and diverse but highly fragmented. It includes independent registered and organized civic groups, less organized local self-help organizations, and charity oriented groups. The first period, from 1950 to 1963, saw a growth in associational activity in the modern enclave of late colonial Aden and within the protectorates of the northern imamate amidst heavy immigration and modernization. A second stage of development took place in the late 1970s and 1980s with very little central control but exceptional affluence thanks to remittances from citizens employed in the Gulf. As the political transition in Yemen continues, there is renewed interest in engaging local Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) in the process of service delivery, decentralization, institution building and in encouraging inclusion and greater citizen participation. The Government has requested that the World Bank update its earlier work on CSOs in Yemen to map and to assess the capacities of present-day, development-oriented CSOs in five governorates. Nearly all of the CSOs that participated in this study were formally registered, non-governmental organizations that were generally independent of tribal or religious affiliation. There is an important opening in Yemen at present to encourage greater social accountability among CSOs and through CSO-Government partnerships. Social accountability includes a growing emphasis on beneficiary engagement in monitoring and assessing government performance as well as service providers, particularly in providing feedback on, and voicing demand for, improved service delivery. Based on this study's findings, it is recommended that the Government reform CSOs-related procedures, including registration, re-licensing, and decentralize avenues for CSO-ministry collaboration on service delivery and standards development to the governorate-level branches of the respective Ministries. Finally, it is recommended that training be made available for Yemeni journalists that cover the work of the country's civic sector or development issues in general.Publication One Year On(World Bank Group, Washington, DC, 2015-02)The roll-out of devolution has been formally underway since March 2013 when county governments were established under the 2010 Constitution. The period under review is April 2013 to June 2014, which enables observations of public engagement in preparation of the 2013-2014 county budgets (between April-June 2013) and the 2014-2015 county budgets (between September 2013-June 2014). This paper reviews initial county initiatives on public participation and possible interventions to improve the overall design and implementation of participatory systems going forward.Publication How, When and Why to Use Demand-Side Governance Approaches in Projects(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2012)This note offers a process-oriented guide to strengthening demand-side governance approaches in World Bank projects with a step-by-step approach for determining how demand for good governance (DFGG) tools and approaches can be applied to different types of Bank-funded projects. The objective of this note is to help task teams anticipate demand-side governance considerations early in the project preparation process, identify potential entry points for introducing DFGG tools to address these considerations, provide guidance on selecting DFGG tools which will improve governance, transparency and service delivery, assist borrowers to introduce DFGG tools in Bank projects, and to measure their impact. The core guidance is presented in the form of a simple five-step process for determining activity in a given project context. The annexes contain a glossary of DFGG tools, checklists, website links and other resources for task teams that will assist them in introducing and deepening DFGG work in Bank projects.Publication Participation, Decentralization and Human Rights(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2009-01-30)This report examines the theoretical and practical synergies between three intervention models that are currently being employed to improve local governance in developing countries: 1) democratic decentralization or devolution; 2) community participatory approaches, and; 3) rights-based approaches. The aim is to identify the possibilities and challenges of an 'integrative approach' to local governance that combines the strengths of each of the three intervention models. It is assumed that an integrative approach can help enhance efforts to improve the downward accountability of local governments, enhance equity in the distribution of services and in various citizens' access to influence, and increase citizen participation in local governance processes. This is supported by a number of empirical cases from Africa, Latin America, Asia and Bosnia-Herzegovina, which are presented in the report. Each case also highlights a number of context-specific challenges to using an integrative approach, such as available financial resources, national policy environments and local conflicts. The report fills this gap by both identifying theoretical synergies and by drawing on the few empirical cases that exist.Publication Peru : Towards a System of Social Accountability(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2004-02)The transition government initiated three important national processes: (i) multi-stakeholder roundtables or mesas de concertacion to support the Fight against Poverty, (ii) formulation of national development goals, and (iii) decentralization. The note discusses the actions that Peru has taken for a system of social accountability; looks at lessons learned in implementing the programmatic loan and future challenges.
Users also downloaded
Showing related downloaded files
Publication Classroom Assessment to Support Foundational Literacy(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-03-21)This document focuses primarily on how classroom assessment activities can measure students’ literacy skills as they progress along a learning trajectory towards reading fluently and with comprehension by the end of primary school grades. The document addresses considerations regarding the design and implementation of early grade reading classroom assessment, provides examples of assessment activities from a variety of countries and contexts, and discusses the importance of incorporating classroom assessment practices into teacher training and professional development opportunities for teachers. The structure of the document is as follows. The first section presents definitions and addresses basic questions on classroom assessment. Section 2 covers the intersection between assessment and early grade reading by discussing how learning assessment can measure early grade reading skills following the reading learning trajectory. Section 3 compares some of the most common early grade literacy assessment tools with respect to the early grade reading skills and developmental phases. Section 4 of the document addresses teacher training considerations in developing, scoring, and using early grade reading assessment. Additional issues in assessing reading skills in the classroom and using assessment results to improve teaching and learning are reviewed in section 5. Throughout the document, country cases are presented to demonstrate how assessment activities can be implemented in the classroom in different contexts.Publication World Development Report 2017(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2017-01-30)Why are carefully designed, sensible policies too often not adopted or implemented? When they are, why do they often fail to generate development outcomes such as security, growth, and equity? And why do some bad policies endure? This book addresses these fundamental questions, which are at the heart of development. Policy making and policy implementation do not occur in a vacuum. Rather, they take place in complex political and social settings, in which individuals and groups with unequal power interact within changing rules as they pursue conflicting interests. The process of these interactions is what this Report calls governance, and the space in which these interactions take place, the policy arena. The capacity of actors to commit and their willingness to cooperate and coordinate to achieve socially desirable goals are what matter for effectiveness. However, who bargains, who is excluded, and what barriers block entry to the policy arena determine the selection and implementation of policies and, consequently, their impact on development outcomes. Exclusion, capture, and clientelism are manifestations of power asymmetries that lead to failures to achieve security, growth, and equity. The distribution of power in society is partly determined by history. Yet, there is room for positive change. This Report reveals that governance can mitigate, even overcome, power asymmetries to bring about more effective policy interventions that achieve sustainable improvements in security, growth, and equity. This happens by shifting the incentives of those with power, reshaping their preferences in favor of good outcomes, and taking into account the interests of previously excluded participants. These changes can come about through bargains among elites and greater citizen engagement, as well as by international actors supporting rules that strengthen coalitions for reform.Publication Global Economic Prospects, June 2024(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2024-06-11)After several years of negative shocks, global growth is expected to hold steady in 2024 and then edge up in the next couple of years, in part aided by cautious monetary policy easing as inflation gradually declines. However, economic prospects are envisaged to remain tepid, especially in the most vulnerable countries. Risks to the outlook, while more balanced, are still tilted to the downside, including the possibility of escalating geopolitical tensions, further trade fragmentation, and higher-for-longer interest rates. Natural disasters related to climate change could also hinder activity. Subdued growth prospects across many emerging market and developing economies and continued risks underscore the need for decisive policy action at the global and national levels. Global Economic Prospects is a World Bank Group Flagship Report that examines global economic developments and prospects, with a special focus on emerging market and developing economies, on a semiannual basis (in January and June). Each edition includes analytical pieces on topical policy challenges faced by these economies.Publication World Development Report 2011(World Bank, 2011)The 2011 World development report looks across disciplines and experiences drawn from around the world to offer some ideas and practical recommendations on how to move beyond conflict and fragility and secure development. The key messages are important for all countries-low, middle, and high income-as well as for regional and global institutions: first, institutional legitimacy is the key to stability. When state institutions do not adequately protect citizens, guard against corruption, or provide access to justice; when markets do not provide job opportunities; or when communities have lost social cohesion-the likelihood of violent conflict increases. Second, investing in citizen security, justice, and jobs is essential to reducing violence. But there are major structural gaps in our collective capabilities to support these areas. Third, confronting this challenge effectively means that institutions need to change. International agencies and partners from other countries must adapt procedures so they can respond with agility and speed, a longer-term perspective, and greater staying power. Fourth, need to adopt a layered approach. Some problems can be addressed at the country level, but others need to be addressed at a regional level, such as developing markets that integrate insecure areas and pooling resources for building capacity Fifth, in adopting these approaches, need to be aware that the global landscape is changing. Regional institutions and middle income countries are playing a larger role. This means should pay more attention to south-south and south-north exchanges, and to the recent transition experiences of middle income countries.Publication Poverty, Prosperity, and Planet Report 2024(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2024-10-15)The Poverty, Prosperity, and Planet Report 2024 is the latest edition of the series formerly known as Poverty and Shared Prosperity. The report emphasizes that reducing poverty and increasing shared prosperity must be achieved in ways that do not come at unacceptably high costs to the environment. The current “polycrisis”—where the multiple crises of slow economic growth, increased fragility, climate risks, and heightened uncertainty have come together at the same time—makes national development strategies and international cooperation difficult. Offering the first post-Coronavirus (COVID)-19 pandemic assessment of global progress on this interlinked agenda, the report finds that global poverty reduction has resumed but at a pace slower than before the COVID-19 crisis. Nearly 700 million people worldwide live in extreme poverty with less than US$2.15 per person per day. Progress has essentially plateaued amid lower economic growth and the impacts of COVID-19 and other crises. Today, extreme poverty is concentrated mostly in Sub-Saharan Africa and fragile settings. At a higher standard more typical of upper-middle-income countries—US$6.85 per person per day—almost one-half of the world is living in poverty. The report also provides evidence that the number of countries that have high levels of income inequality has declined considerably during the past two decades, but the pace of improvements in shared prosperity has slowed, and that inequality remains high in Latin America and the Caribbean and Sub-Saharan Africa. Worldwide, people’s incomes today would need to increase fivefold on average to reach a minimum prosperity threshold of US$25 per person per day. Where there has been progress in poverty reduction and shared prosperity, there is evidence of an increasing ability of countries to manage natural hazards, but climate risks are significantly higher in the poorest settings. Nearly one in five people globally is at risk of experiencing welfare losses due to an extreme weather event from which they will struggle to recover. The interconnected issues of climate change and poverty call for a united and inclusive effort from the global community. Development cooperation stakeholders—from governments, nongovernmental organizations, and the private sector to communities and citizens acting locally in every corner of the globe—hold pivotal roles in promoting fair and sustainable transitions. By emphasizing strategies that yield multiple benefits and diligently monitoring and addressing trade-offs, we can strive toward a future that is prosperous, equitable, and resilient.