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More information
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| Title |
Action Learning program on participatory
processes for Povery Reduction Strategies
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| Region |
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| Countries |
India |
| Project Information |
Participatory Approaches in Budgeting
and Public Expenditure Management |
| Keywords |
Bangalore, India, Public Services,
Public Expenditure Management, Poverty Reduction
Strategies |
| Organisations |
The Participation Group, Social
Development Department, The World Bank |
| Author |
The Participation Group and Social
Development Department |
| Document Type |
Case Study |
| Date of Publication |
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| File Name |
View
File
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| Abstract |
Inspired by a private sector
practice of conducting client satisfaction
surveys, a small group of people in Bangalore,
concerned about the city’s deteriorating standards
of public services, initiated an exercise
in 1993 to collect feedback from users. User
perceptions on the quality, efficiency, and
adequacy of the various services were aggregated
to create a ‘report card’ that rated
the performance of all major service providers
in the city. The findings presented a quantitative
measure of satisfaction and perceived levels
of corruption, which, following coverage in
the media, not only mobilized citizen and
government support for reform, but also prompted
the rated agencies themselves to respond positively
to civic calls for improvement in services.
This exercise was repeated in 1999, and has
been replicated in at least five other Indian
cities, as well as the State of Karnataka
in the interim. By systematically gathering
and disseminating public feedback, report
cards may serve as a “surrogate for competition”
for monopolies — usually government owned — that lack the incentive to be as responsive
as the private enterprises to their client’s
needs. They are a useful medium through which
citizens can credibly and collectively ‘signal’
to agencies about their performance and pressure
for change. |
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