Public Service and Accountability
The Programme is comprised of access to services advocacy projects that engage communities to become organized, informed, and confident to skillfully engage government to be responsive in advancing access to basic services. it involves public participation and accountability initiatives where citizens claim their rights by demanding participation in parliamentary processes that shape laws and public policies. As result government is enforced to be more accountable for its constitutional duties. Thus, it has participatory initiative for social accountability project that specifically contributes to build a vibrant and open democracy in Lesotho, where citizens know, demand, and exercise their rights and responsibilities whilst the government representatives demonstrate accountability and transparency. To ensure that the aim of the programme is realized and achievable, the Centre has placed out strategic execution segregated into a number of activities planned out in terms of community-based planning and social audit joint sessions that will also involve public and corporate entities’ CSRs implementation through annual dialogues.
These activities are expected to produce consensus between the public sector and corporate entities on rules of engagement in their collaborations in service delivery plans and accountability mechanisms. To have synchronized and complementary action frameworks between projects developers and humanitarian actors informed by a common understanding of different situations, the Centre hosts biannual stakeholders’ sessions that create compensation and resettlement schedules for communities affected by the public sector and corporate entities’ activities. These are carried out through citizens’ social mobilization, community capacity building for community formations.
Additionally, community business dialogue promoting indigenous / mining, dams, and cannabis’ industries support to local entrepreneurs’ participation in the supply chain are planned out under this programme. These activities are expected to stimulate community mobilization and awareness-raising on existing protective instruments and social protection systems available for mitigation of environmental and economic shocks. Therefore, local authorities and private enterprises should take part in the implementation of local developmental programs and react to the needs and demands of citizens.
By implementing Participatory Initiative for Social Accountability (PISA) TRC creates diverse social spaces where citizens will have opportunity to galvanize culture of accountability and transparency in the spirit of “Boikarabello ke ba Bohle” (“Responsibility is for all of us”). The Centre enhances capacity building initiatives for local authorities to appreciate social accountability and be responsive to citizens’ needs through civic education activities. Furthermore, the Centre strengthens citizens’ awareness through established a robust information dissemination methods and approaches to effectively to complement traditional modes of information sharing.
by CBS