Disentangling Government Responses: How Do We Know When Accountability Work is Gaining Traction?

Tuesday, April 23, 2024

Online and in-person at the Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex

Advocacy for public accountability aims to produce reactions from government officials or service providers. But it is not always clear to advocates how to interpret diverse government reactions and decide on next steps. This seminar will share and reflect on a framework to help achieve this.

This work is rooted in the International Budget Partnership (IBP)’s Strengthening Public Accountability with Results and Knowledge (SPARK) program. SPARK seeks to bolster the collective agency of marginalized communities and coalitions to advance democratic and equitable fiscal governance systems that channel public resources to services that address their priority needs.

 

Speakers

  • Brendan Halloran has extensive experience of working on democratic governance, including at USAID, the Transparency and Accountability Initiative, and the International Budget Partnership, where he played a pivotal role in the SPARK program
  • Jonathan Fox is a professor of development studies in the School of International Service at American University, Washington DC, where he directs the Accountability Research Center
  • Ima Akpan is a senior program officer at the International Budget Partnership, where she has worked on the monitoring and evaluation of the SPARK program
  • Salbiyah is a senior program officer in the International Budget Partnership’s Indonesia team, working closely with grassroots and other civic partners on gender inclusion, budget equity, and effective public services.

Chair

  • Rosie McGee is an IDS Research Fellow who has done extensive applied research and advisory work on accountable governance, including leading the learning component of the SPARK program (2018–2021)

During a meeting between International Budget Partnership (IBP), the Peasant Farmers Association of Ghana (PFAG), and the Women in Agriculture Development (WIAD) of the Ministry of Agriculture, participants formed groups to discuss women farmers’ access to information about their entitlements under government budget allocations.

Francis Kokoroko/International Budget Partnership