Impact of Civil Society Budget Work:

Publication date: Tuesday 31 October 2006

Over the past year, the IBP and the Institute for Development Studies (IDS) at the University of Sussex have been working together to produce in-depth case studies of six established budget groups. The objective of the exercise was to learn specifically about the impact of sustained budget work on good governance and poverty reduction. While budget work has expanded dramatically in Africa, Asia and Latin America over the past ten years, no material has been systematically gathered on the social impact of the work. The set of case studies we refer to in this website is the first attempt to close this gap in our knowledge. The chart on the left includes the full case studies and the executive summaries in Spanish and English.

The research draws on case studies of independent budget organizations in Brazil, Croatia, India, Mexico, South Africa and Uganda who have been engaged in budget analysis and budget advocacy for a period of 5-10 years. The range of organizations is purposefully broad and includes development NGOs, networks and social movements, and research organizations. Despite differences in perspective and organizational type, all the organizations share a commitment to social justice and the rights of the poor, and the most effective and efficient use of public resources. Each organization's approach to budget work is shaped by these normative principles. For most of the organizations under review, budget work forms only a part of their overall set of activities, and in some cases they have created special units for this purpose.

Related links:

http://www.internationalbudget.org/casestudies.htm