| Date 26-Nov-2021 to 26-Nov-2021 |
Location Virtual |
Format PRIA@40 |
Citizen participation in policymaking is the cornerstone of a mature and consolidated democracy. With growing citizen aspirations, public policymaking that affects millions of citizens cannot rely only on the representative and procedural democratic mechanisms but must embrace participatory and substantive democratic mechanisms and practices. India, despite being the largest democracy in the world, has often relied on procedural democracy and created very little space for direct citizen consultation in the national
and sub-national policymaking at a substantive scale. The emergence of local governance institutions in the early 90’s created some significant spaces for citizen participation in decision making related to local development. Nevertheless, such spaces proved to be more meaningful in rural areas (through Gram Sabhas) as compared to urban areas. In the last decade, many public programmes have emphasised the importance of citizen participation in the effective implementation and monitoring of these programmes.
In the past few years, with the rise of technology innovations, many governmental initiatives have tried to leverage technology for soliciting citizen consultations in public policymaking. A notable example includes MyGov.in platform created by the Indian government to seek suggestions and feedback on various public policies and programmes. On several occasions, the Ministries and Departments have invited citizens to share their concerns, comments, and suggestions online regarding a specific policy or programme
initiative. However, in the absence of a robust mechanism and coherent laws requiring mandatory citizen consultations, often such initiatives have short-lived and dissipated.
The democratic governance in India has been adversely affected by the pandemic. During the pandemic, citizens experienced unidirectional communication from the government without much opportunity for participation in dialogue and deliberation, a fundamental requirement in a functional democracy. The absent legal framework for organising online consultations with citizens and ‘affected persons’ in making public laws and policies belies the government’s efforts of putting citizens at the centre of policymaking. The practice of citizen consultation in making public laws and policies has been sporadic, whimsical, and
inadequate. In several cases where suggestions, comments and feedback have been sought from citizens on draft Bills or draft Rules, there was no obligation on part of the government to ‘close the feedback loop’ by disclosing which of these feedback from the citizens were considered, have or have not been included, and why.
Since 24 March 2020 when the first countrywide lockdown was announced, the Indian government has introduced, passed into law and/or amended nearly 50 Bills, Rules, and Acts. In the absence of an established protocol and legal framework for online consultation, most of these laws were passed without adequate discourse and consultations, neither in the two houses of the parliament nor with the citizens in general and with the communities affected by these laws.
On the other hand, many civil society and non-governmental initiatives have tried to create online spaces for aggregating grievances as well as suggestions from the citizens on various public issues and concerns. Others have created platforms and Apps to intermediate between citizens and government programmes and schemes. However, often, such initiatives have focussed on local issues, important as these are, they fell short of being inclusive and robust enough to draw attention from the policymakers.
In the recent past, many international initiatives have also advocated for the Right to Participation. Most notable among these were the World Charter on the Right to the City promoted by the United Cities and Local Government (UCLG); the Inter-American Democratic Charter promoted by the Organisation of American States; the Ibero-American Charter on Citizen Participation in Public Management promoted by the Latin American Centre for Development Administration (CLAD); the Charter of European Cities and Towns for Sustainability; the Aberdeen Principles promoted by the Commonwealth Local Governance Forum and the Right to Citizen Participation promoted by the LogoLink. These initiatives although provided useful frameworks for participation, however, these require updation in the context of using new technology for institutionalising online citizen participation.
Promoting Citizen Participation has been one of the consistent areas of PRIA’s work for the last 40 years. Over these years, it has enabled participation of marginalised communities to access developmental resources and basic services. It has developed numerous tools and techniques for enabling citizen participation in development programmes as well as governance institutions. Recently, Participatory Research in Asia (PRIA) with support from the International Centre for Non-profit Law (ICNL) has conducted a participatory research study on “Institutionalising Online Citizen Participation in Public Policymaking in India”. The study has consulted many national and international experts who have
facilitated and/or studied online citizen participation.
As PRIA completes 40 years in February 2022, we are organising a series of PRIA@40 Conversations. As part of these conversations as well as the recent research initiative, PRIA in partnership with Civis, India and ICNL will organise a Virtual Roundtable Discussion on “Institutionalising Online Citizen Participation in Public Policymaking in India” on Friday, 26 November 2021, from 5.00 pm to 7.00 pm (Indian Time). The overall purpose of the Conversation is to share the preliminary findings of the research study as well as to evolve a set of guidelines for organising online consultations in public
policymaking.
The roundtable discussion will attempt to explore the following questions.
Program Agenda
5.00 pm to 5.10 pm
Welcome and Introduction to PRIA@40 Programmes and Conversations
5.10 pm to 5.25 pm
Institutionalising Online Citizen Consultations in Public Policymaking in India – Preliminary
Findings from the Research Study
• Ms Shruti Arora, Senior Programme Officer (Research), Participatory Research in Asia (PRIA), India
5.25 pm to 5.45 pm
Use of Technology to Strengthen Citizen Participation in Policymaking – Pitfalls and Pathways?
• Mr Apar Gupta, Executive Director, Internet Freedom Foundation, India
• Dr Rajesh Tandon, Founder-President, PRIA
5.45 pm to 6.30 pm
Breakout Sessions and Key Discussion Questions
• What are the current online mechanisms and practices for consulting citizens in making laws and policies by the governments? What lessons can be drawn from the national and international experiences?
• How have the non-governmental organisations attempted to influence the policymaking usingonline citizen participation?
• What principles can be suggested in making online citizen consultations reliable, inclusive, and continuous?
Breakout Group 1
Moderator: Dr Kaustuv Kanti Bandyopadhyay, Director, Participatory Research in Asia (PRIA), India
Rapporteur: Ms Nikita Rakhiyani, Youth Trainer, Participatory Research in Asia (PRIA), India
Kick-off Discussants
• Dr Matt Leighninger, Head of Democracy Innovation, National Conference on Citizenship, USA
• Ms Antaraa Vasudev, Founder, Civis, India
Breakout Group 2
Moderator: Ms Sumitra Srinivasan, Lead-Knowledge Management and Communications, Participatory Research in Asia (PRIA), India
Rapporteur: Ms Shruti Arora, Senior Programme Officer (Research), Participatory Research in Asia (PRIA), India
Kick-off Discussants
• Róbert Bjarnason, President and CEO, Citizens Foundation, Iceland
• Ms Charu Chadha, Principal, Governance and Citizen Engagement, Omidyar Network India
Breakout Group 3
Moderator: Dr Anshuman Karol, Lead-Local Governance, Participatory Research in Asia (PRIA), India
Rapporteur: Ms Niharika Kaul, Research Associate, Participatory Research in Asia (PRIA), India
Kick-off Discussants
• Mr ‘Gbenga Sesan, Executive Director, Paradigm Initiative, Nigeria
• Mr Venkatesh Nayak, Programme Head, Access to Information, Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative, India
6.30 pm to 6.50 pm
Reporting back from the Breakout Sessions
• Ms Nikita Rakhiyani, Breakout Group 1
• Ms Shruti Arora, Breakout Group 2
• Ms Niharika Kaul, Breakout Group 3
Closing Reflection
• Mr David Moore, Vice President, Legal Affairs, International Centre for Non-profit Law (ICNL), USA
6.50 pm to 7.00 pm
Key Takeaways, Vote of Thanks and Closure
• Dr Kaustuv Kanti Bandyopadhyay, Director, Participatory Research in Asia (PRIA), India
For more detailed webinar report: Click here
For webinar recording: Click here