A Tale of Accountability Trivia: What is the Status of Social Accountability in Bangladesh?

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to introduce and explore the trivia of accountability, which is indispensable for ensuring rule of law, human rights and good governance in a country. The paper intends to depict the theoretical aspects of accountability, its typology, mechanisms, and application in the governance. Special attention has focused on social accountability to evaluate the citizens’ involvement in public service delivery as well as in ensuring public accountability in the context of Bangladesh. There are various mechanisms and components in ensuring social accountability; however, three components–citizen charter, participatory budget making process, and access to information, have been selected and used for the present paper. Empirical data and experiences of the author have been analyzed to evaluate social accountability in Bangladesh. The major findings of this study are- social accountability is a very effective opportunity to engage citizens in the participatory governance process and it has been already introduced and applied in Bangladesh. However, the people of Bangladesh are still not aware enough about social accountability and its mechanisms. Besides, the officials are still bear colonial attitude and behavior instead of friendly service providers.

Keywords: Accountability, social accountability, participatory budget making process, access to information, citizen charter, citizen engagement, governance, and Bangladesh.