Rethinking Civil Society in Developing Countries: Conditions for Its Effectiveness

Abstract

This article examines effectiveness of civil society in democratisation and development for Post-2015 development agenda. Firstly, literature review reveals that civil society is expected to play roles of watch-dogs by adding channels for political participation besides political parties and elections. Active civil society is also expected to complement roles of the state by delivering public services and ultimately facilitate development in developing countries.

Secondly, yet, civil society may not play the ‘expected’ roles due to its embeddedness to social and political contexts which are very specific to developing countries. The public sphere of civil society in developing countries may be divided by ethnic, regional and religious cleavages. Meanwhile civil society may be subject to the influence of political competition among civil society organisations (CSOs) for the influence on public policy as well as the control of the government.

Thirdly, this article examines the ‘successful models’ of CSOs in NGOs of Bangladesh and People's Organisation (PO) of Barangay Luz, the Philippines. In Bangladesh, NGOs deliver various public services to the poor, which may complement the roles of the government. In Barangay Luz, as well, PO organised the poor and established sound partnership with the local government of Cebu City for community development. Both cases share that CSOs are fairly successful to improve living conditions of the poor. Nonetheless, both CSOs have weakness in addressing broader structural issues, and CSOs in the Philippines are fragmented and fragile to political factors.

As regards conditions for effectiveness of civil society for Post-2015, property of civil society matters to define its scope of public sphere; both cases imply that their orientation to limited public sphere should be multilayered and expanded. Although economic space of civil society in these two countries is wide enough, its political space should also be enlarged by less government interference in civil society and by more partnership with it, as well as by more bargaining power of CSOs by organising the poor.