There are many indications that a large and influential body of notables and common citizens are disturbed by the imputed lack of accountability of the very public bodies and publicly certified professions that are supposed to meet their needs. This volume examines the emerging problems encountered by public agencies in responding to demands for increased accountability in their conduct of other people's business.

There are many indications that a large and influential body of notables and common citizens are disturbed by the imputed lack of accountability of the very public bodies and publicly certified professions that are supposed to meet their needs. This volume examines the emerging problems encountered by public agencies in responding to demands for increased accountability in their conduct of other people's business.

Urbanisation In India Has Been So Fast That During The Last Four Decades The Urban Population Has Quadrupled. The Burgeoning Urban Population Brings With It Several New Challenges Which The Urban Local Governments (Ulgs) Have To Face. There Is, Therefore, The Need To Revamp The Structure Of Ulgs And Redefine Their Functions, Duties And Powers In The Changed Urban Scenario. The Inclusion Of Several Activities Relating To Poverty Eradication And Welfare In The Functions Of Ulg Calls For A Fresh Urgency To Study Urban Administration In A New Light. The Need For The Ulgs To Re Energise Themselves To Face The Ever-Increasing Complex Urban Challenges Efficiently, Coming Out Of The Rigid, Outdated, Inflexible Working Culture And Deteriorating Administrative Standards Is Clearly Underlined In The Present Work. It Has Been Emphasized That There Is Inescapable Need To Improve The Quality Of Life In Smaller Towns To Avoid The Rural Push And To Prevent The Urban Pull Since Certain Larger Urban Areas Cannot Afford To Grow Any More Due To Infrastructure Deficiency, Growing Congestion Due To Rapid Population Growth Coupled With Increasing Traffic And Other Problems.In The Changed Socio-Political Situation In Towns And Cities Of India, There Is An Urgent Need For Reform Of Ulgs To Restructure The Official Machinery As Well As Political Organ In The Ulgs So As To Function As Active Partners In The Development Of Urban Areas.The Book Enables The Stakeholders Of Urban Development To Understand The Need And Plan To Revitalize The Ulgs To Meet The New Challenges Imposed By The Rapid Urbanization And Social And Economic Changes In Urban Areas. Some Valuable Reforms To Fulfil The Constitutional Obligations Ordained On Ulgs By The Constitution (74Th Amendment) Act, 1992 Have Been Suggested In The Book. It Also Deals With The Need For Capacity-Building, Decentralised Planning, Simplification Of Procedures, Privatisation Of Certain Municipal Services To Improve The Quality And Reduce The Cost Of Service.The Present Book Would Prove Very Useful To Planners, Policymakers, And Government Executives Concerned With The Urban Development And Social Welfare. In Addition, Students And Teachers Of Public Administration, Political Science And Economics Will Find It An Ideal Reference Book On The Topic Concerned.

This book examines three vital issues in urbanization and democratization: the institutional structures and processes of urban local governance to improve access to urban services; their outcomes in relation to low-income groups’ access to services, citizen participation in local governance, accountability of local leaders and officials, and transparency in local governance; and the factors that influence access to urban services, especially for the poor and marginalized groups. Further, it describes decentralization policies, views of the residents of slums on the effectiveness of government programs, and innovations in inclusive local governance and access to urban services.

There is growing recognition of the need for new approaches to the ways in which donors support accountability, but no broad agreement on what changed practice looks like. This publication aims to provide more clarity on the emerging practice.

In many low and middle income countries, dismal failures in the quality of public service delivery such as absenteeism among teachers and doctors and leakages of public funds have driven the agenda for better governance and accountability. This has raised interest in the idea that citizens can contribute to improved quality of service delivery by holding policy-makers and providers of services accountable. This proposition is particularly resonant when it comes to the human development sectors – health, education and social protection – which involve close interactions between providers and citizens/users of services. Governments, NGOs, and donors alike have been experimenting with various “social accountability” tools that aim to inform citizens and communities about their rights, the standards of service delivery they should expect, and actual performance; and facilitate access to formal redress mechanisms to address service failures. The report reviews how citizens – individually and collectively – can influence service delivery through access to information and opportunities to use it to hold providers – both frontline service providers and program managers – accountable. It focuses on social accountability measures that support the use of information to increase transparency and service delivery and grievance redress mechanisms to help citizens use information to improve accountability. The report takes stock of what is known from international evidence and from within projects supported by the World Bank to identify knowledge gaps, key questions and areas for further work. It synthesizes experience to date; identifies what resources are needed to support more effective use of social accountability tools and approaches; and formulates considerations for their use in human development. The report concludes that the relationships between citizens, policy-makers, program managers, and service providers are complicated, not always direct or easily altered through a single intervention, such as an information campaign or scorecard exercise. The evidence base on social accountability mechanisms in the HD sectors is under development. There is a small but growing set of evaluations which test the impact of information interventions on service delivery and HD outcomes. There is ample space for future experiments to test how to make social accountability work at the country level.

Over the next 20 years, most low-income countries will, for the first time, become more urban than rural. Understanding demographic trends in the cities of the developing world is critical to those countries - their societies, economies, and environments. The benefits from urbanization cannot be overlooked, but the speed and sheer scale of this transformation presents many challenges. In this uniquely thorough and authoritative volume, 16 of the world's leading scholars on urban population and development have worked together to produce the most comprehensive and detailed analysis of the changes taking place in cities and their implications and impacts. They focus on population dynamics, social and economic differentiation, fertility and reproductive health, mortality and morbidity, labor force, and urban governance. As many national governments decentralize and devolve their functions, the nature of urban management and governance is undergoing fundamental transformation, with programs in poverty alleviation, health, education, and public services increasingly being deposited in the hands of untested municipal and regional governments. Cities Transformed identifies a new class of policy maker emerging to take up the growing responsibilities. Drawing from a wide variety of data sources, many of them previously inaccessible, this essential text will become the benchmark for all involved in city-level research, policy, planning, and investment decisions. The National Research Council is a private, non-profit institution based in Washington, DC, providing services to the US government, the public, and the scientific and engineering communities. The editors are members of the Council's Panel on Urban Population Dynamics.

Reviews recent lessons about decentralized governance and implications for future development programs and policies.

With examples drawn from a wide range of economic and industrial sectors, and from both South and North, this title presents a topical exploration of struggles for accountability in development projects.