THE CONTEXT: Civil society has been an essential part of governance. Civil society can be understood as the “third sector” of society. The ‘third sector’ is an umbrella term that covers a range of different organizations with different structures and purposes, belonging neither to the public sector (i.e., the state) nor to the private sector (profit-making private enterprise). This include the voluntary sector, non-governmental organizations, non-profit organizations. Third-sector organizations operate at all levels of society, from the very local to the national and the international, and they make a significant – and rapidly increasing – contribution to the health and well-being of society.
This article analyses the contribution of Civil society for a healthy democracy.
WHAT IS CIVIL SOCIETY?
According to the World Bank: “Civil society refers to a wide array of organizations: community groups, non-governmental organizations [NGOs], labour unions, indigenous groups, charitable organizations, faith-based organizations, professional associations, and foundations.”
It is a conventional Venn diagram depiction of the spheres of civil society interacting with the state and markets. In this model, civil society is distinguishable from political society (parties, political organizations, parliaments) but also from the economic sphere of firms, business partnerships, and their associations. However, political and economic society generally arise from civil society, share some of its forms of organization and communication, and are institutionalized through rights (political rights and property rights especially) continuous with the fabric of rights that secure modern civil society.
CIVIL SOCIETY IN GOVERNANCE
In 1993, the World Bank defined governance as the method through which power is exercised in the management of a country’s political, economic and social resources for development. Governance is the process and institutions through which decisions are made and authority in a country is exercised. Governance can be used in several contexts, such as corporate governance, international governance, national governance and local governance. After 1990, the concept of good governance started taking shape.
WHAT IS GOOD GOVERNANCE?
Good governance relates to the political and institutional processes and outcomes that are necessary to achieve the goals of development. The true test of ‘good’ governance is the degree to which it delivers on the promise of human rights: civil, cultural, economic, political and social rights. The key question is: are the institutions of governance effectively guaranteeing the right to health, adequate housing, sufficient food, quality education, fair justice and personal security? Thus good governance is more human-centric rather than State Centric.
With the rollback of the State in the 1990s, civil society arose with the need for a decentralized public delivery system. Further availability of funds and greater usage of Information and communication technology give way to the emergence of civil society.
IMPORTANCE OF CIVIL SOCIETY FOR HEALTHY DEMOCRACY
ADVOCACY FOR THE RIGHTS OF PEOPLE
- The MKSS played a pioneering role in getting the Right to Information (RTI) law passed in India.
- One of the first issues that MKSS took up was that of wages in drought relief works, which eventually, over many years, led to the advocacy and passing of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).
LIMIT THE POWER OF GOVERNMENT AND MAKE IT MORE ACCOUNTABLE
- The first and most basic role of civil society is to limit and control the power of the state. Any democracy needs a well-functioning and authoritative state. But when a country is emerging from decades of dictatorship, it also needs to find ways to check, monitor, and restrain the power of political leaders and state officials.
- It exposes the corrupt conduct of public officials and lobbies for good governance reforms. Even where anti-corruption laws and bodies exist, they cannot function effectively without the active support and participation of civil society.
IT PROMOTES POLITICAL PARTICIPATION
- NGOs promote political participation by educating people about their rights and obligations as democratic citizens and encouraging them to listen to election campaigns and vote in elections. NGOs can also help develop citizens’ skills to work with one another to solve common problems, debate public issues, and express their views.
POLICY FORMULATION- INPUT TO THE GOVERNMENT
- Pratham is an innovative learning organization created to improve the quality of education in India. As one of the largest non-governmental organizations in the country, Pratham focuses on high-quality, low-cost and replicable interventions to address gaps in the education system.
POLICY IMPLEMENTATION
- The first five-year plan document emphasized the importance of voluntary organizations in the implementation of public programmes. However, only in the seventh plan document is there a detailed discussion about the role of voluntary agencies in rural development.
- Integrated Ruler DevelopmentIRural Landless Employment Guarantee Programme/TRYSEM
- Afforestation, social forestry, development of bio-gas and alternative energy sources (Solar Wind energy, smokeless chulas, etc.);
- E.g. Help Age : HelpAge India is an Indian organization focused on the concerns of elders. Established in 1978, its mission is to “work for the cause and care of under-aged elderly people and improve their standard of living”.
FEEDBACK TO THE GOVERNMENT
- One role for civil society organizations is to lobby for the needs and concerns of their members, such as women, students, farmers, environmentalists, trade unionists, lawyers, doctors, and so on. NGOs and interest groups can present their views to parliament and provincial councils, by contacting individual members and testifying before parliamentary committees.
- E.g. Oxfam India: Information about inequality due to government policies has been highlighted by Oxfam Report. It ensures that Adivasis, Dalits, Muslims, and women and girls have safe-violence-free lives with freedom to speak their minds, equal opportunities to realize their rights, and a discrimination-free future.
PROVIDE RESEARCH INPUTS
- The Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) is a public-interest research and advocacy organization.CSE’s efforts are specifically designed to create awareness about problems and propose sustainable solutions. Research at CSE often consists of in-depth learning about an environmental problem and then finding answers in accordance with CSE’s core values.
VOICE OF THE WEAK AND VULNERABLE PEOPLE
Child welfare:
- CRY (Child Rights and You): Child Rights and You (CRY) works tirelessly to ensure happier and healthier childhoods for India’s underprivileged children. CRY addresses children’s critical needs of healthcare, nutrition, education and protection from child labour and child marriage by working with parents, teachers, Anganwadi workers, communities, district and state-level governments, and the children.
Women empowerment:
- An SHG comprises a small group of women who come together to make regular monetary contributions. Emerging as important micro-finance systems, SHGs work as platforms that promote solidarity among women, bringing them together on issues of health, nutrition, gender parity and gender justice.
- SHGs provide women entrepreneurs with micro-loans to sustain their businesses while also creating an environment for them to develop greater agency and decision-making skills.
- Example: SHGs such as Mahila Arthik Vikas Mahila Mandal, UMED Abhiyan under Maharashtra’s department of rural development’s State Rural Livelihood Mission, and government schemes such as Tejaswani, etc, have proven beneficial in the development of women entrepreneurship for the cause of women’s empowerment.
Health and Education:
- E.g. The Smile Foundation for Education in India aimed to promote education among the underprivileged. Their development program includes Education, health, livelihood for children and women, and provision equally affected by lack of resources. Some of their programs are Smile on Wheels, Mission Education and Smile Twin e-learning.
Disaster relief:
- E.g. Goonj is a non-governmental organization based in Delhi, India. It performs disaster relief, humanitarian aid and community development work in parts of 23 states of India.
Addressing Poverty and injustice:
- E.g. CARE India has been working in India for 68 years and is a non-profit organization focusing on reducing poverty and social injustice. Our overall goal is to empower women and girls from poor and marginalized communities and improve their lives and livelihoods.
Helping the mentally challenged in India:
- According to the National Mental Health Survey (NMHS), 2015-16, around 150 million Indians live with mental health issues, yet 83% of them do not have access to necessary care. Some NGOs strive to reduce the stigma surrounding mental illness, improve their economic status and create social acceptance for the intellectually disadvantaged.
- E.g. Based in Chennai, The Banyan provides care for the homeless and poor individuals with mental health issues in the states of Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Maharashtra.
RAISE THE CORRUPTION ISSUES
- India Against Corruption (IAC) is a civil society-based anti-corruption movement in India which was particularly prominent during the anti-corruption protests of 2011 and 2012, concerned with the introduction of the Jan Lokpal bill. It primarily sought to mobilize the masses in support of their demands.
- Federation of Anti Corruption Teams(FACT) India is a non-profit organization founded by a team of professionals in Chennai with the aim “To transform India into a corruption-free nation and ensure peaceful and harmonious life to all”
CHALLENGES TO THE CIVIL SOCIETY
Successive Indian governments have told the world proudly of the country’s vibrant civil society. But in recent years, there has been an alarming change back home. Several NGOs have been denied full access to foreign financial support, while many are facing accusations of financial impropriety or violating regulatory laws. Others report increasing scrutiny.
- Lack of funds and misuse of funds(Regulation under Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA): Through successive Amendments to the FCRA, Union governments have increasingly scrutinized NGOs receiving foreign contributions—a grip tightened by the 2020 Amendment. The Amendment makes it impossible to sub-grant [to smaller NGOs] and build consortiums of NGOs, or to collaborate. The Union stated that the problem of misuse was widespread—19,000 NGOs had seen their FCRA licenses cancelled between 2010 and 2019. The suspension of the FCRA licence means that the NGO can no longer receive fresh foreign funds from donors pending a probe by the Home Ministry.
- Issues of Human Resources: Key challenges include:
- Attracting talent
Whilst non-profits need highly skilled profiles, they often do not have the resources to pay competitive salaries or invest in HR.
- Retaining talent and managing turnover
Most surveyed NGOs report exceptional turnover – financial compensation and benefits play a part, as well as arduous working conditions, lack of training or career development. Some non-profits focus on the sense of purpose and different lifestyles to retain staff.
- Use of NGOs for Money laundering: Although NGOs are usually established with charitable intentions, they can actually be used by criminals to conduct illicit financial activities. The fact that funds flow in and out of the organization in a complex way makes them very susceptible to abuse from terrorists and money launderers.
- 4th generation of warfare: Fourth-generation warfare refers to a conflict where the state loses its monopoly on war and is fighting non-state actors e.g. terror groups and insurgents. It is the civil society that can be subverted by terror groups and insurgents.
- NGOs as a political tool against development: Nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) were once considered altruistic groups whose aim was to influence public policy with no vested interests impartially. Nevertheless, this perception has changed. They are increasingly perceived as groups that prioritize their own ideologies or that respond to the interests of their donors, patrons, and members rather than to those of the groups they represent.
- E.g. Greenpeace has been accused by the government for working against Development objectives like opposing coal firing and cole mining with vested interests.
- Lack of transparency in working, poor accounting and auditing practices.
THE WAY FORWARD:
The regulatory frameworks that govern civil society in India need urgent and comprehensive reform in partnership with civil society.
- Regulations need to be rationalized, simplified and made more coherent.
- They need to be fully compliant with both India’s Constitution156 and the international treaties157, to which India is a signatory.
- They need to clearly recognize the entire range of roles played by the nonprofit sector from the delivery of services to the watchdog of business, government and media.
National policy on Voluntary Sector 2007 should be implemented effectively. It aims to:
- To create an enabling environment for VOs that stimulates their enterprise and effectiveness and safeguards their autonomy;
- To enable VOs to mobilize necessary financial resources from India and abroad legitimately;
- To identify systems by which the Government may work together with VOs, on the basis of the principles of mutual trust and respect, and with shared responsibility; and,
- To encourage VOs to adopt transparent and accountable systems of governance and management.
Effective use of digital initiative for transparency: The NGO-DARPAN started out as an initiative of the Prime Minister’s Office to create and promote a healthy partnership between VOs/NGOs and the Government of India. The Portal is managed at present by NITI Aayog.
THE CONCLUSION: In developed, politically mature democracies, the role of civil society is cardinal in almost all aspects of public life. Civil society can be conceived as a social and public space and sphere that is above the domain of the family and below the state. Without a well-functional civil society, democracy cant is not functional. Thus there is a need to make the civil society, like NGO and voluntary organizations more transparent, functional and effective in functioning.
Mains Question
- Without civil society, the conception of a vibrant democracy is not possible. Examine.
- What are the challenges to civil society and what measures should be taken to strengthen civil society?
