MANILA, FEBRUARY 25, 2013— The Global Partnership for Social Accountability (GPSA) – a new coalition of donors, governments, and civil society organizations (CSOs) – is calling on civil society groups in twelve countries to submit proposals for grants to improve social accountability. Proposals should address priority areas identified for each country, to support citizen feedback and contribute to governance reforms as well as improved service delivery at the country level.
In the Philippines, GPSA is seeking proposals for monitoring the implementation of the Pantawid Pamilya, the country’s conditional cash transfer program.
Civil society groups with winning proposals will work with communities, local governments, and service providers in checking whether Pantawid Pamilya beneficiaries are receiving their cash transfers on time and the correct amount.
They will also identify problems in access and quality of schools (including teacher absenteeism, lack of classrooms, among others) and health stations (including availability of trained birth attendants, medicines, among others) to help ensure that Pantawid beneficiaries receive quality services.
Pantawid Pamilya provides social safety nets for more than three million poor families, encouraging them to keep their children in school and in good health and pregnant mothers attended to by medical professionals.
“The World Bank looks at feedback and effective participation of beneficiaries and civil society in partnership with the government and other sectors as key pillar of inclusive institutions for growth that works for all,” said World Bank Country Director Motoo Konishi. “GPSA is one of the many instruments through which the Bank tries to put the principle of social accountability to work.”
GPSA is also seeking proposals which aim to strengthen CSOs working on social accountability in other development programs.
Civil society groups qualified to apply for grants ranging from US$500,000 to US$1,000,000 are non-government organizations, not-for-profit media organizations, charitable organizations, faith-based organizations, labor unions, professional organizations, workers’ organizations, associations of elected local representatives, foundations, policy development institutes, research institutes, and regional CSO networks.
Deadline for the submission of proposals is March 14, 2013. Winning proposals will be announced around the first week of June 2013.
“There is a need for more independent eyes and ears on the ground to make sure that Pantawid Pamilya, one of the country’s most important investments in the education and health of Filipino children, is implemented very well. The GPSA grants will enable the government to systematically enlist the help of civil society groups in ensuring that,” said Nazmul Chaudhury, World Bank Country Sector Coordinator for Human Development.
After an extensive consultation with civil society groups, the World Bank Board of Executive Directors approved the GPSA on June 12, 2012. The GPSA’s decision-making body is the Steering Committee chaired by the World Bank and comprising a broad representation of CSOs, donors, and governments.
The GPSA operates in countries where the government has agreed to join or 'opt-in' to the GPSA.
The government opt-in process is ongoing in countries across the world. The countries that have formally joined, to date, are Bangladesh, The Dominican Republic, Honduras, Indonesia, Kyrgyz Republic, Malawi, Moldova, Mongolia, Mozambique, The Philippines, Tajikistan, and Tunisia.
For more information about GPSA and the application process, please visit www.worldbank.org/gpsa
