Civil Society and Accountability

This paper addresses the question of whether trust in civil society groups is justified when it comes to giving voice to the poor. It addresses the issue of accountability as it relates to civil society, defining "moral' accountability as an organization's accountability towards the people it was established to help, and procedural accountability as internal management. It draws a distinction between civil society and non-governmental organizations, and argues that the contradiction between "moral' and "procedural' accountability applies primarily to non-governmental organizations, a subset of civil society. Beginning with an overview of the concept of civil society and the relevance of voice, it develops a typology of civil society actors to clarify different forms of accountability, and concludes with policy recommendations.