Empowering Grassroots Voices: Engagement of Civil Society Organizations in Philippine Local Governance
Keywords:
Empowering grassroots voices, engagement, civil society organizations, Philippine local governanceAbstract
Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) promote inclusive governance characterized by accountability, transparency, and participation. The engagement of CSOs’ is a mechanism for citizens and government to work together to achieve development. The study used mixed methods to examine CSOs' engagement in local governance in the four functional areas of planning, budgeting, implementation monitoring, and evaluation within the Province of Bukidnon, Philippines. The results show a moderate level of engagement, with planning having the highest and monitoring and evaluation the lowest. The study reveals a discrepancy between policy and practice, implying compliance may be a stronger motivator than genuine engagement. Furthermore, specific CSO attributes like geographical location, sectors represented, organizational level and number of committees represented significantly affected their level of engagement. This study emphasizes the importance of strengthening systems that empower grassroots voices and foster meaningful collaboration, between civil society groups and local government.
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