Inclusive Citizenship Research Project: Methodology

From the Introduction of this working paper from Fundación para las Relaciones Internacionales y el Diálogo Exterior (FRIDE): "This methodology was developed to conduct country level research on how donors can support the development of inclusive citizenship in contexts where the political and social exclusion of some groups has been a major driver of state fragility. In particular, its aim was to examine the relationships between excluded citizens and state institutions and the impact of current donor policies on this relationship; as well as to explore how donors can most effectively support the development of state institutions that are inclusive and accountable, and empower excluded citizens to make claims and hold state institutions to account....This publication is intended to provide an overview of the conceptual framework and investigative strategies of the research. For this reason it begins with the epistemological approach, assumptions, hypotheses and conceptual definitions; and then goes on to elaborate the referents for the research, the investigative approach and the guiding questions for use in the field."

The document assumes that:

• "Citizenship is the primary framework of accountability between the state and individuals and it is essential for good governance and development
  
• ...[D]eveloping "inclusive citizenship" - a situation where all can act as citizens and hold the state accountable - is an important element of reducing state fragility.
  
• Members of politically and socially excluded groups have weaker citizenship relationships with the state....
  
• In order to be effective in strengthening the relationships of citizenship between the state and all its citizens, donor policies must address the local constituents and determinants of citizenship...."

The methodology begins on the premise that the main factors that determine the quality of citizenship are:

• "The nature of state institutions (e.g. their structure, capacity, power relations, policies, practices, culture)
  
• The identity of the individual (e.g. their gender, ethnicity, political affiliation, economic status, social status, educational status, physical location)
  
• The political settlement (the nature of local and national mechanisms for distributing power and allocating resources, including democratic mechanisms for accountability)
  
• The policy environment (the international, national and local level policies that influence all of the above factors)
  
• Other locally relevant determinants"

The methodology proposes to examine citizen rights, including civil and political rights and economic and social rights (ESC). "In each case the research will aim to identify which types of rights are the subject of claims for accountability." It proposes to answer: "What constitutes citizenship?" and "What determines the quality of citizenship?" In relation to donors, the document asks: "How can donor policies be most relevant to local constituents and determinants of citizenship?"

A chart on pages 6-7 shows the framework for gathering information on the situation and perspective of excluded citizens; and a chart on pages 8-9 shows a framework for information gathering on the situation and perspective of the relevant sectoral institutions. Information is to be gathered through interviews and focus group discussions (FGD) related to the citizens’ perspective and interviews and data analysis on institutions. "This will include examining the trajectories of specific claims by citizens for accountability, the aggregate experiences of categories of citizens of particular state institutions (e.g. young people’s experience of courts), and the structure and functioning of state institutions. The research will look particularly at cases where there is a serious failure of state accountability or a contestation between citizens and the state, as in such situations the tensions and challenges of the citizenship relationship will be most visible."

The framework for gathering information on donor policies, programmes, and approaches is set out on pages 10-11. "In order to build up a picture of how donor policies, programmes and approaches affect citizenship, the research will gather information on how donors impact both the accountability of state institutions and the ability of citizens to hold state institutions to account - the two sides of the citizenship relationship. It will look both at donors' formal policies and their 'unwritten' approaches to citizenship and accountability issues, and at the perception of national stakeholders of the donors' role." Information will be gathered through interviews and data analysis related to donor roles.

In each country, context the research will focus on the relationship between the state and citizen in 3-4 locations, within two sectors, and in relation to particularly excluded groups. The two focus sectors will be the justice sector and one main service provision sector that is vital for basic economic and social rights and where accountability and access are problematic. This strategy is intended  to allow for comparison of the dynamics of citizenship between different types of sectors, institutions, and rights.