Exploring New Frontiers in Citizen Participation in the Policy Cycle

5. Moving Forward Together in Exploring New Frontiers

Abstract

This chapter emphasises the need for a strategic, long-term approach to citizen participation as a core function of public governance. It encourages collaboration across sectors and borders to push the boundaries of citizen participation and strengthen democratic resilience around the world. By building upon shared knowledge, tools, and frameworks the OECD can support countries as they seek to ensure more meaningful citizen participation.

We reaffirm that democracy remains the system of government best placed to ensure inclusive, prosperous, sustainable and peaceful societies through constant self-assessment and self-improvement. […]

We commit to reinforce, promote and strengthen the foundations of democracies acknowledging that they should rise to the challenges of growing and changing citizens’ expectations in terms of representation, responsiveness, open government, and integrity of institutions, as well as green policies including through innovative approaches in the public sector.

2022 Declaration on Building Trust and Reinforcing Democracy (OECD, 2022[1])

5.1. Key messages

• Adopting a more strategic approach to meaningful citizen participation in policymaking is now an imperative. One which encompasses all branches, all phases of the policy cycle and offers guidance to public institutions. Strengthening meaningful citizen participation in policymaking on fundamental issues is essential, not optional: more stringent and inclusive requirements for meaningful citizen participation are warranted when developing policy responses on fundamental policy issues that affect all citizens.

• The OECD Reinforcing Democracy Initiative will continue to support countries in their efforts to put citizens at the heart of policymaking. Under the OECD Reinforcing Democracy Initiative the OECD Directorate for Public Governance will continue to foster international policy dialogue, analysis, evaluation and the development of metrics for meaningful citizen participation. To do so it will draw upon the combined knowledge assets of the OECD Secretariat and the network of government experts serving in a range of relevant OECD policy committees.

5.2. Scope

This section:

• Argues that a more strategic approach to citizen participation in the policy cycle is now imperative for countries seeking to build trust and reinforce democracy

• Identifies the OECD as a unique multidisciplinary source of expertise and peer-learning to support countries in ensuring meaningful citizen participation in policymaking

5.3. A more strategic approach to citizen participation in policymaking is now imperative

We know that citizens today want their voice to be heard and to have an impact on decisions that affect their lives. We have seen citizen participation in public policymaking evolve into an established field of practice in many democracies over the past decades. Yet countries are still struggling to meet citizens’ rising expectations and to adapt to a digital, interconnected era marked by a planetary ‘infodemic’, global volatility and a climate crisis that spares no one (WHO and UNICEF, 2023[2]). Successive editions of the OECD Trust Survey show that governments are falling short and that many citizens are growing sceptical, or even cynical. The time is right for countries to reaffirm their commitment to making citizen participation in the policy cycle meaningful.

After decades of experimentation, a maturity model for citizen participation is now needed. One which puts the citizen at the heart of policymaking and adopts a whole-of-state perspective, spans the entire policy cycle and helps to guide and align public institutions within representative democracies. This Discussion Paper offers a functional model as a basis for discussion, and as a first step in this direction, while recognizing the large variety of choices countries can make based on their cultures, history and sociopolitical values.

The OECD’s own efforts reflect wider developments in the field of citizen participation. Its Member countries have enshrined fundamental principles in a series of council recommendations adopted by consensus – notably the 2017 Council Recommendation on Open Government. It has gathered comparative data and evidence from its Member countries and far beyond, distilling the lessons learned from hundreds of policy consultations, participatory processes and deliberative exercises into practical guidelines and evaluation frameworks. To promote peer-learning it has established partnerships with other organisations and offered an international platform for data exchange and policy dialogue with governments and civil society.

Moving to the next level will require a more strategic approach to citizen participation which can help countries bridge the space that currently lies between timeless expressions of fundamental principles and insights from fast evolving experience from the field. Making real progress in this area starts with a clear commitment to putting citizens at the heart of the policy cycle. It would then examine the nature of the policy issues themselves (i.e. whether they are “everyday” issues or “fundamental” policy issues of far wider scope and durable impact) as one of the key criteria for guiding all subsequent choices regarding the institutional interfaces, tools, inclusivity requirements and timing for citizen participation processes. It would also acknowledge and account for the level of effort required by, and specific status of, the citizens who participate. Finally, it would include clear accountability mechanisms to clarify how citizens’ input has been incorporated into the policy adopted.

Translating strategy into practice could be supported by developing a practical ‘strategic framework’ to help policy makers match the type of participation processes required to the nature of the policy issues to be tackled. A more strategic approach to meaningful citizen participation will require efforts to:

• Adopt a citizen-centred perspective when examining existing avenues for participation in the policy cycle

• Encompass a "whole-of-state" approach: by examining how the executive, legislature, judiciary and independent oversight institutions (e.g. Ombuds offices) foster citizen participation as part of an integrated “citizen participation ecosystem” within representative democracies

• Learn from data and evidence: including the biennial OECD Trust Survey and lessons learned from the OECD’s ongoing and future work on participatory and deliberative policymaking while incorporating insights from key sectoral policy areas (e.g. climate change, multilevel governance, education and skills).

• Go beyond diagnostics to action: through a strategic and functional review of countries’ citizen participation systems by focusing on objectives, activities and the capabilities required to achieve them (beyond the choice of specific institutional designs or tools, which will vary across countries and levels of governance)

• Reinforce efforts to evaluate and measure the outcomes and impact of citizen participation, in addition to the quality and inclusivity of their processes.

Developing meaningful citizen participation will require input and commitment from all relevant actors – across the public sector and beyond to include business, civil society and citizens themselves These efforts could include joint diagnostics of the key challenges facing citizen participation within a given country context while identifying concrete actions each actor could take. Incorporating reciprocal accountability measures and the collection of performance metrics would ensure ownership and long-term commitment to delivering better outcomes for citizens.

5.4. The OECD as a resource for countries to ensure meaningful citizen participation

Strengthening representation, participation and openness in public life is one of the five pillars of the OECD Reinforcing Democracy Initiative, all of which are underpinned by trust in public institutions. The next phase of the OECD Reinforcing Democracy Initiative will focus on implementation of initial commitments under each pillar, extending global reach, leveraging the OECD’s strengths to support the global dialogue on democracy, and addressing emerging challenges facing democratic governance.

Putting citizens at the heart of policymaking and making their participation meaningful is now imperative. To support countries in making progress in this challenging area, the OECD Directorate for Public Governance will, within the parameters of its future programme of Work and Budget, seek to reinforce its data, evidence base and strategic guidance through:

• Future rounds of the OECD Trust Survey to deliver robust comparative data on the factors driving trust in public institutions and provide evidence-based insights for policy makers.

• The launch of the OECD Citizen Participation Barometer which will provide a concise, data-driven, and internationally comparable overview of how governments provide information, protect civic space, and promote citizen participation

• The provision of strategic support in moving to the next level of meaningful citizen participation by helping countries choose the appropriate options for citizen participation tailored to the nature of the policy issue, the stage in the policy cycle and level of government – while developing appropriate evaluation mechanisms.

• The OECD Observatory on Participatory and Deliberative Democracy to collect evidence, provide comparative analysis and expert support to countries undertaking participatory and deliberative processes, while building effective partnerships with other leading organisations in this field.

Countries seeking to improve their performance in designing and delivering meaningful citizen participation in policymaking can also draw upon the combined knowledge assets of the OECD Secretariat and the network of government experts serving in the relevant OECD policy committees. These span a wide range of relevant topics including:

• Citizen participation in policymaking, deliberative assemblies, digital democracy, information integrity, youth policy, behavioural insights, regulatory consultation, public management and budgeting, civil service, centres of government, the use of AI in government and drivers of trust in public institutions (Directorate for Public Governance)

• Multilevel governance as well as regional, rural and urban policy (Directorate for Public Governance; Centre for Entrepreneurship, SMEs, Regions and Cities)

• Social inclusion, youth, health, migration and well-being (Centre on Well-Being, Inclusion, Sustainability and Equal Opportunity; Directorate for Employment, Labour and Social Affairs)

• Education and skills for participation for children, young people and adults (Directorate for Education and Skills, Centre for Skills)

• Environmental and climate policy (Environment Directorate)

Part I of this Discussion Paper has sought to distill insights drawn from a wide range of work underway at the OECD that is, in one way or another, exploring the new frontiers of citizen participation. It has identified a number of systemic challenges in the rapidly evolving field of citizen participation in policymaking and has proposed four lines of action for countries to consider for the future.

In keeping with the OECD’s strong commitment to providing a platform for diverse perspectives on challenging policy issues, Part II of this report offers a collection of short opinion pieces by leading practitioners. Their daily work in the field and on the frontline – as elected officials, academics and civil society leaders – provides them with a unique vantage point from which to scan the horizon. Their views on the new frontiers for citizen participation are thought-provoking, insightful and unique. The opinions expressed and arguments employed are those of the authors and are published here as part of an ongoing global and inclusive conversation but should not be reported as representing the official views of the OECD or of its Member countries.

References

[1] OECD (2022), OECD Declaration on Building Trust and Reinforcing Democracy, https://legalinstruments.oecd.org/en/instruments/OECD-LEGAL-0484.

[2] WHO and UNICEF (2023), . How to build an infodemic insights report in six steps. Geneva: World Health Organization and the, World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), https://iris.who.int/bitstream/handle/10665/370317/9789240075658-eng.pdf?sequence=1.