Public Communications Programs in the Water and Sanitation Sector

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• Real World Challenges in Communicating Governance
  Reform
• Ethiopia, June 2007
• Paul Mitchell
• Development Communication DivisionThe World Bank

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Scaling up Communications for Operational Results
Internal Communication
Creating a common platform for messages and
programs
Communicating what we do and how we do it
building trust in the institution and support for
development.
Institutional Communication
Issue campaigns to accelerate action on key
global public goods including at the country
level
Advocacy Communication
Integrating communications and assessing
political and development risks for more
effective strategy and design leading to better
outcomes
Development Communication
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Communication in Governance

• Several Approaches
• Political risks around the governance issue in
  country
• Communication component in governance projects
• Public Sphere
• Communication as a sector in governance

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Public Sphere

• Entry point for discussion about governance in a
  country
• Mediates between society and the state.
• Ability of state to address and listen to
  citizens citizens to form interest groups free
  media
• Embedded in an environment that gives actors
  rights, duties and opportunities.

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Power of Media in Development

• Local media, particularly radio, carry
  information encourage commerce in
  geographically isolated markets
• Growing global media can move currency markets
  and international trade
• Can provide info on political markets, exposing
  corrupt and unethical politicians and giving
  people platform to voice diverse opinions on
  governance and reform
• Can inform poor and marginalized people, giving
  them a voice
• With higher literacy rates, lower printing costs,
  and new broadcast technologies, media can reach
  even further

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Role of Media Improving Governance

• The media acts as the disseminator of information
  about government - expenditures, laws, right and
  obligations of citizens etc.and can also make
  transparent the information that government sends
  or puts out. It also acts as watchdog on
  government
• It plays the important role of providing
  information to enable informed audiences who can
  then participate in development policy
  discussions (National Plans, CAS) - it carries
  that information both about process and content
• The media is useful in building trust in
  institutions (like the WB) and faith in the
  product (development)

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Fighting Corruption Another Look

• Anti-corruption
• Rely on legal and financial institutions
  judiciary, police, financial auditorsto enforce
  and enhance accountability in the public sector.
  However, in many poor countries, these
  institutions are weak and among the most corrupt
• A complementary approach takes the users of
  public services as a starting point. Rather than
  attempting to increase service providers
  accountability to policymakers alone, the idea is
  to also engage citizens at the bottom of the
  public service delivery chain by providing them
  with easy access to information on the workings
  of public programs intended for their benefit
• In this way, citizens will be empowered to demand
  certain standards and monitor and challenge
  abuses by officials they interact with in their
  daily lives
• Improving public access to information is a
  crucial part in this bottom-up strategy

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Empowered Communication Environment

• Communication as sector
• Reform government communication
• Parliamentary communication
• Decentralized communication
• Improve functioning of private media
• The legal environment for communication
• How do people receive information

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Empowered Communication Environment contd

• The market to support media and communication
• Civil society
• Academia
• Social media and the citizen journalist
• New technology

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Defining Political Risk
effective political risk analysis is not just a
question of evaluating a country risk. Instead,
risk assessment must identify the implications of
social, political and economic conditions of each
particular development intervention. The key to
analyzing the political risks facing a project is
to identify the winners and losers and assess
their relative ability to help or hinder a
project, whether directly or by influencing
others.
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Political risks are highlyCONTEXTUAL

• Issue
• Time
• Place
• Who is involved
• External environment

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Dimensions of political risk

• Who is involved?
• What influence can they exert?
• Will they use it and to what degree?
• What impact will it have?

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Political risk is DYNAMIC
Unlike other analysis financial, social,
environmental Non-financial risk analysis can
change very quickly
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Political risk and communication A presidential
view
If we want to he helpful to governments it is
important to understand the political environment
in which they are operating. Another area for
communication is how to improve the Banks
ability to understand and navigate the political
circumstances of the world we live in and work
with political analysis and risk assessment.

• Paul Wolfowitz, President World Bank, May 2006
  CommNet Forum

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The cost of not communicating

• Hydro Quebec estimated that the lack of adequate
  communication with indigenous peoples regarding
  their hydropower scheme in North Quebec, led to
  controversies that caused projects delays of over
  20 years, costing the company an estimated US
  278 million
• Presentation by John Paul Murdoch, Legal Counsel
  Cree Nation, Hydro-Quebec, World Bank Energy Week
  2005.

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Project Cycle
Project Cycle Phase
PRSP CAS
Identification
Preparation
Appraisal
Approval
Evaluation
Implementation
DevComm Program Phase
Analysis
Strategy and Communication Component Design
Communication Program Implementation
Monitoring and Evaluation
Research
Interventions and Products
Country Portfolio Review
Communication Program Performance and Impact
Evaluation

• Communication Based Assessment
• Socio Political Risk Assessment
• Consultation schemes
• Public Opinion Research

• Project Document Inputs
• Communication Program Implementation Plan

• Capacity building
• Technical Assistance
• Advice
• Supervision

• Client Survey

KNOWLEDGE PRODUCTS
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Communication Audit Assesses Communication Needs
for an Initiative

• Identifies roadblocks for a project/initiative,
  evaluates opponents strategies
• Analyzes political, social, cultural environment
• Segments audiences based on their positions
• Assesses communication capacity of government,
  media, and others involved, designs training
• Identifies partners and local communication
  professionals
• Develops preliminary communication plan

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Communications Based Assessment

• Usually shows one or all of three issues needs to
  be changed
• Design of project
• Process
• Communication

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Public Understanding of Respondents Rating
Impediment as Serious Obstacle to Economic
Reforms Recently
All Respondents
Public Sector Respondents
No Economic Reform Understanding by Population
Short-Term Political Factors
Weak Institutional Capacity
No Economic Reform Understanding by Leadership
Lack of Cohesive Reform Team
Corruption Vested Financial Interests
No Sense of Crisis
Social Poverty Considerations
Survey of senior public service and civil
society representatives from 63
developing/emerging economies Kaufmann, D.,
Listening to Stakeholders on Development
Challenges and WB Instruments in their Countries,
1996
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Client Survey Importance vs. Effectiveness
Sector Analysis
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The Reality of Institutional Settings
CONFLICT Water Quality Issues
CONFLICT Regulation of Service Providers
Ministry of Infrastructure
CONFLICT
Ministry of Health
CONFLICT Water Rights
National Government
Water Authority
CONFLICT
Provincial Government
Unions
Regulator
Service Providers
Municipalities
EPA
Users
CONFLICT EIAs of providers
CONFLICT
Congress
Courts
Media
Water Sector Institutions in the Province of
Buenos Aires
Gustavo Saltiel, Urban Water Supply Practice
Retreat
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WAGP one pipeline many issues

• Nigeria land and human rights issues from the
  Niger Delta
• Ghana financial viability
• Benin compensation issues form previous claims
• Togo in arrears Bank not engaged

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1 Main Audiences Analysis
HARD-CORE ALLIES
ALLIES
UNCOMMITTED AND INVOLVED
UNCOMMITTED UNIVOLVED
OPPONENTS
UNMOVABLE OPPONENTS

Govt (TRA)

• Bottle Manufacters

Spouses

• Bottle Manufacturers

• Religious Institutions

• Retailers

• Consumers

• Wheat Growers Association

LGA

• Wheat Growers

• Other Brewers

• Importers of Foreign Brands

• Politicians

• Whole Sellers/
• Distributors

• Employees

• Trade Union

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OECS Public Sector Reform

• General population surveys in 4 OECS countries
  related to public sector reform.
• Findings show very little frustration with level
  of service basic dissatisfaction but not top of
  mind at all (it would be a mistake to build a
  campaign on the negatives of the public sector).
• Most frustration and concern related to crime.
• However, findings show recognition that debt is a
  problem and desire to become more competitive
  globally.
• Great support for regional integration
• Campaign to build support for public sector
  reform needs to focus less on frustration related
  to public sector services and more on public
  support for greater competitiveness, recognition
  of the danger of debt, concern about education
  and crime (related to jobs and youth).

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Public services that can be shifted to private
sector ( saying yes)
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Ghana PSP in water restructuring Research
findings may provide political cover

• General population cares about access to clean
  water
• General population strongly supports
  international private sector involvement and
  presence in Ghana
• General population thinks costs will go up but
  accept this because they expect quality and
  service to increase as well
• World Bank focus groups showed a fairly vocal
  level of animosity toward World Bank (didnt
  emerge as strongly in survey).

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Benefit of PSP

• The majority of respondents felt that Private
  Sector Participation in water service and
  delivery would have a positive impact on them.
  (Note This question was asked after the concept
  of PSP was explained to respondents.)

In general, to what degree do you think Private
Sector Participation in water service and
delivery would benefit you as a consumer? Do you
think it would have a very good impact, a
somewhat good impact, a somewhat bad impact, or a
very bad impact?
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Players

• The national government, local media, and
  religious leaders were perceived as having the
  most positive impact on Ghana.

I am going to read out some stakeholders in
Ghana. Id like you to tell me what kind of
impact they have on Ghana a very good impact, a
somewhat good impact, a somewhat bad impact, or a
very bad impact. (Percentage of respondents
giving each response.)
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What people would like to see at the end of the
transition

• If transition does not work people would see no
  advantage in believing in the democratic system
• Security and stability
• Foundations for the future
• Government procedures, practices and policies put
  in place
• A good election Strong turnout Acceptance of
  results Hope is restored.

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Issues people are worried about

• Lack of data
• 87 claiming government doing nothing or they are
  not aware of what its doing
• 50 put political instability as no.1 or 2 issue
• 25 put corruption as no.1 or 2
• 20 put degradation of public services as no. 1
  or 2
• 18 put criminal violence as no. 1 or 2

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What to do

• Focus on key audiences who can re-disseminate
  information (e.g., media, NGOs, private sector
  and religious organizations)
• Focus on few issues Government to communicate
  along 3 strands
• 1) Social stability erasing the climate of
  violence and fear in the country getting people
  to think about their own development, empowering
  people to participate is all aspects of society
• 2) Return to democracy having a free, fair
  election process, gaining acceptance of the
  election results by the national and
  international community
• 3) Economic governance - good fiscal management
  transparency fighting corruption, using the
  money we have wisely and for economic development

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What Have We LearnedRisks of Not Incorporating
Communication Programs into Urban Water Projects

• Some communication programs are not addressing
  real needs of projects
• Failed projects put Banks reputational risk on
  the line
• Projects are being delayed because of vocal
  opposition (even from small minority groups)
• Poor understanding of the political issues led
  the Bank in some cases to push reforms that stood
  little chance of success
• Opposition can draw global attention

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• Major overlooked factor ?
• MANAGING EXPECTATIONS