7. Questions a policy mapping can answer What is the problem that requires a policy response? Who are the stakeholders in this problem and what’s at stake for them? What are the various sites or venues where this policy debate is occurring? How does the research need to be framed to be relevant the current debate? How are you connected to this?
8. Begin with your researchers What are the attitudes or misconceptions your research has the potential to change or dispel? Which specific policies does your research have the potential to influence? What are the policy axes: the issues that divide opinions in the policy debate? What ideological direction is the policy currently trending toward? Who supports the policy trend strongly, moderately? Who opposes it? Which supporters and which opponents are allied? What are the different points through which policies on this topic pass to become approved and implemented? Ministries, associations and unions, congressional committees, state government offices, international donors, implementing agencies, etc.? Have you interacted formally or informally with any of these actors? How? How strong is your relationship with them? Which other actors informally influence those policy paths? NGOs, activist groups, CBOs, etc? Have you interacted with any of these actors? How? How strong is your relationship with them? What major events occurring in the next eighteen months have the potential to influence the policy environment? Congressional debate, workshop, protest, etc.? Irrespective of this particular policy, with which actors do you have the strongest relationship? Which local, national or regional government officials? Other academic or research institutions? CBOs? Social movements? NGOs? Political parties or lawmakers?
9. Define the policy Angolan DecentralisationPolicy Decree Law 02/07 and the PRSP Budgetary Units Social Consultation and Coordination Councils The topic of decentralization is not ideologically controversial, but the practice can be, especially with regard to who is selected to participate in the new forums
10. Get other views Internet: Do some quick and dirty Internet research on the organisations and institutions your researcher describes. Along the way, you’ll discover more. Snowball: Ask the researchers who they think would know more about the policy environment, and interview them. Consultant: Hire a consultant who is involved in the policy debates to carry out the mapping for you. The mapping itself can be an opportunity for influence, and these translators are crucial.
11. Stakeholder Analysis Christian Association Academic Associate Peace Work Interfaith Mediation Centre For each actor, write 1-2 sentence s summarizing their policy interest/position. National Institute For Policy Federal Govt Strategic Empowerment & Mediation Agency DFID Supreme Council For Islamic Affairs 2007 Movement Congress Interfaith Mediation Com’s Interfaith Mediation Com’s Interfaith Mediation Com’s Interfaith Mediation Com’s Interfaith Mediation Com’s Regional Govts Interfaith Mediation Com’s Emirate Councils
12. Force-field analysis High Power Academic Associate Peace Work Christian Association Supreme Council For Islamic Affairs DFID Low Interest High Interest Interfaith Mediation Com’s Interfaith Mediation Com’s Interfaith Mediation Com’s Interfaith Mediation Com’s Interfaith Mediation Com’s Interfaith Mediation Com’s Regional Govts Emirate Councils Strategic Empowerment & Mediation Agency Interfaith Mediation Centre Low Power
13. Policy Axes/Areas Buro Tangail Service Delivery ASA Grameen BSK Brac Proshika ASK RDRS KN Naripokkho Rights Basic Needs Samata Nijera Kori Social Mobilisation
14. Policy Process Party Politics Ministry Of Health World Bank President Indigenous Missionary Council National Congress Public Consultation SSL Indigenous Groups CEBRAPE Funasa Funasa Regional Offices Municipal Health Secretariats Implementing Orgs SPACES Closed Invited Created
16. Other techniques Policy entrepreneurship Power analysis Drivers of change See “Mapping Political Context” by RAPID
17. President & Prime Minister Ministry of Territorial Administration Decentralization And Local Government Program UNDP, World Bank, & Donors Cabinet & Party Meetings Decentralization Working Group Ministry of Planning Ministry of Finance International NGOs ADRA National Assembly (4th Commission) National NGOs Provincial/ Municipal Government C I T I Z E N S Budgetary Units Civil Society Conferences ACTORS CACS Regional CSOs SPACES Closed Invited Created
18. Kinds of knowledge Instrumental: Knowledge that explains causal relationships, structures and functional relationships through the analysis of data. Interactive: Knowledge that derives from how people interact with one another, including emotions, sharing daily experiences and exchanging actions. Critical: Knowledge that emerges from a combination of reflection and action that makes normative deliberations possible. www.drc-citizenship.org/docs/publications/drc_general/ Creatingspacesforengagement.pdf
19. President & Prime Minister Ministry of Territorial Administration Decentralization And Local Government Program UNDP, World Bank, & Donors Cabinet & Party Meetings Decentralization Working Group Ministry of Planning Ministry of Finance International NGOs ADRA National Assembly (4th Commission) National NGOs Provincial/ Municipal Government C I T I Z E N S Budgetary Units Civil Society Conferences ACTORS CACS Regional CSOs SPACES Closed Invited Created
20. President & Prime Minister Ministry of Territorial Administration Decentralization And Local Government Program UNDP, World Bank, & Donors Cabinet & Party Meetings Decentralization Working Group Ministry of Planning Ministry of Finance International NGOs ADRA National Assembly (4th Commission) National NGOs Provincial/ Municipal Government C I T I Z E N S Budgetary Units Civil Society Conferences ACTORS CACS Regional CSOs SPACES Closed Invited Created
21. President & Prime Minister Ministry of Territorial Administration Decentralization And Local Government Program UNDP, World Bank, & Donors Cabinet & Party Meetings Decentralization Working Group Ministry of Planning Ministry of Finance International NGOs ADRA National Assembly (4th Commission) National NGOs Provincial/ Municipal Government C I T I Z E N S Budgetary Units Civil Society Conferences ACTORS CACS Regional CSOs SPACES Closed Invited Created
22. Angola - Recommendations ADRA may want to use its contacts with the Decentralisation Working Group, especially the Ministry of Territorial Administration and UNDP, to help develop its policy messages from the research to create a policy brief for top policy makers. ADRA could facilitate discussions by screening PVs at a series of meetings bringing together local actors, perhaps starting in Benguela, where it has allies in the government. ADRA may want to partner with local media outlets or international media NGOs (e.g. BBC World Trust) to get out messages via broadcast?
23. Framing Communication of research should be an iterative, interactive and multi-directional process that involves a wide range of stakeholders from planning, through to design, implementation and monitoring and evaluation. - DFID Research Communication Strategy
24. Key Questions What common traits define each audience? What policy, practice or discourse are you seeking to influence by communicating to this audience? What attitudes or beliefs might impede influence? What kind of knowledge can most effectively influence this audience? Which Citizenship DRC research projects contain messages for this audience? Which are the best mediums for reaching this audience? What new capacities or networks will you need to communicate in these mediums? How will this communication strategy promote the dissemination of Citizenship DRC ideas to new audiences and expand existing partner networks? What messages (or kinds of messages) come out of the research for this audience? How will this work help deepen or sharpen your concepts?
25. Questions for small groups What is your objective in engaging with policy? What kind of policy actors would be most likely to use your resources? How might you use one of the mapping tools in your own work? If none are useful, why not? What kinds of tensions or challenges will arise as you move in this direction?
Editor's Notes
Contribution vs. attribution: these environments are often too complex to be able to definitively claim influence. If you can demonstrate that your work was ‘considered’ and demonstrate some correlation with any of these, then you have contributed. Is the objective to promote evidence-based decision making? Isn’t that a behavioural change? Perhaps procedural change ?
Donors and multi-laterals often have their own research, though have gaps, e.g. World Bank Institute and accountability. Social movements less likely to have research. Lobbyists and interest groups – depends on who they are. Legislators unlikely to handle any ‘evidence’ themselves: take not of the systems in place for the technical work (US vs. Mexico).
Donors and multi-laterals often have their own research, though have gaps, e.g. World Bank Institute and accountability. Social movements less likely to have research. Lobbyists and interest groups – depends on who they are. Legislators unlikely to handle any ‘evidence’ themselves: take not of the systems in place for the technical work (US vs. Mexico).
Perhaps you don’t need to answer these questions. The first question is key because it helps answer what is the policy problem.
Donors and multi-laterals often have their own research, though have gaps, e.g. World Bank Institute and accountability. Social movements less likely to have research. Lobbyists and interest groups – depends on who they are. Legislators unlikely to handle any ‘evidence’ themselves: take not of the systems in place for the technical work (US vs. Mexico).
Identify all the stakeholders or interest groups associated with this ‘policy.’ Stakeholders can be organisations, groups, departments, structures, networks or individuals. Write a sentence or two on each. What’s the interest of this stakeholder, and what resources do they have?
Classify the various stakeholders in terms of their power (their degree of influence) and their interest (the degree to which they are affected). High-power, high-interest people are the ones to engage with.
TIMINGGetting the right people together at the right time. What events
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