Implementing Citizen’s Charter in Urban Local Government in Bangladesh: Do Accountability and Public Awareness Matter?

Sajib Kumar Roy; Mohammad Nur Ullah; Bikram Biswas; Md Mafizur Rahman

doi:10.31506/jog.v8i1.18791

Implementing Citizen’s Charter in Urban Local Government in Bangladesh: Do Accountability and Public Awareness Matter?

Sajib Kumar Roy, Mohammad Nur Ullah, Bikram Biswas, Md Mafizur Rahman

Abstract

Abstract: This research looks at the possibilities and challenges of adopting a Citizen’s Charter in Paurashava. In this regard, introducing the Citizen Charter in government offices is a step forward. One Paurashava was selected as the study field to observe the current situation of Citizen’s Charter implementation and to recognize the problems in Citizen’s Charter implementation. This study is primarily qualitative in nature. Both primary and secondary sources of data were used. Besides, official records and other relevant documents were used as secondary sources. According to preliminary observations, the extent of Citizen Charter implementation in Paurashava is extremely poor. All of the services of thePaurashava are not covered by the Citizen’s Charter, and most citizens are unaware of it. A number of other problems also hamper the success of the Paurashava. Therefore, these factors constrain the successful implementation of the Citizens’ Charter at the Paurashava.

Keywords

Citizen Charter; Accountability; Awareness; Urban Local Government Paurashava; Bangladesh.

Full Text:

PDF 1-16

References

Beniwal. V. S., 2005. Challenges and prospects of implementation Citizens Charter: A Study of Panchkula (Hariana) Municipal Council in India. Department of Administration and Organization Theory, University of Bergen, Norway.

Beniwal, V.S., 2013. Instilling citizen-centric approach in civil service: Prospects and challenges. Journal of Politics and Governance, 2 (1 and 2), pp.235-244.

Chowdhury, M. S. and Deb, P., 2012. Urban Local Government and Environmental Management in Bangladesh: A Study on Chunarughat Paurashava. Bangladesh Development Research Center (BDRC). Website: http://www.bangladeshstudies.org

ESCAP, U., 2005. Urban environmental governance for sustainable development in Asia and the Pacific: a regional overview.

Howard, L.W., 1998. Validating the competing values model as a representation of organizational cultures. The international journal of organizational analysis.

Hood, C., 1991. A public management for all seasons?. Public administration, 69(1), pp.3-19.

Hupe, P. and Hill, M., 2007. Street‐Level bureaucracy and public accountability. Public administration, 85(2), pp.279-299.

Islam, R., 2019. Comprehensive Local Government Policy: How Far Is the Shore?. Dynamics of Public Administration, 36(2), pp.125-136.

Kabir, S.M.S., 2016. Basic guidelines for research. An introductory approach for all disciplines, 4(2), pp.168-180.

McGrath, S.K. and Whitty, S.J., 2018. Accountability and responsibility defined. International Journal of Managing Projects in Business, 11(3), pp.687-707.

Nayem, Z., 2010. Problem of implementation citizen charter. A study of upazila land office. North South University. Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Osborne, D., & Plastrik, P. 1997. Banishing Bureaucracy: The Five Strategies for Reinventing Government. Addison-Wesley.

Osborne, David and T. Gaebler, 1992. Reinventing Government: How the Entrepreneurial Spirit is transforming the public Sector, Reading, Addison-Wesley.

O'Loughlin, M.G., 1990. What is bureaucratic accountability and how can we measure it?. Administration & Society, 22(3), pp.275-302.

Government. Addison-Wesley Publishing Company, Inc., 1 Jacob Way, Reading, MA 01867

Principe, A. P., 2009. Exploring Public Service Improvement Initiative: A Case Study of Citizen's Charter Implementation in Naga City. Master's Programme). Urban Management and Development.

Pollitt, C., 1990. Managerialism and the public services: The Anglo-American experience. Blackwell.

Rhodes, R.A.W. 1997, Understanding Governance: Policy Networks, Governance, Reflexivity and Accountability, Buckingham, Open University Press.

Richard, E. and David, L.F., 2018. The future of citizen engagement in cities—The council of citizen engagement in sustainable urban strategies (ConCensus). Futures, 101, pp.80-91.

Rothstein, B., 1998. Just institutions matter: The moral and political logic of the universal welfare state. Cambridge university press.

Romzek, B.S. and Dubnick, M.J., 1987. Accountability in the public sector: Lessons from the Challenger tragedy. Public administration review, pp.227-238

Sharma, B., 2008. Voice, accountability and civic engagement: A conceptual overview. Commissioned by Oslo Governance Centre, pp.1-33.

Siddiqui, K., 2005. Local Government in Bangladesh. 3rd ed. Dhaka: The University Press Limited.

Tamrakar, R., 2010. Impact of citizen charter in service delivery: A case of District Administration Office. Kathmandu.

Thomas, J.W. and Grindle, M.S., 1990. After the decision: Implementing policy reforms in developing countries. World Development, 18(8), pp.1163-1181.

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.31506/jog.v8i1.18791