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Policy development
At the core of SDDirect’s development practice is our work to inform policy in order to improve the ways in which the social and political dimensions of development are understood and addressed.
SDDirect regularly provides social expertise policy development processes, where we work to ensure that social development concerns such as equitable access to services, gender equality, participation, inclusiveness and cohesion and the ownership and commitment of those affected by policy measures are adequately addressed.
Our policy development work centres on equity, inclusion, voice and accountability, citizen rights and poverty eradication. We can advise on the likely impact of a policy on particular groups, for example, how the introduction of user fees is likely to affect poorer households or initiatives such as the introduction of stipends or improved school facilities changes access to education for girls.
We can advise more generically, for example on the implications of shifts in arrangements for providing development aid for relationships between governments, donors and the poorest, most vulnerable or excluded social groups. This includes people’s participation in processes for allocating budget resources and systems for negotiating budget priorities.
Participatory processes are key to ensuring that the voices of poor and marginalised people are heard and that governments are held accountable to their citizens. We provide advice on mechanisms to ensure more inclusive participation, both as policies are developed (for example in a PRS process) or in implementation of policy (for example through development of participatory monitoring or accountability mechanisms). Our consultants are skilled in facilitating consultation, in order to engage stakeholders in policy development, or to promote debate on a particular issue.
The potential implications for conflict between different groups must be taken into account in all areas of policy, with social development specialists playing a key role in ensuring that policy development is “conflict-sensitive”. This involves ensuring awareness of the potential conflict-related implications of policy measures in diverse sectors, such as health, education, land or employment services.
Research and analysis is at the heart of informing policy development. At SDDirect, we provide research to improve sectoral policies, for example on access to services or pro-poor infrastructure. We also carry out research to inform development of social policy, on issues such as gender and social exclusion. This ranges from policy papers covering technical and institutional concerns around gender equality, to development of frameworks for evaluating social exclusion policy.