Enhancing Inclusive Governance in Fragile & (Post) Conflict-Affected Settings: An exploration of social norms related practices affecting public authorities

The Every Voice Counts programme has identified social norms as one of the key determinants of success or failure for inclusive development (IG) development initiatives. Isolating key norms and the related practices that influence IG development, as well as the origins and mechanisms for social norm change, can help us understand why current IG interventions may not be as successful as planned as well as mechanisms or leverage points to enhance the effectiveness of these interventions. Social norms impact inclusive governance through guiding the behaviors of powerholders, decisionmakers, and the community. Little research exists on norms from the perspective of supply-side actors: the Public Authorities. Inquiry from this perspective sheds insight on the social norms that exist within government institutions and those more broadly associated with the FCAS context, local communities, and personal networks that enable or hinder their ability to develop IG. In this study, IG is measured through four elements: transparency, inclusivity, responsiveness, and accountability.