From One-Way to Two-Way Exchanges: Gearing Up to Use Communication in Support of Decentralization in Mongolia
Since Mongolia shifted to a multi-party political system and market economy in the early 1990s, it has become a young and vibrant democracy. Debates among politicians, policymakers, civil society organizations, political and social commentators, and other stakeholders are now an integral part of Mongolian society. These happen through local newspapers and on the TV channels, at citizens’ hall meetings, as well as during cultural events, particularly in rural areas as nomadic herders gather for such event and authorities take that opportunity to communicate with them.
However, these debates may not always be particularly effective in getting to a consensus. Indeed, the heritage of the socialist system can still often be felt: public authorities, particularly at the local level, see communication as a way to disseminate and diffuse information through a traditional media approach. There is much to do to transform communication from a one-way dissemination tool to an instrument for two-way engagement.
- Tags:
- Mongolia
- East Asia and Pacific
- Governance
- Democracy
- Public Debate
- Stakeholders
- Local Media
- communication
- Consensus
- consensus building
- Information Dissemination
- One-Way Communication
- Two-Way Communication
- Decentralization and Local Governance
- dialogue
- Coaltion Building
- Stakeholder Analysis
- Governance Reform
- Local Governance
- Public Consultations
- community participation
- Communication for Governance
- social accountability
- Decentralization Reform
- anti-corruption
- public actors
- Politicians
- Policymakers
- civil society organizations
- Political Commentators
- Social Commentators
'Ha, I almost forgot; we need a dissemination strategy for the report. Get somebody to sort that out. Meeting adjourned.'
The demand driven accountability approach puts citizens in charge of monitoring public services. But can ordinary citizens easily access public data against which they can monitor quality of services? What is the reference point against which standards are measured? Can the government make the required information available? What are the incentives for the government to cooperate? Citizens’ Charter initiatives attempt to respond to some of these queries.
Communication is something of an ugly duckling in the social sciences – not many people take it seriously and not many people see the immediate relevance of the research. However, the study of public opinion is a good example to outline the immediate relevance of the field – and its future relevance.