Accountability mechanisms in community-driven reconstruction in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo

ABSTRACT

A lack of accountability is often considered a root cause of conflict. Many post-conflict reconstruction efforts therefore aim to enhance accountability between authorities and the population through community-driven reconstruction programmes. This article examines the accountability mechanisms in the Tushiriki community-driven reconstruction programme in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. The ethnographic research found little impact of formal programme accountability. Rather, accountability was shaped differently and had its own context-specific meaning. To make accountability more sustainable, stronger embeddedness in local institutions and more appropriate translations of abstract concepts into the local context are needed.

Un défaut d’imputabilité est souvent considéré comme une cause fondamentale de conflit. De nombreux efforts de reconstruction après un conflit visent par conséquent à renforcer l’imputabilité entre les autorités et la population à travers des programmes de reconstruction déterminés par la population. Cet article examine les mécanismes d’imputabilité du Tushiriki, un programme de reconstruction déterminé par la population, dans l’est de la République démocratique du Congo. La recherche ethnographique dont il rend compte a révélé un impact mineur de l’imputabilité formelle du programme. En revanche, l’imputabilité était déterminée différemment et avait sa signification spécifique au contexte. Pour que l’imputabilité soit plus durable, sa plus forte intégration aux institutions locales et des traductions plus appropriées des concepts abstraits dans le contexte local sont nécessaires.

A menudo se piensa que la falta de rendición de cuentas constituye una de las causas fundamentales para la aparición de conflicto. Por esta razón, el objetivo de muchos esfuerzos encaminados a la reconstrucción en periodos de posconflicto es mejorar la rendición de cuentas de las autoridades de cara a la población a través de programas comunitarios de reconstrucción. El presente artículo examina los mecanismos establecidos para ello que prevalecen en el programa comunitario de reconstrucción Tushiriki, implementado en el oriente de la República Democrática del Congo. Al respecto, la investigación etnográfica encontró que la rendición de cuentas formal instituida en el programa produjo poco impacto; o más bien, que había sido concebida de manera diferente y tenía un sentido específico en ese contexto. Para que la rendición de cuentas sea más sostenible, deben aterrizarse los conceptos abstractos en las instituciones locales y traducirlos de una forma que resulte apropiada para estos contextos.

KEYWORDS:

• Aid – Accountability
• Civil society – Participation
• Conflict and reconstruction
• Labour and livelihoods – Poverty reduction
• Social sector – Education

Acknowledgements

We thank the International Rescue Committee/Stichting Vluchteling for funding provided to Patrick Milabyo Kyamusugulwa, and DFID for funding as part of the Secure Livelihoods Research Consortium to Dorothea Hilhorst and Carolien Jacobs. Patrick Milabyo Kyamusugulwa is grateful to the Marie Curie Fellowship for its support during the inception phase of this research, and to DFID during the revision phase of the article. Special thanks go to the communities of Burhinyi, Luhwindja and Kaziba for taking part in this research. Finally, we thank the two anonymous referees for their comments.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes on contributors

Patrick Milabyo Kyamusugulwa is Associate Professor at the Institut Supérieur des Techniques Médicales de Bukavu, Democratic Republic of Congo; he did his PhD in humanitrian aid and reconstruction at Wageningen University, The Netherlands. He is currently post-doctoral researcher at the International Institute of Social Studies, Erasmus University Rotterdam. He has published widely on participatory development and reconstruction, community-driven reconstruction, and public health and community development.

Dorothea Hilhorst is Professor of Humanitarian Aid and Reconstruction at the International Institute of Social Studies, Erasmus University Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Her research concerns the aidnography of humanitarian crises and fragile states. Her publications focus on the everyday practice of humanitarian aid, disaster risk reduction, climate change adaptation, reconstruction, peace building, and gender.

Carolien Jacobs is Assistant Professor at the Van Vollenhoven Institute for Law, Governance & Society, Leiden University, The Netherlands. Her research is carried out within the field of socio-legal studies, especially in Africa. Her publications focus on conflict resolution, development, and access to justice.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by Dutch Government through Stichting Vluchteling.