Good Governance attempts to lay the foundations for factors like accountability, transparency, effective service delivery and efficiency of processes and outcomes. However to guarantee these features, social accountability becomes an overhauling factor, be it in the context of civil society or political society. Social accountability is the ability of all citizens, civil society and the private sector to scrutinize leaders, governments and public institutions and hold them to account. This includes, ultimately, the opportunity to change leaders by democratic means. In the larger context, democratic governance is a necessary factor. The underlying assumption is that the features of democratic governance enable social accountability and hence ensure conducive environment for sustaining social accountability initiatives. These features are parliamentary democracy, representation, constitutionalism and participation respectively. These features in a cumulative manner ensure social accountability through fundamental rights, franchise power, local governance, information flow, public sphere, legislations, private sector participation, civil society engagement and formation of state regulatory bodies. For more on SAc Concept click the links below.

The literature available on the website on enabling environment should be able to help the reader understand the broad concept of enabling environment for accountability and the nature in which political systems make provision for the same, identify the inbuilt mechanism of accountability in the three branches of government and also learn the role of legal framework in ensuring accountability, understand the scope and need for civic engagement in decision making and understanding the role of media, civil society and private sector in ensuring suitable environment for social accountability