Abstract

The study explored how civil society organisations participate in education policy process (policy formulation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation) in Malawi. The study used Arnstein’s ladder of citizen participation to understand participation of CSOs in education policy process in addition to key-informant interviews to hear policy actors’ experiences, views and perceptions on CSOs’ roles in policy process. Results show that policy actors have not yet streamlined structures currently in use for policy making in the sector. CSOs are involved in education policy making/formulation exclusively through SWAp policy structures and are left out in MoEST management structures, where final decisions to pass or enact policy are made. CSOs are largely involved through consultations in TWGs, and ESWG. Within the policy process, CSOs feature more in first two stages (problem definition/agenda setting and constructing the policy alternatives/ policy formulation) and last two stages (implementation and monitoring and evaluation) but are absent in choice of solution/selection of preferred policy option and policy design stages. Although CSOs felt they influence policy, DPs and Ministry policy actors felt that they were ineffective. The key challenges that prevent CSOs’ meaningful participation in education policy process were animosity and mistrust between them and mainly MoEST policy actors, CSOs’ inadequate representativeness in policy structures and insufficient funds for doing independent research to generate evidence to inform their policy position. CSOs’ participation in the education policy process is tokenistic and largely for legitimation than equal partnership in policy dialogue.

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School	: School of Education
Issued Date	: 2015

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