Support to domestic accountability in developing countries: Taking stock of the approaches and experiences of German development cooperation

“Domestic accountability” has become a new buzz phrase in the international debate on development. How domestic accountability emerges and whether the increased use of programme-based approaches in development cooperation is conducive to strengthening domestic accountability in developing countries are questions that have been much debated in the run up to preparations for the Fourth High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness.

This synthesis report aims to contribute to this debate. It summarises the findings of a stock taking exercise on German support to strengthening domestic accountability in six developing countries. The study explored how different actors in German development cooperation aim to strengthen domestic accountability systems in partner countries: he study also analysed how different instruments and aid modalities were combined to reach this objective and how various actors of German development organisations aimed to contribute to the donor community’s wider efforts to strengthen domestic accountability in these countries. The study looked at the approaches of both bilateral aid organisations and German non-government organisations, including the German political foundations.