Social Development and Public Governance > Social Development > Social Policy Dialogue
Social Policy Dialogue: A Window of Opportunity for Reform and Transformation in the 21st Century
This paper analyzes the processes of social policy dialogue in Honduras and the Dominican Republic. Social policy dialogue is designed to formulate and implement government policies that are the result of a broad social consensus arrived at through the use of participatory methodologies. The study was undertaken in order to learn from two very different experiences whose common denominator is a State-civil society partnership. In Honduras particular attention was paid to the role played by an Inter-American Development Bank-sponsored program?the Aylwin Initiative?which lent crucial support to both the government and civil society at critical stages of the process. In the Dominican Republic, a country with a large, sustained and changing exposure to practices of concertation and policy dialogue, trends now being debated there are examined. By analyzing Bank-supported social policy dialogues in the two countries, and by offering recommendations for an integrated approach in carrying out innovative consultation methods, useful lessons learned are provided for those interested in undertaking future projects there or in other countries.
Last updated: 01/16/07
