Projects

Overview

The Civil Society for Poverty Reduction (CSPR) is a civil society network that has been building the voice for the poor in the fight against poverty. It was established in 2000 in response to an invitation from the Zambian Government for Civil Society to participate in the design, process, formulating, and monitoring of the National Development Plans (NDPs) effectively, and meaningfully. The primary function of the network seeks to enhance the effectiveness of Civil Society participation in the design, formulation, and implementation of the NDPs, plus monitoring its effectiveness in reducing escalating levels of poverty.

CSPR and BBC Media Action are co implementing a project “Citizens Voice” which seeks to increase transparency and accountability of the National Assembly of Zambia (NAZ) by using their complementary strengths in mass media and community engagement. The project mains at improving citizens’ understanding of how to effectively engage in parliamentary processes from the ward to the national level. The action is also aimed at supporting citizens to enact this knowledge by strengthening the platforms for legislators to connect with citizens and CSOs. This will, in turn, help to ensure that legislators hear citizens’ voices.

Currently, there is insufficient engaging between citizens and legislators.  Once elected, legislators tend Citizens do not have the knowledge of how they can participate in governance processes including in the NAZ. This is due to a lack of simplified user-friendly information on the main policies and how to engage with legislators.

To address these challenges, CSPR had developed simplified Hand books for community outreach and mass media to improve citizens’ understanding of, and involvement in, parliamentary processes. CSPR has simplified the Decentralization Policy,  the National Assembly of Zambia Standing Orders and the Constituency  Office  Handbooks will be translated in local languages to support citizens’ understanding and participation in these processes. These will then be used for community sensitizations and distributed through the constituency offices. Additionally, BBC Media Action will work with Parliament media to develop more engaging and relevant media outputs for citizens using the Handbooks.