Theses and Dissertations

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Browsing Theses and Dissertations by Author "Maikenova, Gaukhar"

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    Public councils. The way to improve public engagement in Kazakhstan?
    (Nazarbayev University Graduate School of Public Policy, 2017) Dyusseneva, Assiya; Maikenova, Gaukhar
    Limited opportunities for citizens to participate in decision making in Kazakhstan is a legacy of the soviet history of Kazakhstan. In an attempt to enhance citizen engagement, Kazakhstan has established a new system of Public Councils from January 1, 2016. Public Councils are proposed as autonomous and independent bodies set up to ensure accountability of all government agencies at all levels, which is based on the extensive participation of NGOs and citizens in the decision-making process. The regulation on introduction of the Public Councils states that their common goal is to increase the efficiency, openness and transparency of public bodies and local self-government. The way to achieve that includes protecting public interests, increasing public confidence and trust in the government actions and involving the public in the process of fighting corruption. This is an extremely ambitious but quite innovative agenda for change. At the same time, if properly implemented, Public Councils would enable a clear mechanism of participation from the bottom up instead of the top down. Due to their quite recent introduction, there is no research on whether Public councils provide an effective mechanism for public participation and accountability of state bodies in Kazakhstan. This master project aims to address this research gap....