Beyond comparative anecdotalism: lessons on civil society and participation from São Paulo, Brazil

• DOI: 10.1016/j.worlddev.2004.09.022
• Publication Date: 2005-05-27T15:02:16Z
• Authors: Adrián Gurza Lavalle; Arnab Acharya; Peter P. Houtzager
• Keywords: 05 social sciences; 1. No poverty; 16. Peace & justice; 10. No inequality; 0506 political science

Summary. — Detailed fieldwork in Sao Paulo, Brazil, shows that the conventional understanding of civil society and citizen participation is flawed in two major ways. The dominant focus on the participation of individual citizens is misplaced, as it is civil organizations representing different sec- tors of the poor that participate in substantial numbers in participatory institutions. The civil soci- ety approach in international development suggests that the most effective voice of the poor in policy making comes from civil society organizations (CSOs) that are independent of political par- ties and state agencies. Across different participatory institutions in Sao Paulo, however, the most active representatives of the poor are those well connected to conventional political actors—polit- ical parties and state agencies. This connection between civil and political actors suggests the need for a ''polity-centered'' approach to understanding issues of participation and representation. 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.