Collaboration: Most bureaucrats serving in less resourced states considered nonprofits as critical partners in the fight against COVID-19 as opposed to their peers in developed states, according to a survey conducted by Centre for Policy Research.
Held between August and September last year, the survey involved over 500 officers of the Indian Administrative Service (IAS). They were asked about their views on the role of civil society and the private sector during the pandemic.
Three of every five officers surveyed considered nonprofits and civil society organisations (CSOs) as ‘critical partners’ in their COVID-19 response. Another 14 percent acknowledged their positive contributions. Only 13 percent of the bureaucrats said that the CSOs had largely focussed on increasing their own presence and visibility.
Approximately 24 percent of the officers in the more developed states expressed concern about nonprofits adding to the state’s regulatory burden, against 10 percent in ‘aspirant states’. This classification of states is based on tiers devised by the NITI Aayog.
Analysis of the data collected showed that bureaucrats in most resourced states were the least likely to consider nonprofits and civil society as critical partners, possibly due to their low dependence on them for meeting gaps in state capacity. On the contrary, bureaucrats in less developed states were the most likely to hold a positive view about CSOs, possibly reflecting high dependence on them.
On the role of international organisations, about 60 percent of IAS officers responded positively, with 32 percent suggesting that the expertise of such organisations was invaluable, and 28 percent saying they enabled global coordination. However, 40 percent did not believe that such organisations had added any value in the pandemic response. Here, too, officers from the least resourced states showed much greater support for the expertise and resources made available by international organisations.
In case of the private sector, a majority of officers held a negative view. Nearly 55 percent said the sector had made no significant impact at all, or that it had capitalised on the crisis to further its own interests. Only 11 percent of officers agreed that the private sector had gone out of its way to supply essential services.
Bureaucrats in more developed states were most positive about the private sector, with over 58 percent acknowledging its positive contribution.
While the positive response of officers from less resourced states may reflect a healthy environment of collaboration between the state and civil society during times of crisis, it also shows gaps in a state’s capacity to deliver services.
Read this article exploring a different approach to working with the government.
