a 2013 report, The Future Role of Civil Society: https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_FutureRoleCivilSociety_Report_2013.pdf “NGOs, labour leaders, faith-based organizations, religious leaders and other civil society representatives play a critical and diverse set of roles in societal development. In the last two decades these roles have shifted as the external environment for civil society has changed.”
Four scenarios: as a starting point for thinking about how the external environment might
influence the future role of civil society
Mad Max: governments exert strong security controls on both business and society.,
Transparently Blurred: where economic growth is relatively high over the period 2020-2030 and where
the government and private sector are both deeply engaged in tackling societal challenges. Access to data, technology and rigorous monitoring are the hallmarks of a revolution in both economic activity and social development.
Turbulence and Trust Deficits .. Yet, in the networked society, there is a significant latent desire for social engagement by citizens, particularly at the local level.
Privatized World .. inequality is extreme, and corporations play the most important role in society as the main providers of social services.
a “renewed focus on the essential contribution of civil society to a resilient global system alongside government and business has emerged”.
The report adds: “The definitions are changing as civil society is recognized as encompassing far more than a mere ‘sector’ dominated by the NGO community: civil society today includes an ever wider and more vibrant range of organized and unorganized groups, as new civil-society actors blur the boundaries between sectors and experiment with new organizational forms, both online and off.”
It lists of some of the activities civil society organizations are involved in, to demonstrate why governments frequently seem to court them in one breath and vilify them in another.
These include: holding institutions to account and promoting transparency; raising awareness of societal issues; delivering services to meet education, health, food and security needs; implementing disaster management, preparedness and emergency response; bringing expert knowledge and experience to shape policy and strategy; giving power to the marginalized; and encouraging citizen engagement.
Comment: In India, following this report, we had the UPA moving towards a NAC ( National Advisory Committee, RTI, and UBI (Universal Basic Income) and the BJP signalling the Squeeze of the Funding system of NGOs.
Who and what is 'civil society?' https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2018/04/what-is-civil-society/
When mobilized, civil society - sometimes called the “third sector” (after government and commerce) - has the power to influence the actions of elected policy-makers and businesses. But the nature of civil society - what it is and what it does - is evolving, in response to both technological developments and more nuanced changes within societies. Civil society groups are becoming more tech savvy as they use social media platforms and formats such as video and podcasts to raise awareness about their causes and charitable donations. But they are also using technology in ways that are more directly linked to improving the efficacy of their work.