Parliamentary and Media Support

Results achieved as of the end of the project (February 2013) include: (i) the role of parliamentary committees in the budget cycle was strengthened improving the ability of parliament to oversee the allocation and use of public funds represent the interests of citizens and reduce corruption; (ii) interaction between the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General and civil society was improved through better physical access to audit reports and the use of plain language; (iii) the skills of parliamentary staff in Bangladesh were improved through customized training to support the operation and performance of oversight committees; (iv) the impact of the media and civil society organizations responsible for undertaking social audits in Bangladesh was increased; and (v) 30 000 members of civil society organizations and more than 3 000 local government officials benefitted from awareness-raising activities on the Right to Information Act. These results contributed to improving democratic governance by enhancing the accountability of government officials politicians policy-makers and citizens by improving the professionalism of the media and by increasing the ability of citizens to engage in public decision-making and hold service providers to account.