February 11, 2013

The Center for Strategic Studies, in cooperation with the Future Foundation and the Spanish Agency for International Cooperation, announced the results of its study on the role of civil society institutions in the political reform process, the size of the contribution made by these institutions to the reform process, and the obstacles that limit the ability of civil society to contribute to the reform process at this stage. coming.

The study relied on both quantitative and qualitative research methods, in collecting and analyzing data related to civil society institutions, donors and experts, with the aim of studying the role of civil society in the political reform process for the past year and this year, and this research process took a period of two months from April to June of this year.

More than 27 representatives of civil society institutions, donors, experts and a number of emerging political currents and youth movements participated in the study, which were selected within several criteria, the most important of which is their involvement in the field of political work.

The results of the study showed that the period of democratic transition in Jordan, specifically last year, during which institutions focused their work on current issues, and this was represented in the topics they were involved in, and had a good effect in a somewhat despite the challenges they faced, whether internal or external, where the topics focused The institutions worked on political reforms by submitting proposals for laws and discussing some of them, in addition to their focus on enhancing the role of youth and women in participation and expression of opinion and issues related to achieving the rule of law and combating corruption.

The study also showed that the past year witnessed the emergence of a number of pressure groups and emerging political currents, in addition to social networking sites that had a significant impact on public opinion and communication with a large segment of society, especially young people and in different regions in Jordan outside the capital Amman, which were characterized by weak The work of civil society organizations in it.

These groups are not officially registered, and sometimes have no official headquarters, such as civil society organizations, but they were active in working to advance the process of political reform, as some currents participated in them in official dialogue committees at the national level that registered institutions did not have.

According to the study, the previous result leads to the fact that most civil society organizations do not have a popular extension, and this may have an impact on the nature of the issues they work on and the shape of this work in the end result, the modest role of their contribution to the process of political transformation.

The study also showed that the majority of civil society institutions, especially in the capital, depend almost entirely on funding from international institutions and some government funding, which may affect the nature of their work and their ability to form or form an agenda or work priorities for these institutions linked to the actual reality to the extent that they are affected by the available funding. .

Regarding the relationship of institutions with donors, the study showed that some civil society institutions are able to adapt to the data and requirements of international donors in the absence of local support, while others refused support from international institutions, and this was evident among the emerging political movements.

The study also showed the concentration of the work of civil society institutions in the capital, Amman, and that most of the institutions outside Amman were not concerned with political affairs, but rather demanding political movements, part of which may be the result of the absence of these institutions that may act as an umbrella to embrace these popular demand bases.

The study concluded that there is a weakness in coordination between civil society institutions, in addition to the fact that some of them take initiatives based on personal interests that are not related to the priorities and issues of reform, and the absence of a common vision that brings institutions together to influence the course of political reform.

There are also obstacles related to the legislative, governmental, and security aspects used in dealing with the activities and projects of civil society institutions, through the existence of laws restricting the work of institutions, related to issues of financing and establishment, and the government’s “domestication” of civil society institutions, which has weakened the role of institutions in the process Reform, the absence of real dialogue between institutions and the government, and the use of the security method with some of the active political movements and currents at that stage.

The study included a number of recommendations related to strengthening the role of civil society institutions in the upcoming political reform process that Jordan will witness. Political parties and organizations with a common ground form a pressure force, influencing the government and parliament to implement the activities and projects undertaken by the institutions.

The study also recommended the need for donor institutions to include the support provided by them to institutions operating outside the capital, Amman, and that this funding be focused on their infrastructure and work on developing programs and activities that are based on them in line with the priorities that this stage necessitates them.

The study also recommended the need for the government to build confidence between it and civil society institutions by removing all financial and legislative obstacles that limit their freedom, and achieving the achievements that these activities aim at, in addition to the need to provide the data that institutions want to obtain and the existence of a national fund to finance institutions Civil society and its support in the governorates according to the priorities and needs that are presented by the institutions