Citizens' action: how bridging the accountability gap leads to improved services

The goal of universal water and sanitation coverage remains a distant hope. Despite all the efforts of those in the water and sanitation sectors something is missing. This ‘something’ is accountability to the people. Poor people are asking not only where are the services but who is responsible when they are not provided? This is the essence of Citizens’ Action: citizens are supported to engage in dialogue with service providers and governments; holding them to account for the provision – or lack of it – of services. WaterAid and partners have instigated a series of Citizens’ Actions. A typical action includes community mobilization, generating a picture of service levels, raising awareness of entitlements, preparing for engagement with providers and a dialogue. This paper provides some examples of ongoing Actions and makes a call for other organizations to join this work to turn it into a people’s movement demanding accountability.