The CSI-RA is a flexible tool that helps measure the state of civil society in any given context. The CSI-RA places high value on supporting a process in which civil society partners improve their capacities to cooperate with other CSOs, undertake research and analysis and better understand their reality and challenges and seek to improve them.
The objective of the CSI-RA is to support civil society self-assessments in order to enhance the strength and sustainability of civil society for positive social change. In doing so it intends to help civil society to better assess its strengths, challenges, potentials and needs in a range of different situations and contexts, contributing to: strengthening the evidence base for civil society advocacy; providing a platform for civil society to identify shared needs; and assisting the planning and strategising of civil society around common challenges and opportunities.
The development of CSI-RA was guided by underlying principles of representativeness, transparency and accountability, legitimacy, inclusiveness and participation. These underlying principles should guide the application and adaptation of the CSI-RA to different contexts.
The CSI-RA rests on the idea that any assessment of civil society should be shaped and owned by civil society partners. The participatory nature of the CSI-RA further requires the inclusion of a broad number of partners in the conception, adaptation and implementation of the project, in order to make it broadly representative and ensure local ownership.
Different partners will have different roles and responsibilities throughout the project’s life as described below, although some flexibility is envisaged in the designation and composition of each partnership, depending on the specific needs and objectives of the context.
