Civil Society and Waste Management

In most cases, the responsibility for SWM remains within the municipality. With emphasis on good governance in management of public services t responsibilities can also be delegated to private sector, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), community-based organization (CBOs), and the informal sector as they contribute largely to urban economy. Involvement of grass-root actors in waste management system not only makes them responsible but also increases the possibility of better governance and reduces the burden municipality faces in developing countries.

The shift towards civil society organizations for better governance gives rise to a different approach to governance “society centered approach” rather than age old “state centered approach”

(Pierre, 2000). The society centered approach focuses on the role of civil society as an integral part of governing process that can propel social change. This approach to governance does not confine itself but aims to involve diverse social actors in order to achieve the collective goal of effective public service delivery.

More widely, this perspective refers to the notion of multilevel governance (Eckerberg and Joas, 2004) as cited in (Allen, Hoffmann and Griffiths, 2008) in which the management and governing of environmental services and infrastructure seems to be moving away from national governments as central actors to a more complex and highly diverse network of agencies. The roles and responsibilities are generally shared between the different actors involved. This does not by any means imply that the state has become obsolete or redundant but rather that its current role in the provision of public services has been willingly and unwillingly transformed (Allen, Hoffmann and Griffiths, 2008).

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SWM systems in developing countries are complex as many actors are involved in the processes (Marshall and Farah bakhsh, 2013). Therefore, a clear and well-defined institutional framework becomes a necessity; especially a system in which there are clear distinctions between the roles and responsibilities of different actors involved in the process. It is widely accepted that a successful solid waste management system in urban centers cannot be achieved by the state alone (Marshall and Farah bakhsh, 2013). In such condition, governance and partnership with non-state actors offer a useful framework to understand how various actors collaborate in order to deliver a collective service to the population (Linder and Rosenau, 2000). Partnership has emerged as a concept applied in many developing countries where public services are beyond reach for the larger part of the population. The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) also believes that partnerships increase access of the urban poor to basic services (solid waste management) through the NGO and CBO participation, and eventually can lead to sustainable development (Ghina, 2003).

In general, the collaboration between government authorities and NGOs/CBOs in developing countries is in a need of formalization and institutionalization. The existing framework is not conducive to enhance collaborative work, provides NGOs and CBOs no formalized role/responsibilities. In order for the NGOs/CBOs to perform in their full potential clear distinction/ division of their roles and responsibilities is required (Tukahirwa, Mol and Osterveer, 2010). Hence, to improve the public service delivery, formalization of the collaboration between the different actors is important; also in order to avoid future conflicts.

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4 Research Methodology

This chapter describes the methodology followed in the process of conducting the study. It will also analyze the methodology followed along with the limitations posed by the methodology. At the end, issues of ethical considerations and positionality will be explained.

Research methodology is a systematic way to solve the research problem. The methodology of the study describes the research strategy and different steps followed in the research process to get the expected results according to research objectives. Research methodology is not just the research methods that we follow; it also involves our logic for using the method depending upon the context of our study(Kothari,2004). In the study, qualitative research methods are used to achieve the research objectives.

Qualitative research, broadly defined, means "any kind of research that produces findings not arrived at by means of statistical procedures or other means of quantification" (Strauss and Corbin,1990) and instead, the kind of research that produces findings arrived from real-world settings where the "phenomenon of interest unfold naturally" (Patton, 2002).

Qualitative research is a particular tradition in social science that fundamentally depends on observing people in their own domain and interacting with them in their own language on their own terms (Kirk and Miller, 1986). Qualitative methods were used for data collection, as my study focused on capturing, exploring the participants views and experiences about management of solid waste in the study area through governance perspective. The ability of qualitative research to provide elaborative descriptions of people’s experience and understanding of the research issue makes it a priority while carrying out the research.

Qualitative research is emergent and process oriented; several aspects emerge during the study, which allows the researcher to “view social phenomenon holistically” (Creswell 2003, p. 182).

However, Creswell (2003, p. 182) asserts that the “more complex, interactive and encompassing the narrative, the better the qualitative study”.

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Thus, the use of qualitative methods allowed me as a researcher to interpret the situation according to my understanding. As it is a preferred method for studies based on specific situations, contexts and people’s action. It allowed the use of multiple methods, which provided flexibility in the study.

Following qualitative methods helped me to unravel the current waste management situation, understanding the perception of the officials in municipality and of the community people (women) involved in solid waste management practices. This helped me to eventually suggest recommendations to improve the existing waste management system.