Sustaining a Relationship : Insights from Canada on Linking the Government and Third Sector (Working Paper 1)
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Authors
Brock, Kathy L.
Date
2000-06
Type
working paper
Language
en
Keyword
Canada , Government , Third Sector , Accountability , Autonomy
Alternative Title
Abstract
The embedding of third sector organisations in the policy world is fraught with tensions.
Accountability and autonomy become oppositional forces causing an uneasy relationship. Government
agencies are concerned that their equity and efficiency goals and objectives be met when they enter
partnerships with the third sector for the delivery of programs and services. Third sector agencies question
the impact of accountability mechanisms on their independence and identities. Even if the relationship
between government and third sector agencies seems to be based on cooperation, concerns about
cooptation (for nonprofits) and capturing (for governments) may linger calling the legitimacy of the
partnership into question.
Two means of improving the relationship between the governing and third sectors have been proposed
recently in Canada by the Panel on Accountability and Governance in the Voluntary Sector (PAGVS) and
the Joint Tables sponsored by the Voluntary Sector Task Force (VSTF). The two endeavours represent a
historic undertaking in Canada aimed at improving and facilitating the relationship between the federal
government and the nonprofit sector. The reports borrow on other country models but offer new insights
into mediating the relationship, including new models for a regulatory body and a charity compact for
Canada. Do these recommendations adequately address concerns of autonomy, accountability and
cooptation or capturing? The Canadian reports do offer new insights into resolving the four tensions
inherent in partnerships between the governing and third sector but also raise important questions about
the nature of these relationships and the evolution of democracy within the Canadian political system.