VIRTUAL London.

Abstract

In the scholarship on citizen participation in water governance, empirical studies identify multiple factors detrimental to citizen participation, from contextual factors to process management patterns. However, there is a lack of consideration within the literature on whether ‘citizens’ willingness to participate’ affects participation. Just as citizen participation, it is equally important to understand what amounts to citizens’ un/willingness to participate in water governance. This is because it further complicates one’s understanding of participation and shapes the state-citizen relationship. This paper investigates (a) the relationship between citizen participation i.e., whether citizens participate in water governance with citizens’ willingness to participate i.e., whether citizens are interested in participating; (b) to explain the factors responsible for un/willingness to participate. To examine this, a household survey was conducted in three cities of India-i.e., Jaipur, Madurai, and Visakhapatnam. A multi-stage stratified random sampling was adopted to select the sample within the limits of the municipal corporation area in the three cities. This paper’s results will help establish the importance of exploring the idea of ‘citizens’ un/willingness to participate’ in participation literature. This will also further help in problematizing the concept of participation and provide a fresh perspective to the decision-makers, practitioners, and academicians while developing various citizen participation initiatives.