Resumen

CANTOR, Guillermo. Citizen Participation Discourse in International Organizations: The Case of the Inter American Development Bank . Revista de Ciencias Sociales [online]. 2008, vol.14, n.3, pp.468-478. ISSN 1315-9518.

This article examines the Inter American Development Bank’s institutional approach regarding citizen participation through reconstruction of the concepts of participation and democracy explicitly and implicitly contained in the Strategy for Promoting Citizen Participation in Bank Activities, with particular emphasis on their potential and limitations to inform effective practices. The discourse analysis is based on secondary sources, such as institutional documents, and transcriptions of meetings, negotiations, and consultations with different actors intervening in the process. As a result of the research, it is argued that the IDB’s prevailing idea of participation is for the most part limited - namely, one based on the notion of influence and deliberation; oriented to achieve legitimacy for the IDB’s operations; and largely mediated by formally organized groups. Additionally, that concept of participation is a result of antecedents of the IDB’s work with civil society, the way in which the participation agenda was adopted by the IDB, and the IDB’s structural position in regard to member governments.

Palabras clave : Citizen participation; international organizations; civil society; Inter American Development Bank.