The S2JK approach to identifying issues for coalitions was developed in order to target:

1. Support to the
Jogorku Kenesh
(S2JK)
Issues action strategy
28th June 2017

2. 03 Programme strategies
Key features of the S2JK approach:
1. Manage risks by making ‘small bets’ – we will pursue activities with potential and genuine local buy-in and
dropping others.
2. Align interests – we will identify issues that are of mutual interest to both non-state actors and government
and facilitate collective action.
3. Facilitate rather than lead – we will ensure ownership and local leadership by facilitating issue based
coalitions to decide on their priorities and strategy, and then act on them.
4. Focus on tangible issues – coalitions will be formed around tangible issues of mutual interest. Issues will be
practical to the degree that if addressed, stakeholders will stand to benefit(e.g. excessive fees for a business
license or lack of water supply to a locality are tangible–strengthening a MDA’s planning capacity is not).
5. Coalitions rather than partnerships – rather than programme partnerships (two way relationship)
coalitions of multiple actors are more likely to grasp the multidimensional nature of a collective action
problem, and to be able to mobilise people and resources to address it.
6. Beyond CSOs – rather than focus on traditional donor funded CSOs, we will seek to work with a broad
range of non-state actors from business associations to individual businesses and people.
7. Avoiding the distortionary incentives of grants – evidence from the ICAI (2013) and others indicates that
grants can lead organisations to work for funds rather than issues. We will provide coaching, mentoring and
some initial support (for travel, convening costs and some research generation costs) rather than grants.

3. S2JK Approach
Inclusive economic sectors
Parliament – Jogorku Kenesh
Government Business Associations
Issue Based Coalitions target constraints in inclusive
economic sectors by facilitating groups of business
associations, MPs and Government to foster change
Green Shoots projects enable the
relationships and networks required for Issue
Based Coalitions and Parliamentary
Initiatives
Parliamentary Initiatives strengthen
parliament’s efforts to ensure government is
creating the conditions for inclusive growth
03 Programme strategies

4. Issue based coalitions
Issues evolve over time
These issues and S2JK’s approach to supporting them are expected
to change over time:
• Some issues may resolve (i.e. there is no need for
continued S2JK support).
• Some issues may evolve (i.e. work on a specific issue
and with specific partners leads to the identification of
new issues and areas of collaboration).
• Some issues may scale up or scale out (i.e. an
approach that works in some districts may be scaled
out to others or scaled up to the national level)
• Some issues may need to be dropped if after an initial
period of work, little progress is made.
What is the general constraint? What
is the specific issue?
What are the specific changes we
aim to foster to address the specific
issue?
What activities need to be undertaken to
bring about the specific changes?
What support do actors require to
successfully carry out the required
activities?
How can contextual factors be
leveraged and navigated successfully?
S2JK Issue
Action Plans
03 Programme strategies
S2JK addresses inclusive growth issues, using governance solutions

5. Analysis Business
Parliament
Government
03 Programme strategies Issue based coalitions – selecting issues
Sourcing issue ideas
The S2JK approach to identifying issues for coalitions was developed in order to target:
 Constraints in sectors with the potential to grow and be competitive – rather than address constraints within
sectors which are more likely to stagnate or reduce in size and as such, where reforms may just postpone
this stagnation or reduction in size (competitiveness)
 Sectors where alleviated constraints would create a collective benefit for a large number of firms, rather
than sectors which are by their nature easy to monopolize and as such, where reforms would benefit a few
(nature of access)
 Sectors within which a large number of poor are employed; or alternatively, sectors which have high levels
of potential for rapid transformation as a result of productivity gains – such as new machinery (poverty or
productivity)
Achieving a balanced portfolio of issues
Selecting issues to ensure growth, feasibility and poverty reduction
Three stage issue identification process:
Coordination problems occur when small groups of individuals or organisations fail to realise their common
interest because of geographical or social distance, lack of trust, because they look at problems in different ways,
or for simple sequencing reasons.
The S2JK issue identification process has three stages:
1. Identify suitable economic sectors – considering
competitiveness, nature of access, and poverty or
productivity
2. Identify the most pressing constraints within the
sectors
3. Select constraints for which change is feasible and
for which parliament/NSAs could be
appropriate reform agents
Collective action problems are similar but more complicated than coordination problems. These arise when a
large group of actors share a common interest, but cannot realise it because of what is known as the ‘free rider’
problem.
Vested interest problems occur whenever one set of actors blocks change desired by another set of actors,
because they have a vested interest, i.e. an expectation of financial or other gain from maintaining the status quo.

6. Issue based coalitions – implementation principles
03 Programme strategies
S2JK will respond to a both micro and macro issues – balancing risk
and impact
Vs.
Macro issue Micro issue
Visa free access – expand list of
countries which has visa free
access
Develop marketing strategy
Secure budget for Dep.
Tour. to implement
strategy
Support to ensure strategy is
implemented
Risk
Impact
Vs.
Loose coalition Formal coalition
No formal organisational features –
actors meet and plan together as
an informal group/ collective
Defined organisational features
such as a parliamentary working
group – formal membership,
meetings, mandate from
established organisation
S2JK is testing loose informal coalitions

7. Verify issues Identify coalition
partners
Convene the
coalition
Develop a plan of
action
On-going support
Learning and
adapting
What: Identify relevant ‘issues’ which are
constraints in relevant economic sectors
Who:
 Economic sector analysis by specialists
and Component leads
 Consultations by component leads
 Issue screening assessments by
component leads
What: Identify relevant coalition partners
Who:
 Stakeholder analysis and engagement led
by the component leads.
What: Coalition partners convened and informed
 Coalitions are convened and facilitated by
component leads and dedicated facilitators if
appropriate/required.
What: Coalitions are facilitated to agree on their
objectives and develop an action plan.
Who:
 Component leads will facilitate issue based
coalitions to develop action plans
What: Ongoing support to coalition partners to
implement action plans and realise objectives.
Who:
 The component leads will lead ongoing support
to coalitions to ensure activity implementation
What: Coalitions are learn what works and what
does not work, and adapt.
Who:
 Component leads will ensure lessons are
documented and will facilitate coalitions to
adapt as required
Identify issues
Develop monitoring
scorecard
Networking
Roundtables
Analysis
Issue
checklist
DFID & TL
approval of
issue checklist
Confirmed
stakeholder list
Coalition
meeting minutes
Coalition
action plan
Quarterly
catalogue of
lessons
Minutes from
quarterly
coalition
meetings
Coalition
monitoring
scorecard
Monthly
progress
update
1 2 3 4
5
6
7
8
Scale-up or
Adjust
Stop/
Drop
What: Verify relevance and suitability of issues
Who:
 TL approves internally and then sends to
DFID for final approval
What: Develop scorecard to show what
success looks like and how it can be measured
Who:
 ME&L Manager works with Component
Managers to develop
8-Step coalition process
DFID & TL
approval of
scale-up
03 Programme strategies Issue based coalitions – implementation process

8. Parliamentary initiatives – problem identification principles
• Problem focussed - rather than the solution – “a problem driven
process…provokes reflection, mobilizes attention, and promotes targeted and
context-sensitive engagement”
• Locally relevant - Focussing on defining a problem which key decision makers
care about – “focal problem needs to reflect on a performance deficiency that
cannot be denied or ignored”
• Deconstructed problems/solutions - Breaking the problem down and
tackling each casual element – “deconstruct the problem into smaller components
that are more open to localized solution building”
• On the agenda - Starting by building a constituency around the problem –
“drawing attention to the need for change and bringing such change onto the social,
political and administrative agenda”
• Sequence multiple entry points - ordering engagements based on a
progressive approach to tackle problems, given contextual opportunities and
constraints - each cause and sub-cause is essentially a separate—albeit
connected—point of engagement
Guiding Questions Response
What is the problem? (and how would we measure it or tell
stories about it?)
Parliament is not seen by firms as responsive to business concerns
(Survey of how firms perceive parliament and share the results with parliament); Produce solid data on the level of
engagement of NSAs with parliament)
Why does it matter? (and how do we measure this or tell
stories about it?)
Parliament is not carrying out its ‘watchdog’ role with regards to overseeing government
(Produce data on the level of parliamentary oversight)
Why does it matter? (and how do we measure this or tell
stories about it?)
Many laws and services are not implemented effectively to address economic growth constraints
(Evidence for this to come from economic sector analysis)
Why does it matter? (and how do we measure this or tell
stories about it?)
Levels of economic growth are low (circa 2.5% a/GDP) yet constraints remain across economic sectors and un-addressed by
parliament
03 Programme strategies

9. Parliament is considered by
businesses to be unresponsive
to business needs/concerns.
5. TBC (overlapping mandates – efficacy of
parliament a driver of policy decisions on
economic issues
5. Parliament has had limited systematic and
sustainable mechanisms for engagement with
business.
4.3 MPs/Committees focus on
legislation –more recognition
4.4 Oversight receives limited
media attention
4.1 JK Leadership doesn’t
emphasize oversight
4.6 Coalition MPs allegiance
to gov’t vs. oversight
4.5 MPs’ lack of time and
support staff
4.2 MPs are loyal to personal
interests/faction over committee.
1.2 Lack of committee
planning on oversight
1.3 Lack of templates for
conducting and reporting on
oversight
1.1 R of P lack specific
directives on oversight 2.1 Oversight is a new
function of the JK
2.4 Understanding skewed toward
corruption, punishment
2.2 General preference for the
informal – no procedures.
5.2 There is little analytical capability
inside JK to support engagement.
5.3 There is lack of platform
with which to engage business
5.1 There is lack of unified
contact data base
3.2 Business associations lack
oversight knowledge
3.1 Business associations
have lack of access to JK
Updated RoP
New
templates
Mentoring
leadership
Supporting
media for
oversight
2.3 Oversight is currently
lots of questions
Supporting
media for
oversight
Success
stories from
coalitions
Business
council
Train com
staff on
oversight
Coalitions for
learning by
doing
Oversight
guidance &
training
New regs on
comm
planning
Business
council
C
C
C
M
O
O
M M
C
O
O
O
M
Stats on use of oversight
mechanisms; and mapping of
oversight gaps
Questionnaire to biz associations
on no. of submissions to GoK vs.
Parl
Questionnaire on MP capacity to
committee staff
TBC
4. MPs and JK leadership have limited
interest in oversight activities.
03 Programme strategies Parliamentary initiatives – problem identification
1. Oversight tools are not used
effectively and systems are incomplete.
2. MPs have a lack of knowledge
about oversight
3. Business associations engage more on
policy/laws with government than parliament

10. Verify initiative Develop Initiative
Action Plan
Develop Initiative
Monitoring Scorecard
Learning and
adapting
What: Identify relevant ‘initiatives’ which
respond to constraints identified in the
fishbone
Who:
 Component One Manager and
Coordinator to identify constraints
What: Develop scorecard to show what success looks
like and how it can be measured
Who:
 ME&L Manager works with Component Managers
to develop
What: Initiatives are learn what works and what
does not work, and adapt.
Who:
 Component leads will ensure lessons are
documented and will facilitate initiatives to
adapt as required
Identify initiative
Initiative
implementation
Fishbone
analysis Initiative
checklist
DFID & TL
approval of
issue checklist
Initiative
action plan
Initiative
scorecard
Quarterly
catalogue of
lessons
Minutes from
quarterly
initiative
meetings
Brief
monthly
update
1 2 3
4
5
6
Scale-up or
Adjust
Stop/
Drop
What: Verify relevance and suitability of
initiative
Who:
 TL approves internally and then sends to
DFID for final approval
What: Implement initiative
Who:
 Component Manager and Coordinator
lead implementation, working with actors
in parliament and consultants as required
6-Step parliamentary initiative process
DFID & TL
approval of
scale-up
What: Action plan developed to enable initiative
implementation
 Component One Manager and Coordinator develop
action together with actors in parliament
03 Programme strategies Parliamentary initiatives – implementation process

11. • Objective: Creating and enhancing the stakeholder relationships required
for issue based coalitions or parliamentary initiatives
• Identifying champion stakeholders with the relevant influence and
interests – using Kumu and existing networks
• Providing technical assistance or programme activity expenses – capped
at 10% of the ‘Senior STTA’ and ‘General programme activities’ budget
line (proportionally more in year one to establish relationships, after
which scaling down – but 10% of these budget lines on average)
• Green Shoots should not occupy staff time if this detracts from the
team’s ability to undertake their core tasks and realise their internal
targets
03 Programme strategies Green shoots – key principles

12. Verify Green Shoot Learning and
adapting
What: Identify relevant ‘initiatives’ which
respond to constraints identified in the
fishbone
Who:
 Component Managers and Coordinators
to identify champions for initiative and
coalitions work
Identify champions
Actor
Mapping
TL approval of
issue checklist
1 2 3
Develop into
initiative/
coalition
Stop/
Drop
What: Verify relevance and suitability of the
Green Shoot
Who:
 TL approves internally and then sends to
DFID for information and records
Green Shoots Process
What: Learn what works and what does not work,
and adapt.
Who:
 Component leads will ensure lessons are
documented in Quarterly programme lesson
learning logs
03 Programme strategies Parliamentary initiatives – implementation process