Accountability, public values, and participatory budgeting in Poland

Abstract

Among the different instruments of collaborative governance, participatory budgeting (PB) is of particular interest in Poland. PB includes the residents who co-decide about local public expenditure. PB proponents suggest that it has the potential to democratize budgeting but others point to the ease with which organized groups sometimes capture the process to serve their interests. The analysis shows that due to the weak axiological grounds that result from the infringements of all nodal public values, e.g. human dignity, sustainability, citizen involvement, openness, secrecy, compromise, integrity, and robustness, PB in Poland has little potential to enhance accountability for the protection of the common good.