Case study 6: Local leadership and adapting compliance frameworks

(Digital Democracy Initiative

Core issue

Donor compliance requirements can limit the ability of local organisations to access and manage funding, constraining local leadership and the effectiveness of media support.

Context

Many donor-funded media development programmes are designed and administered through international intermediaries due to fiduciary, legal, and administrative requirements.

While these safeguards are intended to reduce risk, they can unintentionally restrict the role of local organisations, particularly where compliance capacity is limited.

The Digital Democracy Initiative (DDI), supported by multiple European donors, was designed to address this constraint by enabling greater local leadership while maintaining accountability standards.

What happened

The DDI programme introduced funding and implementation approaches aimed enable locally led responses to challenges such as disinformation and declining media trust.

These included:

• channeling funding through consortia that include strong local partners

• investing in compliance and administrative capacity of local organisations

• allowing greater flexibility in programme design and implementation

• accepting higher levels of operational risk in exchange for stronger local ownership

Rather than treating compliance as a barrier to participation, the programme incorporated compliance support as part of its intervention model.

Why this matters

Consultations highlight that many local organisations are effectively excluded from direct funding due to complex donor requirements, despite having strong contextual knowledge and networks.

This case illustrates that compliance barriers are not fixed constraints and can be addressed through programme design.

Consultations and sector evidence highlight that:

• risk management approaches shape who can access and lead funding

• local leadership requires structural adjustments in how funding is delivered, not only increased financial support

Without such adjustments, support may reinforce dependency on intermediaries and limit long-term sustainability.

Implications for practice

• Treat compliance capacity as a development objective, not only a precondition for funding

• Design funding mechanisms that enable local actors to lead, rather than only implement

• Build longer-term partnerships that support institutional strengthening

• Adjust risk management approaches to enable greater local ownership

• Ensure flexibility is matched by clear and proportionate accountability mechanisms

Most relevant for

• Senior management and strategy leads: Defining acceptable risk thresholds and funding approaches

• Heads of Mission / Ambassadors: Supporting locally led approaches in-country and navigating institutional constraints

• Programme and project managers: Designing funding mechanisms and partnership models

• Policy officers / thematic specialists: Setting priorities around localisation and risk

Linked principles

• Principle 4 – Strengthen local leadership and ownership

• Principle 2 – Increase financial and other forms of support

Evidence base

• Consultation inputs referencing the Digital Democracy Initiative as an example of adapting compliance frameworks to support local leadership

• Public information and programme documentation available via the Digital Democracy Initiative

• Broader sector evidence highlighting compliance barriers as a constraint to localisation in media development support

Key lesson

Local ownership requires adapting donor systems, incentives, and risk frameworks. Without this, funding may not translate into meaningful local leadership.