Enabling Governance from the Ground Up

Governance that
enables people.
People who shape
governance.

The Foundation for Decentralised Governance strengthens the civic, institutional, and knowledge foundations that make local governance effective — across villages, towns, and cities of India.

Our Programmes CSR Partnerships →
Local Governance
Strengthening Panchayats & Urban Local Bodies
Citizen Enablement
Access, Participation & Civic Capability
District-Level Policy
Evidence & Planning from the Grassroots
18+
States of operation
850+
Local bodies supported
2.4L
Citizens engaged
₹42Cr
Programmes facilitated
Who We Are

Enabling the institutions that serve everyone.

"Decentralisation works when people are genuinely part of it — not just as beneficiaries, but as informed, capable participants."

The Foundation for Decentralised Governance is a non-profit organisation dedicated to enabling effective, participatory, and accountable governance at the local level in India. We work at the intersection of institutions and communities — building capacity, generating evidence, mobilising resources, and creating enabling conditions for governance to truly serve the people it is meant to.

Our programmes are designed in alignment with the constitutional mandate of the 73rd and 74th Amendments — and in convergence with the frameworks, schemes, and priorities of central and state governments.

Explore our work →
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Enabling
We build the human, institutional, and knowledge capacities that allow local governance systems to function effectively and responsively.
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Facilitating
We facilitate convergence between government programmes, community needs, and available resources — helping schemes reach those they are designed for.
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Connecting
We connect citizens, local bodies, policy practitioners, and knowledge institutions — building an ecosystem where evidence and experience flow in both directions.
Our Thematic Areas

Five areas. One enabling purpose.

Each thematic area we work in is a dimension of the same conviction: that when citizens are informed, capable, and engaged — and when local institutions are well-resourced and accountable — governance delivers.

Our work cuts across rural and urban contexts, and draws on a mix of capacity building, resource mobilisation, research, policy engagement, and on-ground facilitation — tailored to local realities.
01
Strengthening & Enabling Local Governance
From Gram Panchayats to Urban Local Bodies, effective local governance requires far more than elections. We work on the full enabling ecosystem — building the planning capacities of institutions, strengthening gram sabha and ward committee processes, supporting participatory local area development planning (GPDP, ward development plans), and developing fiscal and administrative capacities of elected bodies. We also work on resource mobilisation — helping local bodies access untied funds, converge central and state scheme resources, and leverage CSR investments for local priorities. Capacity building extends beyond individuals to the institution itself: its records, processes, transparency systems, and accountability to citizens.
Panchayati Raj Urban Local Bodies GPDP Gram Sabha Resource Mobilisation Ward Committees 73rd & 74th Amendment
02
Public Policy from the District Up
Public policy in India is most often designed and evaluated at the state or national level. FfDG reframes this: we work on evidence generation, policy analysis, and planning support at the district and sub-district level — where implementation actually happens. We support district planning processes, help local administrators translate policy intent into contextual action, and build the evidence base that informs better programme design from the ground up.
District Planning DPC Strengthening Evidence Generation Decentralised Planning
03
Natural Resources, Land & Agri-Livelihoods
Sustainable livelihoods — especially in rural India — are inseparable from how natural resources are governed. We support community-based NRM programmes (watershed, forests, common lands) alongside agri-based livelihood initiatives, farmer producer organisations, and SHG federations. Our focus is on governance within these collectives: decision-making, resource allocation, transparency, and long-term sustainability.
NRM Watershed FPOs SHG Federations FRA MGNREGS
04
Citizenship Enablement
Citizens participate meaningfully in governance when they have the awareness, capability, and confidence to do so. We build this through integrated programmes across education, livelihood, gender equality, and social inclusion — working with women, youth, and marginalised communities so that civic participation is not an aspiration but a practice. Scheme accessibility and grievance navigation are part of this — not as charity, but as an exercise of entitlement.
Education Gender Livelihoods SC/ST Inclusion Scheme Access Youth
05
Governance Knowledge & Learning
We document, study, and share what works — and what doesn't. Through action research, peer learning networks, training curricula for elected representatives, and cross-state knowledge exchanges, we build a shared commons of governance knowledge accessible to practitioners, administrators, and communities alike.
Research ERP Training Peer Learning Documentation Curricula
Foundation Framework

Vision, Mission & Objectives

Vision
An India where local governance genuinely works for everyone.
We envision an India where local democratic institutions are effective and accountable, where citizens of every background are informed and capable participants in governance, and where decentralisation fulfils its constitutional promise — at the village, town, and city level.
Mission
To enable participatory, effective, and accountable local governance.
FfDG enables the conditions for good governance: building institutional capacity, generating actionable evidence, mobilising resources, facilitating citizen participation, and strengthening the knowledge ecosystem that supports governance at the local level across India.
Objectives
Five enabling commitments.
To strengthen local governance institutions in rural and urban India. To support district-level planning and public policy with evidence and facilitation. To enable sustainable natural resource governance and agri-based livelihoods. To build informed, capable, and participating citizens. To generate and share knowledge that advances decentralised governance practice.
For CSR Partners

Purposeful investment. Measurable impact.

FfDG's thematic portfolio maps directly to the eligible CSR activities under Schedule VII of the Companies Act, 2013. We work with corporate partners to design, implement, and report on CSR programmes that are impactful, contextual, and fully compliant.

Rural Development & Panchayati Raj
Schedule VII (x) — Local governance strengthening, GPDP, gram sabha processes
Environmental Sustainability & NRM
Schedule VII (iv) — Watershed, common land restoration, forest governance
Livelihood Enhancement & Skill Development
Schedule VII (ii) — FPO strengthening, SHG capacity, agri-livelihoods
Gender Equality & Women Empowerment
Schedule VII (iii) — Women in governance, leadership development
Education & Social Inclusion
Schedule VII (ii, iii) — Citizenship enablement for marginalised communities
Reducing Inequalities
Schedule VII (xi) — SC/ST entitlement access, participatory inclusion
"Governance is the infrastructure on which every development outcome depends. Investing in governance is investing in the long-term effectiveness of every other investment."
Schedule VII Clauses Covered
VII(i) — Hunger & Poverty VII(ii) — Education & Livelihoods VII(iii) — Gender & Equality VII(iv) — Environment VII(x) — Rural Development VII(xi) — Slum Development
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How We Work

Grounded in context. Built for longevity.

Our approach is iterative, evidence-based, and deeply contextual — always designed with government frameworks and community realities in mind.

1
Understand
Participatory situational assessments with communities, local bodies, and administrators — mapping what exists, what is needed, and where opportunity lies.
2
Design
Co-designed programmes that align with government schemes, constitutional frameworks, and CSR mandates — specific to context, not templated.
3
Enable
Field-based implementation through trained community resource persons, institutional partnerships, and careful convergence of available resources and programmes.
4
Learn & Share
Rigorous documentation, peer learning, and policy engagement — so that what works at the local level informs practice and planning at larger scales.
Who We Work With

A network for collective governance.

Governance cannot be improved by one actor. We work alongside a wide range of institutions that share a commitment to enabling better governance outcomes.

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Government Departments
We work in alignment with Panchayati Raj departments, Urban Development bodies, district administrations, and line ministry programmes — supporting implementation and strengthening delivery mechanisms at the local level.
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Corporate CSR
We enable companies to invest purposefully in governance, rural development, livelihoods, and inclusion — with full Schedule VII alignment, field-level expertise, and transparent impact measurement.
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Civil Society & Grassroots Organisations
We collaborate with frontline organisations, federations, and community groups — bringing resources, systems, and scale to complement their deep local trust and field presence.
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Academic & Policy Institutions
We partner with universities, policy institutes, and think tanks to generate evidence, co-develop knowledge products, and ensure our work contributes to a stronger governance research ecosystem.

Let's strengthen governance together.

Whether you are a government body, a corporate looking to invest in CSR, a civil society organisation, or a researcher — we would be glad to explore what a partnership might look like.

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