The Compendium presents legal and political texts that emanate from the Council of Europe’s bodies as well as documents that contain principles or guidelines for political action meant for all member States. It is structured as follows: functioning of democratic institutions (including the independence of the judiciary), freedom of expression, freedom of assembly and association, equality and non-discrimination, inclusive societies and democratic citizenship. The document reflects the state of play as regards the texts adopted by the Council of Europe bodies as of April 2016 in areas that fall into a shared definition of democracy.   

Download the Compendium of the most relevant Council of Europe texts in the area of democracy

 Armenia: Structure and operation of local and regional democracy (2013)

 Austria: Structure and operation of local and regional democracy (1999)

 Belgium: Structure and operation of local and regional democracy (2006)

 Bulgaria: Structure and operation of local and regional democracy (1996)

 Croatia: Structure and operation of local and regional democracy (1998)

 Cyprus: Structure and operation of local and regional democracy (1998)

 Czech Republic: Structure and Operation of Local and Regional Democracy (2010)

 Denmark: Structure and operation of local and regional democracy (2008)

 Estonia: Structure and Operation of Local and Regional Democracy (2011)

 Finland: Structure and operation of local and regional democracy (2009)

 France: Structure and operation of local and regional democracy (1997)

 Germany: Structure and operation of local and regional democracy (1998)

 Greece: Structure and Operation of Local and Regional Democracy (2013)

 Hungary: Structure and operation of local and regional democracy (2004)

 Iceland: Structure and operation of local and regional democracy (2006)

 Ireland: Structure and operation of local and regional democracy (1998)

 Italy: Structure and operation of local and regional democracy (2008)

 Latvia: Structure and operation of local and regional democracy (2006)

 Lithuania: Structure and operation of local and regional democracy (2006)

 Luxembourg: Structure and operation of local and regional democracy (2007)

 Malta: Structure and operation of local and regional democracy (2006)

 Netherlands: Structure and operation of local and regional democracy (2008)

 Norway: Structure and operation of local and regional democracy (1997)

 Poland: Structure and Operation of Local and Regional Democracy (2000)

 Portugal: Structure and operation of local and regional democracy (2006)

 Romania: Structure and operation of local and regional democracy (2014)

 Russian Federation: Structure and operation of local and regional democracy (1999)

 Slovak Republic: Structure and operation of local and regional democracy (1998)

 Slovenia: Structure and operation of local and regional democracy (2013)

 Spain: Structure and operation of local and regional democracy (1996)

 Sweden: Structure and operation of local and regional democracy (2007)

 Switzerland: Structure and operation of local and regional democracy (1997)

 'The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia': Structure and operation of local and regional democracy (1998)

 Turkey: Structure and operation of local and regional democracy (2009)

 Ukraine : Structure and Operation of Local and Regional Democracy (2010)

 United Kingdom: Structure and operation of local and regional democracy (1999)

• Civil participation in decision-making processes - An Overview of Standards and Practices in Council of Europe Member States (May 2016)
• Participation of citizens in local public life (2000)
• Report on Deliberative Democracy (2023)

• Report on Green Public Administration (2023)
• Compendium of replies to questionnaire on Green Public Administration (2023)

• Leadership Academy programme - Booklet
• A TNA Case Study: Poland - An effective local government office - Developing personnel competence to build efficient local administration

• Analytical tool for assessing the autonomy of first-tier local authorities (2011)
• Public-Private Partnerships (2008)
• Local Authority Competences Study (2007)
• Relationship between central and local authorities (2007)
• Abridged Handbook on Public Ethics at Local Level (2006)
• Model initiatives package on public ethics at local level (2004)
• Administrative and territorial reforms creating territorial communities (2002)
• The size of local and regional authorities: its impact on service delivery and democratic quality (2001)
• Liability of local elected representatives for acts or omissions in the course of their duties (1999)
• Supervision and auditing of local authorities' action (1999)
• Regionalisation and its effects on local self-government (1998)
• The legal status and employment conditions of local authorities' staff in the countries of central and Eastern Europe (1997)
• The status of major cities and their peripheries (1996)

• Local finance benchmarking: piloting and lessons learned - Moldova (2017)  [Romanian version]
• Local finance benchmarking : piloting and lessons learned - Georgia (2017)  [Georgian version]
• Local finance benchmarking: piloting and lessons learned - Armenia (2017)  [Armenian version]
• Local finance benchmarking: a shared tool for improved financial management (2016)
• Survey of the role of central/regional Government in Participatory Budgeting at local level (2011)
• Local Government in Critical Times: Policies for Crisis, Recovery and a Sustainable Future (2011)
• Impact of the Economic Downturn on Local Government in Europe (2010)
• Pilot Study concerning the Degree Of Conformity of Member States' Policy and Practice with Council Of Europe Standards For Local Finance (2009)
• Member states' practices for the funding of new competences for local authorities (2009)
• Internal audit at local and regional level (2007)
• Handbook on Finance at Local and Regional Level (2006)
• Budgetary procedures and budget management at local authority level (2002)
• Effects on the financial autonomy of local and regional authorities resulting from the limits set at European level on national public debt (2000)
• Limitations of local taxation, financial equalisation and methods for calculating general grants (1998)

• Report on Multilevel Governance 2023)
• Compendium of replies to questionnaire on Multilevel Governance (2023)

• Mapping the obstacles to inter-municipal cooperation in eastern partnership countries (2016)
• European experience of citizens’ participation in cross-border governance (2015)
• Manual on Removing Obstacles to Cross Border Cooperation (2014)
• CBC - Cross-Border Co-operation toolkit (2012)
• SWOT 1 - Central Europe
• SWOT 2 - Northern Europe
• SWOT 3 – Cross-border co-operation in Europe: a comprehensive overview
• Strategies and Euroregions for cross-border co-operation in Balkan and Danube countries
• Manual on Intermunicipal co-operation (2008)
• Good practices in intermunicipal co-operation (2007)
• Practical Guide to Transfrontier Co-operation (2006)
• Handbook of transfrontier co-operation (2006)