Building democratic participation in the City of Mostar
Bosnia and Herzegovina’s aspiration to enhance governance at all levels is supported by the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe in the framework of the project “Building democratic participation in the City of Mostar”, as part of the Council of Europe Action Plan for Bosnia and Herzegovina 2018-2021. Following a decade where Mostar citizens could not exercise their fundamental right to vote and stand in local elections, the aim of the project is to create opportunities for citizens to engage in deliberative processes and participate in local decision making, with the ultimate goal of restoring citizen’s confidence and trust in public authorities. A tailored methodology of deliberative democracy through mini-publics (a term coined by scholars/experts used in relation with deliberative democracy to define an institution in which a diverse body of citizens is selected randomly to reason together about an issue of public concern) will provide opportunities for dialogue among the citizens of Mostar, and with the local decision-makers. The project also seeks to develop the skills and knowledge of local stakeholders on democratic approaches.
The project is rooted in the work of the Reflection Group on Mostar, established in 2017 with the goal of proposing a sustainable solution for restoring democracy in the City, and follows on the Recommendation 442 (2019) on local and regional democracy in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the ruling of the European Court of Human Rights in the case Baralija v. Bosnia and Herzegovina. The project builds upon the results of Congress co-operation activities carried out in Council of Europe member states since 2011 and is based on the needs and recommendations voiced by relevant stakeholders and beneficiaries.
Project Summary
The project “Building democratic participation in the City of Mostar” aims to create opportunities for citizens to engage in a deliberative process and participate in local decision making, with the ultimate goal of revitalising citizens’ confidence and trust in public authorities.
The project is implemented by the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities as part of the Council of Europe Action Plan for Bosnia and Herzegovina 2018-2021, and in line with the principles enshrined in the European Charter for Local Self-Government (ETS No. 122) and its Additional Protocol on the right to participate in the affairs of a local authority (CETS No.207).
Outcomes
The following outcomes are expected to be achieved:
- Local authorities, citizens and civil society organisations apply new deliberation tools and mechanisms
- Local stakeholders improve their skills and knowledge about democratic approaches
- Local decision-makers create favourable conditions for enhanced citizen engagement
Methodology
A tailored methodology for Mostar will be used to allow citizens to deliberate on topics of interest and make proposals for local politicians to create more responsive and accountable policies. Deliberation through Citizens’ Assemblies is a more advanced practice of citizen participation being used in many communities where local, regional or national authorities want to include representative groups of citizens in decision making.
The deliberative process consists of four main phases: selection of citizens, learning and capacity building consultation and deliberation. During each phase, a comprehensive participation of different stakeholders is ensured, ranging from the general public to interest groups, NGOs and local political parties. This leads to more rounded and informed public opinion and arguably better decisions. Ultimately, it leads to increased trust towards local authorities.
The support includes expert support and guidance, as well as capacity development activities for local decision-makers, politicians and other relevant stakeholders.
The support includes expert support and guidance, as well as through capacity development activities for local decision-makers, politicians and other relevant stakeholders.
Expected Results
- Citizens implement a tailored deliberative process in the City of Mostar
- Citizens formulate proposals for local decision-makers
- Local stakeholders develop their capacities to implement democratic approaches based on citizen deliberation
- Local stakeholders debate lessons-learned to identify the best applicable models of citizen participation
- Local stakeholders improve their knowledge of European standards of local democracy, electoral systems, open government, public ethics and strategic planning at local level
Main Activities
- Piloting a tailored methodology for citizen deliberations in the City of Mostar
- Organisation of the first Citizens’ Assembly in Bosnia and Herzegovina, based on the/a tailored methodology for Mostar
- Expert support in the field of deliberative democracy
- Capacity development activities and workshops for decision-makers and other relevant stakeholders
Partners and Beneficiaries
- Citizens of Mostar
- City administration of Mostar
- Representatives of local political parties
- Relevant public authorities at different levels
- Civil society and media
1. The Preparation Period – A tailored deliberative process for the City of Mostar
Through the Citizens’ Assembly, the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities created opportunities for citizens of Mostar to participate in local decision-making by developing a platform to learn about, discuss and make recommendations on a topic of local interest.
- Online meetings with local stakeholders – Presentation of the Project The design team of the project held two consultative meetings, one with the Mostar Civil Society and one with the newly elected City representatives, to present the project and its methodology.
- Rulebook of the Mostar Citizens’ Assembly - The Rulebook of the Mostar Citizen’s Assembly defines a set of standards and rules for the organisation of the Assembly, as well as the role of the stakeholders engaged in the process.
- Inclusive topic selection - From March to June 2021, a four-stage topic selection process was organised, with the participation of the citizens of Mostar, and local stakeholders. As a result of an online survey for the citizens of Mostar, 20 topics with the highest number of votes were retained. On 4 and 10 May, two workshops were organised for local civil society organisations and the academic community from Mostar, and for local councilors and representatives of the City administration, respectively. Through the workshops, the number of topics was reduced from 20 to 6 and from 6 to 3, following a vote of the participants, according to a specifically tailored method. The topic of the Assembly: cleanliness and maintenance of public spaces in the city, was finally chosen on 23 June 2021 by votes of 250 random citizens which received the invitation letter to participate in the Assembly.
- Inclusive and transparent selection of participants - 48 citizens of Mostar representing the demographic structure of the city, became members of the Mostar Citizens’ Assembly, out of 250 registered to take part. The random selection process was livestreamed online on 29 June 2021.
- Learning and capacity building sessions - During two sessions, Mostar city councillors engaged in peer-to-peer exchanges with their European counterparts, members of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities. The participants discussed their experiences regarding their role and challenges as local councilors, and ways to successfully involve citizens in local decision-making.
- Signing of the Memorandum of Co-operation - A Memorandum of Co-operation, representing the commitment of the Mostar city authorities to work on citizens’ inclusion in decision making process, was signed in Mostar on 09 July 2021, between the Council of Europe in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the City of Mostar.
2. The Citizens’ Assembly of Mostar– Deliberative democracy in practice
The Mostar Citizens’ Assembly, consisting of a learning and a deliberation phase, lasted for four consecutive weekends and was coordinated by independent, expert facilitators who helped ensure that everyone’s voice was heard through all the phases of the Assembly.
- Learning phase: 10, 11, 17 July 2021 Members of the Citizens’ Assembly were familiarised with the concept of deliberative democracy and were introduced with the topic of the Assembly - cleanliness and maintenance of the city. Local and international experts and stakeholders shared their experiences and views and presented various solutions to the participants.
- Deliberation phase: 18, 24, 31 July 2021 Members of the Citizens’ Assembly deliberated and proposed solutions to improve the cleanliness and maintenance of public space in Mostar. With the support of experts and facilitators, they formulated 32 recommendations for the city authorities of Mostar.
3. Follow-up on Citizens’ Assembly conclusions/recommendations / Learning from experience & Focusing on what is next
The Congress of Local and Regional Authorities ensures the sustainability of the project through regular follow-up with city authorities and through organisation of activities aiming to support the development of capacities of local authorities and to the implementation of citizens’ recommendations.
- Presenting recommendations
In early August, following the Citizens’ Assembly, the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities shares recommendations with the City Authorities of Mostar. The Congress supports the City Council of Mostar in the organisation of a plenary session dedicated to debate on the recommendations.
The Congress organises a high-level mission to Mostar to discuss with local authorities on experiences and impressions after the first Citizens’ Assembly.
As a follow-up to the recommendations of the Citizens’ Assembly which recognised the need for further transparency and openness in the work of local authorities, the Congress organises a two-day workshop for Mostar city councillors on transparency, prevention of corruption and ethical decision making. This activity is coupled with a second workshop intended for representatives of local public utility companies, on good practices concerning the provision of municipal services.
An Action Plan for the implementation of citizens’ recommendations is elaborated by the City Authorities of Mostar, with the support of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities. Based on this Plan the City Council of Mostar discusses the recommendations and the possibility to hold Citizens’ Assemblies in the future. The Action Plan is unanimously adopted by the City Council of Mostar in November 2021.
Marité MORAS
Head of Unit, Co-operation and External Relations Department
Secretariat of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities
Natalija MILOVIĆ
Project Officer
Secretariat of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities
Damjan JUGOVIĆ
Project Officer
Council of Europe Office in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Ivana IVANDIC
Project Assistant
Council of Europe Office in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Emina BEKTO
Project Assistant
Council of Europe Office in Bosnia and Herzegovina