Projects in Hungary

Hungary joined the Council of Europe in 1990 and ratified the European Charter of Local Self-Government in 1994. The most recent Congress monitoring report, adopted in 2021, acknowledged progress in local autonomy while highlighting areas for further improvement.

The Centre of Expertise has maintained a longstanding partnership with the Hungarian National Association of Local Authorities (TÖOSZ), supporting initiatives such as the Hungarian Local Governments Best Practices Programme and the European Label of Governance Excellence (ELoGE).

Completed projects in Hungary

Local Government Public Finance Development and Municipal Capacity Building In Hungary (2022-2024)

Objectives

Over the course of the project, the Centre of Expertise for Multilevel Governance (CEMG):

organised a Peer Review on Intergovernmental Fiscal Relations, Data Access and Use, and Local-Central Policy Dialogue (2023)
delivered a Policy Advice Report (2024) on the Local Business Tax and the Solidarity Contribution
co-facilitated the Local Finance Working Group comprised of representatives of the Ministry of Public Administration and Regional Development, the Ministry of Finance, the State Treasury, State Audit, local government associations and experts.
supported the design of a new Local Government Data Platform (LGDP) hosted by TÖOSZ
piloted the Council of Europe’s Public Ethics and Local Finance Benchmarks
Standard Expenditure Needs and Standard Levels of Output (SEN/SLO) methodology. The SEN approach, originally developed in Italy and later adapted in Lithuania, responds to Recommendation CM/Rec(2005)1 on the financial resources of local and regional authorities, which calls for the estimation of spending needs based on objective criteria, taking account, as far as possible, of demographic, geographical, social and economic features leading to disparities in costs. Alongside recommendations for the further development and use of the methodology in Hungary, the pilot delivered an interactive tool to compare cost and performance in the delivery of 12 social services across all Hungarian municipalities.
supported the Leadership Academy Programme (LAP), a Learning Exchange between Austrian and Hungarian local and central government stakeholders and other capacity development opportunities for local government representatives – benefitting 110 elected officials and municipal staff as well as experts of local government associations and public sector unions.
supported the 2023 edition of the European Label of Governance Excellence (ELoGE) in Hungary and three rounds of the Best Practice Programme (BPP) organised by the Hungarian National Association of Local Authorities (TÖOSZ)
Overall, more than 650 participants joined project events, and 100 local authorities were involved in project activities.

Beneficiaries

The Hungarian National Association of Local Authorities; The Ministry of Interior (until end of 2023), Ministry of Public Administration and Regional Development (from 2024), Ministry of Finance
Other project stakeholders: The State Treasury, State Audit, Local Government Associations, Trade Union of Hungarian Civil Servants and Public Employees (MKKSZ)
Final beneficiaries of the project: Hungarian municipalities, their staff and institutional structures; Hungarian citizens and society at large.

Budget and duration

The Project was co-funded by the European Union via the Technical Support Instrument, and implemented by the Council of Europe, in cooperation with the European Commission

The total budget of the project was € 666 667 EUR

The project ran from 1 September 2022 to 31 December 2024

More information about the cooperation between EU/EC DG REFORM and the Council of Europe is available from the Directorate of Programme Co-ordination.