Strengthening Institutional Frameworks for Local Governance Programme

Programme news

Back Regional conference in Georgia: a shared vision for improved local governance

“We need to make municipalities more transparent and open, basing our work on the principle of participatory democracy. We have the opportunity here to improve our governance, to meet the standards of our citizens and move closer to those of Europe” emphasised Zurab ALAVIDZE, Minister of Regional Development and Infrastructure in his address to mayors, local elected representatives, national associations of local authorities and civil society organisations from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, the Republic of Moldova, Ukraine and Belarus.

He was joined in his statement by Kakha KALADZE, Mayor of Tbilisi, who underlined the legislative reform in Georgia and its positive results for local government which improved their efficiency and implemented new ways of reporting to citizens. “Transparency is essential for democracy and people should participate in decision-making”, he stressed.

The speakers and participants in the regional conference on “Ethics and transparency at local level: strategies and tools” confirmed their commitment to improve the quality of services for citizens, and highlighted the “sharing of experiences between the Eastern Partnership countries’ as a key tool for effective and sustainable democracy in the region.

The Tbilisi regional conference brought together around 100 mayors and local elected representatives from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Republic of Moldova, Ukraine and Belarus, including numerous newly-elected Georgian mayors, as well as representatives of national associations of local authorities, civil society organisations and experts. The aim was to enable peer exchange on good practices to promote and strengthen ethics, transparency and participatory democracy at local level in these countries.

The conference was organised, from 6-7 December 2017, in Tbilisi, Georgia, by the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities within the thematic programme “Strengthening institutional frameworks for local governance”, implemented jointly with the Council of Europe Centre of Expertise for Local Government Reform, Directorate General of Democracy. This programme is funded by the European Union and the Council of Europe, and implemented by the Council of Europe, through the Partnership for Good Governance (PGG) 2015-2017 for Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine and Belarus.

Tbilisi, Georgia 6 December 2017

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Publications

Territorial Amalgamation Toolkit

Inter-Municipal CooperationToolkit in Ukraine

Local Finance Benchmarking Toolkit: piloting and lessons learned. Geogia. Phase I

Local Finance Benchmarking Toolkit: piloting and lessons learned. Republic of Moldova

Local Finance Benchmarking Toolkit: piloting and lessons learned. Armenia

Mapping obstacles to Inter-Municipal Cooperation in Eastern Partnership counties

Local finance benchmarking: a shared tool for improved financial management

Study on roles and responsibilities of mayors and local councillors in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine and Belarus

Mayors and local councillors play a vital leadership role in promoting the principles of local democracy in their communities. The study takes an integral look at the execution of roles and functions of local elected representatives, the division and scope of their responsibilities, the situation of local finances and the quality of local democracy. It is developed with the aim to strengthen the local leaders in order for them to further contribute to the development of local democratic governance.

Download the study : English - Russian

Handbooks on Transparency and Citizen participation

Reducing corruption risks, promoting citizen participation, and developing effective, accountable and transparent institutions at all levels are key components of just and inclusive societies. These country-specific handbooks provide practical guidance on transparency policies and citizen participation mechanisms, and identify the most prevalent corruption risks. They identify the relevant international standards and national legislation and provide case-law examples and best practices which local and regional authorities are recommended to promote and apply.

ARMENIA: English - Armenian
GEORGIA: English - Georgian
REPUBLIC OF MOLDOVA: English – Romanian
UKRAINE: English - Ukrainian

Study on institutionalised citizen participation: assessment of existing mechanisms in Georgia

Through an approach involving in-depth interviews and desk surveys, with the support of local authorities and civil society organisations, this comprehensive overview sets out the main directions for improvement of citizen participation in Georgia. It is comprised of three parts: evaluation of the existing legal bases, description of the challenges and successes in practice, with regard to the implementation of existing mechanisms in practice, and recommendations to improve the current situation.

Download the study : English - Georgian

Management of change: a tool guide for local and regional authorities

This tool provides step-by-step guidance for local authorities towards the successful assessment of local policies’ efficiency and effective management of change. It aims to support local public administrations in leading in a more informed manner, addressing the needs of their communities, and developing demand-driven and responsive policies.

Download the tool guide : English - Armenian - Georgian - Romanian - Ukrainian

About the Programme

Programme summary

The programme is being implemented by Council of Europe

The programme “Strengthening institutional frameworks for local governance” is being implemented by the Council of Europe Centre of Expertise for Local Government Reform, Directorate General of Democracy and the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities.

Funding

This programme is funded by the European Union and co-funded by the Council of Europe

This programme is funded by the European Union and the Council of Europe and implemented by the Council of Europe through the Programmatic Co-operation Framework (PCF) for 2015-2017 for Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine and Belarus. The total budget of the programme is € 2,570,000.

Expected results

streamlining new by-laws in at least three beneficiary countries and to develop targeted recommendations;
foster a more efficient, transparent and ethical governance at the local level in at least three beneficiary countries;
develop and adapt the European standard local finance benchmarking tool to the specific countries so as to improve legislation and local regulations.

Objectives

To strengthen institutional frameworks for local governance in the Eastern Partnership countries

support the on-going process of reform of local government in participating countries

promote ethical behaviour by locally elected representatives of the region

support the improvement of financial and human resources management of local administrations based on European standards and benchmarking processes.

Main activities

Comparative studies on the role and responsibilities of mayors and councillors

Comparative studies on the role and responsibilities of mayors and councillors, on inter-municipal cooperation and local finance benchmarking, conferences, workshops, bilateral round tables, training sessions, legal expertise, development of recommendations for reform, peer-to-peer exchanges, study visits for beneficiaries from participating countries, awareness raising and visibility actions, country-specific studies and publications, etc.