The Steering Committee on Democracy (CDDEM) working group on multi-level governance (GT-GPN) held its first meeting to define the approach of a new Council of Europe Recommendation on multi-level governance.

Multilevel governance (MLG) refers to the coordinated exercise of public authority across different levels of government – national, regional and local – as well as with non-state actors, based on the principles of subsidiarity, shared responsibility and cooperation. MLG emphasises interaction, coordination and mutual accountability among levels of government in the design, implementation and evaluation of public policies.
There are varied experiences and trends in implementing MLG frameworks in Europe. In general, this type of governance offers clear advantages, such as better service delivery, enhanced democratic participation and more efficient expenditure. At the same time, MLG faces well-known challenges such as unclear distribution of responsibilities, lack of administrative capacity at subnational level or resource imbalances. The need to maximise their potential and secure clear legal frameworks, stable financing, capacity-building, and institutionalised mechanisms for coordination and dialogue were at the core of the discussions of the participants of the GT-GPN.

Moving forward, the group will gather information of MLG practices and build on the substantive work of the Council of Europe and other organisations, notably, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) to define what mechanisms and process better address the challenges and maximise the benefits of multi-level governance.