Establish an Electronic Platform (Dashboard) with Indicators for the Budget and Delivery of Local Services (MK0076)

Establish an electronic platform (dashboard) with indicators for the budget and delivery of local services

XVI. Local Open Government: Open Budget and Monitoring System

Commitment 6.2: Open Budget and Monitoring System

Commitment Text: 6.2. Establish an electronic platform (dashboard) with indicators for the budget and delivery of local services.

a)    Selection of pilot local self-governments, areas of local competence and local services in the relevant field;

b)    Analysis of available local statistics, […] documents and legislation and identification of [the] framework [for preparing the] prototype […] platform;

c)     Preparation of [municipal budget indicators] and the publication of the draft budget, and the status of implementation of the budget;

d)    Preparation of a list of relevant indicators for local services;

e)    Organizing participatory process;

f)      [Mapping and planning for involvement of] key stakeholders for each service […];

g)    Joint (with stakeholders) designing prototype of electronic platform (dashboard) with indicators for the delivery of one or more local services;

h)    Preparation of User Manual and Maintenance Manual of the platform;

i)      Support [the] social audit process […] based on published and continuously updated data.

Responsible institution(s): Ministry of Local Self-Government

Supporting institution(s): All municipalities, UNDP

Start Date: 1/7/2014      End Date: 31/12/2016

Commitment aim

This is a new commitment designed to improve the way services are provided at the local level, including transparency of local budgets. Before OGP, access to budgetary spending information was only available through quarterly and annual accounts that should have been published regularly by municipalities. However, implementation varied, and only little information was made available, even to some municipalities. This commitment sought to transform these practices, by piloting new platform to link budgetary spending with delivery of local services, and allow for civic participation through social audits.

Status

Midterm: Limited

The government’s midterm self-assessment and the IRM review both found little progress on this commitment. In the first year of implementation, the e-platform was piloted in only one municipality (Gevgelija). The platform presented data on key indicators of environmental protection^{[Note 133: The platform is available at http://gevgelijazagragjanite.gov.mk/. ]} from 13 planned areas.

For more information, please see the 2014-2016 IRM midterm report.

End of term: Limited

In its end of year self-assessment, the government stated that there was no further progress on this commitment, that its implementation was limited, and that the government intended to fully implement the commitment during the next action plan. The IRM researcher’s review of the platforms showed that the pilot dashboard developed for the municipality of Gevgelija had not been updated in the second year, nor it was upgraded to include additional areas. None of the specific elements were carried out, and they were transferred to the new action plan. The IRM researcher interviewed several municipalities to understand how they planned to incorporate civic participation. Currently, it is possible to send messages through the web-platform, but when the IRM researcher did so, she did not receive a reply. Of the seven municipalities consulted by the IRM researcher,^{[Note 134: The following municipalities replied: Strumica, Veles, Shtip, Kumanovo, Tetovo, Gjorce Petrov and Bogovinje. ]} two were not aware of the initiative, three stated that the initiative never became functional, and two declared that they had initially installed a computer to inspire citizens' feedback, but citizens rarely provided feedback and results did not inform any policy discussions.

Did it open government?

Access to information: Did not change

Civic Participation: Did not change

Public Accountability: Did not change

Prior to this commitment, budgetary information was largely unavailable at the local level. The government set out to open municipal budgets and to link spending with results in service provision, by developing indicators and allowing citizens to participate through social audits.^{[Note 135: A social audit is a process to review the performance of municipalities and their impact on society. For more information, see Mia Mahmudur Rahim and Samuel O. Idowu, Social Audit Regulation: Development, Challenges and Opportunities, (New York: Springer, 2015).]} Therefore, the commitment had transformational potential, and was considered a priority by civil society.

However, little implementation in the first year did not ensure greater openness at the local level. The commitment was piloted partially in only one municipality (out of 84), and did serve to increase access to information on utility services and environmental data. Nevertheless, the information was not updated following the first wave of release. A civil society initiative, which was implemented before the second national action plan, provided a web-platform with access to budgetary expenses for all municipalities.^{[Note 136: Please see: http://sledigiparite.mk/. ]} This donor-funded initiative has not been updated, but is an example of how partnering with civil society has the potential for achieving greater openness. 

The IRM researcher could not find evidence to assess changes in the government’s practice on civic participation or public accountability.

Carried forward?

This commitment was carried forward to the new action plan (as new commitment 6.2). The new commitment seeks to make the information from the quarterly spending reports more accessible, by releasing them in a new format and on a new application. The commitment does not specify whether information will be released in real time, or whether the data will be updated quarterly. One of the milestones under the commitment states that data will be prioritised, suggesting that only certain data in priority areas may be released. While IRM recommended consultations to define services for social audits and measure impacts, the new commitment is focused only on budget spending data. It advocates that all spending be made public in open format and real time.

Additionally, municipalities, government, and civil society should consult with citizens to ensure that the tool is used by citizens, and provides a meaningful platform for feedback and consultations.