Improving Local Services Through Direct Collaboration with Citizens (MK0077)

Improving local services through direct collaboration with citizens

XVII. Local Open Government: Increasing Civic Participation

Commitment 6.3: Participation in Local Services

Commitment Text: .. 6.3. Improving local services through direct collaboration with citizens.

a)    [Upgrade and replicate] good practice (community forums) and support […] innovative practices (micro civic laboratories, etc.);

b)    Supporting initiatives generated by citizens through a collaborative process;

c)     Evaluation of the achieved results. Making a clause for standard transparency of the institutions at local level;

d)    Replicate the model in other units of local government;

e)    [Model] Municipal internal Act on Transparency […]

Commitment 6.5: Participation in Local Policy Making

Commitment Text: .. 6.5. Participatory policy making at the local level-obligatory consultations with citizens in drafting/amending of the most important acts and documents in the local government (budget, strategies, urban plans, statute);

a)    Preparation of the internal model Act to implement the consultation process and the development and application of IT tools;

b)    Promotion of Civil Society Organisations as facilitators of the consultation process.

c)     Improving local services through direct collaboration with citizens.

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

Supporting institution(s): See note.^{[Note 137: The full list of supporting institutions is: Municipalities, Commission on Free Access to Public Information, Directorate for Personal Data Protection, Ministry of Information Society and Administration, other ministries, other state bodies and institutions, Association of Local Government Units of the Republic of Macedonia – ZELS, UNDP, Center for Civil Communications, Center for Research and Policy Making, Association for the Development of the Roma community in Macedonia, Centre for Development and European Integration‚ Educational-humanitarian organization, Green Power - Veles, Institute for Economic Strategies and International Affairs Ohrid - Skopje, Macedonian Center for International Cooperation, local communities, and CSW - Coordination Unit of Forums.]} 

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

Commitment aim

This cluster of commitments sought to ensure that there were institutional policies and practices in place for inclusive and participatory decision making at the local level. Commitment 6.3 had five milestones to ensure that municipalities adopted transparency rules, involved civil society, and supported initiatives identified as priorities through collaborative processes. Commitment 6.5 promised mandatory consultations at the local level.

Status

Midterm

Commitment 6.3: Limited

Commitment 6.5: Not started

There was little progress on these commitments as noted in the midterm review. This is because OGP efforts did not improve or strengthen existing participatory mechanisms. Commitment 6.5, which promised mandatory consultations at the local level, did not start.^{[Note 138: IRM researcher second review of municipal statutes.]}

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

End of term

Commitment 6.3: Limited

Commitment 6.5: Not started

In its end of term assessment, the government reported that the Ministry of Local Government and the Association of Municipalities were attempting to establish new regional networks with civic and business representatives in two additional regions. The goal was to introduce the participatory mechanism and expand existing good practices. As reported, however, the process is still at an early stage. UNDP-supported events were organized as best practices in tourism for youth and disabled persons in the Polog region. Moreover, infrastructure was improved in several municipalities to accommodate the needs of disabled persons. IRM interviews with municipalities revealed that these investments were part of ongoing efforts, and their inclusion in the OGP action plan did not expand their scope. This latter point was confirmed by CSOs. Finally, no additional progress was made on the remaining milestones, and the IRM researcher’s review of municipal statutes and acts found no progress on the municipal internal act on transparency (commitment 6.5).

Did it open government?

Access to information: Marginal

Civic Participation: Marginal

Public accountability: Did not change

Traditionally, local governments in Macedonia did not cooperate with CSOs and citizens on policy.^{[Note 139: EC, Annual Progress Report for 2015, 9.]} The commitment set out to transform the way local governments made decisions, and created policies and statutory guarantees for civic participation in ‘the most important acts and documents.’ It also aimed to set standards and adopt a model for transparency at the local level.

However, access to information and civic participation improved only marginally, as the 57 municipalities used Community Forums as mechanisms to consult with citizens on priorities and budgetary investments.^{[Note 140: For more details on Community Forums, please visit a dedicated page: http://www.forumivozaednicata.com.mk/. ]} Both civil society and local governments assess Community Forums positively. Local officials believe they are crucial in building trust and improving public services.^{[Note 141: Interview with the Mayor of Pehcevo, Igor Popovski, September 2016, Community Forums Newsletter No.5/2016. ]} Citizens and civil society believe they provide a process for prioritising projects that are programmed by local authorities, and for monitoring their implementation. The Forums are limited in scope and not mandatory,^{[Note 142: However, 57 municipalities prescribe them as a possibility for consultations in the statutes.]} although two-thirds of the municipalities prescribe them as a form of consultation. Additionally, the Ministry of Local Government began the process of expanding the regional cooperative mechanisms to two new regions. So far, the experiences have been positive. Citizens voice their needs through Community Forums and Networks for Inclusive Development. These are then translated into investments and policies. However, this initiative continues to depend on donations and technical assistance from international and local organisations. Some efforts were made in the last year to build the capacity of civil servants to organize and implement Community Forums independently as part of the exit phase of the program. Approximately 100 civil servants from 29 municipalities were trained in 2016. The Community Forums program closed in March 2017, without making the consultations mandatory. They were not included in the new OGP action plan, and the sustainability of this positive initiative is uncertain at the moment. In this sense, no mechanism was established to allow for public accountability in the last two years.

Carried forward?

Commitment 6.3 was not carried forward to the new action plan. The government considered this commitment completed, even though the evaluation was not done, the municipal act for transparency not adopted, and the existing good practices not sustained. Commitment 6.5, which was revised and included in the new action plan, focuses on supporting the implementation of existing non-mandatory mechanisms for consultations in gender equality and social inclusion. However, as the midterm review notes, the commitment assumes that citizens are empowered and will engage in consultations once they become a reality. Activities to support civic participation, especially among vulnerable groups, are necessary to ensure wider participation. The milestone on mandatory consultations was not taken further, and the new action plan concentrates on supporting existing committees (e.g., the gender equality committee) to ensure inclusive policy making.^{[Note 143: New national OGP Action Plan 2016-2018, 59-73.]}