TRENDS AND CHALLENGES IN LOCAL GOVERNANCE

This year, The Hague Academy for Local Governance celebrated 10 years of work focused on strengthening local governance worldwide. As a milestone in the history of the Academy, the occasion provided an opportunity to reflect on recent developments and identify future trends and challenges. For this purpose, our newsletter readers were invited to share their experiences and thoughts in a short survey. 115 government practitioners, NGO-representatives, development workers and students gave their opinion about the current challenges for local authorities, the most pressing needs, the future trends, and the meaning of the SDGs. Please find their answers below and their personal stories in the upper left column!


MAIN TRENDS IN LOCAL GOVERNANCE

Two things that come to mind about the functions of the local government:

Delivery of local services, such as waste management, water su...Representation of the local community on matters of concern to...Development of long term strategies for the development of the...Development of policies, plans and (by)laws to guide the activiti...Regulation and registration, such as land use and registry, busi...Advocacy on behalf of the constituency to national and regional...

Main trends in society that will affect this municipality in 10 years' time:

UrbanisationIncreased unemploymentDemographic trends, such as larger youth or aging populationsRapidly evolving technologies, such as online services and ICT-applications for traffi...Increased water and food insecurityLess social cohesion, increased tensions between different groups in the communityIncreased empowerment of civil societyIncreased authoritarian political leadershipIncreased numbers of displaced people in the communityIncreased exclusiveness of marginalised groupsAn increase of armed conflictAn increase of natural disasters

What is the most likely scenario in 10 years' time? The municipality...

The municipality is led and ...The municipal has lost its ca...

After a civil war it is very tough to reorganize a shattered institution. With hard work and good leadership the slow transformation will be visible. The confidence of the citizens with themselves and their leaders will return.


FUTURE NEEDS OF LOCAL GOVERNANCE

Keeping your municipality in mind, what would the municipality need most to ensure good local governance in 10 years' time:

Increased financial resourcesCapacity development of local governmentIntegrity of the local authorityAvailability of qualified staffIncreased quality and stability of legislationImproved inter-administrative agreementsCapacity development of external stakeholdersCapacity development of national government

Financial resources:The municipality that I have in mind needs more….

decentralisation of funds fro...flexibility to generate local in...

Capacity development of local government:The municipality that I have in mind needs more capacities of….

capacities of local governme...capacities of elected represe...

Integrity of the local authority:The municipality that I have in mind needs….

pressure by political parties ...bribes accepted by local gov...

Availability of qualified staff:The municipality that I have in mind needs more flexibility for local authorities...

flexibility for local authoritie...flexibility for local authoritie...

Quality and stability of legislation:The municipality that I have in mind needs….

more clarity on the interpret...less frequent changes of law...

Inter-administrative agreements:The municipality that I have in mind needs more ….

clarity on the division of task...decision making power on lo...

What are the two most important types of support that the municipality would benefit from in addressing its needs:

The private sector, investing in the local infrastructure and econ...National government institutions, coordinating and facilitating l...The local government association (LGA), lobbying on behalf of t...International development agencies and NGOs, managing donor...(Networks of) local authorities abroad, engaging in regional and...Universities and training institutes, offering curricula on local go...

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are 17 global goals to be achieved in 2030. The goals are set by the United Nations to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all.

Are the SDGs used in the municipality that you have in mind?

YesNoI don't know

What can you say about the SDGs in the municipality you have in mind?

The SDGs are used as a framework to ...The SDGs are used by some people or ...The SDGs are used to measure local d...I don't know

SDGs are:

extremely usefulan additional bur...

THE STORYTELLERS

Do you live / have lived in the municipality you talk about?

YesNo

What is the size of the municipality that you are talking about?

More than 1,000,000Between 500,000 and 1,000,000 inha...Between 100,000 and 500,000 inhabit...Between 20,000 and 100,000 inhabita...Between 1,000 and 20,000 inhabitantsLess than 1,000 inhabitantsPopulation not in localities

The municipality is based in:

Northern AfricaSub-Sahara AfricaWestern EuropeEastern EuropeWestern AsiaOther AsiaNorthern and South America

My work or interest relates to...

International development actorsNational GovernmentLocal Government (Associations)Civil SocietyKnowledge and training institutes

I consider myself mainly:

FemaleMalePrefer not to say

END OF REPORT