Introduction
Program Considerations
• Vision Setting
• Planning and Budgeting
• Service Provision
• Citizen Ownership and Management
• Economic Development
Web Sites
Bibliography
Introduction
Involving residents in a meaningful and inclusive way in the governance of their cities and the delivery of their services - fully utilizing their strengths, knowledge, and skills - is participatory management at the municipal level. Participatory management facilitates policy implementation, limits conflicts and reduces costs because residents, who have a voice in the decision making process and understand the costs and benefits of governance decisions, are less likely to resist change and to distrust local authorities. For example, residents may be more willing to pay for services when they have participated in the identification of the delivery option and the review of management alternatives, and when they understand the full costs, including capital, operation and maintenance costs associated with the basic service.
Participatory management can take many forms including: town meetings, suggestion boxes conveniently located for residents, open city government sessions such as public hearings, special committees where residents can participate, public enterprise boards and citizen report cards that indicate approval/disapproval ratings of city government. Regardless of the form, the key to successful participatory management is strong leadership and political will among city authorities to open the governance process, invite meaningful citizen participation, and incorporate the community's collective opinion in government decision-making. Successful participatory management also requires open and consistent communication and information sharing among local authorities and the community. To facilitate this, city authorities should involve the media in awareness raising about resident opportunities to participate and in the dissemination of outcomes. Other methods to encourage greater consultation and information sharing include: public information centers, neighborhood bulletin boards, awareness raising at parent-teacher associations or other community meetings, fliers, radio announcements, and where appropriate websites.
Programming Considerations
Participatory management can be used in many different circumstances. The following are a snapshot of how participatory management can be used and some of the tools available.
Vision Setting
A common vision about where the city wants to be in 10-20 years, which helps align stakeholder efforts and guide the use of local resources for development is an incredibly powerful tool for city authorities. One way to achieve this shared vision is to develop a City Development Strategy (CDS). A CDS is an action plan for equitable growth in the city and for improving quality of life for all. It is developed and sustained through participation by local authorities, the community and local businesses and through pooling of resources, financial and human. While the components of a CDS may differ by city, all CDSs aim to improve urban governance and management, increasing investment to expand employment and basic services with a clear commitment to poverty reduction. An important part of developing a CDS is prioritization of actions to move toward fulfillment of the shared vision. This means that strategic initiatives should be identified and opportunistic public-private partnerships utilized. Strategic initiatives are most effective when limited to a few and selected against principles and resources such as public acceptance, financing, capital expenditures, long-term impact, flexibility and integration with other services and programs. Cities can use economic modeling, impact assessments, and financial feasibility studies to measure the likely impacts of strategic initiatives. A CDS implementation is often guided by a work plan that outlines responsibilities, resources (including funding), achievement indicators, and monitoring and assessment systems. Performance expectations should be aligned with the budget year as well as with the strategic initiatives and long term vision. Generally, a working group of various city government departments, community groups, local businesses and active citizens monitors progress toward the city's vision and oversees initiatives. Click
here for case studies and lessons learned on CDSs.
Planning and Budgeting
It can be said that the way to know a government's priorities is to review how its resources are budgeted. For any city, revenue/expenditure forecasting and how the budget is allocated can be enhanced through community consultation. Incorporating relevant stakeholders in budgetary planning allows citizens to understand the rationale for decisions made and the tradeoffs they represent, thereby building support for city actions and reducing the likelihood of conflicts arising from future changes to plans. It also allows cities to confront sensitive and potentially divisive issues such as poverty reduction, the re-distributive effects of tax and fee arrangements and subsidies. One example of a participatory budgeting and planning tool is a public forum that engages the citizenry in discussion about proposed capital projects, service improvements, and ongoing expenditures. To ensure that the public forum is well-attended, some cities change the time and venue monthly, using local schools, community centers and libraries to reach out to as many stakeholders as possible. In addition to making the public forum easily assessable, it may be necessary to educate the public about the budgetary process. For case examples of participation in public expenditure management, see http://www.worldbank.org/participation/goodless3.htm.
Service Provision
Participatory performance management helps service providers respond to their customers and gives citizens a sense of ownership and partnership in city governance and their community. To contribute substantially to service improvements, it is best for citizen consultation to be institutionalized and publicized. One tool available is citizen surveys, which provide management a better understanding about the needs of its customers. For example in Bangalore, India, aggregated citizen responses were used to develop report cards for city services. The effort was supported by a small advisory group of local leaders and a market research firm, funded through local donations. Initially mini case studies were developed on key urban problems, and then focus groups that represented different geographical and socio-economic neighborhoods within the city were organized to "score" the delivery of services. The report cards were presented to four key service providers, giving them an opportunity to respond. The Bangalore Public Affairs Center then publicized the results and held two conferences: one among service providers, to share best practices in responding to user ratings; and another between service providers and citizens. Heavy media coverage, including a two-week series by a national newspaper, also ensured wide dissemination of the report cards and coverage of the findings. While the majority of the service providers did not respond, the worst rated agency did review its internal systems for service delivery and introduced training for junior staff. For more about the Bangalore case study, see http://www.worldbank.org/participation/web/webfiles/cepemcase9.htm. For general performance management information, see the ICMA Center for Performance Management.
Citizen Ownership and Management
Cities have found that allowing citizens, through user groups, to take on the roles of ownership and management for service provision can lower costs, improve quality and increase customer satisfaction. Some user groups manage only one type of resource or service, such as water supplies, whereas others act as mini multi-purpose governments, covering a range of services. For example, some housing condominiums and community land trusts may coordinate provision of services such as water supply and sewerage, own and manage infrastructure related to those services, develop communal property for commercial activities and administer de facto social assistance programs through unequal collection of fees. The best functioning user groups have shown that the sense of ownership of their members translates into cost savings in infrastructure maintenance and investment and improved collection of service fees. User groups also develop urban governance skills that later can be applied in other civic participation opportunities. For condominiums, see http://www.ui.kg/cond_eng.shtml, for sector-specific governance organizations see the Role of Water User Groups in Decentralized Water Services: Irrigation and Water Supply and Sanitation.
Economic Development
Involving the community and local businesses in designing city economic growth strategies is often vital to achieving a prosperous and more equitable city. Local authorities have limited ability to stimulate economic growth without developing public-private partnerships to help identify, manage and implement the city's economic growth strategy. Local and community-based economic development considers the complex mix of roles and responsibilities of institutions and residents that must be energized and coordinated to achieve equitable and sustainable growth. Public-private partnerships may take many forms depending on the needs and interests of the stakeholders involved. For example in Palvodor, Kazakhstan, the city created a community-based economic development Coordinating Council to serve as the advisory body to the local government on key decisions relating to the development and implementation of the city's economic development strategic plan. The Council was made up of elected representatives, members of the local administration, business people, and NGO representatives interested in developing and implementing the strategic plan. Council membership was voluntary. The objectives of the Council were to provide political coordination and make key decisions related to the development, approval, and implementation of the strategic plan. See also the Local Economic Development brief.
Websites
Banglore Case Study of Performance Report Cards
http://www.worldbank.org/participation/web/webfiles/cepemcase9.htm
ICMA Center for Performance Management Center
http://www.icma.org/go.cfm?cid=1&gid=3&sid=101&did=99
City Development Strategies Toolkit
http://www.cdsea.org/content/KC/cds2_toolkit.htm
Participation
Toolkit
http://www.toolkitparticipation.com
Transparency International
http://www.transparency.org
United Nations Habitat Best Practices Clearinghouse
http://bestpractices.org/bpbriefs/Urban_Development.html
Urban Institute Kyrgyzstan: Condominiums
http://www.ui.kg/cond_eng.shtml
USAID Indonesia Building Institutions for Good Governance Project
http://www.bigg.or.id/
World Bank Case Studies in Public Expenditure Management
http://www.worldbank.org/participation/goodless3.htm
World Bank Community Driven Development Best Practices
http://www.worldbank.org/participation/CDD5.htm
World Bank Role of Water User Groups in Decentralized Water Services
http://www1.worldbank.org/publicsector/decentralization/water.htm
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