Updated June 7, 2001

Second Summit of the Americas

STRENGTHENING MUNICIPAL AND REGIONAL ADMINISTRATIONS

• Responsible Coordinator:    United States
• Co-coordinators:                   Chile and Honduras
• Executing Agency:                OAS/ Unit for the Promotion of Democracy (UPD)

At the Santiago Summit, Governments agreed to encourage the participation of groups of civil society in local decision making. To this end, Governments agreed to take the following measures:

• Within their legal framework and within a reasonable time, establish or strengthen mechanisms for the participation of groups of society in the process of local and other subnational decision-making, such as open public hearings and public budget reviews, and promote transparency in local and other subnational Government finance operations.
• In accordance with legislation at all levels, provide for financing options for local and other subnational Governments, including groups of local Governments, such as through transfers of national revenue, access to private capital markets, and authority for raising revenue locally, in order to expand the delivery of quality services as well as provide for training opportunities to strengthen local and other subnational administrative capabilities.
• In accordance with circumstances and the legal framework of each country, study the possible transfer of additional national governmental functions to local and other subnational levels as well as the possibility for enhancing such authorities.
• Share their experiences and information from existing and future programs supported by multilateral and bilateral cooperation institutions such as the Organization of American States (OAS), the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the World Bank, to facilitate the implementation of this initiative.

Through the Unit for the Promotion of Democracy, the OAS manages the Program for Cooperation in Decentralization, Local Government and Citizen Participation the purpose of which is to promote the exchange of information among central governments with a view to strengthening their capacity to undertake processes of decentralization and citizen participation.  

The technical guidelines for this Program were formulated at a regional seminar, held in Caracas, Venezuela on May 12-13, 1997 with support from the Governments of Bolivia and Venezuela. Government participants at this meeting on "support to Processes of Decentralization, Local Government and Citizen Participation" agreed on broad guidelines for a program, which would be developed by participating countries with the support of the UPD.  It was considered that assisting governments to develop the policy framework for decentralization, strengthening local government and promotion of citizen participation is one vital way that OAS/UPD can effectively contribute to hemispheric efforts in these areas.

The Program of Cooperation in Decentralization, Local Government and Citizen Participation aims at :

• Contributing to policy debate and serving as a forum for creation, dissemination an exchange of knowledge and information;

• Supporting institution-building in central, local government, and civil society, principally through "horizontal cooperation" approaches among countries of the region;

• Enhancing local governance through promoting increased citizen access and participation in public policy issues at the local level;

• Collaborating with other agencies and institutions with mandates in the areas of the Program.

The Program consists of a series of sub-regional meetings, exchange of experience, technical meetings, training seminars, technical assistance through horizontal cooperation, comparative and applied research, and the preparation of policy papers.

Between June and August 1998, three workshops were held under the Program, one in Jamaica, with the participation of CARICOM members, a second in Bolivia, for officials from South America, and the third in Costa Rica, for representatives of Central America and the Dominican Republic. (For further information on the seminar held in Jamaica, please see the Report of the Workshop in Kingston, Jamaica).

In addition to the above major activities, UPD was among the co-sponsors of a CARICOM Workshop held in the Commonwealth of the Bahamas, September 28-29 1998, on "Effective Youth Participation in Civil Society". That meeting established the basis for continued collaboration with the CARICOM Secretariat on youth issues, particularly youth participation at the municipal and community levels, and youth leadership training. UPD also collaborated with the Tenth Latin American Congress of Municipal Legislators by commissioning one of the background discussion papers presented at that Congress, which took place in La Paz, Bolivia on December 2-5, 1998.

In cooperation with institutions of the member states, the UPD planned and implemented the following 1999 Program activities with the objective of deepening dialogue and analysis of the areas defined in 1998. Activities were:

• Meeting in Roatán, Honduras, on March 4-6, 1999, attended by some 60 participants from Central America, on the subject "Second Meeting on Facilitation of Municipal Training and Technical Assistance". The encounter brought together participants from central governments and municipal administrations, NGO’s, and regional and international cooperation agencies for an exchange of information on training and training methodologies available to municipal administrations in the subregion.  It also promoted more effective dialogue between those delivering training, such as agencies of the central governments, cooperation agencies, and the beneficiaries of the training.

• Seminar in Buenos Aires, Argentina on May 17-19, 1999, for South American countries, Canada, the United States, Mexico and the Dominican Republic, on the subject "Frameworks and Policies for Citizen Participation at the Municipal Level". This was the first of the annual follow-up meetings to the forum on this subject which took place in Cochabamba, Bolivia in July of 1998. Some 300 participants attended this event. The objective of the seminar was to facilitate the exchange of experiences and specialized information between the participant countries, as well as, to foster the creation and dissemination of knowledge that constitutes input for the strengthening of decentralization policies, strengthening of local government and the promotion of citizen participation. The main issues discussed were fiscal decentralization, local government and community participation (norms and experiences); and NGO’s and local government (norms and experiences). In its conclusions, the meeting supported the continuation of a permanent forum for systematic study and exchange of experiences in citizen participation at the municipal level. 

• The training component of the Program of Cooperation was initiated with two short-term intensive courses, at the request of and in coordination with academic institutions and governments of the member states, as well as with the OAS Department of Fellowships. These courses aimed at promoting analysis and information exchange among the main actors in the process of decentralization and promotion of citizen participation in public policy issues at the municipal and community levels and at enhancing their capacity for analysis and policy-formulation.
• Course on "Decentralization with Emphasis on Local Management and Finance, Planning and Local Social Policy," at the Javeriana University in Bogota, Colombia, June 21-30, 1999;
• Course on "Decentralization and Local Government with Emphasis on Citizen Participation," at the University of El Salvador, Province of Buenos Aires, Argentina, August 8-18, 1999.

1. Research papers on decentralization and citizen participation in each of the five States of the Andean Community;
2. Seminar in Quito, Ecuador, November 18 and 19, 1999, attended by some 200 participants;
3. Publication to be completed in the year 2000 on the results of the activities above and draft model legislation on decentralization and citizen participation.

After the introductory session, discussions took place in three simultaneous working groups, that took into consideration three specific themes: the present situation of decentralization across the Hemisphere; obstacles, challenges, and required actions; and recommendations about the role of the UPD/OAS in this process. For more information on the Roundtable, please click here. (Spanish Only)

Updated June 7, 2001

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