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UN-HABITAT’s efforts to suppor local authorities have focused on promoting decentralisation in the implementation of the Habitat Agenda. Pursuant to Resolution 19/12 of its Governing Council, UN-HABITAT recently established a high-level Group of Experts on Decentralisation (AGRED). It will guide the international dialogue on decentralisation and provide further advice on strengthening local authorities. The inaugural AGRED meeting was held 9 – 10 March 2004 in Gatineau, Canada.
Decentralisation is a process which reflects the inter-dependence of various spheres of governance. The Governing Council of UN-HABITAT referred to the principle of subsidiarity as the underlying rationale of the decentralisation process. It noted: “According to this principle, public responsibilities shall be exercised by those authorities which are closest to the citizens”.
The emergence of subsidiarity as a major political justification and organising principle for decentralisation policies in the post-Habitat II period (since the Habitat II ‘City Summit’ in Istanbul in 1996) can be related to constitutional reforms in different countries around the world to ensure greater flexibility for provincial and local governments in terms of democratic participation, urban planning and decision-making.
Experts and observers of the decentralisation process tend to agree that the problem lies, not in the process itself, but in the political will to ensure that it is successfully implemented. At the inaugural AGRED meeting, 15 experts from around the world discussed the basic principles of decentralisation policies. They exchanged views on decentralisation legislation based on their national experiences. It clearly transpired, as Professor Richard Stren said, that some criteria have to be met for decentralisation to succeed: Firstly, there has to be a need for decentralisation policies, secondly, the relevance of such policies must be recognised, and finally, there has to be political commitment at all levels - local, provincial, national, and global to engage in such policies for the benefit of ordinary citizens.
One of the findings of the report on 28 case studies commissioned by UN-HABITAT in 2002 entitled, Decentralisation in the global perspective: a review of twenty-eight country experiences, reveals that many countries, especially developing countries and countries in transition, are looking for suitable decentralisation policy options. Despite efforts currently underway, more is still to be done to effectively consolidate this global process and to allow for a significant improvement in the interaction between various spheres of governance. Experience suggests that countries where provincial and local authorities are the “closest allies” of the central government in terms of democratic participation, urban planning and decision-making are also the most economically and politically successful. A decentralised administration can act as a catalyst for sustainable development.
What would be the best recommendations and guidelines to be part of an international framework on decentralisation that is profitable to all? — AGRED’s members have made this question one of their priorities.
AGRED’s work will focus on developing recommendations, documenting best practices and contributing to the international dialogue on decentralisation. The Group will contribute to the identification of international principles of decentralisation through reviewing existing relevant international legal instruments, including analysing national legislation, regulations and other practices of decentralisation.
The discussions at the inaugural meeting of AGRED reviewed the status of decentralisation legislation in selected countries, and the basic principles of decentralisation policies, including subsidiarity, administrative and financial capacities of local authorities, governance and democracy at the local level. AGRED’s experts from Brazil, Canada, Croatia, Egypt, India, Norway, Russia, Senegal, South Africa, Tanzania, Thailand, the United Kingdom, with a representative of Metropolis and United Cities and Local Governments, expressed varied views on those issues based on their different national experiences.
Indeed, decentralisation, like democracy, has no static model that can easily be transferred from a country to another. But the challenge remains to identify positive components of decentralisation policies, from which all countries could benefit.
The next meeting of AGRED will discuss and finalise draft guidelines on effective decentralisation and the strengthening of local authorities. Other items on the agenda will emerge from electronic exchanges between the Secretariat and AGRED’s members, as well as through debate among AGRED’s members themselves.
Alain Kanyinda is the executive officer of UN-HABITAT’s Local Authorities Coordination Group.
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