COUNCIL OF EUROPE
Directorate General of Democracy and Political Affairs
Directorate of Democratic Institutions
Local Government and Quality: from
information to action
A Council of Europe perspective of
Good Governance at local level
Centre of Expertise for Local Government Reform
Local Government and Quality: from
information to action
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Collecting information
Transforming information into knowledge
Transforming knowledge into skills
From skills to capacity: Council of Europe
approach
Transforming capacity into action
Centre of Expertise for Local Government Reform
Information on local government in the
Council of Europe
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European Committee on Local and Regional
Democracy (CDLR): information from central
governments
 Congress of Local and Regional Authorities
in Europe: information from local authorities
 Centre of Expertise for Local Government
Reform: information on capacity-building tools
and programmes
Centre of Expertise for Local Government Reform
Transforming information into knowledge:
Council of Europe approach
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Committee of Ministers adopts legal
instruments: conventions and recommendations
 CDLR adopts reports with guidelines and
prepares draft CM conventions and
recommendations
 Congress adopts reports and recommendations
 Centre of Expertise identifies and prepares
programmes
Centre of Expertise for Local Government Reform
Transforming knowledge into skills
 Initial
training
 Life-long training
 Exchange of experience, conferences,
seminars…
 Learning by doing
 Learning from the others
Centre of Expertise for Local Government Reform
Knowledge to skills: Council of
Europe approach
 Congress
organises conferences,
seminars, workshops…
 Centre
of Expertise may offer targeted
training as part of its programmes
Centre of Expertise for Local Government Reform
Transforming skills into capacity
Prepare “tools” : model benchmarks and healthcheck lists, model performance management
indicators…
 Prepare “methodologies”: benchmarking,
comparing to the best or the average, learning
from the best, transforming indicators into
performance management systems…
 Adapt them to local circumstances
 Give them to local ownership
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Centre of Expertise for Local Government Reform
Skills to capacity: Council of
Europe approach
The Centre of Expertise prepares tools and methodologies, supervises
their adaptation and implementation, gives them to local ownership:
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Best Practice Programme: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina,
Croatia, Moldova, the Russian Federation and Serbia
• Leadership Benchmark: Bulgaria, Croatia, the Russian Federation,
Serbia and “the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia”
• National Training Strategy: Albania, Armenia, Croatia, Georgia,
Moldova and Montenegro
• Performance Management Programme: Bulgaria, Serbia
• Public Ethics Benchmarking Programme: Spain (road test),
Moldova and Ukraine
• UNDP-CoE Toolkit “Towards a Modern Local Government
Association”
Centre of Expertise for Local Government Reform
Transforming capacity into action
 Create
a climate where change is
welcome
 Motivate people
 Obtain commitment
 Help in the initial phases of change
 Give recognition to the best
Centre of Expertise for Local Government Reform
Capacity into action: Council of
Europe approach
Most programmes of the Centre of Expertise
integrate practical change:
Obtain commitment from local stakeholders
Evaluate (self-assessment or peer reviews);
Make recommendations for change
Prepare and implement Action Plans for change
New rounds of assessment (by peers) to
measure change
Give recognition to the best
Centre of Expertise for Local Government Reform
A Council of Europe Strategy for
Innovation and Good governance
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Identify essential elements of good governance
at local authority level
 Identify the main measures that stakeholders
(local authorities, local government associations,
central governments, Council of Europe) should
take
 Obtain strong commitment from all stakeholders
Centre of Expertise for Local Government Reform
A European Label of Quality for
Good Governance at Local Level
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Recognise good governance
Obtain commitment from local authorities to
improving governance
Allow learning from the others
Will be granted in a decentralised way by local
partners
On the basis of criteria developed at European
level
Centre of Expertise for Local Government Reform
The Role of the Local Government
Association
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In preparing and implementing of national strategies
(European Conference - Dec 07 / Jan 08)
 In representing interests of local governments in
front of central authorities
 In providing local authorities with capacity-building
services
We want strong and responsible LG associations to
meet their members’ expectations
Centre of Expertise for Local Government Reform
The Toolkit on Modern Local
Government Association
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Joint initiative CoE and UNDP
 Build on best European Experience
 Uses modern methodologies
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Self-assessment
Learning friendly
Long Term
Centre of Expertise for Local Government Reform
Centre of Expertise for Local Government Reform
Directorate of Democratic Institutions
DG Democracy and Political Affairs
Council of Europe
http://www.coe.int/local
http://www.loreg.coe.int
Sylvia Ivanova
Tel: 00 33 3 90 21 52 93
E-mail: [email protected]
Centre of Expertise for Local Government Reform