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WORKSHOPS AND SEMINARS
Empowering Local Government Institutions in the MENA Region Regional Workshop and Policy Forum, 22-23 January, 2002, Beirut
\| about \| agenda \| participants \| summaries and papers \| recommendations \|
The Regional Workshop was held at the Gefinor Rotana Hotel in Beirut on the 22-23 of January 2002, and was organized by The Lebanese Center for Policy Studies in preparation for the Fourth Mediterranean Development Forum (MDF4) conference that will take place in Amman, in October 2002. The event gathered more than 100 participants, of which 40 speakers from France, Spain, Morocco, Egypt, Jordan, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Lebanon and a wide audience of international, regional and local experts, academicians, professionals and head of municipalities. The MDF is a partnership comprised of think tanks from the Middle East and North Africa (of which the LCPS), the World Bank Institute and the United Nations Development Programme as well as other international institutions. Within six sessions, each dedicated to a specific aspect of decentralization, this regional workshop brought together case studies, assessments and comparative analysis of local governments in the MENA region. On one hand, the workshop raised issues related to their ability to understand and deal effectively with their legal, administrative and fiscal frameworks, as well as with the procedures and control mechanisms governing their relationship with the central state. On the other hand, it discussed issues related to local governance and democracy, by examining the willingness and the ability of local government structures to share and inform their constituencies about their activities, their projects and their decisions. Main issues and concerns were raised during these sessions about the decentralization process in the MENA region. This process was perceived as a part of a new global trend emphasizing the "grassroots" dimension of development, rather than focusing on the traditional state-centered approach. This current stage of development has been labeled as the "era of the local". Furthermore, this decentralization process was seen as a global phenomenon, found present across different sorts of political regimes and social structures in the region. Questions were raised about the extent to which this trend was being pushed by international donors' agenda, and/or by civil society groups and about the implications of these influences on the success of the decentralization process. The discussions distinguished between decentralization and deconcentration, the first being a devolution of power to local authorities, and the second a mere delegation, or a restructuring, of the central power structures into local units, ensuring the continued control of central authorities. The workshop also focused on municipal institutions in the context of the weakening of the state. In fact, the role of the state has been seriously put into question in the last decades, with a simultaneous rise in the role of local and global forces, such as international agencies, private actors, lobby groups, civil society organizations, NGOs, etc. Within this changing architecture, municipal institutions are believed to have a strong potential and are expected to deal with a wide range of responsibilities. However, they have to deal with a number of challenges related to limited financial, administrative, technical and legal resources. Moreover, some of these local institutions have contested legitimacies, related to their political representation and practices of local democracy. Discussions highlighted as well the high expectations regarding the capacities of local governments to deliver on both the economic and good governance levels. On the one hand, municipalities are believed to be able to deliver more efficient services, and thus contribute to economic growth. On the other hand, they are also expected to ensure a more democratic participatory environment. Those two issues of efficiency and democracy were thoroughly addressed throughout the debates. Criticism focused on the ability of local governments to achieve both goals, within a context of "imposed models" of decentralization that may not always be applicable to the specific contexts in the MENA countries. Indeed, certain criteria and assumptions are being made on the political, social, economic and cultural levels by international institutions promoting such models. However, any decentralization model should be adjusted to local specificities, and thus become a kind of "homemade" application, to guarantee relative success. Moreover, the dimension of scale and size in relation to central, regional, and local structures was considered an essential factor contributing to the efficiency of the decentralization process. As a synthesis, the MDF4 regional workshop was mainly focused on local government in its relationship to four components: First, the relation to the municipal institution itself: the workshop addressed issues related to the internal structure and to the hierarchy of the municipality within the general institutional framework, as well as issues related to fiscal decentralization and especially the importance of inter-governmental transfers. Second, the relation to the international agencies and donors: the sessions dealt with the influence of these institutions on local government's agendas and the increasing role they have been playing over the past decade in influencing local policy-making and in pushing for decentralization. Also, questions were raised concerning the use of imported/exported ready-made concepts such as capacity building, raising awareness, empowerment, priority setting, etc. Third, the relation to the central state institutions: issues of institutional and administrative reforms dealing with deconcentration and decentralization were discussed, in the context of state authority and control. In this respect, different levels of delegation of power were emphasized as main parameters to be further investigated. Fourth, the relation to civil society at large: the discussions differentiated between the role of civil society organizations and local interest groups, and focused on two main concepts: that of social capital and participatory development. Both were thoroughly debated and perceived as major factors in determining the level of success of the decentralization process, although critical questions were raised regarding their applicability in the MENA region context of the dominance of primordial ties (such as kinship, friendship and worship). Finally, the workshop concluded with an emphasis on the general framework within which decentralization and deconcentration are occurring in the MENA region. Issues related to state reform, state restructuring in the overall context of the weakening of the central state have to be re-introduced in future discussions about empowering local government institutions. In this respect, this workshop showed the added value of comparative studies in researching decentralization processes. Several recommendations were suggested regarding what should be the upcoming focus of MDF4 in Amman during 6-9 of October 2002, in terms of policy-oriented research and the inclusion of practitioners and elected local officials in the debate. This would represent a significant qualitative step towards bridging the gap between research and policy.
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\| home \| about us \| contact us \| research \| workshops \| publications \| links \|
WORKSHOPS AND SEMINARS
Empowering Local Government Institutions in the MENA Region Regional Workshop and Policy Forum, 22-23 January, 2002, Beirut
\| about \| agenda \| participants \| summaries and papers \| recommendations \|
The Regional Workshop was held at the Gefinor Rotana Hotel in Beirut on the 22-23 of January 2002, and was organized by The Lebanese Center for Policy Studies in preparation for the Fourth Mediterranean Development Forum (MDF4) conference that will take place in Amman, in October 2002. The event gathered more than 100 participants, of which 40 speakers from France, Spain, Morocco, Egypt, Jordan, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Lebanon and a wide audience of international, regional and local experts, academicians, professionals and head of municipalities. The MDF is a partnership comprised of think tanks from the Middle East and North Africa (of which the LCPS), the World Bank Institute and the United Nations Development Programme as well as other international institutions. Within six sessions, each dedicated to a specific aspect of decentralization, this regional workshop brought together case studies, assessments and comparative analysis of local governments in the MENA region. On one hand, the workshop raised issues related to their ability to understand and deal effectively with their legal, administrative and fiscal frameworks, as well as with the procedures and control mechanisms governing their relationship with the central state. On the other hand, it discussed issues related to local governance and democracy, by examining the willingness and the ability of local government structures to share and inform their constituencies about their activities, their projects and their decisions. Main issues and concerns were raised during these sessions about the decentralization process in the MENA region. This process was perceived as a part of a new global trend emphasizing the "grassroots" dimension of development, rather than focusing on the traditional state-centered approach. This current stage of development has been labeled as the "era of the local". Furthermore, this decentralization process was seen as a global phenomenon, found present across different sorts of political regimes and social structures in the region. Questions were raised about the extent to which this trend was being pushed by international donors' agenda, and/or by civil society groups and about the implications of these influences on the success of the decentralization process. The discussions distinguished between decentralization and deconcentration, the first being a devolution of power to local authorities, and the second a mere delegation, or a restructuring, of the central power structures into local units, ensuring the continued control of central authorities. The workshop also focused on municipal institutions in the context of the weakening of the state. In fact, the role of the state has been seriously put into question in the last decades, with a simultaneous rise in the role of local and global forces, such as international agencies, private actors, lobby groups, civil society organizations, NGOs, etc. Within this changing architecture, municipal institutions are believed to have a strong potential and are expected to deal with a wide range of responsibilities. However, they have to deal with a number of challenges related to limited financial, administrative, technical and legal resources. Moreover, some of these local institutions have contested legitimacies, related to their political representation and practices of local democracy. Discussions highlighted as well the high expectations regarding the capacities of local governments to deliver on both the economic and good governance levels. On the one hand, municipalities are believed to be able to deliver more efficient services, and thus contribute to economic growth. On the other hand, they are also expected to ensure a more democratic participatory environment. Those two issues of efficiency and democracy were thoroughly addressed throughout the debates. Criticism focused on the ability of local governments to achieve both goals, within a context of "imposed models" of decentralization that may not always be applicable to the specific contexts in the MENA countries. Indeed, certain criteria and assumptions are being made on the political, social, economic and cultural levels by international institutions promoting such models. However, any decentralization model should be adjusted to local specificities, and thus become a kind of "homemade" application, to guarantee relative success. Moreover, the dimension of scale and size in relation to central, regional, and local structures was considered an essential factor contributing to the efficiency of the decentralization process. As a synthesis, the MDF4 regional workshop was mainly focused on local government in its relationship to four components: First, the relation to the municipal institution itself: the workshop addressed issues related to the internal structure and to the hierarchy of the municipality within the general institutional framework, as well as issues related to fiscal decentralization and especially the importance of inter-governmental transfers. Second, the relation to the international agencies and donors: the sessions dealt with the influence of these institutions on local government's agendas and the increasing role they have been playing over the past decade in influencing local policy-making and in pushing for decentralization. Also, questions were raised concerning the use of imported/exported ready-made concepts such as capacity building, raising awareness, empowerment, priority setting, etc. Third, the relation to the central state institutions: issues of institutional and administrative reforms dealing with deconcentration and decentralization were discussed, in the context of state authority and control. In this respect, different levels of delegation of power were emphasized as main parameters to be further investigated. Fourth, the relation to civil society at large: the discussions differentiated between the role of civil society organizations and local interest groups, and focused on two main concepts: that of social capital and participatory development. Both were thoroughly debated and perceived as major factors in determining the level of success of the decentralization process, although critical questions were raised regarding their applicability in the MENA region context of the dominance of primordial ties (such as kinship, friendship and worship). Finally, the workshop concluded with an emphasis on the general framework within which decentralization and deconcentration are occurring in the MENA region. Issues related to state reform, state restructuring in the overall context of the weakening of the central state have to be re-introduced in future discussions about empowering local government institutions. In this respect, this workshop showed the added value of comparative studies in researching decentralization processes. Several recommendations were suggested regarding what should be the upcoming focus of MDF4 in Amman during 6-9 of October 2002, in terms of policy-oriented research and the inclusion of practitioners and elected local officials in the debate. This would represent a significant qualitative step towards bridging the gap between research and policy.
\| workshops & seminars \| top \|
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