What we do to make local development work

1

• What we do to make local development work
• Rasto Vrbensky
• Assistant Director
• UNDP Regional Centre Bratislava

2
Objectives of presentation

• Why we are involved policy context reasons
  for involvement in local development
• What we are doing overall framework previous
  and on-going initiatives
• What we are planning future steps
• Structure
• Introduction and overall framework
• Presentations on specific initiatives (Dafina,
  Dessi, Jaro)

3
POLICY CONTEXT

• CONSISTENTLY DECLINING LEVELS OF HDI IN SOME
  COUNTRIES OF THE REGION
• GROWING REGIONAL DISPARITIES A THREAT TO
  DEMOCRATIZATION AND DEVELOPMENT IN THE REGION
• Economic marginalization leads to political
  disatisfaction
• Disparities are an increasingly important source
  of conflict in the region
• FAILURE TO DECENTRALIZE POWER AND RESOURCES
  LEAVES LOCAL ECONOMIC POTENTIAL UNDERUTILIZED

4
THE GLOBAL HUMAN DEVELOPMENT REPORT 2002 AND
HUMAN DEVELOPMENT TRENDS IN THE REGION
5
WHAT CAN LOCAL DEVELOPMENT INITIATIVES HELP TO
ACHIEVE?

• Contribute to improvement of living standard of
  rural population
• Strengthen the grass-root democracy
• Re-build or strengthen communities affected by
  the previous regime
• Convince politicians that decentralization can
  bring real benefits
• Contribute to improved and consistent levels of
  economic growth

6
HOW TO ACHIEVE THE BENEFITS OF LOCAL
DEVELOPMENT CONDITIONS

• Local development can work if
• 1. The right legal and policy frameworks are in
  place
• 2. Adequate social capital is available
• 3. Good local governance is in place
• 4. Partnerships between government, business
  community and civil society are created
• 4. Environmental sustainability is guaranteed
• 5. Economic and financial instruments are
  available

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A holistic approach at local level

• Local development strategies should address all
  conditions, not just one or two
• This needs
• A comprehensive situation analysis
• Balancing the various elements of local
  development in a strategic plan
• Thinking about implementation during the planning
  process
• A sound policy framework at central government
  level
• This needs
• Progressive budget legislation
• A strong degree of fiscal decentralization, with
  appropriate checks and balances
• Recognition of partnerships and CBOs as
  non-commercial legal entities

8
UNDP RESPONSE

• Capacity 21 Program LA21 Related Programs
• GEF Small Grants Program
• LIFE Program
• Country programs (e.g. sustainable development,
  local governance, decentralization, local
  economic development, etc.)

9
Significant practical experience

• Building social capital, community mobilization
  and public participation
• Local Agenda 21 in Turkey (UNDP/Capacity 21),
  Your Spis project in Slovakia (UNDP/MATRA),
  Community Development Project in Kyrgyzstan
  (UNDP), Community Mobilization in Lithuania
  (UNDP/MATRA and NED), Local Governance Project in
  Albania (UNDP/Capacity 21)
• Comprehensive approaches to creating good local
  governance
• Umbrella initiative in Poland (UNDP/MATRA),
  Local Agenda 21 in Turkey (UNDP/Capacity 21),
  Local Governance Project in Albania (UNDP)
• Creating partnership based approaches
• Baltic Rural Partnership Programme (DFID), Local
  Agenda 21 in Bulgaria, Poland and Romania
  (UNDP/Capacity 21, CIDA, DFID, MATRA)
• Integrating environmental sustainability in
  development strategies Estonia (UNDP), Local
  Agenda 21 in Bulgaria (UNDP/Capacity 21)
• Creating economic and financial instruments for
  development
• Local Agenda 21 in Bulgaria (UNDP/Capacity 21),
  Micro-credit facilities in Uzbekistan (UNDP)
• and many others.

10
Lessons Learned and Best Practices

• Policy papers
• How to make local development work Selected
  practises from Europe and CIS, UNDP Policy
  Papers, Bratislava
• LA 21 Implementation in CEE, UNDP Journal on
  Development Policy, UNDP, New York
• Re-building Effective Government Local Level
  Initiatives in Transition
• Approaches to sustainability (ATS) Bulgaria,
  Poland, Estonia
• Many other publications on the country level
• WSSD Johannesburg - side event
• Partnership for Local Action Towards Sustainable
  Communities in CEE

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Follow-up initiatives

• Localizing sustainable development initiative
  (Marta)
• Localizing MDGs (Dessi)
• Capacity 2015 and WSSD Follow-up (Dafina)
• GEF/National Capacity Self-assessment
• Rural Development in Nature Protection Areas
  (Jaro)
• SEE Vulnerable Groups Data Collection
• Potentially some others regional activities
• Initiatives on the country level

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Coordination moving towards community of
practice

• Knowledge capturing and codification
• lessons learned
• best practice
• publications
• manuals
• Knowledge sharing and project implementation
• expert teams
• pilot projects in regions and municipalities
• trainings
• study tours
• Networking and community of practice building
• networks
• regional and sub-regional workshops
• forums