Best Practices and New Methods in Local Governance Promoted Among Local Authorities, Government Representatives and Donors

Representatives from local government, line ministries and international organisations got together at a conference where the Swiss Cooperation’s decentralisation programme shared best practices and promoted new methods for strengthening local government in Albania.

Monday, April 8th, Tirana – A conference organised by Swiss Cooperation’s Decentralisation and Local Development Programme (DLDP) brought together about 140 representatives of local government structures, central ministries, and international donors to share and promote best practices and innovative methods for a stronger local government in Albania. Swiss Ambassador, H.E. Alexander Wittwer, Minister of Interior, Flamur Noka, Minister of Innovation and ICT, Genc Pollo, and Deputy Minister of Environment, Taulant Bino took part in this conference and contributed with speeches and presentations.

“The organisers of this conference have thought of a unique way of making best practices visible: award some of the local government units from Shkodër and Lezhë with prizes and recognition. I cannot think of a better way to reward those who implemented these practices, and on the other hand to encourage other local government units to engage in similar practices”, said Ambassador Wittwer during his speech. He mentioned some of the programme’s previous achievements including improved provision of services among several communes and municipalities, increased capacities for strategic and financial planning, and the establishment of innovative models for waste management and information & communication with citizens. “I would like to encourage all local government representatives to engage in discussions, to learn from these best practices and furthermore, to experiment in applying them in their own context”, concluded Ambassador Wittwer.

During his speech Minister of Interior Flamur Noka focused on the reforms undertaken by the government of Albania at the decentralisation aspect. “Today in this conference, it is time to consider the achievements, findings and successes of this program, which really made this program successful, “said Minister Noka stressing the importance the government places on decentralisation as a priority alongside the fight against corruption and the improvement of public administration.

The opening of the conference was greeted also by Mr. Jens Engeli, Senior Representative of Helvetas Swiss Intercooperation, the organisation that has implemented the decentralisation programme. “This conference culminates core learning and best practices developed by DLDP and validated by key partners from local up to national level that should contribute to the wider decentralisation and development approaches and strategies of the Albanian as well as the Swiss joint efforts”, said Mr. Engeli during his speech.

Anne Savary, Deputy Director of the Swiss Cooperation Office, said during her speech that decentralisation is a process that should continue. “Compared to the conference a year ago, I see progress and achievement, as expressed in some of the projects and practices presented in this conference”, said Ms. Savary, adding that “to advance the decentralization process an integrated support is needed in the form of vertical integration, partnerships, and better coordination between donors.”

One interesting aspect of the conference was the announcement of competition winners for Best Project and Best Practices opened up for local government units in Shkodër and Lezhë Qarks along themes like Information and Communication, Waste Management, Financial Management, Strategic Planning, and Inter-municipal Cooperation. All winners (communes and municipalities) received prizes in the form of financial contribution to municipal budgets and a certificate of award that were handed over to them by the relevant government representatives. Deputy Director of the Swiss Cooperation Office, Anne Savary, presented the method how the projects and practices were assessed, as well as the selection criteria. Projects and practices that competed were assessed in a participatory manner by the DLDP program, Qarks, the Department for Strategy and Donor Coordination, as well as relevant ministries on the basis of criteria such as sustainability, relevance, efficiency, potential for replication, and transparency. It is expected that this innovative way of recognising best practices will encourage other local government units throughout Albania to adopt these methods and practices. The award ceremony was accompanied by an exhibition featuring best project and best practices multimedia presentations.

Among the case studies and publications presented there were several initiatives that have proved successful and innovative such as One-Stop-Shops, Strategy for Visitor Information towards Sustainable Tourism, Waste Management Optimisation, Training Curriculum in Budget Planning and e-Budget Planning, and a Report on Intermunicipal Cooperation. The conference’s purpose was to make these cases and publications available at national level, promote and discuss their feasibility, and encourage local government units throughout Albania to try and experiment with some of the methods and tools provided.

During the second part of the day, participants were divided into 4 rooms where thematic roundtables took place with a focus on e-governance, fund access, budget planning and waste management. At these roundtables programme staff and local government representatives unfolded the methodologies and discussed their validity and feasibility for wider use at national level. On the other hand, central government representatives and international experts complemented these discussions with their views and experiences, which resulted in several recommendations and conclusions that will serve as key points for further development of local governance in Albania. Recommendations include some possible solutions to the many challenges faced by the local government.

Swiss Cooperation has started its Decentralisation and Local Development Programme (DLDP) in 2006 and its main objective is to strengthen capacities of municipalities and communes in Lezhë and Shkodër, and to increase their ability to make efficient use of resources in order to improve the lives of their communities. The Programme is implemented by Helvetas Swiss Intercooperation, an organisation based in Switzerland that implements development projects and provides advisory services throughout the world.