DeLoG - Decentralisation & Local Governance: Newsletter No. 45

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DeLoG NEWSLETTER
No. 45 – 10/2019

Dear Reader,

Welcome to the new issue of the DeLoG newsletter with the latest activities and news of the network, upcoming events and recent publications.

'In profile' we feature Ms. Micheline Gilbert. She is currently a Senior Governance Specialist providing support and advice at Global Affairs Canada as well as part of the DeLoG's Strategic Support Group.

We gladly present you the report from this year's DeLoG Annual Meeting in Bern. You can find information about the agenda and the report on our new DeLoG Website, which is online now.

We hope you enjoy this issue.

All the Best,

Your DeLoG Team

Contact: info@delog.org

DeLoG Activities

In Profile – Interview with Micheline Gilbert, Global Affairs Canada

Micheline Gilbert has over 25 years of international development experience in Africa, Asia and the Caribbean region. She worked for 11 years in five developing countries: in Rwanda, Angola, Cambodia with UNDP, and more recently in Mozambique and Morocco with GAC. She has experience in managing various governance programmes in fragile states. She holds a M.A. in Economics and a post-graduate degree in international development. She is currently a Senior Governance Specialist providing support and advice to GAC programmes in relation to the Department’s feminist policy.

New DeLoG Website

The DeLoG website has been relaunched! In a new, more user-friendly design we provide you with information on upcoming events and courses. Publications on Decentralisation and Local Governance, the 2030 Agenda as well as on Urban and Territorial Governance can be found easier now by choosing a specific category. Take a look at it yourself!

Report from the 14th DeLoG Annual Meeting in Bern

From 20 to 22 May, 2019, the DeLoG Annual Meeting took place in Bern, Switzerland. It has been hosted by the SDC. Apart from the special focus on SDG 16, the discussions of the meeting revolved around the topics of localising the 2030 Agenda, Local Economic Development and Decentralisation and Local Governance in fragile contexts. For more information, please have a look at the DeLoG website.

Report from the DeLoG Joint Learning Event on Local Governance and Sustaining Peace in Brussels

27 participants from 23 countries, representing 12 development cooperation organisations participated in this event which was jointly organised by the DeLoG Secretariat, UNDP, UNICEF, and SDC and took place in Brussels, hosted by the Belgian Development Agency Enabel. Participants discussed the nexus between local governance and sustaining peace in fragile and conflict-affected settings. For more information on the course structure, its thematic focus and main outcomes, please have a look at the report.

News from our Members and Partners

UCLG Launched the SDGs Learning Module 3 on Reporting

UCLG launched the SDG Learning Module 3. This Module presents new methodologies and contents, exercises and multiple examples about the local evolution in Voluntary National reviews (VNRs) and Voluntary Local Reviews (VLRs). The material provided shows successful experiences of local reviews and indicates patterns for VLR templates, proposing step-by-step exercises of VLR.

Local Democracy Academy 2019

ICLD organised the first Local Democracy Academy in collaboration with UCLG and the Department of Political Science of Umeå University. The Academy took place in June and was held under the theme 'Global Challenges and Local Governments: Towards Transformative Policy and Practice'. Researchers from around the world gathered to discuss and present the latest issues in the field of local democracy and work together to explore new directions for future research.

Report Presented to UN High Level Policy Forum on Localising the SDGs

UCLG and the Global Taskforce of Local and Regional Governments presented a report to the UN High-level Political Forum (HLPF) on July 15, 2019. The report with the title 'Towards the localisation of the SDGs' presents an overview of policies and initiatives carried out by Local and Regional Governments to Localising the SDGs and complements the Voluntary National Reviews that had been submitted by 143 countries to the HLPF.

SDG Summit, 24-25 September 2019, New York

On 24 and 25 September, the first UN Summit on the Sustainable Development Goals since adopting the 2030 Agenda took place at the UN Headquarter in New York. This High-level Political Forum brought together the Heads of State and Government under the 74th Session of the General Assembly to work toward the faster implementation of the 2030 Agenda. The SDG Summit featured six 'leaders dialogues' and the launch of the 2019 Global Sustainable Development Report. Progress in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda was reviewed and megatrends impacting the achievements of the SDGs, such as localising the SDGs, partnerships for sustainable development and the 2020-2030 vision, were discussed to accelerate the successful implementation.

Webinar 'Children on the Move in Urban Territories: Including Unaccompanied Minors'

UCLG and its committee on Social Inclusion, Participatory Democracy and Human Rights organised an online webinar on local challenges regarding the social inclusion of unaccompanied migrant minors. In the framework of the ‘Migration City-to-City in the Mediterranean (MC2CM)’ project, the webinar intended to offer space for the debate regarding priorities, diverse situations and actions carried out on the subject by local governments and civil society in the Euro-Mediterranean region and beyond. The webinar took place on July 31, 2019.

New Website Launched About Poverty, Inequality and LNOB

A new website presenting the most important aspects relating to poverty, inequality and LNOB has been launched. It includes the latest reports, relevant publications and provides examples of recent development work where tangible project results are used to show the interrelations between these three topics. The German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) initiated the launch of this website, it is hosted by GIZ.

UNDP Launches New Website About Integrated Solutions for Sustainable Development

This new website from UNDP provides information about SDG integration and helps countries to tackle the world's most pressing development challenges. The website offers solutions regarding integrated actions and helps to multiply impacts to achieve the SDGs.

New Video About Localising the SDGs Implemented by GIZ

Ralga, Rwanda Association of Local Government Authorities, with the support of GIZ, published a video about localising the SDGs. It provides information and perspectives from local government experts from Rwanda. With the global standards and the focus on the local level, the unifying challenge to reach the ambitious goals until 2030 is in progress. Since the progress is reported nationally and internationally, the key indicators function as a roadmap to integrated and sustainable development.

CIB Meeting

On 25 - 27 September 2019, around 50 participants from 22 countries and 44 organisations gathered in Vienna for the CIB Meeting, which was hosted by KDZ, the centre for Public Administration and the Austrian Association of Cities and Towns. The diverse group discussed a variety of topics related to local government development cooperation and possible synergies within interactive session formats.

European Week of Regions and Cities

The annual European Week of Regions and Cities took place from 7th - 10th October 2019. During this event, the local and regional level had the opportunity to prove their importance for good European governance. Cities and regions could showcase their capacity to create jobs and implement European Union cohesion policy.

Introducing 'Qasim The Khadim' as Part of a GIZ Project in Pakistan

As part of the project 'Supporting Local Governance', the GIZ Team in Pakistan recently introduced 'Qasim the Khadim'. Qasim is a fictional character and exists as a comic on social media but also as a stage performance. Different goals are pursued with Qasim. Firstly, he is there to inform the local population about their rights and to motivate them to become active members of their community. Secondly, Qasim is a tool to tackle the trust deficit between population and the government. Lastly, he is supposed to act as a role model for local councilors. If you want to learn more about Qasim and watch his videos, you can follow him on social media.

Malaga Coalition, Dedicated to Municipal Finance, Presents the International Municipal Investment Fund

The new International Municipal Investment Fund (IMIF) is designed to support cities and local governments in developing countries. This fund was introduced at the Second Annual Conference of the Malaga Global Coalition for Municipal Finance which is led by UCLG and UNCDF and hosted by the Malaga City Council. The goal is to build a global financial ecosystem that will enable municipalities to accelerate the 2030 Agenda by increasing available investments for SDG-oriented projects at the local level.

‘Same Budget, Two Stories’: How Local Governments in Nepal Can Invest and Impact their Communities

International IDEA’s Coherence Programme and the GIZ have developed an animated video on local governance concerning planning and budgeting in Nepal. The video titled ‘Same Budget, Two Stories’ is part of an approach to addressing how to govern best. Since Nepal established a current constitution in 2015, three orders of government are provided – federal, provincial and local. The video creatively weighs two different strategies of spending the budget of a newly elected Mayor.

UCLG Congress – World Summit of Local and Regional Leaders, Durban

The triennial UCLG Congress will be held from 11 to 15 November 2019 in eThekwini-Durban, South Africa. For more information and for registration have a look at the website.

Additional News

Report to the HLPF on Enabling the Implementation of the 2030 Agenda through SDG 16+

For the first time the perspective of local and regional governments has been reported to the UN High-level Political Forum (HLPF). The localisation of the SDGs has been achieved by the contribution of 30 national associations of local and regional governments and the analysis of 63 Voluntary National Reviews. This report by the Global Alliance provides information about the progress on peaceful, just and inclusive societies. The outcome has been presented during several occasions by the delegation of local and regional governments participating at the HLPF in New York.

High-level Dialogue on Financing for Development

On 26 September 2019, The High-level Dialogue on Financing for Development took place at the UN Headquarter in New York. This format was the first High-level Dialogue on this topic since the adoption of the Addis Ababa Action Agenda (AAAA) in 2015.The opening session, in which the progress in the implementation of the AAAA was accelerated and existing and upcoming challenges in the global economy were tackled, followed by four dialogues. The first interactive dialogue was about putting public resources to work for more equal, sustainable societies, including by combatting illicit financial flows. Furthermore ideas to move money for climate action and SDGs financing gaps were discussed, as well as climate actions against rising debt burdens. Additionally, new initiatives were announced.

	Studies and Publications
	Local Governance and Decentralisation

How Local Rules Can Promote Inclusive Land Governance in Tanzania

IIED (2019) Tanzania faces population growth and growing commercial interests as well as conservative initiatives. This growth and the rise of land-related conflicts threaten rural people’s access to land and tenure security. This briefing paper identifies the development of local rules as a key element for stronger and more equitable land governance. An inclusive and ‘gender sensitive’ approach could help to overcome land-related conflicts.

URBANET Spotlight on Good Governance

Urbanet, GIZ (2019) URBANET, a website of GIZ focusing on news around the topics Municipal and Local Governance, Sustainable Urban Development and Decentralisation, recently published a series of articles focused on different aspects of Good Governance. These articles tackle different topics, such as Municipal Finance, Digital Transformation, La Paz’s successful anti-corruption experience, the support of micro-businesses and start-ups, and the benefits of open contracting on behalf of modernising city governments.

The Role of the East Java Innovation Hub in Fostering Good Local Governance

ADB (2019) In the last decades, public services were successfully improved through innovation hubs that worked problem-focused and collaborative. This approach helps to break down sector and government barriers to share information and provide support to potential public and private innovators. In this governance brief the impact and role of the East Java Innovation Hub, which was established in 2015, is examined and key successes as well as challenges and opportunities are assessed.

The Roles of Local Governments in Disaster Management and Earthquake Reconstruction

The Asia Foundation (2019) This report highlights the challenges and opportunities in disaster management and earthquake reconstruction in five districts of Nepal. The results are from a field-level scoping research and contribute to improvement in disaster preparedness. Furthermore, this report provides approaches for future responses at the local level.

Fragility ● Post-conflict settings ● Migration

Urban Migration: Strengthening Cooperation with Civil Society

UCLG (2019) Even when most of the mandates around migration, refugees and asylum fall to the central government and therefore are being seen as a national issue, cities and local governments are dealing with the newly arrived migrants and their needs. Civil society organisations take an important role in supporting migrants by raising awareness and facilitate access to basic services. This documentation provides information about the UCLG workshop ’The role of civil society in the urban governance of migration’, which took place in June 2019 and was part of the Mediterranean City to City Migration (MC2MC) project. With case studies from Sfax, Tunisia, Malaga, Spain, Brital, Lebanon, Douala, Cameroon, Meknes and Morocco challenges and answers of the peer cities are being illustrated.

Fiscal Decentralisation ● Local Finance

URBANET Spotlight on Municipal Finance

Urbanet, GIZ (2019) This URBANET Spotlight-series focuses on municipal finance. These articles explore why it is important to teach financial literacy and for example, how the African platform Grassroots empowers citizens to work on better communities.

Financing for the 2030 Agenda is Missing its Targets

German Development Institute (2019) For the first time heads of state and government have met at the UN General Assembly on 24 and 25 September 2019 in New York to evaluate the progress on the SDGs and the funding of the 2030 Agenda. Recent studies by the OECD, UN and IMF have a sobering effect on the current state of affairs, especially concerning the work in developing countries. An approach known as ‘blended finance’, which involves the mobilisation of private capital for development purposes supported by public subsidies, is often considered as a solution. However, private financing in developing countries is difficult because private sector financial institutions tend to shy away despite government incentives.

Toilets Not Taxes: Gender Inequity in Dar es Salaam’s City Markets

ICTD (2018) This study provides a gender-aware perspective on market taxation and offers interesting results in unequal funding of collective goods and services. Even if Marius Siebert and Anna Mbise found no evidence of a gender bias in the way market traders are taxed, they found a major gender issue: toilet feed. Since female traders pay up to 18 times more for their daily use of the market toilets and require toilets more frequently than men and have less alternatives, this study reveals that a focus on formal taxation systems does not reveal all complex linkages between gender and taxation in the formal sector of developing countries.

Financing for Development and Domestic Revenue Mobilisation: More International Reforms are Needed

German Development Institute (2019) Developing countries need additional funding to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030. Therefore, four different financial sources such as domestic public resources, international public resources, domestic private resources or international private resources can be used. The domestic revenues from taxes and non-tax sources are by far the most important, but fail to cover the financial needs of the SDGs. Beyond this, the financial flows from international public and private sources are declining, so that the governments of developing countries are under pressure. The German Development Institute sees the mobilisation of domestic revenues as the key and focuses on the international dimension of this issue. Tax avoidance by multinational corporations, fighting tax evasion and increased tax transparency worldwide are the key areas to act on. The capability to push forward critical governance reforms at the domestic level will define to which degree the developing countries take part in international standard-settings.

2030 Agenda ● Localising the SDGs

How to Build a National Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI): Using the MPI to inform the SDGs

UNDP, Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative, University of Oxford (2019) As a practical guideline for planners, policymakers and statisticians, this handbook provides detailed practical guidance on how to build a technically rigorous permanent national multidimensional poverty index (MPI). Additionally, it provides evidence on how countries have designed and computed their national MPIs to guide policy and to accelerate progress towards the SDGs.

URBANET Spotlight on LNOB

Urbanet (2019) Another Spotlight-series from URBANET is focusing on the Leave No One Behind principle. The topics range from marginalised groups in cities to climate action in cities for making cities more inclusive.

The Sustainable Development Goals Report 2019

UN (2019) This report by the UN showcases evidence for the progress made on achieving the SDGs. It highlights the evidence, that especially extreme poverty has declined, and that some favourable trends are evident. About 150 countries have developed national policies to save our planet and concrete actions are in progress to respond to upcoming challenges such as rapid urbanisation. Furthermore, a wide range of actors has engaged in achieving the SDGs in a manner that generates great hope for the coming decade.

Tracking Progress on Sustainable Development Goal 16 with Global State of Democracy Indices

International IDEA (2019) By using the Global State of Democracy Indices, this paper shows an overview of the progress in implementing SDG 16 since 2015 at the global, regional and country level. The global progress on SDG 16 is facing significant challenges such as the curtailment of civic space and democratic backsliding and erosion. According to the data, the public access to information and the protection of fundamental freedom face an underlying threat in all regions.

Governance and National Implementation of the 2030 Agenda: Lessons from Voluntary National Reviews

UN University, Institute for Advanced Study of Sustainability (2019) This policy brief offers lessons learnt from 99 Voluntary National Reviews between 2016 and 2018. The key areas and other insights in relation to national governance structures for the implementation of the 2030 Agenda are analysed so that this brief provides recommendations for policymakers and stakeholders.

Progress on the Sustainable Development Goals: The Gender Snapshot 2019

UN Women and UN DESA (2019) This publication provides statistics and gender-specific indicators to analyse the SDGs from a gender perspective. The latest data on gender equality across all SDGs showcases the progress made and underscores the efforts that need to be done.

Achieving the SDGs and 'Leaving No One Behind': Maximising Synergies and Mitigating Trade-Offs

ODI (2019) With a wide range of examples, this paper aims to help governments and key stakeholders to face the realisation of the 2030 Agenda. The interaction between the different SDGs, known as 'synergies' and 'trade-offs' can have positive as well as negative effects. This working and discussion paper aims to contribute to the implication of the integrated nature of the 2030 Agenda and in particular, the commitment to 'leave no one behind'.

How Integrated Solutions Can Help Achieve the Sustainable Development Goals

FriEnt (2019) The Working Group on Peace and Development (FriEnt) and its partners highlight in this dossier the linkages between different Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This dossier considers integrated solutions as a key to achieving the SDGs. Emphasising the indivisibility of the SDGs means to recognise linkages and encourage the identification of synergies and the development of integrated approaches and coherent policies. With a wide range of case studies, the working group identifies good practices, political achievements, challenges and lessons learnt in concerning land and conflict prevention.

Sustainable Development Report 2019

Bertelsmann Stiftung and Sustainable Development Solutions Network (2019) Teams of independent experts at the Sustainable Development Solutions Network and the Bertelsmann Stiftung prepared the Sustainable Development Report 2019. It presents the SDG Index and Dashboards and frames the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals in terms of six broad transformations.

Gender Budgeting

The Asia Foundation (2019) Gender budgeting, known as Gender responsive budgeting, plays a key role in achieving the SDGs. It refers to an approach that uses fiscal policy and administration to promote gender equality. This brief explains the concept and what it aims for in a detailed way and provides information how gender budgeting can be introduced in Myanmar. Therefore, the impact of international experiences with gender budgeting initiatives is analysed.

How Local & Regional Government Associations bring the SDGs to life

Platforma, CEMR (2019) This study provides information about how towns and regions can localise the SDGs by using local indicators to assess the implementation. It is based on a joint survey conducted by CEMR, Platforma and United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG). Since local and regional government associations are increasingly being recognised as important actors to embrace the 2030 Agenda, success stories and innovative good practices can be shared as well as challenges and common solutions.

Integrated Policymaking: Choosing an institutional Design for Implementing the Sustainable Development Goals

German Development Institute (2019) This paper aims to assess governments’ proposals for institutional designs for SDG implementation at the national level and to identify patterns of institutional design through analysing and coding the Voluntary National Reviews from 2016 and 2017. The empirical analysis gives an overview which political and socio-economic factors shape the institutional designs and formulates policy recommendations based on the findings.

Localising the 2030 Agenda through Integrated Urban Development

GIZ (2019) This publication provides five successful examples from the German Development Cooperation on integrated approaches for sustainable urban development and its contribution to a comprehensive implementation of the 2030 Agenda at the local level. Puebla (Mexico), Naga City (Philippines), Lviv to Zhytomyr (Ukraine), Tamil Nadu (India) and multiple cities from Jordan identify practices on concrete policies and actions. These case studies for development organisations as well as partners and cities provide conceptual guidance and recommendations for hands-on approaches.

Urban and Territorial Governance

Climate, Urbanization and Conflict: The Effects of Weather Shocks and Floods on Urban Social Disorder

ADB (2019) This paper provides important information about weather shocks and floods in large cities in developing countries. The displacement of population is associated with a higher risk of urban social disorder. This paper holds implications for evaluating future climate change as well as policies regarding climate change and disaster resilience.

10 Things to Know about the Impacts of Urbanisation

ODI (2018) Urban living can offer many benefits for residents such as job opportunities and higher incomes. Business wise the chances of greater collaboration and innovation opportunities are higher while also including lower input costs. Since cities are growing quickly, especially in low-income countries in Africa and in Asia, rapid urbanisation brings challenges for city governments and policy makers. To plan and manage the interconnected aspects of urbanisation (poverty, inequality, employment, services, transport, climate change and politics) political and technical issues need to be considered to ensure a good life in urban areas.

Reflections on Citizens Participation in Europe’s Cities

URBACT (2019) This policy paper captures the knowledge from the first URBACT City Lab. With the focus on citizen participation, this paper identifies challenges that cities are facing and shares relevant learning experiences and good practices from cities.

Political Economy Analysis of Local Economic Development in Serbia

SDC, ddlgn (2019) This study provides a political economy analysis of Local Economic Development (LED) in Serbia, a country of great regional differences. Economic growth is concentrated in larger cities, while high unemployment rates and poverty levels can be found in smaller towns and rural communities. LED takes an important part in a functioning government system. Since LED offices across Serbia were established through various donor programmes, the analysis and its findings show the multiple challenges that LED is facing as well as opportunities to successfully promote, support and implement LED.

Better Cities, Better World: A Handbook on Local Governments Self-Assessments

World Bank (2019) With a sense of urgency, we face the urbanisation wave and need to search for effective and innovative ways to deal with new and old problems. This handbook provides information concerning the complex past, current and future challenges that cities face. The book addresses two key questions that tackle municipal infrastructure and services financing: Are we doing the right things? and Are we doing things right?.

Time to Act: Realizing Indonesia’s Urban Potential

World Bank Group (2019) Indonesia is the fourth most populous country and is rapidly being urbanised. To make sure that policymakers recognise and implement the potential of Indonesia as prosper and developed country with benefits that arise from the urban agglomeration, this report provides ideas for institutional reforms and policies. It shows the challenges and opportunities for urbanisation in Indonesia.



	Secretariat for the Development Partners Network on Decentralisation & Local Governance (DeLoG) Friedrich-Ebert-Allee 32+36 53113 Bonn, Germany		Hosted by GIZ - Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit GmbH

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