Global Network on Local Governance: Agenda for 2020

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The Sixth Assembly
Making Democracy Work

Global Network on Local Governance – GNLG: Agenda for 2020

Organizer:
 
Moderator:
 
Rapporteurs:
Rama Naidu – Democracy Development Programme-DPP (South Africa)
Ash Narain Roy – Institute of Social Sciences-ISS (India)
 
Presenters:
Rama Naidu – DPP (South Africa)
Ash Narain Roy – ISS (India)
The moderator introduced the Global Network on Local Governance (GNLG) and provided information about its founding and background (it was launched in Durban, South Africa, in 2004 at the Third Assembly of the World Movement for Democracy in partnership with DDP). Recalling the Second Assembly in São Paulo, Brazil, in 2000, where, for the first time, a workshop was devoted to local governance, he referred to new regional initiatives that have been created: IBSA – Local Government Forum (India-Brazil-South Africa Local Governance Forum) and the South Asian Forum for Local Governance. He also briefly indicated the issues that concern local governance worldwide, including gender issues, corruption and the need for transparency, accountability, and social audit (a process by which the people work with the government to monitor and evaluate planning and implementation of a scheme or policy).
 
In his presentation, Ash Narain Roy referred to three major developments to explain why the GNLG will continue to be relevant and have a role to play. First, the rapid strides made by democracy across the globe (notwithstanding some reverses here and there), and how networking among democracy activists has gone a long way to advance democracy.
 
Second, the world is moving towards what he called more global governance, not global government. At the same time, he referred to the new challenges that many democracies, primarily newer ones, are facing in the current "democracy recession" and their inability to perform well economically.
 
Third, the "end of geography" and the power of the information revolution have created opportunities and mechanisms for those at the regional and global levels to learn from each others' experiences. Several democracies are thus benefiting from the best practices available in other democratic systems to make themselves relevant and self-sustaining.
 
GNLG’s continuing relevance is therefore based on the agenda of the new democracies: democratization and decentralization. Its agenda for the next 10 years raises the following questions:
 
  • Will democracy and local government remain relevant and vibrant or will the centralization of power return?
  • Not everyone today is convinced that maximum devolution of power would mean greater democratization at the grassroots level, so the question is, does maximum devolution of power translate into maximum democracy?
  • Will the Internet improve democracy or will it accelerate its decline?
  • Is digital democracy (that is, direct democracy by using information and communication technologies as strategies for political and governance processes) leading to a new democratic divide between the haves and the have-nots, that is, between those who are empowered and those who are not?
  • Will global governance and global networking be eclipsed by the formation of local online discussion spaces on public issues?
In his presentation, Rama Naidu spoke about the South African experience and the work of the Good Governance Learning Network (GGLN), an example of a country network that was set up through an initiative of donors and civil society organizations that share their common experiences, undertake collaborative research, engage local government together, learn best practices from each other, and undertake regional activities around certain defined thematic areas. The lessons from the GGLN relate specifically to issues of sustainability and relevance of the network as a major national player on issues of local governance. The existence of both national and local networks is necessary for any global network to be both relevant and useful to a wide range of stakeholders, ranging from citizen groups and civil society organizations to practitioners and elected local government representatives.
 
Recommendations
 
  • The steering committee of the GNLG should be dramatically expanded to at least 100 countries by 2020.
  • The GNLG should organize regional workshops to improve networking.
  • As a global network, the GNLG will only be effective if there are effective local networks, which must be established and functional, even if only on a small scale.
  • The GNLG should work to improve citizens’ access to information where it is strictly limited or nonexistent.  This can be done through petitions and resolutions that can be circulated to relevant governments and other stakeholders.

There is a need to formulate ways to promote exchange visits at the regional and global levels to widen the horizons of elected representatives.  Greater emphasis should be placed on sharing experiences and best practices.