Any development worthy of the name must necessarily strive to be democratic, fair, environmentally friendly, and respectful of human rights, particularly women’s and minority rights.
Local development is a process whereby a community becomes the driver of change in its environment with the goal of improving its living conditions. Local development rests firmly on two pillars: local governance and socioeconomic development.
CECI’s approach
CECI supports local development by following a five-point strategy:
- training for development actors (stakeholders);
- implementation of a fund to support initiatives contained in local development plans;
- strengthening of gender equality;
- development of sustainable environmental management techniques;
- a social and solidarity economy approach.
Issues
The political and administrative structure in any given country may be favourable or unfavourable to local initiatives. When favourable, it is generally because there is political and administrative coordination between the local level and the regional or national levels.
The laws and regulations of a country determine the roles and powers granted to the different levels of this structure. Sectoral policies lay down guidelines and create a framework for activities at the local level. Correspondingly, lobbying and political representation networks are formed on the basis of geographical or sectoral representation. For example, national associations of local elected officials are dependent upon regional associations.
In short:
- the people who hold power and authority must have the skills necessary to fulfill their mandates;
- civil society must play its role as advocate, provider of services, supporter of civic participation, and participant in policy dialogue;
- local administrative mechanisms and processes must be in place and understood, along with the conditions conducive to wealth creation at the local level.
Goals
Local development has short-, medium-, and long-term goals:
Short-term
Concerning local governance, improvements take the form of mechanisms for:
- participatory, transparent drafting and evaluation of local development and/or land-use plans
- rule-based decision-making
- effective accountability
- effective management of environmental risks and social conflicts
- effective and transparent consultation and coordination
- gender equality
- public information (rights, duties, laws)
In the area of local socioeconomic development, the changes will involve such aspects as:
- the development of individual and collective entrepreneurship
- the creation of social economy enterprises
- the structuring of locally rooted industries
- the existence of venture capital for social enterprises and individual micro-enterprises
- the building of infrastructure, such as schools, dispensaries, roads, markets, etc.
Medium-term
From the standpoint of populations:
- access to quality services and infrastructure
- creation of sustainable jobs and incomes
- strengthening of the power of local stakeholders
- assumption of civic responsibilities (payment of taxes, obeying the law)
- equal access of women and men to services, infrastructure, and economic opportunity
- women’s control over their resources
- equitable participation and representation of women and men in participatory and decision-making bodies and processes
From the standpoint of decentralized authority:
- quality public services and infrastructure
- effective, sustainable environmental protection
- measures conducive to private-sector growth and wealth creation
- arrangements for domestic funding (taxation) and external financing (donors) of development plan implementation
Long-term
Local development strives to improve living conditions, human capital (health, education), social capital (the capacity for collective action), economic capital (the capacity for investment, production, and trade), and environmental capital at the local level.
Expertise
CECI’s traditional role in local development consists in the implementation of projects comprising:
- facilitation of participatory local development planning processes;
- skill building for local stakeholders: community organizations, NGOs, small businesses, local politicians, and public officials;
- management of funds for subprojects.
Anticipated trends for the coming years relate to:
- improvement of governance
- increasing focus on urban areas
- consensus building and collaboration between local politicians, public servants, and civil society organizations.
