1. EXAMPLE 1: An articulated goal for the service provision of an LGA. Goal 3 of the Strategic Plan of the Albanian Association of Communes AAC provides its expertise to assist commune governments to increase the quality of services they provide to the community up to EU standards, while using the best experiences from inside and outside Albania

2. EXAMPLE 2: Dissemination of information and exchange of experience The dissemination of information and exchange of experience among the members are at the heart of services of NALRA and SALAR (Norwegian and Swedish Association of Local and Regional Authorities). They both publish newspapers ‘Municipal Gazettes’ through an independent company. The newspaper brings news, editorials and articles on issues and opinions from many different local government contributors and sources. Unless the associations ”makes the news’, the organisation actually has to buy advertising space in order to formulate its own information in this newspaper. A Gazette policy paper is approved by the respective board and serves as guidelines when the journalists and editors perform their duties. However, the content can not be influenced by the association.

3. EXAMPLE 3: Providing specific expertise to a cluster of members The Albanian Government decentralized the Collection and Management of the Small Business tax to the LGUs. Five municipalities started to set up their advanced Tax Management systems taking into account contemporary methods of financial management in the public sector. The five municipalities started computerized the system using a software produced by the same provider, located in the capital city. The software was being tested for the first time and the municipalities started to experience problems with it and when trying to negotiate directly with the software company could not get positive feedback due to difficulty in analyzing the software in all components. The AAM in partnership with German and Dutch assistance projects, set up a tax officers group from the municipalities using the software and assisted them with two national experts on IT and Tax Management. The group prepared a detailed ToR for updating the software being used in the municipalities. The software was updated and installed (free of charge) to the municipalities.

4. EXAMPLE 4: Specialists network development Albanian Association of Communes (AAC) has scarce resources while the legal framework changes continuously due to implementation of decentralisation strategy and devolution of functions and due to requirements of the Stabilisation and Association Process with the EU. AAC established the forum of communal lawyers as a forum of the association and facilitated team work within the group. Institutionally the forum and its functions are developed by AAC executive and approved by the Steering Committee. The lawyers received training in public procurement legal requirements recently introduced by law. The professional forum members function as advisors for communes that need to discuss implementation of the procurement law and also other legal issues concerning communal functions and responsibilities. Legal experts and urban planners are very scarce in the communal governments and the association is trying to built forms of corporate knowledge.