1. Harmonisation, Decentralisation and Local Governance

2. Session overview Challenge Reasons for decentralisation Obstacles for local performance Lack of commitment Donor support/SWAPs centrally biased Case of Uganda/other cases Lessons learned

3. Statements Decentralisation is a pre-requisite for building up strong sectors Strong sectors are a pre-requisite for effective decentralisation Sector support can only be effective if strong and decentralised sectors are in place

4. Specific Guiding Principle 5 Development partners commit to ensure synergies and consistency between support to the national decentralisation framework and sector support Challenge: Ensure that sector support programmes do not run counter to decentralisation but help strenghten such reform processes and mutually reinforce them

5. Challenge Decentralisation reforms and sector programmes both aim to improve access to and quality of public services Central question this afternoon: how to make them mutually reinforcing?

6. Opening exercise Mapping participants in a decentralisation matrix International Local DecentralisationSector support

7. Reasons for decentralisation Efficiency gains accommodating differences in local needs and preferences better matches between government services and tax cost Empowering local communities (governance) Improving public services, reducing poverty, encouraging economic development improved access to and quality of services governments more responsive to citizens’ needs strengthened accountability

8. Obstacles for local performance Technical obstacles Weak capacity of local government Poor design of decentralisation reforms, weak intergovernmental systems Absence of linkages between national poverty reduction strategy and the local public sector Political and institutional obstacles Resistance because of domestic political considerations Resistance by central level bureaucracies/line ministries Centralising bias donor community

9. Lack of commitment to decentralisation Conflicting interests: Time pressure to achieve quick results in service delivery, versus Time consuming involvement of sub-national levels: tasks and responsibilities have to be redefined, coordination mechanisms installed consultation processes, between national and sub- national levels ánd between government and NGOs

10. Donor support to sectors Donors tend to engage with partner governments in top-down planning and budgeting in which central ministries determine what needs to be done This may interfere with decentralisation reform and mandates of sub-national governments, and may not be based on real local needs and priorities Most SWAPs have failed to take on board the intermediate and local level in policy formulation, implementation and monitoring (micro-macro gap).

11. Sector impact Uganda Inflexibility in use of sector funds: Cannot be used for top priority expenditures of municipalities (e.g. street lighting, garbage collection) Sector conditions (e.g. only feeder, not tarmac, roads) Allocations do not take into account local conditions (e.g. double day populations/commuters) Inflexibility in personnel policy (e.g. inequalities in teacher supply between regions and cities) Capacity development based on sector needs in stead of general management or planning skills

12. Overcoming the micro-macro gap Decentralisation can help in overcoming the micro- macro gap because it strengthens domestic accountability lines from the national to the local level and vice versa, as well as accountability from local authorities to their constituencies.

13. Impact of decentralisation Research shows mixed results on the impact of decentralisation on service delivery. Positive performers (OECD): desire to improve social, economic and political conditions and visible support to the process; capacity to carry out reforms with transparency, participation and policy coherence; decentralisation programmes adopted by design; comprehensive approach concurrently undertaking political, fiscal and administrative decentralisation.

14. Challenge The issue should not be whether or not to decentralise but how to design and implement decentralisation policies in such a way that they contribute to achieving national objectives in service delivery. And: how to design sector programmes in such a way that they are consistent with and even strengthen the decentralisation process.

15. Examples from the field Honduras, Niger, Senegal, Syria and the Philippines Other examples?

16. Lessons learned Recognise the subsidiarity principle Apply a multi-stakeholder perspective Stimulate capacity development at all levels Promote sector ownership Improve donor coordination ‘Each sector has to be dealt with in its own right’

17. Working groups I Case presentation Decentralisation framework Sector objectives and policy Assignment of functions and finances Interadministrative and fiscal arrangements Human resources and capacity issues Participation and accountability Acces and quality of the service

18. Working groups II Discussion in small groups Is sector support consistent with decentralisation policies? How can sector reforms be better aligned with the decentralisation process? Can decentralisation bottlenecks be addressed by sector programmes? What can donor partners do to stimulate sector programmes to better take into account DLG?

19. Recap ‘Always say never’ Two groups, the Always and the Nevers. Think back on what you have heard, seen and thought about and formulate some Always and Never statements. Both groups have 10 minutes. The group who has the longer list of valid statements wins.