Commonwealth Journal of Local Governance - Issue 15, June 2014 Implementation of the Caribbean Local Economic Development Project (CARILED) began in 2012 in seven countries with a duration of six years, to support sustainable economic growth in the region. CARILED has introduced the idea of local economic development (LED) to the development debate in the region and has also brought the organisational capacity of local government, and local government’s role as facilitator of LED, to the fore. This paper assesses organisational behaviour and capability in local government in Jamaica to determine the state of readiness for a developmental role. The paper draws on two sets of research data to aid its analysis – a capacity audit (CAPAUD) conducted in 2010 and an organisational analysis (OA) commissioned by the Ministry of Local Government in 2010, both of which targeted a sample of local authorities in Jamaica. The study found that, when assessed against established criteria for an LED organisation - ie research and information provision; marketing and coordination; learning and innovation; and leadership - local government’s institutional and organisational capacity for development is unevenly distributed. For instance, local leaders understood organisational purpose but efforts to give effect to this appeared undeveloped, sporadic and uni-directional. It was also evident that participatory strategies are used to gain information from communities but these were often devoid of systematic research methodologies rendering formal community impact on local planning negligent. There is strong potential for the kind of administrative leadership required by a developmental local government to evolve, indicated by the quality of training, quantum of managerial/supervisory staff, and stability of staff establishment. However, this potential is threatened by the deficiencies in the non-traditional functional areas that are strategic to the organisation’s effectiveness as a facilitator of LED, ie alignment of community engagement/interface with LED priorities, diffusion of information technology in organisational processes, and use of policy analysis and development. These findings contribute important policy relevant information to regional discussions on the construction of alternative solutions to institutional and organisational problems in response to the economic crises of small island developing states (SIDS).

This paper provides an overview of key trends and developments impacting local democracy and is intended to be a broad-ranging background paper to assist in discussions at a workshop organised in November 2014, which brought together academics and practitioners to explore current trends and developments in local democracy. It should be noted that there is no single world view on what local democracy is and globally there are many different systems of local governance and democracy both within and between countries. A number of key areas which have impacted on local democracy and as identified by the authors include the impact of the global financial crisis, the effects of urbanisation, rising conflicts and protests, ways in which engagements occur, ensuring inclusivity and the need for a developmental approach to local governance. Lessons learnt and challenges include the effects of decentralisation, increased participation, building skills, ensuring openness and transparency and ensuring effective and efficient service delivery.