Decentralization reforms, in which central government agencies transfer rights and responsibilities to local institutions, are high on the agenda in many countries in the Europe and CIS region. Decentralized, streamlined and empowered local governments are better equipped to meet citizen’s expectations for public services and better livelihoods, and to ensure transparent, effective and accountable government actions.To exchange experiences, review lessons learned and discuss challenges faced while effecting governance reforms at the subnational and local levels, the International Conference “Making Decentralization Reform Work: Opportunities and Innovations for Local Governance and Service Delivery” took place on 2-3 December 2015 in Kyiv, Ukraine. 

Background discussion for Commonwealth Local Government Conference 2015.  CLGF commissioned two “thinkpieces” Local government 2030 achieving the vision – the role of local democracy and good governance and Local government 2030 achieving the vision – the importance of local government in economic development and cities as engines of economic growth. 

This paper reviews the national context and practical experiences of local governments’ role in LED activities across the five South Asian Commonwealth countries: Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. The paper has been commissioned by CLGF and prepared by Okapi Research and provides recommendations on ways to enhance the enabling environment for pro-poor local government-led LED across South Asia.

In 2013, Glasgow City Council won £24 million in a competition to become a model for demonstrating smart city technology at scale. Here’s how the city is using the latest technology and open data culture to reinvent itself with greater transparency, responsiveness and as an engine of growth.

This resource guide provides practical guidance for designing, implementing and evaluating decentralisation reforms and local government practices to ensure they are as effective as possible. It also synthesises and presents current debates on the impact of decentralisation and local government on poverty reduction, service delivery and conflict as well as providing links to cutting-edge research and recent case studies.