Blog by Dr Greg Munro

CLGF Secretary-General Dr Greg Munro offers solidarity and sympathy to the citizens of Manchester and London, praising the contribution of the many public servants who serve on the front-line. He looks at the importance of inclusiveness and cohesion in building communities of the future. Read more…

 CLGF news

Find out what happened when CLGF Secretary-General Greg Munro joined representatives of local and regional authority networks at April’s meeting of the Consultative Committee of Local Authorities of the United Nations (UNACLA) - Global Agenda Development, consequences for local communities – in Istanbul, Turkey. High on the list of discussion topics were the New Urban Agenda and progress in financing local government to help deliver the SDGs.

There needs to be a fairer distribution of public revenues between levels of government and local government’s capacity to collect its own resources should be strengthened so that it can properly meet its commitments, said CLGF Board member Mayor Darrell Bradley speaking at a roundtable session at the ECOSOC Forum on Financing for Development in New York on 24 May 2017. Read more

Working with national local government associations in Dominica, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago, CLGF’s new Caribbean office – established with EC support, is piloting projects to localise the Sustainable Development Goals, aligning activities with national development plans and policies of the respective countries.

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Paving the way for improved local services and increased capacity, CLGF has signed an MOU with Fiji’s Ministry for Local Government, Housing and Environment.

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The Rwanda Association of Local Government Authorities (RALGA) brought together high level, multi-stakeholders, including local government and civil society organisations, at a meeting in Bugesera District, Rwanda, as part of a pilot project in CLGF's EU-funded programme on Strengthening local government’s role as a partner in development. Read more

2017 Conference news

Secure your place in Malta now!
www.clgc2017.org

Local governments throughout the world face major challenges in planning, delivering and maintaining services and infrastructure for the well-being of local communities. The 17 SDGs are the blueprint for development and the achievement of a better world by 2030 and local government must be resourced to do this. Join decision makers, practitioners and experts from across the Commonwealth to share ideas on innovative ways to boost local government's resource base. Register for your place now on to the dedicated conference website. 
Download conference leaflet

The CLGF Research Colloquium is being held in Malta before the main local government conference bringing together research pioneers to look at lessons from around the Commonwealth on local government resourcing and capacity. For more information about taking part go to the conference website.

 Local democracy across the Commonwealth

Jamaica Local Government and Community Development Minister Desmond McKenzie, has approved $175 million in emergency funding for critical infrastructure repairs in the six parishes worst affected by recent flooding. Torrential rain over a number of days at the end of April caused significant damage throughout Jamaica to major infrastructure, including roads and town centres, with landslides leaving people homeless. Read more

Vanuatu is challenging gender imbalance by electing an all-female Village Tribunal Council in the village of Sunai on Moso island. Read about the inspirational new Chair and her council members and their plans for the future.

The Commonwealth and the United Nations have pledged to continue working with local and regional institutions to support the peacebuilding process and governance reform agenda in Lesotho. Read more about the Commonwealth Secretary-General, the Rt Hon Baroness Patricia Scotland’s visit to Lesotho ahead of June’s election to offer support.

Hon Dr Joseph Muscat and the ruling Labour Party have won a resounding victory in Malta’s General Election which took place on 3 June. This has given him a strong mandate to head a government for a second term.
Prime Minister Muscat was a keynote speaker at CLGF’s conference in Botswana in 2015 and will open the 2017 Commonwealth Local Government Conference from 21-24 November in Valletta later this year. Read more

In the recent local government elections in UK, six new mayors have been elected to serve six newly created, combined authorities across the UK. Read more about the new combined authorities and what they will mean for the councils involved.

 Localising the Sustainable Development Goals

The Local Government Association of Zambia (LGAZ) has praised the efforts of President Edgar Lungu in transforming Zambia into an information and knowledge-based society supported by increased access to Information and Communication Technology (ICT). Read more about the motivation behind this move.

On 19 May, the Council of the European Union adopted a new consensus on development, setting out a new framework for development cooperation for the EU and member states which will guide the EU in cooperation with developing countries over the next 15 years. The new framework has been welcomed by local government organisations such as CLGF, Platforma and UCLG as it recognises the role of local and regional governments in achieving the SDGs and commits to support decentralisation reforms and decentralised cooperation. Read more

The World Bank has, for the first time, issued bonds that directly link returns to the performance of companies advancing global development targets, as set out in the Sustainable Development Goals. These include a roadmap for progress on climate, biodiversity, gender equality, health and sustainable infrastructure. Read more

 Building sustainable cities

The British Standards Institution (BSI), the business standards company, has launched a new guide on establishing a framework for sharing data and information services in cities. PAS 183:2017 Smart Cities – Guide to Establishing a Decision-Making Framework for Sharing Data and Information Services – was developed at the request of the Cities Standards Institute, a collaboration between the BSI and the Future Cities Catapult to create a standards-based community of good practice for cities and the companies with whom they work. Read more

CLGF Secretary General Dr Greg Munro took part in a one day meeting of health ministers in Geneva in May. More than 200 ministers, senior officials and observers were present at the annual event where they committed to a series of practical actions, including mobilising political commitment by heads of government for universal health coverage to be a national priority. Read more about the discussions

Local Government New Zealand says the Tourism Infrastructure Fund of $102m over four years announced by the government is a welcome contribution towards meeting the country’s tourism infrastructure needs. Infrastructure to support tourism has been identified by the industry and local government as a major issue to ensure New Zealand remains an excellent destination and communities are not overwhelmed. Read more

The Commonwealth Secretariat is helping to create a toolkit that will assist countries to implement the historic Paris Agreement on climate change. partners and country representatives were updated by the Secretariat at a meeting in Bonn organised by the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in May. Read more about the plans

Belize City Council teamed up with the Belize Association of Planners and the Caribbean Network for Urban Land Management to host the 2017 Caribbean Urban Forum. Hosting the event and taking an active part in the discussions was Mayor of Belize and CLGF Board Member Darrell Bradley, who was joined by around a hundred and fifty delegates. Read more about why this is such an important discussion.

 Events, publications and opportunities

CLGF is taking part in the EC European Development Days on 7/8 June in Brussels in cooperation with Platforma, a network which promotes the role of local and regional government in development. A leading forum for international cooperation and development, the event brings together key players involved in tackling poverty worldwide and shaping the development strategy for the future. Find out more

Take a look at the latest CLGF bulletin which includes a round up of the CLGF DFID-funded project on Strengthening local government in delivering development, news about the new SDG pilot projects in the Caribbean, details of a new initiative to strengthen local government associations and their members in Pakistan and much more.

Issue 19 of the Commonwealth Journal of Local Governance is now available. CLGF’s peer-reviewed e-journal brings together information, ideas and good practice from researchers and local government practitioners across the Commonwealth.

The latest edition  is now available; visit the website to find out how to submit your own paper for inclusion in future.

Last call for applications for a special CLGF bursary in partnership with the Institute of Local Government (INLOGOV), University of Birmingham for 75% of course fees for the new distance learning Masters in Public Administration. Open to any woman working in the local government sector in a Commonwealth country. The deadline to apply is 15 June 2017. Read more

CLGF Knowledge Hub

The Commonwealth Local Government Knowledge Hub is a fully searchable repository of research papers, reports, policy documesnt and other materials related to local governance. Organised into eight thematic areas: local democracy, local government finance, local government service delivery, women in local government, local government in small states, the global development agenda, cities and urbanisation and local economic development. Learn about the latest developments in Commonwealth local government.

Get in touch: Do you have a news story that would be of interest to others involved in local government? Email us at enews@clgf.org.uk