IN DEMOCRACY AND GOOD GOVERNANCE
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20 YEARS OF PARTNERSHIP IN DEMOCRACY AND GOOD GOVERNANCE ENGAGED CITIZENS FOR BETTER GOVERNANCE • Policy and legal reform: USAID will help improve consultation among the central and local governments on laws and policy decisions that affect local finance and delivery of services. • Local management: USAID will help increase the capacity of local governments to be effective, transparent, accountable, and financially healthy. • Planning and managing urban growth: USAID will help expand the capacity of local governments to comply with a new urban planning law and to ensure orderly economic development. SUPPORT FOR ELECTORAL PROCESS: • USAID supported large domestic elections monitoring efforts in all local and national elections during this period. In 2007, USAID led a domestic monitoring effort which recruited and trained around 3,000 monitors stationed at polling places throughout the country. • USAID funded the first-ever pre-election public opinion poll in May 2005. The poll utilized a large national sample and was the single best predictor of the election result. Poll data was also used to help parties shape their electoral platforms in advance of the elections. • USAID sponsored a historically unprecedented series of parliamen- tary debates throughout Albania that were televised on a national network created through USAID funding. • A media monitoring effort that used a computerized system to track bias in broadcast/print coverage during the 2007 election campaigns produced an interactive reporting system that compelled media to provide balance in covering election events and issues. MUNICIPAL DEVELOPMENT Since 2000, USAID has provided more than $16 million to assist in Albania’s decentral- ization efforts. To support this process, in 2008 USAID started an $8 million, four year local governance program (LGPA), to stimulate local economic growth, improve local governance, and strengthen civic and private sector engagement in local development. • USAID helped establish Local Economic Growth Committees in ten munici- palities, providing a forum for discussion and promoting more effective com- munication among different sectors in the municipality. • USAID provided technical assistance on local tax collection, administration, and enforcement. Computerization of the tax system in ten target municipal- ities brought about a more efficient and effective administration of their tax collections and services. • USAID provided guidance to target municipalities during the asset transfer process from the Central Government, and then assisted several municipali- ties to record and register ownership of their properties, including Gramsh, Korce, Lezha, Librazhd and Pogradec. • At the Central Government level, USAID has worked with the Ministry of Interior to develop guidance for the registration, management and use of municipal assets. • At the national level, USAID assisted the National Territorial Planning Agen- cy to develop regulations to guide implementation of the new National Ter- ritorial Planning Law. BUILDING MORE EFFECTIVE, RESPONSIVE AND ACCOUNTABLE LOCAL GOVERNMENTS • USAID has provided support to local government since 1992, with as- sistance on municipal services focused on utilities management, land use planning, and infrastructure development, emphasizing the role of public- private partnerships. • USAID helped create the first intergovernmental working group among the city and district of Tirana, the Ministry of Construction, and the Na- tional Planning Institute, which planned development of a 70-hectare area, identifying sites and related infrastructure needs, and addressing legal/poli- cy issues of residential upgrading. • USAID played an integral role in establishing the legal and institutional mechanisms for private sector delivery and management of municipal ser- vices, resulting in passage of the Concession Law for Public Services, Law on Privatization of the water sector, and complementary laws enabling privatization and contracting for water, wastewater, and sanitation. • USAID assistance enabled an informed dialogue about decentralization between local governments and central ministries, strengthening local gov- ernments’ ability to advocate and ensure implementation of reforms, par- ticularly through the recently-formed Association of Albanian Mayors, and ensuring that essential authorities are incorporated in revised legislation. • In the area of urban services, USAID assisted the Ministry of Construction and three cities to privatize solid waste collection and to develop a strat- egy to implement water privatization in Tirana and other cities. SUPPORT FOR DEMOCRATIC INSTITUTIONS AND PROCESSES • USAID provided the 1992-1996 Parliament with an electronic voting sys- tem, a sound system, computers, two printing presses and associated technical assistance. A USAID-sponsored 1995 workshop series led to the first public hearing of a parliamentary commission. A USAID financed grantee has focused on strengthening political organizations since 1994. • Throughout the 1990’s, USAID advisors carried out political party-building sessions in Tirana and in cities with the political parties, plus separate lead- ership training sessions with politically active women and their organiza- tions and support groups. The program assisted 33 NGOs with 45 grants and provided training and technical assistance to over 600 NGO represen- tatives on building policy analysis, formulation, implementation, and advo- cacy skills and establishing partnerships between government and NGOs. PROJECTS 1991-1999 • Housing Assessment (1992) JointWorld Bank -USAID Mission • Urban Infrastructure Investment and Development Privatization Pilot Program forWater Enterprises • Public Administration (1995-2000) Urban Institute • Housing and Urban Development (1992-2001) withWorld Bank • Housing Sector Reform Program (1996) withWorld Bank • Housing and Urban Development Assistance (1998-1999) RTI International, Short-Term Investment Plans for Service Improvements inTirana and Durres • Independent Media in Albania (Professional Media Program) (1999-2004) International Research & Exchange Board (IREX) PROJECTS 2000-2010 • Civil Society Development (2000-2005) National Democratic Institute • Assistance toVoter Registration (Technical Elections Assistance) (2002-2005) • Political Party Building & Citizen Participation (2002-2004) with National Democratic Institute (NDI) • Political Party Building & Citizen Participation (2004-2007) with National Democratic Institute (NDI) • Parliamentary Assistance andYouth Program (2002-2005) International Republican Institute (IRI) • Conflict Management and NGO Support (2001-2004) Partners for Democratic Change (PDC) • Local Government Assistance & Decentralization (LGAD) (2000-2003) • Democracy and Governance in Albania (2004-2007) with National Democratic Institute (NDI) • Local Government and Decentralization in Albania project (LGDA) (2004-2007) • Election Administration (2002-2006) • Resource Cities Partnerships (2001-2003) • City Links Program:Tirana-Catawba Resource Cities Partnership International (2005-2007) • Hope Fellowship Program (2006-2009) with the National Albania American Council • Support for Persons with Disabilities (2004-2009) • Peace Corps Small Projects Assistance Program (2003-2011) Peace Corps • Local Governance Program in Albania (2007-2011) PROJECTS 2011 AND BEYOND • Sustainable Wheelchair Service for People with Disabilities in Albania (2009-2012) • Economic Empowerment of People with Disabilities (2010-2012) • Development Credit Authority (DCA) Guarantee for Municipal Lending (2008-2020) Raiffeissen Bank in Albania / National Commercial Bank of Albania 2011 AND BEYOND THE 2000s THE 1990s
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sUppORT FOR dEMOcRATIc InsTITUTIOns And pROcEssEs BUILdInG MORE EFFEcTIvE, REspOnsIvE And AccOUnTABLE LOcAL GOvERnMEnTs EnGAGEd cITIZEns FOR BETTER GOvERnAncE MUnIcIpAL dEvELOpMEnT sUppORT FOR ELEcTORAL pROcEss:
Transcript of IN DEMOCRACY AND GOOD GOVERNANCE
20 YEARs OF pARTnERsHIpINDEMOCRACYANDGOODGOVERNANCE
EnGAGEd cITIZEns FOR BETTER GOvERnAncE
• Policyandlegalreform:USAIDwillhelpimproveconsultationamongthecentralandlocalgovernmentsonlawsandpolicydecisionsthataffectlocalfinanceanddeliveryofservices.
• Localmanagement:USAIDwillhelpincreasethecapacityoflocalgovernmentstobeeffective,transparent,accountable,andfinanciallyhealthy.
• Planningandmanagingurbangrowth:USAIDwillhelpexpandthecapacityoflocalgovernmentstocomplywithanewurbanplanninglawandtoensureorderlyeconomicdevelopment.
sUppORT FOR ELEcTORAL pROcEss:
• USAIDsupportedlargedomesticelectionsmonitoringeffortsinalllocalandnationalelectionsduringthisperiod.In2007,USAIDledadomesticmonitoringeffortwhichrecruitedandtrainedaround3,000monitorsstationedatpollingplacesthroughoutthecountry.
• USAIDfundedthefirst-everpre-electionpublicopinionpollinMay2005.Thepollutilizedalargenationalsampleandwasthesinglebestpredictoroftheelectionresult.Polldatawasalsousedtohelppartiesshapetheirelectoralplatformsinadvanceoftheelections.
• USAIDsponsoredahistoricallyunprecedentedseriesofparliamen-tarydebatesthroughoutAlbaniathatweretelevisedonanationalnetworkcreatedthroughUSAIDfunding.
• Amediamonitoringeffortthatusedacomputerizedsystemtotrackbiasinbroadcast/printcoverageduringthe2007electioncampaignsproducedaninteractivereportingsystemthatcompelledmediatoprovidebalanceincoveringelectioneventsandissues.
MUnIcIpAL dEvELOpMEnT
Since 2000, USAID has provided more than $16 million to assist in Albania’s decentral-ization efforts. To support this process, in 2008 USAID started an $8 million, four year local governance program (LGPA), to stimulate local economic growth, improve local governance, and strengthen civic and private sector engagement in local development.
• USAIDhelpedestablishLocalEconomicGrowthCommitteesintenmunici-palities,providingaforumfordiscussionandpromotingmoreeffectivecom-municationamongdifferentsectorsinthemunicipality.
• USAIDprovidedtechnicalassistanceonlocaltaxcollection,administration,andenforcement.Computerizationofthetaxsystemintentargetmunicipal-itiesbroughtaboutamoreefficientandeffectiveadministrationoftheirtaxcollectionsandservices.
• USAIDprovidedguidancetotargetmunicipalitiesduringtheassettransferprocessfromtheCentralGovernment,andthenassistedseveralmunicipali-tiestorecordandregisterownershipoftheirproperties,includingGramsh,Korce,Lezha,LibrazhdandPogradec.
• AttheCentralGovernmentlevel,USAIDhasworkedwiththeMinistryofInteriortodevelopguidancefortheregistration,managementanduseofmunicipalassets.
• Atthenationallevel,USAIDassistedtheNationalTerritorialPlanningAgen-cytodevelopregulationstoguideimplementationofthenewNationalTer-ritorialPlanningLaw.
BUILdInG MORE EFFEcTIvE, REspOnsIvE
And AccOUnTABLE LOcAL GOvERnMEnTs
• USAIDhasprovidedsupporttolocalgovernmentsince1992,withas-sistanceonmunicipalservicesfocusedonutilitiesmanagement,landuseplanning,andinfrastructuredevelopment,emphasizingtheroleofpublic-privatepartnerships.
• USAIDhelpedcreatethefirstintergovernmentalworkinggroupamongthecityanddistrictofTirana,theMinistryofConstruction,andtheNa-tionalPlanningInstitute,whichplanneddevelopmentofa70-hectarearea,identifyingsitesandrelatedinfrastructureneeds,andaddressinglegal/poli-cyissuesofresidentialupgrading.
• USAIDplayedanintegralroleinestablishingthelegalandinstitutionalmechanismsforprivatesectordeliveryandmanagementofmunicipalser-vices,resultinginpassageoftheConcessionLawforPublicServices,LawonPrivatizationofthewatersector,andcomplementarylawsenablingprivatizationandcontractingforwater,wastewater,andsanitation.
• USAIDassistanceenabledaninformeddialogueaboutdecentralizationbetweenlocalgovernmentsandcentralministries,strengtheninglocalgov-ernments’abilitytoadvocateandensureimplementationofreforms,par-ticularlythroughtherecently-formedAssociationofAlbanianMayors,andensuringthatessentialauthoritiesareincorporatedinrevisedlegislation.
• Intheareaofurbanservices,USAIDassistedtheMinistryofConstructionandthreecitiestoprivatizesolidwastecollectionandtodevelopastrat-egytoimplementwaterprivatizationinTiranaandothercities.
sUppORT FOR dEMOcRATIc InsTITUTIOns And pROcEssEs
• USAIDprovidedthe1992-1996Parliamentwithanelectronicvotingsys-tem,asoundsystem,computers,twoprintingpressesandassociatedtechnicalassistance.AUSAID-sponsored1995workshopseriesledtothefirstpublichearingofaparliamentarycommission.AUSAIDfinancedgranteehasfocusedonstrengtheningpoliticalorganizationssince1994.
• Throughoutthe1990’s,USAIDadvisorscarriedoutpoliticalparty-buildingsessionsinTiranaandincitieswiththepoliticalparties,plusseparatelead-ershiptrainingsessionswithpoliticallyactivewomenandtheirorganiza-tionsandsupportgroups.Theprogramassisted33NGOswith45grantsandprovidedtrainingandtechnicalassistancetoover600NGOrepresen-tativesonbuildingpolicyanalysis,formulation,implementation,andadvo-cacyskillsandestablishingpartnershipsbetweengovernmentandNGOs.
pROJEcTs 1991-1999• HousingAssessment(1992)JointWorldBank-USAIDMission• UrbanInfrastructureInvestmentandDevelopmentPrivatizationPilotProgramforWater
Enterprises• PublicAdministration(1995-2000)UrbanInstitute• HousingandUrbanDevelopment(1992-2001)withWorldBank• HousingSectorReformProgram(1996)withWorldBank• HousingandUrbanDevelopmentAssistance(1998-1999)RTIInternational,Short-Term
InvestmentPlansforServiceImprovementsinTiranaandDurres• IndependentMediainAlbania(ProfessionalMediaProgram)(1999-2004)International
Research&ExchangeBoard(IREX)
pROJEcTs 2000-2010• CivilSocietyDevelopment(2000-2005)NationalDemocraticInstitute• AssistancetoVoterRegistration(TechnicalElectionsAssistance)(2002-2005)• PoliticalPartyBuilding&CitizenParticipation(2002-2004)withNationalDemocratic
Institute(NDI)• PoliticalPartyBuilding&CitizenParticipation(2004-2007)withNationalDemocratic
Institute(NDI)• ParliamentaryAssistanceandYouthProgram(2002-2005)InternationalRepublicanInstitute(IRI)• ConflictManagementandNGOSupport(2001-2004)PartnersforDemocraticChange(PDC)• LocalGovernmentAssistance&Decentralization(LGAD)(2000-2003)• DemocracyandGovernanceinAlbania(2004-2007)withNationalDemocraticInstitute(NDI)• LocalGovernmentandDecentralizationinAlbaniaproject(LGDA)(2004-2007)• ElectionAdministration(2002-2006)• ResourceCitiesPartnerships(2001-2003)• CityLinksProgram:Tirana-CatawbaResourceCitiesPartnershipInternational(2005-2007)• HopeFellowshipProgram(2006-2009)withtheNationalAlbaniaAmericanCouncil• SupportforPersonswithDisabilities(2004-2009)• PeaceCorpsSmallProjectsAssistanceProgram(2003-2011)PeaceCorps• LocalGovernancePrograminAlbania(2007-2011)
pROJEcTs 2011 And BEYOnd• SustainableWheelchairServiceforPeoplewithDisabilitiesinAlbania(2009-2012)• EconomicEmpowermentofPeoplewithDisabilities(2010-2012)• DevelopmentCreditAuthority(DCA)GuaranteeforMunicipalLending(2008-2020)
RaiffeissenBankinAlbania/NationalCommercialBankofAlbania
2011ANDBEYONDTHE2000sTHE1990s
