Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions. Empowering local authorities in partner countries for enhanced governance and more effective development outcomes

Centrally-led, top-down development policies and programmes cannot alone succeed in addressing the complexities of sustainable development and fighting poverty. Public and private actors have their role to play especially at local level. In the last two decades, many central governments in developing countries have attributed responsibilities to Local Authorities in country development processes, with a view to allow for the definition of public policies and service delivery on local realities.

However, this political recognition has not always been accompanied by an adequate level of autonomy, capacity development and financial resources, leaving their empowerment incomplete. In many EU partner countries, funding directly channelled through Local Authorities still represents a marginal part of national public sector expenditure and of international development aid.

A certain number of obstacles have to be overcome in order to unlock the development potential of Local Authorities. It is with this purpose that the European Commission reaffirms the importance of Local Authorities in partner countries, in achieving development objectives and proposes a more strategic engagement for their empowerment.

This Communication integrates the results of the Structured Dialogue on the involvement of Civil Society Organisations and Local Authorities in EU development cooperation, the EU renewed approach to poverty reduction and sustainable development defined by the Communication Increasing the Impact of the Development Policy: an Agenda for Change and related Communications and Council Conclusions, as well as the results of the stakeholder consultation carried out on the basis of the Issue Paper Local Authorities in Development. Furthermore, the Communication takes into account the international aid and development effectiveness agenda, as lastly shaped by the Busan Outcome Document.

EUR-Lex: COM(2013)280: Follow the progress of this communication through the decision-making procedure http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/HIS/?uri=COM:2013:280:FIN

UNDP: Global Partnership for Effective Development Co-operation: Busan Outcome Document http://www.undp.org/content/dam/uspc/docs/OUTCOME_DOCUMENT_-_FINAL_EN.pdf

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