Introducing a Participatory Budgeting Program in the Khoni City (GEKHN0004)

Commitment ID

GEKHN0004

Commitment Title

Introducing a Participatory Budgeting Program in the Khoni City

Problem

Citizen engagement is low in the implementation of local governance and in decision making in the Khoni City. In addition, the citizens lack responsibility for the maintenance of local infrastructure, and consequently, the infrastructure is frequently damaged. Unlike the villages of Khoni Municipality, where the population is relatively more engaged in rural assistance programs, there is no such mechanism of participation in Khoni City that would activate the residents of the city and ensure their greater participation in self-government activities.

Status quo

Residents of the Khoni City do not exercise the legal mechanisms of participation provided by the Local Self-Government Code. In particular, they do not attend the Sakrebulo sessions, nor do they participate in planning the local budget, because they think that their participation will not change anything.

Action

In response to the above-mentioned problem, a participatory budgeting program will be implemented in the Khoni City. In particular, a working group will be formed under the order and leadership of the Mayor. The group will be comprised of representatives of the City Hall, Sakrebulo and non-governmental organizations. It will develop a methodology on how to divide the city into zones, what kind of priorities to identify, what financial resources should be mobilized, and what principles and methods should be applied for voting on the projects put forward by citizens and for selecting the winning projects. A call for proposals will be announced. The working group will shortlist the submitted proposals and publish the winning projects identified as a result of citizen voting. The funds needed for their implementation will be reflected in the next year’s budget. Project implementation will be monitored and evaluated.

How will the commitment contribute to solving the public problem described above?

As a result of the implementation of the participatory budgeting program in the Khoni City, participation of the local population will increase in planning the local budget. City residents will bear more responsibility for monitoring the implementation of projects they have selected, and for the maintenance of infrastructure set up as a result of those projects. Also, they will be more interested in the activities of the local government, and their demand will increase for activating various mechanisms of participation.

What long-term goal as identified in your Open Government Strategy does this commitment relate to?

The commitment is directly linked to the strategic goal of Khoni Municipality to introduce various mechanisms for increasing the citizen participation in local self-government activities.

Primary Policy Area

Fiscal Openness, Other/NA

Primary Sector

Public Services (general)

What OGP value is this commitment relevant to?