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Summary
The first phase of this five-year technical cooperation program focused on providing the municipal administrations of the Baltic capital cities of Tallinn, Riga and Vilnius with an understanding of democratic planning approaches and to innovate the means by which these approaches could be applied in the prevailing post-Soviet context. Initially, municipal strategic plans were formulated as the first steps in the creation of city land-use planning and development functions that supported emerging democratic and market-based economic conditions. In the second phase of the project, the strategic planning cycles were completed within each of the three capital city governments and economic development initiatives were implemented, thereby institutionalizing strategic planning and economic development mechanisms within the local authorities’ modes of operating. A series of capacity development initiatives were delivered which resulted in the adoption of new institutional practices related to urban management, administration and performance measurement. In addition, the second phase saw the replication of the strategic planning processes and capacity building in seven additional municipalities in the region.
Funding Agency:
The Department of External Affairs and International Trade Canada (Task Force on Central and Eastern Europe) and the Canadian International Development Agency (Central and Eastern European Branch)
Timeframe:
1994-1999
Geographic Focus:
The geographic focus of this program was in the former Soviet Baltic Republics of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia. Specifically targeted were the capital cities of Vilnius, Riga and Tallinn.
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Want more information?
For more information, contact the CUI’s International Programs Office at cui@canurb.com |
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Project Partners
The program was implemented in partnership with the capitals of Estonia (Tallinn), Riga (Latvia) and Vilnius (Lithuania) and the Ministry of Public Administration Reform and Local Authorities and the Ministry of Culture (Lithuania); Ministry of Regional Development and Environmental Protection and the Ministry of Finance (Latvia); the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Ministry of Finance (Estonia)
Background
After gaining independence from the former Soviet Union, the Baltic countries were faced with a need to change from centrally planned, Moscow-dominated governance and economic systems to a democratic and market-oriented system, able to function in a competitive global environment. A key aspect of this transition has been the decentralization of decision-making powers to local authorities. This unprecedented change has been extremely difficult given that it affects every aspect of municipal management. It has had an impact on the laws under which a municipality is administered, the economic base of the municipalities, the political system, the social structure, the ethnic mix, the rights and relationships between state, municipality and private individuals and every other conceivable aspect of the environment in which a municipality functions. This was a total metamorphosis and it occurred extremely rapidly. This is a situation that had no precedent in modern municipal history and as such placed an enormous burden on municipal governments.
Project Description
The goal of this cooperation program was the formulation and implementation of a multi-stakeholder strategic planning process in the capital cities of the three participating Baltic countries, to direct the strengthening and restructuring of their urban management systems in support of the ongoing processes of decentralization and democratization. Particular emphasis was placed on capacity building for local economic development and on implementing economic development initiatives coming out of the strategic plans such as economic profiles, portfolios of municipal investment projects, investment in tourism marketing programs, streamlining of municipal tendering and project approval processes and the establishment of capital investment and debt management programs. In addition, the delivery of a series of capacity development initiatives (in areas ranging from project finance to municipal organizational effectiveness, stakeholder participation, official plan formulation and regional cooperation) led to the adoption of new institutional practices related to urban management, administration and performance measurement. The replication of the strategic planning processes and the capacity building activities was completed in seven additional municipalities in the region.
Approach
This multi-year technical cooperation program stressed the collaborative transfer of knowledge and skills through a variety of mechanisms including demonstration projects, training workshops and professional exchanges. A capacity development program was designed and delivered utilizing Canadian professional training missions to the Baltics, a number of study tours to Canada for Baltic professionals, curriculum development and on-site training workshops and international/regional conferences. By utilizing the train-the-trainer approach, this program ensured the sustainability of its results, by building the capacity of 30 Baltic professional trainers in the fields of strategic planning, problem solving, group facilitation, performance measurement, stakeholder involvement it territorial planning, urban economic base analysis, municipal economic development and urban heritage conservation.
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