ANNUAL RESULTS 2014

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OPERATIONAL REVIEW SKL INTERNATIONAL ANNUAL RESULTS 2014 37 SKL International expands its advisory support to Sida DFID Governance and Security Framework aGreement, Lot A Client: UK Department for International Development Dates: 2012-2014 with extension up until 2016 Lead Partner: Adam Smith International Focus areas: Public sector governance and reform EU Framework Contract: Governance and Home affairs, Lot 7 Client: European Commission Dates: 2013-2015 with extension up to 2017 Lead Partner: DAI Focus areas: Human rights, SKL International has expanded its advisory support to Sida with the award of two new Sida Framework Contracts in democratic governance and human rights, and gender equality. Through these contracts, SKL International and its partners will provide Sida with short-term consulting and advisory services in areas such as local democracy, political participation, gender mainstreaming and a human rights based approach. “These framework contracts are a strategic opportunity for SKL International,” said Ms Suzanne Krook, Project Development Manager at SKL International. “We can inform the development of new results strategies, operational plans and new initiatives in our areas of expertise.” The framework contracts are also an opportunity for SKL International to democratisation, public administration reform, justice and rule of law, decentralisation and local development, civil society, home affairs EU Framework Contract: Studies related to the future development of Cohesion Policy and the ESI Funds, Lot 3 Client: European Commission Dates: 2013-2016 with extension up to 2017 Lead Partner: Altus Investment and Assets Management Focus areas: Analysing and making recommendations on Cohesion Policy and the European Structural Investment (ESI) Funds expand its collaboration with other Swedish organisations. SKL International leads consortiums with new partners Kvinna till Kvinna, Emerga and Global Reporting, as well as existing partners Overseas Development Institute (ODI), Public Administration International (PAI). “At SKL International we have a core competence in areas such as local democracy, decentralisation, political participation and public administration,” said Mr Håkan Gustafsson, Managing Director of SKL International. “Our partners complement and add specific expertise in other areas such as non-discrimination, rule of law, human rights systems, and freedom of speech”. Together the framework contracts target two of the three strategic priorities for Swedish development cooperation. Gender equality has long been one of the pillars of Sweden’s aid policy. In 2013 gender equality was the principal or significant objective for 85 percent of Sida’s total portfolio and 15 percent of this support targeted specific gender equality efforts. “We believe that gender equality is one of the most important areas where we Sida Framework Contract, Democratic Governance and Human Rights Client: Sida Dates: 2015-2017 with extension up to 2019 Lead Partner: SKL International Focus areas: Local democracy, decentralisation, political institutions/participation, public administration and financial management, state building, rule of law, freedom of expression and media, human rights Sida Framework Contract, Gender Equality Client: Sida Dates: 2015-2017 with extension up to 2019 Lead Partner: SKL International can make a difference in our work,” said Håkan Gustafsson. “We have achieved good results in this area through our projects in countries such as India, Turkey and Serbia. We look forward to bringing this experience and expertise to bear through the framework contract.” Likewise democracy and human rights comprised a third of Sida’s spending, equivalent to 5.4 billion Swedish kronor. Swedish development cooperation is guided by a human rights based approach, where the rights and needs of individuals are in focus. “At SKL International we have supported human rights from a range of perspectives,” said Suzanne Krook. “For example, we help improve the accountability and transparency of governments to their citizens and increase citizens’ participation in decisions that affect them. We also promote the needs and rights of women, children and minority groups, which affects the way that policies and public services are formulated and delivered.” The framework contracts will both run from early 2015 until January 2017, with the potential to extend for a further two years. Framework Contracts: Providing high quality advice around the world SKL International has a number of Framework Contracts through which it provides strategic advice, research and analysis to international donors around the world. Focus areas: Women’s political participation, women’s economic empowerment, sexual and reproductive health and rights, education, women’s security Sida Help Desk in Democracy and Public Administration in Africa Client: Sida Dates: 2014-2016 Lead Partner: SKL International Focus areas: Public administration, local democracy, political institutions/participation, rule of law Council of Governors at the core of Kenyan change process In the new Kenyan Constitution all services that affect the daily lives of Kenyans have become the responsibility of 47 counties, each with an average population of almost 1 million people. While the new Constitution is viewed as progressive and brings hope for something new, in reality the challenges could not be greater. By Paul Dixelius Kenya faces huge backlogs in critical infrastructure, in turn hampering productivity of business and service delivery. This eventually impacts on the quality of life for Kenya’s residents. The counties are gradually adapting to their new circumstances but are still overwhelmed by the challenges and need help to adapt their structures for future growth. The Council of Governors is the body that can best monitor the general situation in Kenya and will be instrumental in guiding the counties on the right track. The Kenyan elections in December 2007 were contentious on many levels. The Kriegler Commission that assessed the elections concluded that it was impossible to declare a rightful winner. The discontent amongst Kenyan citizens was widespread, leading to riots and more than a thousand casualties. With the assistance of then-UN Secretary General, Mr Kofi Annan, a new coalition government was formed in early 2008. However, allegations of fraud, corruption and political involvement in the post-election violence put heavy pressure on the government both from the population and from the outside world. The tense political situation led to the development of a new Kenyan Constitution, with the intention of reducing the presidential power and enhancing the power of the people. The new Constitution was approved in August 2010 marking a historical step and a break from colonial times. As envisaged, the new Constitution enhanced the role of parliament and citizens, increased independence of the judiciary and included a progressive Bill of Rights. Power to the counties A key feature in the new Constitution is the devolution of power from central government to the county government level. There are 47 semi-autonomous county governments in Kenya. The counties currently have mandate Photo: ©iStock.com/miroslav
OPERATIONAL REVIEW SKL INTERNATIONAL ANNUAL RESULTS 2014 39 “The SymbioCity programme will entail institutional co-operation between CoG and SALAR with emphasis on the theme of sustainable urban development.” and responsibility for virtually all services that affect Kenyan citizens. This includes schools, clinics and hospitals, which in most countries are central government responsibilities. But county government responsibilities also encompass traditional local government services such as urban planning and development, parks and roads, sanitation and waste management. The elections in March 2013 marked the official launch of decentralisation, as 47 new county governors and county assemblies were elected and began the challenging work of setting up new institutions. The common organ for the governors is the Council of Governors (CoG) - a non–partisan organisation established in accordance with the Intergovernmental Relations Act. As such it is a formal part of Kenya’s government structure. Since the new constitution was approved a key task for the CoG has been to lobby for the actual transfer of mandates from central to county level and to ensure matching financial transfers. As a result, almost all functions were formally transferred to the counties between February and August 2013. This was a deviation from the original plan Photo: ©iStock.com/DavorLovincic of gradual transfer of functions during a three-year period. An overwhelming task This quick and wide-scale transfer of functions and responsibilities has been a huge challenge for counties. Not only in terms of setting up new administrations for service delivery areas but also to make sure that all services on which citizens are dependent are actually delivered on the ground. And that they have enough funds. The reality is that the vast majority of urban residents in Kenya have inadequate access to basic services, and opportunities for communities to influence the quality and delivery of services have not been realised. Despite strong lobby efforts from county level, the agreed financial transfers from national government have been slow and irregular. This contributes further to deficient service delivery on the ground. Financial allocations mainly go to recurrent expenditure, with limited amounts spent on development projects. Similar transfers of power that have occurred elsewhere around the world show that there is a risk this tendency becomes cemented. The Dayton agreement in Bosnia and Hercegovina increased the mandates and power of cantons at the expense of the municipalities and the country has since experienced less public influence and deteriorated service delivery. To overcome this risk there is a need to establish adequate forums for dialogue with the local councillors on the one hand and the general public on the other. Transparency and accountability are even more important when the centre of power is geographically far away from the inhabitants. Institutional co-operation between SALAR and CoG The CoG can play a crucial role in this endeavour, for example in helping counties to establish forums and principles that ensure public participation in decision making processes. The Kenya SymbioCity programme, for which The Swedish Association of Local Authorities and Regions and SKL International are jointly responsible with the CoG, can become an important cornerstone in this work. The SymbioCity programme will entail institutional co-operation between CoG and SALAR with emphasis on the theme of sustainable urban development. The SymbioCity Approach brings Swedish expertise on how to work holistically with urban development and practical experiences of the long-term benefits of including people from all walks of life in the process. Both horizontal and vertical cooperation are key features in the SymbioCity Approach. These will also be central themes in CoG’s and SALAR’s joint ambition to support counties to become the new and improved generation of service delivery institutions in Kenya. In December 2012, SKL International held a SymbioCity workshop in Nairobi, which was hosted by the Swedish Embassy. A variety of Kenyan representatives from central and local level, private sector and civil society were challenged to build a sustainable city in two days with the help of the SymbioCity Approach. The response was overwhelmingly positive and marked the start of a broad Swedish effort to introduce the SymbioCity Approach as a concept to support sustainable urban development in Kenya. Together with central Kenyan urban development stakeholders, the “Kenya SymbioCity Programme” proposal was developed during 2014 where SALAR and CoG are both the institutional and key implementing partners. The programme is intended to strengthen CoG in its function to support counties in urban development and will entail comprehensive project interventions in seven counties around Kenya. Peace process heralds a new era for local democracy in Colombia By Magnus Liljeström After more than five decades of armed conflict in Colombia and several failed attempts to find a political solution to the conflict, a peace agreement between the Government and the FARC (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia) guerrillas seems more feasible today than in many years. The peace process presents great opportunities for change and a window of opportunity for strengthening the capacity and role of local governments in Colombia. Local governments are seen as key players in the implementation of an agreement and for building trust and inclusive institutions at the local level to guarantee all citizens equal rights and equal access to public services. Challenges for Decentralisation Decades of fiscal, political, and constitutional reform to decentralise government in Colombia have attempted to bring government closer to the people and made local governments responsible for critical services such as health and education. But the performance of the devolved system has been uneven due to the great disparities between local governments of different sizes and in different regions. The majority of Colombia’s municipalities are very small and many of the municipalities in the rural areas are the ones most affected by the conflict. These municipalities have often a low capacity both in terms of human and financial resources and suffer from inadequate administrative capacity, poor planning processes, uneven capacity to support local economic development, and lack of citizen trust and public participation. The great number of internally displaced people and the reintegration of combatants into society represents major challenges for municipalities and governments at all levels. Barriers to Democracy Political exclusion, violence, clientelism and corruption are some of the factors that have contributed to distrust in the public system among the Colombian population over the years and created barriers to public participation especially for poor and marginalised groups. The Constitution in 1991 strived to change this by promoting participatory democracy and assigning new functions to departments and local governments in matters relating to consultation, decision-making, implementation, control and financing. Forums and mechanisms for citizen voice and participation were also established. The Colombian Government, through the National Department for Planning (DNP), has expressed an interest for support based on Swedish experiences and expertise in the fields of public participation, intergovernmental financing and benchmarking. Experts from SKL International made two visits to Colombia during 2014 in order to explore how Swedish support could improve local democracy and build capacity in these areas. However, many challenges for public participation remained. The history of nonconsultation had created a gap between decision-makers and citizens that still to this day prevents citizens and civil society organisations to fulfill their role in the field. In addition, public participation is also limited by local governments’ limited autonomy of resources, lack of capacity and know-how and cumbersome regulations. The ongoing peace negotiations address some of these issues such as means for public participation in decision making processes and social control of the territorial entities of the Colombian state, but much more needs to happen before public participation becomes the norm. Fiscal Decentralisation In terms of fiscal decentralisation, Colombia is considered one of the most decentralised countries in Latin America. But despite this and the notable economic growth rates in the past decade, income inequality and regional disparities remain wide. The current system for intergovernmental financing lacks strong re-distributional features to assure equal access to public services throughout the country. In total, the result is very different conditions for different localities. Local governments that are small, remote and/ or in conflictive zones have special problems to finance local services of the same accessibility and quality as other structurally more advantaged administrations. The dependency of national transfers also limits many local governments’ discretion over spending and service delivery as well as opportunities for citizen engagement and accountability measures in local planning and budgeting processes.
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ANNUAL RESULTS 2014

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