Making Cities Work

Making Cities Work The Role Of Local Authorities in the Urban Environment

By: Richard Gilbert Don Stevenson Herbert Girardet Richard Stren

Group 2 Unit Penyelarasan Projek

Pn. Aziaton Shuib Pn. Sapiah Mohd Salleh En. Azman Che Mat En. Khairol Nizam Hamran Pn. Norzaidah Abd. Aziz Pn. Nor Shaadah Shariffudin En. Nor Hadzmi Mohd. Nor

Introduction

1) Making Cities Work is about urban settlements and the environment, and the role of local governments in ensuring well-functioning cities and in making progress towards sustainable development.

2) The aim of this book is to make governments, international bodies, local authority associations and public aware how potential environmental and social problems can be overcome, and what can be achieved particularly through cooperation between local government s around the world.

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Local Authority and the Environment

3) Role of Local Authorities In Securing Sustainable Development • Through consultation, dialogue and consensus with its citizen, Local Authorities should adopt a ‘Local Agenda 21’ to formulate the best strategies.

4) Why Good Governance is Important to Sustainability • Promotion and practice of sustainable resources use including waste minimization and energy efficiency; • Regulation of the demand for and supply of land so as to conserve its use; • Provision of appropriate infrastructure; • Attraction of suitable investment; and • Encouragement of partnerships.

Issues For Local Action 1)

Three issues such as Governance, Capacity and Actions and Initiatives to secure sustainability.

2)

Governance; Governmental and societal framework within which local authorities relate to their communities.

3)

The responsibilities of local authorities include: • Landuse planning; • waste management ; • water supply and sewerage services; • disaster relief and rehabilitation; • Health and social services; • park development and maintenance; • inspection and licencing to maintain compliance with national standards; • public transport management; • housing provision; and • environment monitoring and impact assessment.

Issues For Local Action 4)

Capacity; resources needed by local authorities to move their communities towards sustainability.

5) Capacity needed; • Adequate financial Resourses; • Adequate human resources and appropriate administrative structure and practices; • Adequate technical resources; and • Expanding capacity through collaboration.

6)

management,

Actions and initiatives to secure sustainability; actions required to tackle issues of sustainable development and methods of implementing them.

7) Local authorities’ need to have a framework of responsibilities and the financial, human and technical capacities.

Issues For Local Action 8) They should have both a structure and a strategic decision making process that ensures that they take and overall approach to issues of an environmental social, and economic sustainability.

9)

Collaboration and support from nation-states, international agencies and other local government is probably required.

10) Objectives Characteristic of local activity towards sustainable development; i. ii. iii. iv. v. vi.

minimization of waste and proper management of residues; energy-efficient transportation; Compact-land-use pattern; Integrated transportation and land use planning; Local environments and assessements and audit; Cooperation with NGOs in the implementation of environmental programmes; vii. Reducing economic and social polarization; and viii. Integration of marginalized people into efforts towards sustainable development.

Local Authorities and Worldwide Sustainable Development • The impact of the demographic, economic and technological trends faced by the cities in all parts of the world cannot be dealt with in isolation. • Therefore some multilateral programmes addressing urban sustainability and of international cooperation organized by local authorities and their associations are introduced focusing on the municipal role in securing worldwide sustainable development.

1) Funding Agencies The provision of resources in funding the appropriate collaborative work is another key part of the framework for the participation of local authorities. Some of the municipalities have their own resources but in other cases they have to rely on other national aid agencies particularly the international funding agencies which include the multilateral agencies – ie. Primarily those of the United Nations system supported by several governments and private foundations. The main focus is on support for development that is environmentally, socially and economically sustainable.

Local Authorities and Worldwide Sustainable Development i) •

Multilateral Institutions : United Nations (UN) – more on the research support, organized studies, conferences and workshops on different aspects of municipal management. It also encouraged Local Agenda 21. The major UN system bodies and agencies supported are United Nations Development Program (UNDP), United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), United Nations Centre for Human Settlements (UNCHS), United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP), United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), United Nations Education, Science and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), World Health Organization (WHO) and The World Bank.

ii) •

Private Foundations Ford Foundation – Urban Poverty Programme

iii)

The US German Marshall Fund – environmental programme focus on suporting reform in Central and Eastern Europe and on building translantic partnership. iv) The Surdna Foundation – supported community Development & Local Authorities in Eastern Europe v) The Nathan Cummings Foundation - supported community Development & Local Authorities in Eastern Europe vi) The Soros Foundation - supported community Development & Local Authorities in Eastern Europe

Local Authorities and Worldwide Sustainable Development vii)

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National Funding Agencies (Country-to-Country Aid Programmes which focus on urban or environmental aspects or both) : Japan – World’s largest provider of development aid. Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) - Emphasis is on rural and agricultural development.

The US – The United Agency for International Development (USAID) - strengthening the capacity of local governments to manage resources effectively for expanded service delivery.

Germany – The German Technical Cooperation Agency (GTZ) tackles technical cooperation projects for the German government.

France– focused on the Francophone countries.

The UK – aid to the Commonwealth countries - Focus on slum inmprovement, urban infrastructure and institutional support for local government.

Canada – Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) focused on rural areas sustainable development and good governance.

Sweden – Swedish International Development Authority (SIDA). Main aim is to raise the standard of living of poor people through new urban strategy.

The Netherlands – The Directorate General of International Cooperation (DGIS) is a foreign aid agency.

Local Authorities and Worldwide Sustainable Development 2) Example of International Municipal Cooperation Programmes - Regional Networks i) Medcities Environmental Audits and Action Plans • It is a network of 27 coastal Mediterranean cities; • To ensure environmental protection; • To reinforce awareness and responsibility of the environment; • To help towns and cities analyse the environmental issues; • To provide training and technical assisstance; • In longer term to develop joint projects involving municipalities; • Direct action through collaboration of municipalities. ii) Sustainable Cities Programme - City of Dar es Salam (Tanzania) - Initiated by UN • The programme stenghtens the capacity of cities to undertake environmental planning and management activities, to enable them , to manage natural resources and control environmental hazards; • It supports the implementation of Agenda 21; • It provides approach to overcome conflicting issues in the community • Develop environmental strategies; • Action plans containing commitments by public, private and community.

Recommendations 1) Recommendations to International Agencies •

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Should formally recognize local authorities as the only bodies with the potential to mobilize all sectors of their communities towards effective local action on urban sustainability.

UN system should provide formal recognition to local authorities as represented by their international associations, in international deliberations on urban issues.

Should give urban sustanability a high and distinct priority in their programming, funding and organizational structures.

Should support, as a priority, programmes of international municipal collaboration as a cost-effective approach to urban sustainability.

Should work closely with regional inernational bodies in support of a coordinated approach to international municipal collaboration.

Should develop a clearing house and information-sharing process in collaboration with international municipal assocations to reduce or elminate bureaucratic overlaps, delays and inconsistencies among related programmes.

Should support their programmes an integrated approach between local government and community.

Recommendations 2) • • •

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Recommendations to National Governments and Agencies Should recognize the legitimacy of autonomous local government through constitutional or other legislation.

In allocating responsibility, should follow the principle that should be delivered by the order of government.

Should attempt to ensure that local governments have the range of responsibilities and the legislative, territorial and fiscal capacity to deal effectively with issues of urban sustainability.

Should establish policy frameworks .

3) Recommendations to Local Authority •

•

Should take a broad issues of urban sustainability in their decision making and in their structure. Should plan and implement environmental and social actions in their own spheres of responsibility.

Should consider the preparation and implementation of Local Agenda 21s.

Recommendations 4)

Recommendations to Municipal Associations

•

An effective framework for municipal international cooperation activities depends on the existence of partnership between international agencies and municipal associations.

Should maintain a centre of research, evaluation and dissemination of information and advice concernning international cooperation activities.

International associations should be catalysts for decentralization and for the establishment of strong system of autonomous, representative local government.

National municipal association should be centres of information and expertise that can assist local government in programmes for urban sustainability.

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Recommendations

Conclusion •

In future, cities will be at the centre of efforts to achieve world sustainability. Thus, the government of cities have the capacity to take necessary action, independently and as part of a worldwide system, the prospects for the human activity will be improved.