On Wednesday, June 30, an online conference was held to launch the report of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) on the condition of local self-governments in Poland and the possibilities of increasing the efficiency of management, planning and service delivery by local self-governments. In this event, organized by the Association of Polish Cities (ZMP), in cooperation with the OECD and with the support of the Ministry of Development Funds and Regional Policy (MFiPR), representatives of Polish local and regional self-governments, as well as ministries and government institutions and associations representing self-governments of various types participated.
The OECD report entitled "Better Governance, Planning and Services in Local Self-Governments in Poland" is a summary of the 2-year cooperation between the ZMP and the OECD, with the support of the MFiPR. This undertaking was an element of the predefined project carried out by the ZMP called "Strengthening the capacity of medium and small towns in Poland to implement effective development policies ", under the "Local Development" Programme, suported under the EEA and Norway Grants 2014-2021.
As part of the cooperation with the OECD, based on the well-established standards of this organization and the best international practices used in OECD member and partner countries, the report presents an analysis of the functioning of Polish local self-governments in 8 thematic areas:
- strategic planning for local development in Poland;
- co-ordination across administrative units and policy sectors within Polish local self-governments;
- strengthening multi-level governance and investment capacity to enhance local development;
- the use of evidence in strategic decision-making in Polish local self-government;
- budgeting in local self-governments in Poland;
- toward a more strategic and effective local government workforce;
- Open Government at the local level in Poland;
- reducing administrative burden and simplifying public procurement.
Parallel to the analysis, the report presents a proposal of recommendations, both for representatives of local self-governments and regional self-governments and governmental institutions, regarding the possibilities of improving the conditions for the functioning and implementation of requests of local self-government units in the above-mentioned eight subject areas.
In addition, the report includes a tool that enables a self-assessment of the institutional potential of each local self-government unit based on the questionnaire included in the annex to the document. In addition, OECD experts also present an alternative approach to the categorization of Polish local self-government units, formulating it based on a greater emphasis on a functional approach, dictated by increasingly dominant demographic and socio-economic trends (annex).
During the conference on June 30 this year the OECD authors team discussed the most important conclusions and key recommendations resulting from the report in terms of the possibility of increasing the effectiveness of local development policies and strengthening the institutional potential of local self-government units in Poland.
Throughout the discussion panel, the authorities of cities and districts referred to the proposed solutions presented in the report from the perspective of the challenges of Polish local administration and in the light of the specificity of the entities they represent. The comprehensive nature of the report was emphasized, providing advice not only in the area of legal, but also financial and organizational improvements.
We encourage you to read the document, which is available in English at the following link: OECD report „Better Governance, Planning and Services in Local Self‑Governments in Poland” (PDF 7 MB)
More information about the report and the conference on the website of the Association of Polish Cities (information in Polish).