Working group 1: inclusive cities and the needs of the urban poor
Taking forward the vision for improvement
 

This session looked at at strategies and mechanisms for ensuring that decision making, planning and service delivery are inclusive for all citizens in the community.

Speakers: Cllr Andrew Mua, Lord Mayor of Honiara Mayor Obed T Mlaba, eThekwini, South Africa Christine Platt, President, Commonwealth Association of Planners

Working group 2: Central-local relations and working with parliamentarians
Taking forward the vision for improvement
 

The relationship between local government and state/central government is critical. This session will look at how the different speres of government can work together more collaboratively and role of MPs.

Speakers: Jaap de Visser, University of Western Cape, South Africa download presentation Anwar Hussain, Local Councils Association of the Punjab, Pakistan download presentation Hon Aggrey Mwauri, Deputy Minister for Regional Administration and Local Government, Tanzania

 

Working group 3: Promoting gender equality
Taking forward the vision for improvement
 

This session looked at the role of of women in local government - going beyond numbers. How can we ensure that women's involvement in local government has an impact on the decisions councils make and the services they provide?

Speakers: Hazel Brown, Network of NGOs of Trinidad and Tobago  Douglas Campbell Deptartment of Local Government and Community Development, Dominica Shelia Roseau, National Women's Machinery, Antigua and Barbuda

Working group 4: Effective leadership; implementing the Aucland Accord
Resourcing local government for improvement
 

If councils are to play a leadership role in the community, the calibre of those who lead councils is key to that success. How do we effectively build the capacity of our elected leaders and technical officers to ensure effective and visionary local government?

Speakers: Karibaiti Taoba, Manager, Pacific Capacity Building Project, CLGF Seve Lausaveve, Ministry of Internal Affairs, Tuvalu Dr K K Pandey, Indian Institution of Public Administration David Grossman, ICMA download presentation

 

Working group 5: Capacity to deliver infrastructure finance
Resourcing local government for improvement
 

This session highlighted practical examples of the core areas that every council should have in place before thinking more ambitiously; community involvement; planning and budgeting; procurement and implementation; and financial management

Speaker: Ron McGill, Manager, UNCDF download presentation

Working group 6: Stategies for effective service delivery
Resourcing local government for improvement
 

This session looked at at maximising the benefits of decentralisation and stategies  to ensure that service delivery is effective. It concentrated how using performance indicators can engender good central-local relations and can ensure a balance between local accountability to the centre, and the UK model of using local government peers to access performance.

Speakers: Victor Dumas and Kai Kaiser, World Bank John Hayes, IDeA, UK Mark Robinson, DFiD

Working group 7: Innovations in infrastructure finance
Resourcing local government for improvement
 

With rapid urbanisation putting serious pressure on ageing infrastructure and the growing community expectations, local government must explore innovative financing these urgent challenges.

Speakers: Dr Munawwar Alam, Commonwealth Secretariat Cllr Marvin Hunt,  Federation of Canadian Municipalities

 

Working group 8: Working with the private sector and using the potential of IT                                       
Partnerships to improve local services 

Technology can help local government improve its delivery of services and governance. How can local government stay on top of ICT changes and take advantage of the latest developments?

Session led by Gordon McKenzie and Flavio Calonge, Microsoft Speakers: Carlos Gadsen, International Secretary, IW4 download presentation Felipe Bernstein J., Mayor of Providence, Chile download presentation

 

Working group 9: Promoting local economic development
Partnerships to improve local services 

Increasingly local government is expected to play a role in local economic empowerment through local economic development. In the current economic climate, this is increasingly important: the discussions looked at strategies for delivering  effective local economic development.

Speakers: Patrick Mutabwire, Commissioner for Local Government, Uganda Mayor Murchinson Brown, Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago download speech  download presentation - part one

 

Working group 10: Working with civil society, volunteering and social enterprise
Partnerships to improve local services 

This session looked at ways in which local government can strengthen community relations and engage the community more in its decision making ans service delivery, including through volunteering and supporting social enterprise.

Speakers: Representatives from the Commonwealth Foundation Andrew Fiddaman, Youth Business Initiative

 

Working group 11: Strengthening local government through regional cooperation
Partnerships to improve local services 

Across the Commonwealth countries are looking at regional intergration and cooperation. It is important that local government's role in this process is reflected and by working together local government practioners can both strengthen their voice regionally and learn from each other to build capacity.

Speakers: John Mary Kauzya, UNDESA download presentation Paul Spencer, Organisation of American States Keith Miller, Caribbean Forum of Local Government Ministers Tavita Amosa, Somoa

Working group 12: Aid effectiveness and accessing donor support
Measuring Improvement

As a delivery partner for many of the basic services that contribute towards achieving the MDGs, local government must be involved in the debate about how development funds are allocated and spent in their countries. The ACCRA Agenda for Action recognises the role local government, and in some countries local government doees play a key role, but how can local government be enabled ot play a stronger role?

Speakers: Tim Kehoe, FCM, Canada download presentation Phil Amis, University of Birmingham, UK download presentation Shuaib Lwasa, Makerere University, Uganda download presentation

Working group 13: Measuring local democracy and good governance; Implementing the Aberdeen Agenda and international peer reviews
Measuring Improvement

Different approaches to assessing the measuring local democracy and good governance so that we can get a better understanding of what is working, and can continue to change and develop systems of ocal government to ensure that they remain responsive and accountable.

Speakers: Francis Duri, UCAZ, download presentation Phil Amis, University of Birmingham, UK Shuaib Lwasa, Makerere University, Uganda download presentation Raphael Magyezi, ULGA, Uganda Kristof Zoltan Varga, Open Society Institute Local Government and Public Service Reform Initiative,

Working group 14: Effective local government in small states
Measuring Improvement

Small states face particular challenges in making local government effective - dealing with small and remote communities, limited resources, and the impact of natural disasters are just some of them. This session will highlight some of the strategies for making local government effective in this context

Speakers: Prof Graham Hassall, University of the South Pacific download presentation Rikiaua Takeke, Ministry of Internal and Social Affairs, Kiribati download presentation Dr Bishnu Ragoonath, Universtiy of the West Indies