More responsive municipal government through Kosovo citizens' workshops
To tackle the problem, the OSCE Mission in Kosovo has helped organize community meetings in the six municipalities of Mitrovicë/Mitrovica region in northern Kosovo, to educate citizens about their rights and improve understanding of municipal policy-making.
The project 'Working together in municipal policy' aims to use the meetings to promote the idea of active citizenship in public life, which is a vital element in addressing local problems.
Helping citizens understand their rights
"The first phase of the project involves a campaign which aims to raise the awareness of citizens about their rights," explains Naim Hajdari, Project Co-ordinator at the OSCE Office in Mitrovicë/Mitrovica. "These workshops are organized primarily in local villages, where we want to develop communication with the people who currently participate least in public life."
For example, although it may be clear to the residents of a village that a nearby road needs to be paved, too often their concern is not effectively articulated to municipal authorities at the right stage in the urban planning process and in the appropriate municipal forum.
In addition to stimulating discussion on issues of local concern, the meetings look at how municipal policies are prepared and decided, the ways in which citizens can participate in policy-making processes, and how they can monitor the municipal assembly.
Monitoring municipal processes
Responsibility for conducting the meetings was given to 36 trainers recruited from local NGOs across the six municipalities. Each trainer was required to take a one-day training course organized by the OSCE Office in Mitrovicë/Mitrovica before taking part.
According to Bukurije Lushta, a representative of the NGO Star of the Galaxy from Mitrovicë/Mitrovica, citizens are often not aware of their rights. "Through these meetings, we are trying to inform them that the casting of a ballot is not their only right," she said.
A total of 72 meetings - 12 in each of the six municipalities of Mitrovicë/Mitrovica region - have so far been organized by the trainers.
One of the participants at a recent meeting in the primary school of Shupkovc/Supkovac village, Afërdita Syla, explained that the debate "was on our right to participate in public debates and to be present at municipal assembly sessions. Those were things I was not aware of."
Another of the participants. Albanian language professor Sabit Bilalli, admitted: "To a certain extent, I did not know my rights as a citizen. I am using the opportunity of this meeting to learn about a lot of things that I did not previously know. I hope these kinds of debates will continue in the future."
Intervening to solve local problems
During the second phase of the project, local authorities are informed about the findings of the meetings. Surveys conducted with the participants that measure their understanding of local municipal structures and processes are discussed and debated with representatives of each municipality.
This means that the municipal bodies are not only better informed about citizens' concerns, but citizens and NGOs alike are better able to address municipal officials and intervene at the appropriate stage of local government decision-making processes.
Ultimately, by improving the responsiveness of municipalities to local concerns and helping to create a solid foundation for future civic participation in public life, Hajdari believes the project will be able to "establish a closer connection between citizens and those they have elected."