Countries: Serbia

Serbia’s decision-making process at both the local and republic levels includes little, if any, citizen participation or involvement. Apart from historical experience which has shaped the process, the serious lack of information on ways to influence the decision-making process as well as low motivation among citizens to forward their suggestions the authorities comprise the main obstacles to citizen input in local governance. Open budget hearings that are precisely mandated by Serbian law, one of the few such channels for citizen input, are typically organized merely to satisfy formal obligation. In addition, only a small number of municipalities include in their annual budget a line item to provide funding to NGOs and/or citizens’ initiatives on the local level. Despite the legal obligation of local self-governments to organize public hearings during the budget drafting and proposal process, this practice continues to be either inconsistent or insufficient in many municipalities.

 

In Eastern Serbia municipalities where USAID’s CRDA program was being implemented by America’s Development Foundation (ADF), in 2004 only two out of 12 municipalities held open budget hearings. In 2005, ADF/CRDA supported a set of activities to mobilize citizens to attend the hearings and actively participate in the process so as to obtain funding for civic initiatives from the municipal budget. The activities organized in order to mobilize citizens included the following: surveys on how well citizens are informed about the hearings, meetings of NGOs and local authorities, media promotion of the open budget hearings on local TV and radio stations, distribution of promotional leaflets, organization of round-table discussions and town-hall meetings.

 

As a result of these activities, the municipalities of Golubac, Kladovo, Majdanpek, Negotin and Veliko Gradište publicly announced budget proposals. In addition, citizens of Despotovac, Kladovo, Majdanpek, Negotin, Žagubica and Veliko Gradište received written information from the municipal authorities about the date and time of the open budget hearings.

 

Open budget hearings with large citizen attendance took place in eight municipalities. Local authority representatives were not only prepared to explain certain budget items, but also to explain the whole process of creating the budget and its dynamics. This year, citizens initiatives were also listed as “budget beneficiaries” and criteria for obtaining municipal budget funding was clearly defined. Participants gave numerous suggestions, many of which related to better information and mobilization of citizens to participate in the process. Six of the eight municipalities reflected the changes suggested by citizens in the municipal budget (Despotovac, Golubac, Kladovo, Majdanpek, Malo Crniće and Negotin). Citizens initiatives in the eight municipalities, namely the Community Development Associations established through the ADF/CRDA program, obtained a total of about $20,000 in funding from the municipal budget for their projects.