17/10/2011

Mondissimo, world forum in Aubagne in participatory democracy

mondissimo

Mondissimo, the Local World Forum in Aubagne (France) which was held from 8 to 15 October 2011, opened up the debate on democratic renewal. The forum aimed to bring together civil society, social movements and political representatives in one place to discuss the need for a transformation of political culture to achieve greater involvement of citizens in local governance.

Aubagne, a municipality of 50,000 inhabitants near Marseille, has been working with this approach for years. Since 2008, the municipality has involved its citizens in the choice of municipal projects in order to better serve their needs. Several initiatives have been launched as a result of this dialogue, such as the creation of a cultural space for young people, the construction of emergency housing for women who are victims of domestic violence, and free public transport. This latter policy has been analyzed in detail in the Committee´s Inclusive Cities Observatory (see here).

As well as Aubagne, many other cities in Latin America, Africa and Asia are involving their citizens in the design of their policies policies and the prioritization of resources, which has contributed to a gradual transformation of the usual mechanisms for municipal management. As a result, since the first participatory budget in Porto Alegre, implemented in 1989, 15,300 local governments around the world today use this new democratic paradigm which is designed to improve the way the needs of the population are met, and especially those of the most vulnerable sectors.

These projects clearly show that the local level is an exceptional arena for the consolidation of democracy. City networks like the Local Authorities Forum for Social Inclusion and Participatory Democracy (FAL), the International Participatory Budgeting Platform and UCLG Committee on Social Inclusion, Participatory Democracy and Human Rights provide an international forum for exchanging experiences among cities from all around the world working to build a more inclusive and democratic world.