Local development policy of German cities, municipalities and counties

Project description

Research Question:
Against the background of rapid urbanisation in developing countries and the growing impact of cities in development policy as well as the changing requirements of the donors concerning harmonisation, coordination and the division of work (Paris Declaration) it is becoming more and more relevant to consider the role of German communities as agencies in this network. That is why the juridical framework of local development policy including its political and institutional implementation and the existing opportunities of financing are analysed. The will survey focus on the current development activities of German cities, municipalities and counties. In cooperation with the three German head organisations of local authorities (Deutscher Städtetag, Deutsche Städte- und Gemeindebund as well as Deutscher Landkreistag) a sample of local authorities will be asked about their modalities, budget, supporters, partners and financing sources etc. for their development policy by standardised questionnaire. Finally the results of German local development policy will be compared with other European countries.
The aim of the study is to offer recommendations to create a more effective local development policy. At this juncture the question is coming up which specific role local development policy can and should play according to the special system of German development cooperation with its by multiple institutions. Another question is how this kind of decentralised development policy may be coordinated.
Beyond that it will be clarified how far and in which way the federal government and the federal states are supporting the development activities of the local authorities in order to improve the standing of development policy in the society.