Decentralization and Sub-Municipal Government in South- Eastern European Countries

True this paper it would be analyzed sub-municipal government as a organizational form of local governance with comparative perspective, and elements which generally formed sub-municipal government as a tools for delivery of local public services and managing of local initiatives which are important for the local community. These two roles are crucial for understanding of dynamic in sub-municipal government. Special focus would be held on sub-municipal government in South- Eastern European countries, which they have a common history and institutional framework, with the main question: how can sub-municipal government contribute to strengthening of decentralization and democratic processes in the local community directly and, indirectly in whole society. Self-government systems which are highly decentralized usually have developed sub-municipal government. On the other side, in centralized countries sub-municipal government usually has reduced role which is connected with managing of public tasks connected with local community needs. The main question is how sub-municipal government can improve decentralization, and how those efforts at the end of the day contribute to better development of whole society.

Institutionalizing innovation in welfare local services through co-production: toward a Neo-Weberian State?

Innovative practices based on the involvement of citizens as co-producers of welfare local services have been increasingly adopted by the public sector to effectively tackle emerging social problems. Despite the development in the literature on this subject, recent studies still do not clearly indicate which are the challenges for the institutionalization of such practices. By applying a governance lens to the analysis of co-production of local public services, this article aims to contribute to bridging this gap through the empirical analysis of the childcare experience in four European cities. More in detail, it debates the concepts of co-production and innovation in public service delivery within the context of the different waves of public administration reforms; and it investigates how three different sets of conditions – namely, state support and capacity; organizational cultures which support innovation; and integration with facilitative technologies – integrate to facilitate or hinder the institutionalization of co-production initiatives. The findings show that the enabling role of the state actor is a sine qua non to guarantee an institutionalization of these practices, particularly concerning the promotion of trust-building processes. Doing so, the article contributes to the international debate about the possible co-existing of the paradigms of public administration that are arising in the last decades to remedy the problems with the New Public Management; and it provides professionals working in public management and administration with key policy recommendations for the elaboration of new governance systems for the provision of social and welfare services.

Sociological analysis of the factors influencing citizens' attitudes to local governments in Ukraine

The paper focuses on the main factors forming public attitudes towards local authorities in Ukraine. The way that a person thinks and feels about a particular politician, an elected official or a local administration largely determines his/her voting behavior ― hence the relevance of the research topic. Local governments are responsible for delivering a wide range of services to citizens; therefore, it makes sense to analyze the citizens’ satisfaction with the quality of (and access to) certain services and compare these figures with the overall attitude to local authorities (which can correspond to a respondent’s evaluation of the authorities’ work in general). The findings of a recent (September–October 2020) nationwide survey titled “Ukrainian society: Monitoring social changes” will constitute an empirical basis for the analysis. The survey, which is annually conducted by the Institute of Sociology of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, involves measuring respondents’ satisfaction with a number of items related to the performance of local governments (with regard to the respondent’s place of residence). These items include utility service quality, road conditions, the availability of playgrounds and sports facilities, the work of a local police department, the availability and quality of services provided by preschools and schools, the quality of healthcare services, etc., as well the ability of local authorities to respond to the demands of ordinary citizens. The survey participants are also asked to evaluate the work of a local administration or a city/town mayor. The data of “Ukrainian society” for the year 2020 show that the majority of this country’s population felt totally or partially dissatisfied with local public services (except for those offered by preschools and schools), and they did not consider local governments responsive to people’s demands either. Besides, many respondents gave a negative evaluation to the overall work of local administrations. Drawing upon these data, the author concludes that there is a link between a person’s satisfaction or dissatisfaction with the quality of local public services and his/her positive or negative attitude towards the local authorities. It is suggested that the obtained results be taken into account when analyzing other aspects concerning local governments (e. g. a respondent’s trust in governmental institutions), especially if the respondent is not inclined to express his/her opinion openly. Special attention is also given to resident surveys as a tool for improving the well-being and quality of life for citizens and communities.

Re-municipalization of local public services: incidence, causes and prospects

Since the turn of the century, a global trend of re-municipalization has emerged, with cities reversing earlier privatizations and returning infrastructure and public service delivery to the public sector. The reversal of privatization measures is not an entirely new phenomenon. In the US, for example, returning public services to in-house production has been a long-standing feature of ‘pragmatic public management’. However, many cases of re-municipalization that have occurred since the early 2000s represent a distinctive shift from earlier privatization policies. High-profile cases in cities including Paris and Hamburg have thrust re-municipalization into the limelight as they have followed public campaigns motivated by dissatisfaction with the results of privatization and a desire to restore public control of vital services, such as water and energy. Just as the reform of public services towards privatization spawned a vast body of scholarship, the current re-municipalization phenomenon is increasingly attracting the attention of scholars from a number of disciplinary perspectives. The articles contained in this symposium contribute to this emerging literature. They address some of the burning issues relating to re-municipalization, but they also point to issues yet to be resolved and shed light on a research agenda that is still taking shape.

Innovative Concept of Providing Local Public Services Based on ICT

The public sector faces the challenge of re-evaluating public service delivery mechanisms with a citizen orientation. The eGovernment concept should not only focus on delivering a large number of services to increase efficiency and effectiveness when deciding on a top-down approach, based on government needs, but decisions should be made on the basis of citizens’ needs, a bottom-up approach. The object of the paper is to identify problems of public service innovations demand and supply, which determinate the adoption of local public service innovations based on the use of IT technology in the condition of Slovak Republic. The results of the investigation confirmed that there is citizen demand for innovation of local public services, but the process of developing and implementing innovative concepts of public services fails on the grounds of the low innovation potential of the service providers.

Country, sector and method effects in studying remunicipalization: a meta-analysis

A growing literature demonstrates increasing remunicipalization of local public services. Yet, while this literature is becoming extensive, many debates still exist about remunicipalization’s causes. This article reports the findings of a meta-analysis of the remunicipalization literature, focusing on the question: how do country, sector and method effects affect the findings of remunicipalization studies? I include articles on remunicipalization under different terms (‘remunicipalization’, ‘reverse privatization’, ‘insourcing’ and ‘contracting in’), using a large range of methods (case studies, surveys and document analysis) and covering a large period (1995–2019). I find 30 causes of remunicipalization that are considered and found in the literature. Political and pragmatic factors appear to be most frequently considered and found as causes of remunicipalization in the literature; environmental factors are less often considered but seem highly relevant. Moreover, I uncover large differences between the qualitative and quantitative literatures. I offer a research agenda to allow greater future synthesis in the remunicipalization literature. Points for practitioners The literature on remunicipalization is highly fragmented and remunicipalization can have many different causes. Remunicipalization appears to be both a political and a pragmatic trend, but the literature is still too fragmented to know for sure. Be aware of the potential biases and limitations in current research on (causes of) remunicipalization.

Alternative Options for Local Public Services Management in the Republic of Moldova

The paper’s author analyzes several alternative options for local public services management in the Republic of Moldova, based on current legal framework and existing administrative practice. For this purpose, the need to choose an alternative management option was analyzed; alternative options were listed; and an analysis of each option was performed. The paper’s perceived need emerged from an existing situation, typical for the Moldovan local government, where management can only be one of the two traditional ones - direct or delegated, both generating enough problems (studied by the author in other publications). However, local government is often unaware of the fact that it has other perfectly legal alternative options. A reflection chart is included at the end of the paper in order to help local government select the optimum management option when it comes to the public services delivery.

Local Public Services Delivery Mechanisms: A Literature Review

The paper presents a literature review about local public services delivery mechanisms like: in-house provisions, privatization, and inter-municipal cooperation. The aim of this paper is to review the development of the studied field, to find out which delivery mechanism dominates in a certain period of time, and to review which economic research focus dominates in the studied field. Possible effects on the economies of scale, costs reductions, efficiency, and other economic-political-institutional-social factors in the provision of local public services are scrutinized, using a content analysis breakdown. Results show that most studies are country studies and empirical studies in increasing numbers in recent years. The choice of local public services delivery mechanisms are mostly influenced by the size of the local government, the efficiency of service provision, the resources available, and the institutional framework. Politics and market competition also play a role in the decision-making process.