References

Capacity Strengthening for Administrative Decentralisation Croatia
Country/Locality Croatia
Overall project value (EUR)
 1,291,595
Name of client
 Government of Croatia
Origin of funding
 EU-CARDS
Starting date 05/2006
Ending date 01/2008
Partner ICON-Institute Public Sector GmbH, prime contractor
Detailed description of project
 Main goal of the “Capacity Strengthening for Administrative Decentralisation Croatia” is to provide assistance for the decentralisation process in Croatia.

Administrative and fiscal decentralisation is driven partially by domestic needs for more effective and efficient provision of public services, and ensuring equal access to basic local services.

The European Union accession is also an important motivation for the successful functional decentralisation. Both national and local governments should be capable to efficiently implement their respective policy making, planning, coordination and regulatory tasks originated from the application of the acquis.

Overall objective of the project is to support ongoing decentralisation process in line with the EU standards and best practice in the EU Member States.

Results to be achieved by the project include:
  • Improved overall institutional and legal framework of the decentralisation process
  • Improved overall coordination and monitoring of the decentralisation process
  • Strengthened administrative capacity of public servants at lower levels of government
Type of services provided
 LGID is mainly responsible for the Component 2 of the project, which is to build the capacity of local and regional self-government officials to implement the decentralisation policies, but also contributes to the Component 1 by assisting in the analysis of the current status of decentralisation and local government administration, and by developing the draft of proposals and provision of advice for improving the existing situation in this area. With regard to the Component 2, LGID’s is specifically responsible for the development, in close collaboration with major stakeholders, of the comprehensive needs assessment for training of local government employees; assisting in the development of a national local government training strategy; and implementation of the train-the-trainers programme for local government officials.
Support to the Development of Standards for Civil Service Provision
Country/Locality Kazakhstan
Overall project value (EUR)
 1,396,500
Name of client
 Government of Kazakhstan
Origin of funding
 EU-Tacis
Starting date 01/2006
Ending date 12/2007
Partner Bannock Consulting Ltd., prime contractor
Detailed description of project
 The overall objective of the Support to the Development of Standards for Civil Service Provision project is to contribute to the development of an effective, professional, transparent and customer-orientated civil service in Kazakhstan. The specific objective of the project is to develop performance standards and performance indicators for the Kazakh civil service first in selected pilot ministries/agencies and Oblasts to be later executed to the whole public administration. Results to be achieved by the project include:
  • Customer Surveys on customer expectations from six selected ministries/agencies carried out by independent research institutions and published.
  • Customer service charters for selected ministries/agencies developed and published.
  • Guidelines for the organisation of consultations with customers developed using international best practise adapted to local conditions, published and distributed.
  • Guidelines for the development of customer service charters and performance indicators developed, published and distributed.
  • Capacity to carry out consultations with customers created in the selected pilot ministries/agencies.
  • Capacity to analyse results of customer surveys and create Charters in selected ministries/agencies.
  • Performance surveys carried out and published.
A pilot one stop shop set up in the city of Astana
Type of services provided
 LGID is to advise civil servants and members of the public for development of performance standards and targets; development and improvement of one stop shops. In particular, LGID is to advise on the formation of focus groups to bring together civil servants of pilot ministries and members of the public; assist in the facilitation of focus groups in Almaty, Astana and Shymkent; analyse focus group data to assist ministries develop targets for standards; advise on the feedback of survey and performance data to citizens; advise the Ministry of Justice on the further development of its One Stop Shop programming; advise existing Once Stop Shops on process improvement to increase efficiency and improve customer service and attitudes; advise on performance monitoring systems for one stop shops; advise on good practise to ensure standardisation across once stop shops; and help develop roll-out plans for one stop shops
Democratising Ukraine Small Project Scheme – Study tour for Ukraine’s officials to Hungary
Country/Locality Ukraine and Hungary
Overall project value (EUR)
 14,000
Name of client
 Officials of the selected Ukrainian municipalities
Origin of funding
 DFID, UK Embassy to Hungary
Starting date 11/2005
Ending date 11/2005
Partner -
Detailed description of project
 The purpose of the Democratising Ukraine Small Project Scheme is to enable the strengthening of the democratic voice in selected communities – Donetsk and Lviv oblasts – by increasing the capacity of civil society organisations to help poor and vulnerable people influence policy and the delivery of services. The beneficiaries of the Programme are the poor and vulnerable people within Ukrainian society who are unable to acquire, or have limited access to services and opportunities to secure their social and economic needs. The Programme activities include development and work through non-governmental organisations and other civil society organisations, building partnerships, coalitions and networks between these organisations and other stakeholders, such as local and national administrations. The two major components of the Programme are:
  • designing and implementing community micro-projects
  • providing methodological and expert support to communities by conducting trainings and consultations, publishing and disseminating printed materials
Type of services provided
 LGID has prepared and managed a study tour of municipal officials from “Democratising Ukraine Pilot Communities” project to Hungary. LGID has organised and managed visits of the study tour participants to four pre-selected Hungarian municipalities, and the national parliament. During the tour, a number of presentations were given and discussions held on various topics of local government-NGO cooperation, legal and regulatory framework of NGO operations, and lobbying at the central level.

The outcomes of the study tour were: increased awareness of the governance agenda at the local level; and improved understanding of the processes and techniques of devising community development strategies.
Fostering Indonesian Local Investment Promotion And Management In Decentralization Era Using European Experience
Country/Locality Indonesia
Overall project value (EUR)
 150,000
Name of client
 Indonesian local governments, chambers of commerce, universities
Origin of funding
 European Commission
Starting date 05/2005
Ending date 07/2005
Partner -
Detailed description of project
 The “Fostering Indonesian Local Investment Promotion And Management In Decentralization Era Using European Experience” project, that is being implemented under subcontract to the Komite Pemantauan Pelaksanaan Otonomi Daerah (Regional Autonomy Watch) aims to inform governmental staff about the European investors’ requirements and needs and to train the staff how to promote and to manage local investments. The project intends to deliver information decision making in order to push local investments.
LGID provides expertise on the preparation of a report on the comparative analysis and best practices from the CEECs.
Type of services provided
 1. Study on local business promotion and investment management, lessons learned and good practices from the Central European countries.

The report provided background information for comparison of local economic development policies in CEE transition countries with Indonesia. It targeted local governments, business development organisations, policy advisors and decision makers. The study collected best practices from CEE countries on local business promotion and management.

2. Training on one-stop-shops and business parks. Training of Trainers for KPPOD.
Training course on planning and financing cities in transition
Country/Locality Montenegro
Overall project value (EUR)
 18,000
Name of client
 Montenegrin municipalities
Origin of funding
 UNDP
Starting date 05/2005
Ending date 05/2005
Partner -
Detailed description of project
 Overall objective of the course was to provide Montenegrin municipalities with models on how to plan, finance, and manage activities related to urban planning, in conditions of political and economic transition. The emphasis of the course was on strategic component of urban planning. The course was to provide the participants with the concept of strategic planning and its relationship to urban planning in the context of transition. In addition, to support the implementation of the newly adopted Law on planning and development, the course was to identify and discuss possibilities and instruments municipality had on disposal for financing its activities
Type of services provided
 LGID has developed and delivered the training course, that fully responded to project needs, to about fifty municipal officials in two consecutive sessions. The course included the following training modules: Identifying challenges that cities in transition encounter; Importance of strategic approach in planning of cities in transition; Urban planning in transition; Financing cities in conditions of decentralisation; and Integration of strategies and activities. The report on the course, including the analysis of challenges ahead for municipalities; the summary analysis of training evaluations; and suggestions for future training and technical assistance in the course subject areas, was produced in the end of the course.
Improving budgeting and financing of public education in Uzbekistan
Country/Locality Uzbekistan
Overall project value (EUR)
 200,000
Name of client
 Center for Fiscal Policy, Ministry of Finance
Origin of funding
 Tacis
Starting date 04/2005
Ending date 05/2005
Partner -
Detailed description of project
 As part of the previous Tacis programmes supporting the preparation of Medium Term Budget Framework this report focused on budgeting and financing methods of public education in Uzbekistan. Responding on the requests from the Centre of Fiscal Policy, LGID’s expert’s work aimed
  • to improve education planning by focusing on performance based budgeting in order to optimise fund allocation through per capita financing methods;
  • to formulate proposals for adjusting the present evaluation of budgetary institutions in education to the requirements of performance assessment. Based on the analysis of public education fiscal planning and financing the report has formulated the following proposals:
  1. Redesign of the input based professional norms in education by decreasing their number, declining their importance in planning and fund allocation, shifting towards a new system of performance indicators, structured by government tiers.
  2. Adjusting the line item incremental budgeting to the requirements of the output based planning and programming methods of fiscal planning.
  3. Designing formula based fund allocation techniques in public education at higher levels of government (first from national budget to Oblasts, later from Oblasts to rayons and cities).
  4. Reassessment of education policy decisions of the late 1990s, by focusing on the labour market demand, the sustainability and current budget consequences of ambitious capital investment programmes.
  5. Harmonising education monitoring, inspection system and methods with the requirements of the performance based, programme oriented fiscal planning.
  6. Influencing the treasury reform by allowing greater managerial autonomy to lower levels of governments and budgetary organisations.
  7. Capacity development at lower level of government and at schools for preparing them for higher managerial and spending autonomy.
  8. Improving the policy development process by creating analytical capacity, capability to design and discuss alternative proposals, using more evidence based policy making and experiments through piloting.
Type of services provided
 Technical assistance by
  1. Providing a general overview of the education services and recent policy initiatives in Uzbekistan;
  2. Making proposals on budgeting and fund allocation methods in public education, as part of the Medium Term Budget Framework, focusing on all three levels of government (central, Oblast, rayon);
  3. Designing the focus and institutional framework of professional assessment techniques in public education.
Strengthening Public Expenditure Management in Bosnia
Country/Locality Bosnia & Herzegovina
Overall project value (EUR)
 2,680,000
Name of client
 Governments of BiH
Origin of funding
 DFID
Starting date 09/2004
Ending date 12/2006
Partner -
Detailed description of project
 This Project is to assist the governments of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) with the development and refinement of their Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF), working with both local and international partners. The project is made up of the following components: -the continuation of high level advice on the development of the MTEF process; -the development of budget systems and procedures; -training of the relevant finance ministries and line ministry budget units; and -promoting the wider accountability and transparency of public expenditure.
Type of services provided
 As part of a consortium led by PKF, LGID provides consulting services for: -improving the intergovernmental fiscal relations; -supporting the state, Federation and Republika Srpska governments of BiH in strengthening their management of public expenditure; -relating public expenditure to the Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) ; and -improving the efficiency and effectiveness of essential public services.
Technical Assistance to the Ministry of Finance on Fiscal Decentralization
Country/Locality Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
Overall project value (EUR)
 169,000
Name of client
 Ministry of Finance
Origin of funding
 EU CARDS program, managed by EAR
Starting date 03/2004
Ending date 08/2004
Partner -
Detailed description of project
 Technical assistance to the government and primarily the Ministry of Finance on three areas:
  1. Assessment of municipal debt. The project has reviewed the current situation and the institutional framework for measuring municipal debt and arrears accumulated by local governments. The project has provided a detailed plan of activities required for assessing the local debt and highlighted solutions for managing local government debt.
  2. Review and design of municipal fiscal information system. Review of the current situation and the institutional framework of present accounting system and the related budgeting, reporting and monitoring practices. Assessment of the options and formulation of recommendations for the establishment of an integrated fiscal information system required by the recent decentralisation reforms.
  3. Development of internal audit system. Review the current situation and the institutional framework and appraise the options for strengthening the internal audit system at the Ministry of Finance and first line budgetary users and practices at major local governments.
Type of services provided

Professional and administrative leadership of three expert teams working on the project.

Analysis of the current situation by meeting the Ministry of Finance and major stakeholders, visiting municipalities, providing assessment reports, with collection of evidences and data from various sources.

In co-operation with the MoF formulation of options for assessing local government debt and drafting recommendations for introducing integrated fiscal information system and internal audit at various units of government.

The analysis and recommendations provided the professional basis of drafting major EU funded projects in FYROM.

Make Decentralisation Work
Country/Locality Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
Overall project value (EUR)
 7,300,000
Name of client
 Macedonia’s municipalities
Origin of funding
 USAID
Starting date 10/2004
Ending date 09/2007
Partner -
Detailed description of project
 The Make Decentralisation Work (MDW) project is to assist the Government of Macedonia and municipalities to implement the devolution of competencies from the central to local government. In particular, the MDW project is to assist the municipalities to establish the financial management and tax administration capacity to assume new competencies under decentralisation; to successfully manage the package of property tax and related local taxes; to regularly utilise identified citizen participation mechanisms and incorporate citizen input into public decision-making; and to implement modern urban planning systems, resulting in demonstrated improvement in the key indicator areas (zoning, customer service/ permitting, city planning). In addition, the project is to assist the municipal associations to demonstrate increasing financial independence and sustainability; to help the Government define a sound secondary legislation and regulatory environment toward the successful implementation of the decentralisation process; and to establish an improved regulatory environment for Public Communal Enterprises, demonstrated by higher collection rates, improved financial management and improved customer satisfaction.
Type of services provided
 LGID is a key partner on the implementation team for the project’s component related to public communal enterprises. In particular, LGID provides technical assistance and training in the areas of improved regulatory framework and enhanced effectiveness and financial management for enterprises that provide potable water supply, waste water treatment, solid waste collection, and street cleaning and cemetery maintenance. This, in particular, includes the technical assistance to municipalities in the areas of outsourcing the delivery of communal services to the private sector.
Eastern Serbia Municipal Support Programme
Country/Locality Serbia
Overall project value (EUR)
 2,489,124
Name of client
 15 municipalities in Eastern Serbia
Origin of funding
 EAR
Starting date 01/2003
Ending date 01/2005
Partner -
Detailed description of project
 Easter Serbia Municipal Support Programmes aims to contribute to an efficient and coherent decentralisation and a more efficient delivery of services to the local population by municipal authorities. The Programmes objectives are as follows:
  • To promote effective decentralisation and participation by strengthening the capacity of the new Ministry of PALSG and SCTM.
  • To improve municipal management in selected municipalities in Eastern Serbia and civil society organisations, by strengthening their capacity to fulfil their roles and functions within the recently adopted policy framework.
  • To improve the efficiency of service delivery in selected municipalities in Eastern Serbia through the preparation of strategic action plans and the implementation of municipal priority infrastructure projects.
  • To promote local economic development and to create employment opportunities through the stimulation and facilitation of local economic development initiatives in selected municipalities in Eastern Serbia.
Type of services provided
 As part of the Eastern Serbia Municipal Support Programme, LGID is responsible for conducting municipal diagnostics in fifteen project municipalities, including assessments in such areas as: institutional building; human resources development; and information technologies, and for the development of strategic plans with identification of municipal infrastructure projects to be implemented during the programme implementation cycle. LGID provides most of international experts under the project, who are to conduct diagnostics of the status of administrative and financial management at municipalities, public participation activities, human resources management and training (including training of trainers), and advising on improving internal communication within the administration and the use of modern information technologies.
Northeast Bosnia Local Government Support Activity
Country/Locality Bosnia
Overall project value (EUR)
 3,500,000
Name of client
 Selected municipalities in BiH
Origin of funding
 USAID
Starting date 11/2002
Ending date 09/2005
Partner -
Detailed description of project
 The LGSA is USAID Bosnia's technical assistance program to promote more participatory, inclusive democratic society. The project has three specific project areas:
  • Improve administrative and management systems, transparency mechanisms for citizen-government dialogue, and the delivery of public services in order to raise the level of citizen satisfaction in its local government and the services it provides;
  • Develop learning networks and systems for sharing and exchanging information in order to improve the knowledge, professionalism and professional skills of local government officials;
  • Provide direct city management advice to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the administration of the Brcko District.
Type of services provided
 LGID is PADCO's primary subcontractor in this project and its tasks are extensive and diversified. LGID is providing the following training, technical assistance and other tasks in each of the 6 participating BiH municipalities:
  • Strategic planning for local economic development
  • Establishing citizen information centers
  • Creating one-stop-shops
  • Establishing a functioning complaints system
  • Formulating an issue-driven public participation process
  • Media-related issues (press and public information)
  • Budget execution analysis
  • Fiscal discipline and budget reporting
  • Introduction of modern budget process techniques
  • Citizen participation in the budget process
  • Establishment of Local Government Network
  • Establish a Twinning program between BiH municipalities and sister towns in Bulgaria
  • Authoring, publishing and disseminating training manuals on selected activities above.
Serbia Local Government Support Program
Country/Locality Serbia
Overall project value (EUR)
 22,000,000
Name of client
 Government of Serbia and Standing Conference of Mayors and selected municipalities in Serbia
Origin of funding
 USAID
Starting date 12/2002
Ending date 10/2005
Partner -
Detailed description of project
 The Serbia Local Government Reform Program (SLGRP), that is being implemented under subcontract to the Development Alternatives International DAI (prime contractor), is focused on decentralisation policy reform and improvement of public service delivery at local level. LGID provides expertise on modernisation of communal enterprises; professional support on citizen participation and local government association development. LGID's comparative advantage is the access to the experiences of other CEE countries, which have already undergone similar transformations in their municipal systems.
Type of services provided
 LGID provides a full time communal enterprise development specialist who is mentoring local specialists, advising and training enterprise managers and municipal staff, as well as organises the development and implementation of the project's communal enterprise team's strategy. In addition, LGID provides short term technical advisors for (I) writing a national manual on costing communal services across the country and training local personnel in its practical use, and (ii) training SLGRP local (training of trainers) and municipal staff in citizen participation programs. Another assignment under this project was to assist Serbian municipalities in setting up the one-stop permitting centers. LGID has establish two such centers in the selected cities.
Leningrad Oblast Environmental Investment Programme
Country/Locality Russia
Overall project value (EUR)
 120,000
Name of client
 Selected municipalities and Oblast Government
Origin of funding
 NIB, NDEP, SIDA, FMoE
Starting date 01/2010
Ending date 12/2010
Partner -
Detailed description of project

The overall objective of the Programme is to improve water & wastewater services in the cities of Leningrad Oblast. This is planned to be achieved by halting the deterioration of facilities and the building of the administrative and organisational capacities within the local administrations and the Vodokanals to provide reliable services to their citizens in a sustainable way. In particular, the implementation of the Programme is expected to equip the municipal administrations and the Vodokanals with the technical and management (including financial management) tools to achieve self-recovery of the water & wastewater services and to improve infrastructure. In addition, the Programme is expected to assist the participating Vodokanals to comply with the Russian standards and the HELCOM recommendations concerning water supply and wastewater.

The Programme includes the development and implementation of high priority investment projects in participating cities that target rehabilitation of municipal water & wastewater infrastructure and improvement of services for urban population. The overall cost pf the Programme has exceeded EUR 24 million in its first phase, being financed from loan, grant and local funds.
Type of services provided
 LGID provides Team Leader of the Programme Monitoring Unit, which is to coordinate numerous stakeholders involved and to ensure transparent and efficient use of funds allocated to the Programme. The main functions of PMU include: setting up Programme management and reporting procedures; development of investment plans and programmes; review and verification of tender documents, tender evaluation reports, nomination of suppliers/contractors; verification of final contracts; monitoring of contracts implementation; monitoring of overall Programme progress; monitoring of water utilities’ institutional development and improvement of administrative and financial management; reporting to Programme stakeholders and preparing recommendations on the improvement of Programme implementation
Strengthening the INA and RTCs capacity for developing the Corps of Professional Civil Servants
Country/Locality Romania Overall project value (EUR)
3,061,440 Name of client
Romanian National Institute of Administration Origin of funding
EU-PHARE Starting date 08/2006 Ending date 04/2008 Partner Ramboll Management Detailed description of project

The project purpose is to contribute to an improved quality of the corps of professional civil servants. This extends to:

·         Enhancing the quality and value added of training programmes that directly support the Public Administration Reform;

·         Implementing the efficient coordination mechanism between INA and regional training centers;

·         Creating the in-service training partners’ network;

·         Strengthening the training capacity of INA and RTCs for applied training;

Type of services provided

LGID provides local and international trainers in various areas

(specialized training programme with 1 year duration and also short-term programmes for senior civil servants and public servants) 

·         identify the training needs to be met by each of the subjects.

·         develop the topics, which should be covered under each of the modules

·         conduct interviews with a number of representatives selected from the segment of high level Civil Servants