URP 4221: Urban Governance

Indicators of the Characteristics of

Good Urban Governance

Submitted By
Student Id 030413

Date of Submission: September 17, 2007

Urban and Rural Planning Discipline

Khulna University, Khulna
 Indicators of characteristics of Good Urban Governance

Introduction

Urban Governance is most important issues in the world. In 2007 there are about 50%
of total populations live in urban area in the world. Almost 180 thousand people are
added to the urban population everyday. So, good urban governance is most desirable
issue now. In this report we are trying to find the characteristics of good urban
governance and the indicators of those characteristics.

Urban Governance

Urban governance can be defined as the sum of the many ways individuals and
institutions, public and private, plan and manage the common affairs of the city. It is a
continuing process through which conflicting or diverse interests may be accommodated
and cooperative action can be taken. It includes formal institutions as well as informal
arrangements and the social capital of citizens. The Global Campaign on Urban
Governance proposes that good urban governance is characterized by a series of
principles, which are interdependent and mutually reinforcing. (UN-Habitants)

Urban Governance is the sum of cumulative practice of behaviour and attitude of the
government as seen in the manner they create and use the said devolutionary
instruments. Form, style, systems, methods, and procedures of government generally
reflect the pattern of governance in a nation or city. The quality and effectiveness of
governance depend mostly on how judiciously the government uses the said instruments
to help people achieve the ultimate goal of their progress - justice, equity and peace.

According to UNDP, 'Urban Governance is viewed as the exercise of economic, political

and administrative authority to manage a country's affairs at all levels. It comprises
mechanisms, processes, an institution through which citizens and groups of articulate
their interests, exercise their legal rights, meet their obligations, and mediate their
differences.'

These new responsibilities have been thrust on local administrations by superior

governments so suddenly and without the necessary power, authority, resources and
training to manage them as desired.

In some countries, some actions by higher levels of government have resulted in serious
erosion of the existing municipal revenue base.

Good Urban Governance

Good urban governance has 8 major characteristics. It is participatory, consensus

oriented, accountable, transparent, responsive, effective and efficient, equitable and
inclusive and follows the rule of law. It assures that corruption is minimized, the views of
minorities are taken into account and that the voices of the most vulnerable in society
are heard in decision-making. It is also responsive to the present and future needs of
society.

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 Indicators of characteristics of Good Urban Governance

Figure: Characteristics of good governance

http://www.unescap.org/pdd/prs/ProjectActivities/Ongoing/gg/governance.asp (15.09.2007)

Participation

Participation by both men and women is a key cornerstone of good governance.

Participation could be either direct or through legitimate intermediate institutions or
representatives. It is important to point out that representative democracy does not
necessarily mean that the concerns of the most vulnerable in society would be taken into
consideration in decision making. Participation needs to be informed and organized. This
means freedom of association and expression on the one hand and an organized civil
society on the other hand.

Rule of law

Good governance requires fair legal frameworks that are enforced impartially. It also
requires full protection of human rights, particularly those of minorities. Impartial
enforcement of laws requires an independent judiciary and an impartial and incorruptible
police force.

Transparency

Transparency means that decisions taken and their enforcement are done in a manner
that follows rules and regulations. It also means that information is freely available and
directly accessible to those who will be affected by such decisions and their enforcement.
It also means that enough information is provided and that it is provided in easily
understandable forms and media.

Responsiveness

Good governance requires that institutions and processes try to serve all stakeholders
within a reasonable timeframe.

Consensus oriented

There are several actors and as many view points in a given society. Good governance
requires mediation of the different interests in society to reach a broad consensus in
society on what is in the best interest of the whole community and how this can be
achieved. It also requires a broad and long-term perspective on what is needed for
sustainable human development and how to achieve the goals of such development. This

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 Indicators of characteristics of Good Urban Governance

can only result from an understanding of the historical, cultural and social contexts of a
given society or community.

Equity and inclusiveness

A society’s well being depends on ensuring that all its members feel that they have a
stake in it and do not feel excluded from the mainstream of society. This requires all
groups, but particularly the most vulnerable, have opportunities to improve or maintain
their well being.

Effectiveness and efficiency

Good governance means that processes and institutions produce results that meet the
needs of society while making the best use of resources at their disposal. The concept of
efficiency in the context of good governance also covers the sustainable use of natural
resources and the protection of the environment.

Accountability

Accountability is a key requirement of good governance. Not only governmental

institutions but also the private sector and civil society organizations must be
accountable to the public and to their institutional stakeholders. Who is accountable to
whom varies depending on whether decisions or actions taken are internal or external to
an organization or institution. In general an organization or an institution is accountable
to those who will be affected by its decisions or actions. Accountability cannot be
enforced without transparency and the rule of law.

Top 12 Urban Governance issues/indicators

1. Consumer satisfaction (survey/complaints)

2. Openness of procedures for contracts/tenders for municipal services
3. Equity in tax system
4. Sources of local government funding ((taxes, user charges, borrowing, central
government, international aid)
5. Percentage of population served by services
6. Access of public to stages of policy cycle
7. Fairness in enforcing laws
8. Incorporation of excluded groups in the consultation process
9. Clarity of procedures and regulations and responsibilities
10. Existing participatory processes
11. Freedom of media and existence of local media
12. Autonomy of financial resources
http://www.gdrc.org/u-gov/indicators.html (Date: September 15, 2007)

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 Indicators of characteristics of Good Urban Governance

Indicators of Characteristics of Urban Governance

Table 1: Character wise indicators of good urban governance

Characteristics Indicators of Characteristics

Participation ■ Elected council
■ Selection of Mayor
■ Voter turnout
■ Public forum
■ Levels of input of women/men at different levels
(government departments, NGOs, local stakeholders) to
identification and planning.
■ Numbers of identification and planning meetings held
with local stakeholders.
■ Attendance by local stakeholders at identification and
planning meetings by sex, socio-economic grouping, age
and ethnicity.
■ Levels of contribution/participation by local stakeholders
at identification and planning meetings.
■ Levels of participation by local stakeholders to base-line
study.
■ Audit of resources or funds held regularly and openly.
■ Existence of a set of rules that were developed in a
participatory fashion, and in which all members of the
community were partly/fully involved.
■ Reduced reliance on external funds.
■ Frequency of attendance by women and men, by socio-
economic grouping.
■ Number of women and men in key decision-making
positions, by socio-economic grouping.
■ Rotation of people in leadership positions.
■ Levels of women’s and men’s inputs, by socio-economic
grouping, in terms of labor, tools, etc.
■ Socio-economic, age and ethnic make-up of women and
men attending meetings.
■ Levels of participation by different stakeholders in
evaluation.
■ Degree to which lessons of evaluation are acted upon by
different stakeholders.
Source: Canadian International Development Agency’s 1997 publication “The
Why and How of Gender-Sensitive Indicators: A Project Level Handbook.”
Rule of Law ■ Human rights
■ Economic rights
■ Judicial rights
■ Civic rights
Transparency ■ Transparency of economic and financial mechanism and
expenditure
■ Transparency in Budget
■ Transparency of economic policy making
■ Transparency of public administration
■ Political transparency
■ Transparency of NGO activities and projects
Responsiveness ■ Survey

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 Indicators of characteristics of Good Urban Governance

■ Public participation
■ consultative council meeting/projects
■ public hearing
Consensus oriented ■ Historical
■ Cultural
■ Social
Equity and ■ Citizens’ Charter: right of access to basic services
inclusiveness ■ Percentage of women councilors in local authorities
■ Pro-poor pricing policies for water
■ Incentives for informal businesses

Effectiveness and ■ Local government revenue per capita

efficiency ■ Ratio of actual recurrent and capital budget
■ Local government revenue transfers
■ Ratio of mandated to actual tax collection
■ Predictability of transfers in local government budget
■ Published performance delivery standards
■ Consumer Satisfaction Survey
■ Existence of a vision statement
Accountability ■ Formal publication (contracts and tenders; budgets and
accounts)
■ Control by higher levels of government
■ Codes of Conduct
■ Facility for citizen complaints
■ Anti-corruption Commission
■ Disclosure of Income/Assets
■ Independent audit
■ Legal requirements
■ Administrative polices
■ Property
■ Founds
■ Manpower
■ Other resources
■ Economic performances

Conclusion

To identify of any government to know the government good or not cleared by the
indicators of the characteristics of that government. So, the indicators of a good
government are so important. We can find out the weakness and strengths of a
government by those indicators. Those indicators help to improve the quality of a
government.

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Bibliography

■ Seneviratne, Kalinga & Thanenthiran, Sivananthi(Unknown), Cities, Chaos &

Creativity, The Urban Governance Initiative(TUGI), Malaysia
■ Canadian International Development Agency’s 1997 publication “The Why and
How of Gender-Sensitive Indicators: A Project Level Handbook.”
■ http://www.gdrc.org/u-gov/indicators.html (Access date: September 15, 2007)
■ http://www.unescap.org/pdd/prs/ProjectActivities/Ongoing/gg/governance.asp
(Access date: September 15, 2007)
■ Urban Governance Index(UGI), Global Campaign on Urban Governance, UN-
Habitants
■ http://www.unhabitat.org/ governance (Access date: September 15, 2007)

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