Besnik Tahiri assesses Jordan’s draft law on municipalities

In Amman, Jordan, Tahiri met the mayor of Na’oor, Mr Ghaleb Al Sawaier, and civil society organisations

At the invitation of the National Democratic Institute (NDI) for North Africa and Jordan, Mr Besnik Tahiri, Director of the Kosovo Local Government Institute, is staying in Jordan in his capacity as an expert in international development and local governance.

During his visit to Jordan, Mr Tahiri held separate meetings, during which he also carried out an assessment of Jordan’s draft municipal law. The assessment team met representatives of the Ministry of Municipal Affairs, the King Abdullah II Fund for Development and the Al Hayat Center for Civil Society Development, the mayor of Na’oor, Mr Ghaleb Al Sawaier, representatives of the Greater Amman Municipality and members of the Irbid Municipal Council.

During these meetings, Mr Tahiri stressed that ‘every country that aims to deepen democracy and the principles of good governance must bear in mind that local governance is a cornerstone of democracy. In this context, Mr Tahiri said that serious commitment must be devoted to citizen participation in municipal decision-making, the transfer of responsibilities from the central to the local level and, in particular, the establishment of new municipalities. Furthermore, Mr Tahiri said that the establishment of Kosovo’s new municipalities has brought opportunities for Kosovo’s citizens, but also difficulties in raising the quality of public services at the municipal level.

‘Every state that wishes to create new municipalities must seriously analyse the criteria so that the system succeeds. Without sufficient capacities and resources, newly established municipalities struggle to function successfully’, he said.

During this visit, while providing professional advice and assessment, Mr Tahiri met representatives of the Ministry of Municipal Affairs, the King Abdullah II Fund for Development and the Al Hayat Center for Civil Society Development, the mayor of Na’oor, representatives of the Greater Amman Municipality and members of the Irbid Municipal Council. During this process of consultation and training, contemporary European concepts and trends in public policy-making were addressed, in particular in local governance, with information and explanations provided on Kosovo’s model and experience in the functioning of institutes whose aim is the drafting, research and advancement of public policy.

During the meetings with Jordanian institutions, Mr Tahiri stressed that professional institutes in countries in transition should help democracy; indeed, they should lead state reforms with sound research on governance policies, studies and assessments of the situation on the ground as regards citizens’ needs, and through the institutes’ professional analyses, so that the planned reforms contribute to the advancement of society in general. Thus these institutes, in addressing public policy, should in fact address issues related to democracy and the reforms of the Kingdom of Jordan.

During this visit, Mr Besnik Tahiri, together with Mr Arianit Shehu, NDI Director for North Africa and Jordan, held separate meetings with the Jordanian authorities at which international practices for establishing Municipal Councils were discussed. In this respect, Mr Tahiri also presented the system of local communities of the Republic of Kosovo, so that it may serve as a potential example for the consolidation of local democracy in Jordan.