Towards a European spirit of local governance

Under the current regulatory framework for local government, the direct election of leadership has strengthened democratic credentials. In this way the line of accountability is tied directly to the executive and distributed through representation for control and oversight to the legislature.

Through these mechanisms the citizen conveys their will and delegates the right to take decisions for them and on their behalf. Giving the role of agent or representative to act for the principal, in this case the citizen, means not only administering services and spending funds, but also representing the values of local communities.

The leadership must therefore ensure that policy-making always stays closely tied to the public’s expectations and concerns, while also making sure that the process has gone through professional consultation. In Kosovo’s case, the regulation and institutional design of the local level were built in the spirit of strengthening direct democracy, but between this and action on the ground there is a wide gap.

Thus we have a chain-reaction problem or challenge, which is partly a by-product of a not yet strongly consolidated democratic culture and more a consequence of the lack of a proactive and transformative approach by municipal leadership. The leadership is currently positioned within the confines of administration, often pushed there by the regulatory logic of municipal management. Such an approach narrows the options and practical solutions for citizens’ problems.

For this reason, a gradual increase in the involvement of young professionals in local government would have a positive effect on strengthening policies and advancing processes at grassroots level. In the projections of this change, a new generation of professionals must feel they have a stake in strengthening the European foundations of governance, with an emphasis on the local level.

However, transformative leadership does not mean a change of generation; above all it concerns changing the mindset of municipal management. The basic concept can be applied and merges easily with the current regulatory contours of the local level. A shift from the current situation cannot happen without a clear demand from the public and, necessarily, without reflection by the political establishment.

The first signals were already given in the previous elections for local leadership, which made it clear that the political structure must reflect on this; otherwise we will erode citizens’ trust day by day. Transformative leadership will push local actors to achieve common objectives. This would not only increase municipal performance but, above all, strengthen collective identity.

A transformative approach requires a number of individual and team parameters, based on practical and proactive tasks; staff motivation; determination in carrying out tasks; mobilisation of actors; professionalism; support for implementing tasks; and, importantly, innovation.

Finally, it must be acknowledged that the local level does not yet represent the intended European model. The responsibility is great, not only for institutions but also for other social and public actors, to advance this spirit at its foundations; otherwise we will be failing the generations to come.