Local economic development, innovation and livelihoods

  • Växjö and Vushtrri, Kosovo

    Växjö and Vushtrri, Kosovo

    The partners have been cooperating since 2013 on a variety of themes. In 2023, they were approved for a project addressing the issue of lack of accessibility of the municipal archives. The new project, submitted 2024 aims to address skill gaps in Vushtrri municipality’s labor market by fostering collaboration between businesses, educational institutions, and the…

  • Call for proposals: Community empowering Voluntary Local Reviews

    Call for proposals: Community empowering Voluntary Local Reviews

    Open call for proposals for Voluntary Local Reviews with a participatory methodology, led by researchers and conducted together with a local government. Introduction ICLD seeks proposals for the development of Voluntary Local Reviews – documents that monitor and report on SDG implementation progress at the local level – to be conducted as joint research projects…

  • Empowering Local Voices: The Role of Participatory Research in SDG Voluntary Local Reviews

    Empowering Local Voices: The Role of Participatory Research in SDG Voluntary Local Reviews

    This report analyses the use of community-based, participatory methods in producing Voluntary Local Reviews. Since 2022, the Swedish International Centre for Local Democracy has supported municipalities with policy integration of the Sustainable Development Goals. Research teams together with three of these municipalities (Bijeljina in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Emboreet and Kibaha in Tanzania) applied community-based participatory…

  • Falun – Kolomyia, Ukraine

    Falun – Kolomyia, Ukraine

    Youth, Education, and Entrepreneurship The partnership between Falun and Kolomyia focuses on youth engagement and entrepreneurship, with a strong emphasis on inclusive education. Around 90 students have already participated in educational initiatives as a result of the project, alongside some teacher training. The project is aligned with several Agenda 2030 goals —particularly SDG 4 (Quality…

  • Voluntary Local Review – City of Bijeljina, Bosnia and Herzegovina

    Voluntary Local Review – City of Bijeljina, Bosnia and Herzegovina

    This report looks into the localisation of SDGs in the City of Bijeljina, which is an SDG pioneer in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It reviews three SDGs – SDG5 (gender equality), SDG10 (inclusion), and SDG17 (partnerships towards goals) – through the lens of Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) which is based on an immersion of researchers into…

  • Bridging the Accountability Gap: Applying assed-based and citizen-led development in Emfuleni, South Africa

    Bridging the Accountability Gap: Applying assed-based and citizen-led development in Emfuleni, South Africa

    This research project aims to gain an understanding of how to institutionalise the Asset-Based and Citizen-Led Development (ABCD) approach as an innovative means of promoting active citizen engagement along with local-level social accountability in Emfuleni Local Municipality, Gauteng Province in South Africa. Building on Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA)’s work in three wards of…

  • Citizens Budget: Make the budget understandable for every citizen

    Citizens Budget: Make the budget understandable for every citizen

    A Citizen’s budget is a short document that shows the budget of local government in a way that is easy to understand by any citizen. This toolbox provides support to local governments that are interested in creating a Citizens Budget. It contains the basic steps in the process and inspiring examples, which fully equips the…

  • Improving local budget processes: from inclusion and transparency to equity and quality

    This policy brief analyses local budget processes and provides recommendations for their improvement. The analysis is based on the example of North Macedonia. We find evidence that: 1) greater transparency leads to greater citizen satisfaction with the quality of local services, especially for marginalised groups; 2) greater inclusion leads to greater citizen satisfaction with how…

  • Community Currencies as means of Local Economic Empowerment

    Community currencies have emerged as a tool for building more inclusive local economic development and governance. Grassroots organisations in Nairobi and Mombasa (Kenya) have been experimenting with this form of local monies. Communities in informal settlements in Kisumu have shown interest in introducing their own community currency. Challenges remain concerning the best diffusion strategy of…

  • Programme objectives

    Human Rights Based Approach The main objective of this training programme is to strengthen the ongoing change processes that contribute to social and economic development and to strengthen the institutions in the selected municipalities and regions. This will be achieved through participating municipalities integrating their work with human rights so that equality, participation, transparency and…