Policy Briefs

  • WhatsAppers for Social Good: Local Community Response to Covid-19 in Brazil

    WhatsAppers for Social Good: Local Community Response to Covid-19 in Brazil

    The so-called “WhatsAppers” constitute a local community of activists and concerned citizens who use WhatsApp to promote networks of solidarity in Brazil. Since the app’s launch,WhatsApp is increasingly appropriated for social good by activists, not only for “hanging-out” with like-minded people, but it has also become a key platform for twenty-first century politics, particularly in…

  • Women’s quest to participate in local governance in Botswana

    Women’s quest to participate in local governance in Botswana

    This policy brief explores factors that affect the participation of women in local governance structures and investigates challenges that women face in their struggles to represent the voices of their communities. A qualitative research approach was applied in which five interviews were conducted with female mayors and councillors and secondary data was also included. The…

  • Human rights in Gaborone and Johannesburg: finding meaning in local context

    Cities are critical human rights actors. Human rights are interpreted through local culture, history, politics and context. Cities are increasingly at the heart of this process of interpreting and “localizing” (Camilo Sanchez 2020) for a growing share of the world’s population. How can we support the development of civic human rights initiatives in Southern Africa…

  • Building Political Will to Combat Corruption

    Pervasive corruption presents a challenge to scholars, practitioners, and activists. This policy brief reviews academic and policy perspectives on political will in anti-corruption efforts. The importance of political will for the success of anti-corruption reforms is widely cited, but knowledge gaps remain regarding why political will arises (or fails to do so). This policy brief…

  • 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…

  • Empowering Local Governments as Network Hubs in Facing Covid-19

    Emergencies such as the COVID-19 pandemic can create tensions between national and local government when these are attempting to apply strategies to manage an urgent or major situation. This policy brief highlights the role of cities during the pandemic in terms of providing a link among citizens, and to the national government. Coordinating and connecting…

  • Migrants in the Pandemic and the Challenge for Local Government

    This policy brief addresses a challenge for local government that has emerged with COVID-19,particularly in rural areas of developing countries. As the urban informal economy in India collapsed due to the pandemic, large numbers of people have been returning to their villages of origin in rural areas. However, some of their skills are not relevant…

  • Inclusive and sustainable waste governance: strengthening innovative linkages between local governments and waste picker organisations

    This policy brief focuses on how local governments can develop more inclusive, democratic and sustainable waste governance by partnering with, and strengthening the role of, grassroots waste picker organizations and networks. Informed by action-research in Argentina, Brazil, Kenya, Nicaragua, and Tanzania, it shows how waste picker organisations are resilient forms of organizing which have contributed…

  • Mainstreaming Migrant Rights for Gender Equality: Lessons from Lisbon and Barcelona

    Mainstreaming Migrant Rights for Gender Equality: Lessons from Lisbon and Barcelona

    Mainstreaming, a governance strategy based on coordination between government levels and the involvement of various policy sectors and actors (including institutional, private and civil society), is often adopted by local governments in different policy realms, including in managing migration and integration at the local level. Overall, mainstreaming migrant integration has the potential to enhance migrants´…

  • Conducting Municipal Council Meetings with Social Distance

    This paper studies how COVID-19 related social distancing affects Swedish local council meetings and the situation for elected representatives. It is based on interviews with local political advisors, a professional group employed to assist elected representatives in their political work. Social distancing has affected the political agenda and the ways of organising local politics; digital…

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