SHARE
Since 2017, NDI has implemented the “Central Europe Democracy Initiative – (CEDI)” to support democratic actors in the region in responding to resurgent Euroscepticism and threats of autocratization. One key component of the National Endowment for Democracy-funded program enhances the capacity of political actors at the local level to engage effectively with their constituencies and address citizen concerns, thereby actively rebuilding public confidence in democratic political processes. Recognizing that common “higher-level” challenges facing the region, from corruption to foreign malign influence, are best addressed through a solid democratic foundation in which diverse actors can participate meaningfully, CEDI focuses on the elemental aspects of democratic institutions, including local and regional citizen engagement.
While the project’s objective of citizen engagement in decision-making remains constant among partner countries, NDI tailors its approach to the context, interests, and circumstances of each partner location. Because of this, the project has been able to respond to periodic crises affecting partners, such as in supporting cities in Poland in crafting communication strategies to address the influx of refugees following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. It also helps local authorities respond to key interests of their populations, as found in public opinion research, such as by working with local authorities on energy poverty, sustainability education, and climate justice in response to Hungarian youth concerns with climate change and environmental governance.
As a result of participation in the program between 2018 and 2022, approximately 50 municipalities, including capital cities such as Budapest and Bratislava, introduced at least 33 new citizen inclusion tools or strategies. A few examples include:
-
In Poland, NDI’s partners in seven municipalities formed partnerships with Ukrainian organizations and community leaders to improve how those municipalities engage refugee and migrant communities, especially women, and integrate them into their communities. In Poznan, for example, in addition to a new communication strategy for all residents, the city rolled out an official Telegram channel and newspaper to communicate with refugees.
-
In the Czech Republic, NDI organized a workshop on crisis communication with representatives from 10 Czech municipalities. Based on models discussed in this workshop, Prague officials expanded outreach and participation, in collaboration with CSOs, about services for people experiencing homelessness.
-
In Slovakia, municipalities incorporated regular and targeted social media posting into their communications strategies. Others made structural or organizational improvements to their outreach. For example, some municipalities established a town media council, engaged external communications vendors, amended council meeting rules to enable citizen participation or add speaking time for members of the public, and developed more deliberate planning and strategies for outreach.
Another key impact of the project involved the implementation or expansion of participatory budgeting mechanisms in several partner cities, giving residents a direct say in how public money is spent. For example, drawing on experiences from an NDI-organized study visit and exchange with Warsaw, Poland, in 2022, the city of Budapest redesigned and expanded its participatory budgeting program, adding new project categories and replacing a randomly selected participatory budgeting citizens' board with a direct resident voting system. Other municipalities have established new local offices tasked with citizen participation and introduced digital tools for citizen engagement: for example, in Brno, Czech Republic, citizens can now propose ideas online.
Through CEDI, select municipal representatives from each country have also participated in international study visits that highlight effective practices from various European cities. In addition to sharing good models and practical cases, these experiences have served to connect municipal representatives and create networks both within their respective countries and throughout the region to collaborate to address shared challenges in their work. For example, in Hungary, a network of eight cities shared experiences with implementing communication strategies. Meanwhile, two Slovak municipalities exchanged good practices in response to heightened demand for services.
CEDI alumni, which, in addition to municipal representatives, also include politically active young people and women, have taken the initiative to start academies focused on improving the professional skills of their colleagues and other young people from their countries, which have sustained and expanded the reach of the program. As the community of CEDI participants and alumni continue to support one another in their efforts to build more democratic, responsive systems in their home cities, the impact their connections create will only grow. As Europe and its neighbors continue to face destabilizing and anti-democratic forces, this network of leaders who are well-informed, motivated, and capable will play a crucial role in responding to their constituents’ needs and making the case for democratic governance.
Author: Cole Speidel, Program Manager, Democratic Governance and Natalie Greifer, Program Officer, Central & Eastern Europe
NDI’s engagement with this program is implemented with the support from the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) program.
Related Stories
Elected Romani Representatives Defy the Status Quo
Enhancing Parliamentary Information in Sri Lanka
###
NDI is a non-profit, non-partisan, non-governmental organization that works in partnership around the world to strengthen and safeguard democratic institutions, processes, norms and values to secure a better quality of life for all. NDI envisions a world where democracy and freedom prevail, with dignity for all.
