Reference Framework

Previous to the systematization of experiences, UNICEF and UNDP decided on a reference document that became the conceptual support of the project “Local Governance and Rights of the Child and Adolescent”.

This document parts from the approach on rights, the development paradigm and the democratic and local governance as complementary and integrated paradigms.

This integration made it possible to build dimensions allowing for the selection, systematization, analysis and also the sharing of experiences. Since we part from a knowledge management process, these conditions are susceptible to transformation and enrichment from the systematized experiences and debates that this initiative generates.

Principally in this framework we consider that an experience based on rights and local governance will not be able to respond to the basic needs such as health, education, recreation, play time and protection of the children and adolescents in their community, if local institutional structures are not promoted and capable of guaranteeing the sustainable character of their well-being.

We consider that the possibility of confronting poverty and its exclusions on all fronts will establish the mobilization of society as a whole, and will promote a citizen culture that favours and supports the child and adolescent, converting well-being into one of the most important indicators of a healthy society.

CONDITIONS FOR LOCAL GOVERNANCE AND CHILDREN’S RIGHTS

Strategic Vision

The formulation of a vision that is fixed ahead and identifies collective aims is the first task that a society must fulfil in order to be able to develop political, social and economical processes in a successful manner, framed in international engagements assumed by States. This condition fulfils the double objective of having ambitions in order to achieve and motivate actors in the search of that achievement. Under this condition we should observe:

The existence of a local strategic planning conformed to the normative framework and in agreement to the human rights based approach, as far as integrity and a systematic glance of these paradigms go.
The construction of alliances with strategic actors, agreements and alliances with common objectives in favour of the rights of the child and the adolescent.
If these actions are oriented toward a result based programme.

Capacity and Performance Management

The institutional performance no longer refers to the rules, but to the structure and functioning of local state institutions. It has to do with its rationality, efficiency and transparency of actions, its tracking and control systems, human talent, fiscal situation, and financial sustainability. Under this conditions we analyse:

The normative framework and the coordination between levels of government as much at the horizontal level (legislative authority, civil society organizations, among others) as the vertical (national and intermediate governments), emphasizing the attempt of forming intergovernmental instances.
The relevance of the financial framework and social investment under which the management is developed in favour of the rights of the child and adolescent.
Developed actions for the strengthening of capacity organizations.
And the promotion of decentralization, understood as developed actions at the local level in order to implement and consolidate the exercise of transferred functions and competitions or delegates through decentralization.

Legitimacy and Leadership

This condition is determined by having confidence in democratic institutions and levels of support to people who assume leadership in a process. However, legitimacy not only guarantees formal legality, in the described sense of previous democratic governance, but it also depends on the way in which the citizen visualizes local authority in a subjective way. In practical terms, legitimacy is translated as training capacities and possessing the necessary driving force to guarantee a true transforming process. Leadership exercises diverse social actors such as people and organizations, and does not only deal with the governmental.

Under this circumstance, leadership in the political dimension will be considered in terms of who the leaders are, where they come from and the constitution of political rules between private and civil society that they will implement.

Public Participation

There has not been sufficient public participation contrary to what the society has had to draw a clear vision from, having an efficient institutional system and action with norms of a good government. Consequently, citizen participation is required in making decisions that affect them. Among these decisions include electoral participation, community participation understood as solidarity intervention of the public, participation of the civil society to supervise the government and participation of children and adolescents in public decision making that concerns them. Under this condition, we should consider:

The participation of adults in the broad context of electoral and political participation.
The inclusion of children and adolescents and the methods of participation in making public decisions.
Understood communications strategies as an integral part of the promotion of a culture of rights and that foments human development with fairness, freedom and participation.

UNICEF and the UNDP’s network of experts is a tool for the management of projects and the development of knowledge products, composed by experts who participated in the systematized experiences by UNICEF and the UNDP. The fundamental idea for the network of experts and centres of excellence is the link that UNICEF and UNDP have with professionals of high recognition for their professional duties in the systematised experience and as specialists in the thematic areas.