This website is dedicated to supporting the efforts of Caribbean Governments to have greater collaborations and information sharing as a result of the 2004 Montego Bay Programme of Action. As a consequence, the site will attempt to document the state of local government (systems) throughout the Caribbean. In so doing, the site presents an overview of Caribbean local government systems, including an examination of their political structures, roles and functions, financing arrangements, central – local relations and the legal framework within which local government operates in each territory.
An attempt has also been made to present the state of local democracy through the examination of statistical data on local government elections from the various territories. As a compliment to this is a presentation of the profile of political representatives emerging from this process which would give some indication of gender composition of the various local authorities, occupational profile among other indicators. Information is presented on the local government reform processes and initiatives that have been taking place in the various territories, and the policies which have been adopted from these processes. An attempt also been made to reflect the work and involvement of the diversity of stakeholders operating in local government environment throughout the region, such as the Caribbean Association of Local Government Authorities (CALGA), the various national associations representing local authorities in the various territories, and the myriad of civil society organizations involve in local services and activities in these jurisdictions. The site will also attempt to monitor the various agreements between regional and international institutions on local democracy and citizen participation.
Although the site is been managed by Jamaica through the Local Government Reform Unit of the Ministry of Local Government, each country will have the opportunity to manage the content and information flow directly, thus enabling the site to be operated and maintained jointly by the countries within the Caribbean region. |