Questions/Answers
Question 1
Please provide a brief summary of the initiative including the problems/challenges it addressed and the solutions that the initiative introduced (300 words maximum)
In Barcarena, 2013 represents an inflection in the government management and in the State-Society relationship, marked by the 2014-2017 Pluriannual Plan (PPA in portuguese) elaboration’s process, which included public hearings.
The PPA expresses the City’s desire of be recognized, until 2025, as a sustainable city, stating that it will be based on: the protection of natural resources, including the natural resources and cultural aspects of the human-nature relationship; a social rights platform accessible to all citizens and economic development on a local basis. This shows that the PPA was already aligned with the information available at the time about the Post 2015 Agenda. It also used the Millennium Declaration as a subsidy for the city’s diagnosis and as a guiding force for management priorities, innovating the concept of government planning. As a platform that ensured full monitoring, the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) were also adopted as management outcome indicators.
Still in 2013, the City Hal adhered to the MDG Commitment Agenda, a Federal Government initiative. In 2014, the mayor published a decree stating that all plans, programs, projects and actions should be aligned to the MDG. As a result, the City Hall was the only one in the North Region to be certified by the Federal Government, in 2015, for the achievement of six goals in the MDG Commitment Agenda.
In 2016, the City Hall began the transition to 2030 Agenda. The Mayor’s re-election for the 2017-2020 mandate ensured the maintenance of this strategy expressed in the 2018-2021 PPA and others plans, programs, projects and actions. In addition to making it possible to measure concrete results in improving the supply of public services and, consequently, in the life of the population, the 2030 Agenda also allows greater integration between government agencies and other sectors of society.
a. What are the overall objectives of the initiative?
Please describe the overall objectives of the initiative (200 words maximum)
The main objective of the initiative is to develop a local development policy based on Agenda 2030.
The 2018-2021 PPA identified seven Macro challenges to be faced by government: Citizenship; Public administration; Governance; Cheers; Knowledge; Social inclusion; and Prosperity. To overcome these challenges, the PPA established as strategies: democratize social participation at all levels of government, aiming to promote territorial development; align all government actions to 2030 Agenda; to foster interaction between the public agencies; identify duplication of actions; map potential partnerships among the public agencies, private sector and civil society organizations through Rede ODS Brasil (SDG Network, in English) a network formed by local and regional governments, civil society organizations, private sector and academic institutions that contributes to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda in Brazil.
b. How does the initiative fit within the selected category?
Please describe how the initiative is linked to the criteria of the category (200 words maximum)
By promoting the democratization of 2030 Agenda through its inclusion in government planning and institutionalized spaces of social participation - such as public hearings, public policy councils - the City promotes participatory management and social control as tools for locating 2030 Agenda. For example, in the PPA 2018-2021 public hearings the citizens were sensitized on the relevance of the 2030 Agenda in a plenary. Then, they choose which axis they wanted to discuss - economic, environmental, social or institutional. Each axis was represented by a set of SDG and their indicators available in a banner to facilitate their alignment with 2030 Agenda.
In addition, the cross-cutting nature of the Goals were used to encourage the different sectors of the society to work in a more integrated way.
Question 2
The initiative should improve people’s lives, notably by enhancing the contribution of public services to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the realization of the SDGs
a. Please explain how the initiative improves the delivery of public services (200 words maximum)
By promoting the participation of all society’s segments in the elaboration of the PPA, the City Hall has given a more critical look at the real needs of the residents, as well as the needs in certain neighborhoods regarding the offer and expansion of services to the population. Allied to this, the strengthening of the Municipal Councils, as a tool of social control has allowed the wide participation in the discussions and in the elaboration of certain laws as the Plans of Urban Mobility, Transport, Traffic and Habitat. Others are already being made, such as the Economic Development and the Public Security Plans. Various actions are contemplated within the PPA scope, from the construction of new equipment for the community, such as the modernization of management in order to reduce bureaucracy and increase the efficiency and effectiveness of government actions regarding the supply, improvement and expansion of services to the population.
Question 3
The initiative must impact positively a group or groups of the population (i.e. children, women, elderly, people with disability, etc) and address a significant issue of public service delivery within the context of a given country or region.
a. Please explain how the initiative has addressed a significant issue related to the delivery of public services (200 words maximum)
The PPA, as a participatory management planning instrument, will not succeed as a public policy of government if society does not have greater control over these actions that were agreed during its elaboration. The pre-established diagnosis in the PPA made it easier for the Government to manage its public policies to carry out the priority actions and of greater impact in solving the problems that afflict the society, being this form of planning the most effective, since it was carried out in agreement with organized civil society.
b. Please explain how the initiative has impacted positively a group or groups of the population within the context of your country or region (200 words maximum)
The evaluation of the 2014-2017 PPA shows that it attended the population’s demands by reaching the goals of expanding and revitalizing public equipment, such as schools, basic health units, plazas; by improving the supply and expansion of public services; by creating new administrative structures aimed at speeding up services and guaranteeing rights. It is not yet possible to evaluate the results of 2018-2021 PPA.
Question 4
The initiative must present an innovative idea, a distinctively new approach, or a unique policy or approach implemented in order to realize the SDGs in the context of a given country or region.
a. Please explain in which way the initiative is innovative in the context of your country or region (200 words maximum)
The alignment of all government plans, programs, projects and actions with the UN Development Agendas; the democratization and dissemination of these Agendas throughout the city, by incorporating their icons into uniforms and school parades, for example; the use of the Agendas as a tool for internal interaction between all government agencies and external interaction among all segments of society has made this initiative considered - by institutions such as Brazil Federal Government, UNDP Brazil, UNDP ART Initiative, United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG) - innovative and reference in and out of the country, and inspiring for other local governments.
Question 4b
b. Please describe if the innovation is original or if it is an adaptation from other contexts (If it is known)? (200 words maximum)
Yes, it is original.
Question 4c
c. What resources (i.e. financial, human , material or other resources, etc) were used to implement the initiative? (200 words maximum)
The initiative did not generate additional human, material and financial resources. Instead, it optimized the management of these resources by guiding investment and actions priorities, identifying duplicity of action.
Question 5
The initiative should be adaptable to other contexts (e.g. other cities, countries or regions). There may already be evidence that it has inspired similar innovations in other public-sector institutions within a given country, region or at the global level.
a. Has the initiative been transferred to other contexts?
Yes
Yes. The initiative has been presented as a good practice for locating 2030 Agenda in many events inside and outside the country and inspired local governments that are part of the Rede ODS Brasil, like Ananindeua City Hall, also at Pará State. Its first Voluntary Report on the Localization of 2030 Agenda has been released by the UNDP ART Initiative and UCLG as a guide to be consulted by local governments around the world. The Report also highlight some of the MDG (from 2013 to 2015) and SDG (from 2016) results.
Question 6
The initiative should be able to be sustained over a significant period of time.
a. Please describe whether and how the initiative is sustainable (covering the social, economic and environmental aspects) (300 words maximum)
Since the initiative promotes equal opportunities and reduces inequalities in results, through the implementation of public policies elaborated in a participatory manner and the strengthening of the public institution, guaranteeing the improvement in the delivery of public services without generating additional expenses, it can keep itself sustainable.
b. Please describe whether and how the initiative is sustainable in terms of durability in time (300 words maximum)
By promoting participatory management and social control as tools for locating 2030 Agenda, the City Hall empowers the population so that this Agenda continues to be implemented even after the end of the Mayor's term, because the population understand that it as an Agenda of State and not of Government.
Question 7
The initiative should have gone through a formal evaluation, showing some evidence of impact on improving people’s lives.
a. Has the initiative been formally evaluated?
Yes
If yes, please describe how the initiative was evaluated? (200 words maximum)
The 2014-2017 PPA Management Report is being finalized. However, official Federal Government data shows that the municipality's social indicators related to the MDG have improved considerably. Therefore, the City Hall achieve six certificates, granted by the Federal Government, for reach goals in the MDG Commitment Agenda.
b. Please describe the outcome of the evaluation of the impact of the initiative (200 words maximum)
The PPA 2014-2017 is being analyzed goal by goal, to identify its effectiveness and efficiency, comparing what was projected with what was executed.
c. Please describe the indicators that were used (200 words maximum)
The PPA 2014-2017 evaluation uses the MDG and SDG indicators.
Question 8
The initiative must demonstrate that it has engaged various actors such as from other institutions, civil society, or the private sector, when possible.
a. The 2030 Development Agenda puts emphasis on collaboration, engagement, coordination, partnerships, and inclusion. Please describe what stakeholders were engaged in designing, implementing and evaluating the initiative. Please also highlight their roles and contributions (300 words maximum)
Founding institution of the Rede ODS Brasil, the Barcarena City Hall offers human and material resources for the group activities.
As Executive Secretary and National Articulator of the Rede ODS Brasil, the City Hall articulates, supports and monitors the implementation of SDG Networks throughout the national territory.
Through the Network, the City Hall has promoted, since 2015, many events like seminars, workshops and exhibitions on 2030 Agenda, engaging local governments, civil society, private sector and university.
Its institutional partners - which also provide human and material resources for the activities - include the Federal Government, the National Confederation of Municipalities, the Brazilian Association of Municipalities, UNDP Brazil, UCLG, UNDP ART Initiative, among others.
The network has as guidelines: promote the democratization of 2030 Agenda, through the production and dissemination of knowledge; promote the insertion of 2030 Agenda in the institutionalized spaces of social participation and in the instruments of government planning and management; promote participatory management and social control as tools for locating 2030 Agenda; give visibility and support the actions developed by members of the Network, strengthening them; establish, expand and strengthen strategic partnerships among members of the Network, aiming to develop collaborative actions that contribute to the implementation of 2030 Agenda; qualify social actors aiming at the capillarity and sustainability of the collaborative actions that contribute to the implementation of 2030 Agenda; potentiate the construction of a convergence agenda among the members of the Network, guided by 2030 Agenda.
Question 9
a. Please describe the key lessons learned, and any view you have on how to further improve the initiative (200 words maximum)
The UN Development Agendas proved to be an important tool of: government planning and management;resource optimization; institutional strengthening; interaction between government agencies; engagement of various segments of society; qualification of social control; strengthening of partnerships for the implementation of 2030 Agenda, through the Rede ODS Brasil.