Democracy and strong leadership in local government and local administrations are vital foundations for developing strong local communities, Commonwealth Secretary-General Don McKinnon said in a keynote address on Tuesday to the fourth Commonwealth Local Government Conference, a key partner of UN-HABITAT.
Mr. McKinnon emphasised the key role of local democracy in all Commonwealth countries as a means of "transforming societies".
 |
| Prime Minister Clark addresses the meeting |
"Local democracy must ensure that delivery reflects the priorities of the community and that it reduces poverty and promotes economic development," he said. "With 800 million people in the Commonwealth living on less than a dollar a day; with two-thirds of the world’s HIV/AIDS sufferers in our midst; with 30 million children who will never see the inside of a primary school and a further 40 million who will never experience secondary education, ‘the disadvantaged’ are very much our Commonwealth concern," Mr. McKinnon said.
The Auckland conference, held every two years, follows highly successful events in Aberdeen, Scotland in 2005 and Tshwane, South Africa in 2003. The outcomes of these conferences at which UN-HABITAT was represented on each occasion, have been endorsed by Commonwealth Heads of Government and are helping central governments and local governments to strengthen their democratic processes and to deliver better urban services. In a speech read on her behalf, Mrs. Anna Tibaijuka, Executive Director of UN-HABITAT, referred directly to the theme of the conference, ‘delivering development through local leadership’, when she highlighted the on-going collaboration between the agency and the CLGF Pacific Office to build the capacity of elected leaders across 9 small island states of the Pacific. The training, funded in part by the Government of The Netherlands has resulted in enhanced leadership skills, improved standards of governance and legislative changes. Prime Minister Clark said the conference theme underscored the expanded role of local councils: "This tells us that local councils are not only about roads, rates, and rubbish. They are a fundamental part of our system of democratic governance. Part of their role is to provide strategic leadership. That role is increasingly recognised as essential, in promoting the well-being of citizens and acting locally on the challenges we share at a nationwide and global level," she said. The Conference is organized by the Commonwealth Local Government Forum and hosted by Auckland City Council in partnership with New Zealand’s Department of Internal Affairs. It drew some 600 delegates, including many mayors, government personalities and other local authority representatives. Other speakers included New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark, President Yoweri Museveni of Uganda, Prime Minister Edward Lowassa of Tanzania; and Samuel Abal, Minister for Intergovernmental Relations, Papua New Guinea. |
