Abstract
Participatory budgeting is an instrument used everywhere in the world today to develop communities and democracy in order to increase the accountability and capacity of the public administration. Participatory budgeting processes have important outcomes in terms of increasing democratic representation of previously excluded categories, increasing the level of trust between authorities and citizens, expanding public service delivery and increasing the quality of public services, but positive results are not always guaranteed. Participatory budgeting processes have their own risks and limitations. A strong civil society is a favorable premise and a clear commitment of the governors to delegate their authority is a must. Between 2013 and 2018, several participatory processes that could be included in the field of participatory budgeting have been carried out in Cluj-Napoca and have been used as a model for processes in other cities in Romania and the European Union. Through these processes, a participatory culture was promoted both at the local community level and at the local public administration level, their development being an important element in building a local system of participatory governance and an inclusive public sphere.
Highlights
Participatory budgeting (PB from here on) is a democratic instrument that is presented today in many forms
The adoption of participatory budgeting (PB) as a neutral working tool contributed to the imposition of the view that participation is an important element for economic and social development and the idea that good governance is necessary for economic growth (Goldfrank, 2007, p. 96)
Studies on participative processes show that the existence of a strong organized civil society creates a good environment for participative processes and innovations (Mansuri and Rao, 2013, p. 289; Berman, 2017, p. 205) and participative budgeting processes are a model of co-governance, whose favorable premises are constituted by political support and a strong civil society (Röcke, 2014, p. 175)
Summary
Participatory budgeting (PB from here on) is a democratic instrument that is presented today in many forms. The actors of the civil society are important, the success of participatory budgeting programs is due to the commitment of the political leaders who are governing Another limitation comes from focusing the debates on local issues, as these programs are usually run by local authorities, while solutions to major issues the communities are facing may be at the regional or national level. The participatory governance system that exists in Cluj-Napoca is a Quintuple Helix type, where the public administration, the universities and the private sector with NGOs (organized civil society) and the citizens work together, each social actor and each citizen being considered capable of formulating solutions to the public problems and each having the right to participate in the decision-making The participatory budgeting processes developed in Cluj-Napoca between 2013 and 2018 will be briefly presented
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