The Local Government and Public Service Reform Initiative/Open Society Institute

The Local Government and Public Service Reform Inititive (LGI) is an international development and grant-giving or ganization within the Soros/Open Society network of foundations. Its mission is to promote democratic and effective government in Central and Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union by supporting research and operational activities in the fields of decentralization, public policy formation, and the reform of public administration systems.

LGI seeks to fulfill its mission by developing sustainable regional networks of institutions and professionals, supporting comparative and regionally applicable policy studies tackling local government issues, and delivering technical assistance to implementing agencies. It also provides assistance to Soros foundations in countries throughout the region, develops curricula and organization of training programs, and publishes books, studies, and discussion papers on decentralization, public administration, and good governance. LGI has also begun to support policy centers and think tanks in the region. Since 1999 LGI has focused more of its efforts on in-house policy analysis and research projects, with the intention of becoming a full-fledged think tank in the next few years.

LGI develops and funds in-depth policy studies, particularly those that are regional and comparative in scope. Activities in this field fall into several policy areas:

· Public administration and legislative reform.

· Government and governance issues of ethnic and multicultural policies; corruption, transparency, and ethics in public administration; public participation in government; and development of civil society.

· Municipal fiscal issues assisting transition economies carrying out reform of intergovernmental fiscal relations; improved financial good governance and increased financial autonomy of subnational governmental units.

· Public service management in urban services and social policy.

· Local economic and regional development, urban development.

LGI works closely with other international organizations, including the Council of Europe, the Department for International Development, USAID, UNDP, and the World Bank. Under these cooperation agreements, LGI co-funds larger regional initiatives aimed at supporting reforms at the subnational level. The Local Government Information Network (LOGIN) and Fiscal Decentralization Initiatives (FDI) are two examples of this cooperation.

We hope that LGI’s contribution to Transition will support the policy dialogue on decentralization and public administration reform in transition economies.

For additional information, please contact us at the following address: Local Government and Public Service Reform Initiative, P.O. Box 519, H-1397 Budapest, Hungary. Tel: 36-1 327-3104; fax: 36-1 327-3105; email: lgprog@osi.hu; Http://www.osi.hu/lgi.