Common difficulties in managing cities were powerfully demonstrated at recent workshops in India.
Does the following sound familiar?
- City Councils lacking control of all the urban area.
- Overlapping Local and State responsibilities.
- Operational areas not contiguous with city boundaries.
- State capital functions at odds with local governance.
- A lack of a strategic view.
In the Australian experience the result of these circumstances is all too familiar; no one actually running the place, making things happen for the benefit of the whole city and its people. This situation is not unique to Australia, according to Sydney based Local Government consultant Ian McKendry, following his recent visit to India.
His visit was part of a World Bank/AusAid consultancy, working with lawyer and town planner, John Mant, in assisting two major cities in the sub continent develop City Development Strategies (CDS). Cities chosen for the CDS process were Ahmedabad and Bangalore.
Ahmedabad is the major commercial centre in the state of Gujurat, with a population of five million and a traditional economy based on cotton milling and weaving. The shift of these industries from the city presents both challenges and opportunities through freeing up large parcels of land in the urban area.
Bangalore is the capital of Karnataka. It has a population of 5.2 million, and enjoys its reputation as the ‘silicon valley’ of India. It is a key site in the growth of IT industries in India, with a significant percentage of the world’s software written there.
The CDS Process
Cornerstone of the CDS process is a broad based community consultative process. The first step was the involvement of key stakeholders in the identification of citywide issues.
Each city hosted two day seminars/workshops, with participants drawn from a wide cross section of the city, including, Local and State Government elected members and administrators, NGOs, welfare and community organisations and the media, as well as engineers, architects and town planners.
These workshops proved to be a rare opportunity for these groups to meet, exchange views, and see their individual perspectives of the city in a wider context.
The initial process sought to prepare draft vision statements, across a number of policy areas. The workshops divided the participants into interdisciplinary and cross community groups then assessed these vision groups, which developed comprehensive and thoughtful statements in each area, using the familiar SWOT analysis tool: Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats.
Ultimately the process will clarify, through further analysis of objectives and strategies, actions which need to be done to bring the vision to reality. The participants in the workshops were enthusiastic and generous in their contributions. The CDS process and subsequent actions are not an imposition by the Agencies.
The final responsibility for carrying on the process rests with the local political and administrative mechanisms and structures. Ian McKendry said that it was fascinating to see our common colonial legacy in the structures and problems of governance in India and enlightening to have participated in the CDS process.
For further information contact Ian McKendry, telephone (02) 9235 1119
