Georgia, Local Government Programme

VNG International supports the USAID local government programme in Georgia in intermunicipal learning, international municipal partnerships and institutional strengthening of the National Association of Local Authorities in Georgia (NALAG). 

 Objective

 The USAID local governance programme is a five-year, $25 million initiative that aims to support Georgia’s decentralisation and public administration reform. And to enhance the effectiveness, accountability, and citizen responsiveness of target local governments in Georgia. VNG International is a subcontractor. 

 Approach

To enable municipalities to learn from each other, we facilitated a peer-to-peer benchlearning exercise. Benchlearning combines the principles of benchmarking and organisational learning to drive continuous improvement. By comparing an organisation’s performance or processes with others (benchmarking) and actively learning from these comparisons, organisations can identify areas for enhancement and implement effective changes. The benchlearning methodology involves a systematic approach with five distinct phases: prepare, collect, compare, learn, and improve. Each phase is crucial for ensuring a comprehensive and effective learning process, ultimately leading to significant improvements in organisational practices. 

Results

VNG International delivered two-pronged assistance in the programme focus areas. Through supporting partner municipalities of Ozurgeti, Kutaisi, and Bolnisi to effectively evaluate municipal performance and improve public service delivery, as well as support partnership-building process amongst Georgian and Dutch municipalities. And by strengthening NALAG’s capacities to effectively advocate for the legitimate interests of Georgian municipalities through an institutional strengthening plan and trainings.