Introduction
Participatory Budgeting (PB) is a democratic process that involves citizens directly in local government budgeting and has great potential as an innovation in many challenging policy contexts (UN-Habitat, 2020). It originated in the Brazilian city of Porto Alegre in 1989 (Baiocchi & Ganuza, 2014), and it has since reached more than 3000 institutions worldwide.
Participatory Budgeting is a powerful approach that addresses global challenges such as lack of citizen involvement, exclusivity, lack of transparency, inequitable resource allocation, and marginalization.
To address the challenges, participatory budgeting is one of the many solutions that involve the democratic participation of all members of a community in formulating, executing, and monitoring budget execution based on community priorities (World Bank Manual, 2018, p. 3). This innovative method is especially important for marginalized populations in both developed and developing nations. It empowers these groups to shape government agendas and budget distribution to enhance transparency and efficiency (Shah, 2007, pp. 3-21), gaining recognition from the World Bank and the United Nations Development Program(UNDP) as an effective initiative (Benjamin, 2012).
In this article, I draw insights from seventeen articles spanning five countries to delve into the success and challenges of Participatory Budgeting and its role in accelerating the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
How does participatory budgeting work?
Participatory Budgeting programs operate through a structured democratic process that empowers citizens to engage in decision-making to allocate public funds based on needs. It is more likely to be implemented in a city when four factors are present: the mayor strongly supports it, civil society is willing and able to contribute to ongoing policy discussions, a political environment is generally supportive and can protect the program from attacks by legislators, and there are sufficient financial resources available to fund citizen-selected projects (World Bank Manual, 2018, p. 13) and (Wampler, Brian, 2000). Typically, it involves several stages:
Planning and Design
Initiation: The process often starts with a decision by a local government or organization to implement participatory budgeting.
Outreach and Engagement-First Round of Meeting
The initial phase of participatory budgeting involves steps such as distributing information, initiating policy discussions, designing the process, and selecting representatives (First Round): (refer to Figure 3). There are two types of meetings: Regional Meetings, where the government determines project locations, prepares a Quality-of-Life Index, and shares financial information, and participants hold discussions and analyze it.
The second is Neighborhood Meetings, where government authorities offer technical support, and participants share their priorities (Wampler, Brian, 2000, p. 28); (Blair, 2020, p. 65).
Second Round Regional Meeting
The subsequent round focuses on policy and project selection and the drafting of initial cost estimates for proposed projects, which will be presented by government authorities. Participants engage in debates on the proposed policies and projects and vote on which public works to implement. Resource distribution is determined based on two criteria. Firstly, the Quality-of-Life Index and votes are considered, prioritizing equitable allocation for those in need. The second factor for resource distribution is regional mobilization and deliberation. Organized groups compete, mobilize, negotiate, and discuss within their regions to access available resources (Wampler, Brian, 2000, p. 29).
Project Implementation
The approved project will be implemented with appropriate oversight to ensure it meets the intended goals. In this stage, the government authorities present the technical plan and contracts and oversee the municipal budget and the participants vote for the technical plan and monitor the order of the project implementation.
Merits of Participatory Budgeting
Participatory budgeting programs serve as educational institutions for citizenship and PB boosts public learning and active citizenship, Social Justice, and administrative reform (Wampler, Brian, 2000, p. 49).
Participatory Budgeting boosts public learning and advances Active Citizenship.
Participatory budgeting serves as a catalyst for mutual learning and understanding among diverse stakeholders. Citizen engagement increases as people realize that PB leads to positive changes in policy outcomes in their local community. As participatory budgeting becomes more established, citizens who were initially not involved may become more engaged, recognizing it as an effective way to secure public works or broader social policy changes. It helps to localize the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by increasing citizen participation, improving public services, and reducing inequality. These changes, in turn, promote mutual learning among different actors in a community and increase understanding of the diverse needs of society (UN, 2022) . Professor Schugurensky, in his study find that, PB has increased participants’ knowledge about local governance and budgeting processes, as well as their ability to analyze community needs in Rusafa, a low-income district in Baghdad, Iraq (Schugurensky, 2021).
Participatory Budgeting promotes social justice.
PB helps to narrow down the gap between poor and rich and the distribution of resources usually favors low-income areas. The allocation of resources is determined by the Quality-of-Life Index, which takes into account factors such as income, education, physical infrastructure, and social services provided. (Wampler, Brian, 2000, p. 51). Studies from Indonesia, El Salvador, Brazil, and India show that PB has the potential to promote social justice allowing marginalized groups to participate in the decision-making process and allocate resources toward their needs (Maharjan & Keshav , 2017).
Participatory Budgeting stimulates administrative reform.
To introduce new decision-making processes, changes need to be made to the bureaucracy to align with the new criteria. PB improves communications and establishes a close relationship between participants and the local government. (Wampler, Brian, 2000, p. 53). PB not only enhances the quality of democracy but also improves fiscal efficiency and accountability (Jung, 2022).
Participatory Budgeting improves social accountability.
The effectiveness of PB in achieving its objectives can be evaluated against a set of four goals established by (McNeil & Malena, 2010). These goals include:
- Achieving better governance,
- Empowering poor citizens to take charge of their futures,
- Improving service delivery, and ultimately
- Enhancing citizen well-being through improved health, education, and longevity. In the Indian context, these four goals provide a useful framework for assessing the success of PB.
Participatory Budgeting Accelerating the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Participatory budgeting (PB) plays a crucial role in accelerating progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It achieves this by promoting collaboration in resource allocation,understanding local needs, and linking targets to SDGs through inclusivity, ownership, and community-led solutions. To enhance coordination among goals and their linkages with SDGs, (Le Blanc (2015) emphasizes promoting PB’s multidimensional nature. For instance, inequality is a major obstacle to eradicating global poverty, requiring investment in public goods and services. UN-Habitat and Nobel laureate Joseph Stiglitz stresses that inequality extends beyond income, including education, health, and housing. Participatory budgeting, acting as “citizenship schools,” can narrow this gap, particularly for women and youth (UN-Habitat, 2020, pp. 12-14).
Research shows Participatory Budgeting has strong potential to serve as a tool to address the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). UNDESA network analysis highlights the interconnectedness of SDGs 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 11, 13, 15, and 16 and demonstrates PB’s potential for advancing these goals (UNDESA, 2015). Additionally, other studies confirm Participatory Budgeting’s pivotal role in promoting multiple SDGs, including SDG 1 (No Poverty), SDG 4 (Quality Education), SDG 5 (Gender Equality), SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities), SDG 13 (Climate Action), and SDG 16 (Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions). These impacts are important because they help address the mentioned global challenges in the world in an innovative way.
What problems do countries face during the implementation of PB?
| Countries | ||||
| Brazil | El Salvador | New York USA | Indonesia | |
| Challenges |
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Figure 5: Challenges of PB in high- and low-income countries, compiled by the author.
Conclusion
This article has delved into Participatory Budgeting’s successes and challenges across various countries, emphasizing its role in advancing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). PB is a powerful tool for deepening democracy by empowering citizens in local government budgeting processes. While PB’s potential is recognized by institutions like the World Bank and UNDP, challenges persist, including limited resources, unequal participation, and inadequate training. Nonetheless, PB remains a transformative tool promoting transparency, accountability, and fostering progress towards the SDGs.
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Mustafa Rezaie is a Rotary Peace Fellow and holds a Master’s degree in the International Development Policy program from the Sanford School of Public Policy at Duke University. He has over 10 years of experience in professional development, program evaluation and financial management. He has been working to improve local economic development in local communities in conflict zones.