Transcript Instrumentos, Métodos y Entoque

Bogota: The (unusual) Politics of
Local Service Delivery
Political Economy of Service Delivery
Fernando Rojas, IDB
IDB-World Bank Joint Seminar
Washington, June 3rd, 2005
Features of Bogota Governance and
Government 1996-2004
Better services
Sound Fiscal Management
Apparent continuity in public policies
Transparency and accountability
Individual leadership at the top
Consolidation of institutional development
Movilization of private sector, civil society
Why Bogota? Why not other cities?
A quick and dirty factor analysis
Not the weak, changing national political and
institutional environment
Not local traditions: Clientelist Local Council;
improperly absorbed migration
Not a booming economy
Not a stimulating decentralization framework
Fiscal consolidation had already started
(1994-1995)
By exclusion:
THE RESIDUAL FACTOR
What was new in
Bogota’s Leadership
Two leadership profiles:
The Doer: mobilization by doing (investing and
improving services)
The Communicator: mobilization by changing
people’s behavior
From abstract, ideal-normative concepts to
internal leverages of individuals
Theory adapted to/at the service of the
changing nature of society
From theory to practice: A new
agenda for citizens’ engagement
Deciphering the changing logics of social struggle in
contemporary megalopolis: not reducible to class struggle
From fragmentation to a common struggle: social groups
empowered to develop new norms of action resulting from the
repeated experience of suffering injustice
The city government as a leading social actor:
raises normative claims against disrespect, lack of recognition
Promotes culture of engagement in order to recover the possibility
of theoretically guided political practice
Communication to promote a (common) construction of a critical
perspective on social structures
Intangible, creative, dispersed, trial/error leadership
How to account for/ensure continuity?
Building upon predecessor’s achievements
An unplanned sequence:
1996-98 From fiscal sustainability path to
communication games for refreshing city
political life and enhancing credibility
1999-01 From communication into action
2002-04 Further institutionalization of a city
that invites culture to nurture common
political agendas
Is Bogota Replicable?
Bogota random sequence indicates need of a
balance between traditional good
management and TGM+communication of
abstract ideals
Bogota exemplifies potential of mega-cities
with little or no social capital
Cloning the leadership factor? Any role for
training in deciphering the logics of social
struggle in fast-growing megalopolis?