CUBA - Efficient and Sustainable Municipal Management and Development

The project will promote sustainable local development with a participatory approach and is carried out in co-operation with the Centre for Local and Community Development (CEDEL) of the Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment (CITMA) in Cuba and SALAR through SKL International.

Cuba has for the past decade been undergoing social and economic reform processes where the importance of the local level for achieving sustainable development is increasingly recognized. With the adoption of a new constitution 2019 new local level functions and mandates are created. In this context the project is designed to introduce new methods and tools in decentralised management and local governance as well as demonstrate their practical application.

The project will be implemented in two provinces close to the capital Havana; Artemisa and Mayabeque, with 11 municipalities each. Government officials will receive training in two new capacity building centres that will be put in use in each province. Swedish experts will work with Cuban counterparts from provincial and municipal governments as well as academia to jointly design and implement a training programme for government officials. It is foreseen that the materials and methods will be widely disseminated.

Thematic focus of the trainings will include:

• participatory planning processes, performance measurement including use of statistics and indicators,
• project cycle management,
• municipal management and service delivery, access to information and accountability

Cross-cutting themes including environmental protection and resilience as well as gender equality. The implementation period is ongoing until March 2022