Urban GovernanceAsia is urbanizing rapidly; in just five years, half of Asia’s population will live in cities. The governance challenges accompanying this shift are enormous, including the need to provide services to a growing population, generate revenue to address citizens’ needs, and create a resilient urban system that can mitigate the effects of climate change and natural disasters. The Asia Foundation is helping countries to meet these challenges through urban governance programming in three strategic areas: equitable access to services; revenue generation; and urban resilience.

In recognition of the key role that cities play in Asia’s development, The Asia Foundation estab-lished the Urban Governance Initiative in April 2014. Economic growth in Asia is led by cities, and yet challenges associated with rapid urbaniza-tion, including congestion and corruption, have the power to curb this growth. Good municipal governance is an essential element in supporting inclusive and sustainable development.

The Urban Governance Initiative builds on 60 years of work by the Foundation in local and municipal governance, politically informed approaches to programming, and urban resilience. The Founda-tion uses a collaborative approach to improve the governance of cities through the concurrent engage-ment of government and civil society: we help urban residents advocate for their needs and support municipal and national governments to recognize and provide for those needs.

The Foundation’s Urban Governance Initiative focuses on three key programming areas:1. Equitable access to public services, to help cities to meet the needs of their residents in an inclusive and participatory manner; 2. Revenue generation, to help cities raise revenue to meet the demands on infrastructure and public services associated with

a growing population; and; 3. Urban resilience, to enable cities prepare for climate change and natural disasters through effective planning.

EQUITABLE ACCESS TO PUBLIC SERVICES

As cities grow in population and wealth, the burden on services increases. Local governments and municipal service providers can be ill equipped to work with residents and civil society organiza-tions to meet this growing demand in an inclusive fashion. To ensure more equitable distribution of resources in cities, the Foundation develops collab-orative approaches between citizens and municipal governments, and invests to build new capacity and political will to reform outdated practices. In Mongolia, Cambodia, and the Philippines, the Foundation works with city governments to reform and modernize their service delivery systems. This includes engaging poor and marginalized citi-zens in planning processes to better understand their needs and the most appropriate delivery mechanisms for providing essential services. Where appropriate, Information and Communications Technology for Development (ICT4D) approaches are used to help citizens define and express their needs. ICT4D also helps government better under-stand and respond to these needs

URBAN GOVERNANCE

The density and dynamism of cities present opportuni-ties for improved

development outcomes.

Innovative approaches to data

collection and analysis are helping

policy makers, city planners,

and communities better plan for their

city’s future.

Programming advantages can be derived from the fact that cities are centers of

technology usage and innovation, have substantial private sectors, and benefit

from economies of scale.

ASIA FOUNDATION URBAN GOVERNANCE PROGRAMMING

Dhaka Metropolitan Policing

Good Governance and Climate Change AdaptationCivil Society Initiative Against Poverty

Improving Service Delivery in Jaipur through Enhanced Civic Engagement

Community Policing in Ger AreasStrengthening Citizen Voice and Public Accountability ProgramCoalitions for Change - Strategic Partnership

BANGLADESH

BANGLADESH

INDONESIA

INDIA

Safetipin: Mobile Application on Women’s SecurityINDIA

MONGOLIA

PAKISTAN

PHILIPPINES

PHILIPPINESREGIONAL

PHILIPPINES

COMPLETED PROJECTS

Transparent, Accountable Governance

Anti-Corruption in Luzon and VisayasAccess to Justice for the Poor in Urban Development

Dhaka North and South City Corporation Electionskkahaka North and SouandBANGLADESHTannery Shifting ProjectnneBANGLADESH

Urban ServicesUrba Services ProjectCAMBODIAMyCityINDIAOpenWorkssWWOINDIA

Safety and Security of Women in Urban SpacesWINDIA

Urban Services ProjectMONGOLIAUlaanbaatar Economic Strategy DevelopmentMONGOLIA

Local Economic GovernanceSRI LANKA

Low Carbon Industrial ZonesVIETNAMDeveloping a Comparative City Resilience Index for VietnamVIETNAM

Local Governance Action ResearchNEPAL

ONGOING PROJECTS

REVENUE GENERATION

Municipal governments are often unprepared for the increased demands and complex needs of a growing population. City governments can strug-gle with equitable service delivery, employment generation, and sustainable economic develop-ment. A significant challenge is cities’ reliance on central government transfers, which can fluctuate. Asia Foundation programs in countries such as Sri Lanka help cities to increase their capacity to generate their own revenue streams. This enables municipal governments to better serve current resi-dents, while planning more effectively for urban growth.

URBAN RESILIENCE

People are increasingly concentrating in urban environments that are vulnerable to natural disas-ters and exposed to climate change hazards such as sea-level rise and flooding. Those who lack secure land tenure are particularly vulnerable, as informal settlement areas are among the most precarious and exposed to climate change hazards. New approaches to resettlement, land-use planning, and economic growth that bolster urban resilience are necessary. The Foundation works with citizens, government, and the private sector to conduct multi-stakeholder dialogues around environmen-tal hazards and to facilitate the development of workable policies and plans. In countries such as Vietnam and the Philippines, the Foundation is working directly with communities and munici-pal governments to forge joint disaster risk management plans.

PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS

INDIA: MY CITY

The Foundation’s India office has been working with local partner CUTS to improve the quality of services provided by urban government and en-hance citizens’ engagement with municipal coun-cilors in selected wards of Jaipur, Rajasthan. Under the project, CUTS developed a Public Services Index (PSI) to generate ward-level report cards of urban services provided by the Jaipur Municipal Corporation in 16 wards across the city. Citizen report cards were also utilized to gather feedback from citizens on the status and quality of services. Additionally, community meetings with service providers were organized to resolve specific urban service delivery issues. CUTS is also now work-ing to develop a first of its kind forum for mayors in the state of Rajasthan to share experiences and discuss issues and challenges in urban governance.

VIETNAM: DISASTER RISK MANAGEMENT AND RESILIENCE

While most disaster risk management (DRM) pro-grams focus on building government capacity or reducing risks to vulnerable populations, The Asia Foundation’s Vietnam office is collaborating with the private sector to harness their networks, out-reach, and resources in support of urban resilience. This unique DRM program has trained more than 2,000 managers and CEOs representing roughly 900 small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in 19 provinces on disaster risk management. The project develops a broader DRM-focused corporate social responsibility dialogue and best practice guidance on philanthropic giving related to natural disasters and community resilience, while disseminating best disaster response practices of companies and local communities as the basis for sustainable public-private efforts over the long term. Research on public private partnerships, risk assessment, and business continuity planning as tools in institu-tionalizing DRM. The Foundation is currently in the process of scaling this project regionally in South and Southeast Asia.

MONGOLIA: IMPROVING URBAN SERVICES IN THE GER DISTRICTS

The Asia Foundation has been working in part-nership with the city government of Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia to improve urban governance and service delivery in the ger areas—large unplanned settle-ments characterized by traditional nomadic homes (gers), limited infrastructure, poor sanitation, and a high proportion of the city’s poor residents. This work has included a first-ever community mapping process that used local volunteers to gather informa-tion about service delivery in 11 ger khoroos (sub-districts). When analysis from the initial pilot was presented at a high-level event with City Leadership early in 2013, the Mayor directly requested that the process be scaled up to map services across all ger area communities, 87 khoroos with more than 700,000 residents. The city contributed significant human resources to the project, more than 70 city administration staff participated in the data col-lection process, and the Foundation managed data entry, analysis, and production of the final maps. Community maps have resulted in more informed budget allocations: the city used the community maps to facilitate its first participatory budget-ing sessions in November 2013, and the mayor has since committed to using them for targeting improvements at the local level to avoid duplication and to help address critical needs of citizens.

The Asia Foundation

is a nonprofit international

development organization

committed to improving

lives across a dynamic

and developing Asia.

Headquartered in San

Francisco, The Asia

Foundation works through

a network of offices in 18

Asian countries and in

Washington, DC. Working

with public and private

partners, the Foundation

receives funding from a

diverse group of

bilateral and multilateral

development agencies,

foundations, corporations,

and individuals.

H E A D Q U A R T E R S465 California Street, 9th FloorSan Francisco, CA 94104 USATel: (415) 982-4640Fax: (415) 392-8863info@asiafound.org

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