Money from the Recovery Fund will be used to create a participatory budget information system, according to the ordered issued on Tuesday, the 28th of February.
The Public Relations Office of the Ministry of Environment Protection and Regional Development explains that the order provides for the development of a participatory budget management platform.
It will be open for use for all Latvian municipalities in order to provide residents with an opportunity to observe projects and submit proposals within their respective municipality and Latvia as a whole.
The system will be implemented using EU Recovery Fund’s EUR 630 000. The VAT portion of this amount will be covered from the state budget.
According to VARAM, the Law on Local Governments provides for adoption of multiple resident participation mechanisms in various municipalities, including the aforementioned system. The participatory budget as a voluntary initiative is already used in multiple municipalities, such as Riga and Jelgava, as well as Gulbene, Saldus, Jelgava, Marupe, Olaine, Ropaži, Valmiera and Smiltene.
Starting with the 1st of January 2025, the participatory budget will need to be mandatory in all municipalities.
In order to implement the participatory budget system in all municipalities in Latvia, it is planned to create a special support tool or a participatory budget information system. It will provide an opportunity for all municipalities to organise idea contests in the e-environment, allowing residents to participate.
The information system’s public portion is planned to be connected to Latvija.lv portal for ease of use.
This system will provide residents the opportunity to participate in the budget initiative by submitting suggestions or voting for other projects, as well as study territorial development project examples submitted as part of other participatory budget contests.
The project’s total costs are at EUR 749 070.
Considering the functionality of the participatory budget information system has a direct influence on all municipalities, development and implementation will involve representatives from municipalities, associations and foundations in order to secure the best possible solution for all local governments.
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