Participatory budgeting practices in European countries

Introduction. The relevance of the study is caused by the growing interest in the practices of involving citizens in the budget process in Russia and abroad. In 2017 the project “Development of initiative budgeting in the Russian Federation” was launched. It is being implemented by the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation and the World Bank. More than 50 Russian regions participate in this project today. Since the issue of civic partici­pation in budget allocation is quite new, academic researchers and practitioners are interested in for­eign experience, in particular, in citizen engagement mechanisms used in European countries.  

Materials and methods. The research uses comparative historical analysis and case-study methods. The sources include academic articles, the­matic books and monographs, encyclopedias, official websites, and specialized portals of the Internet en­gagement.  

Results. The historical and political prerequi­sites, which laid the foundation for the development of modern mechanisms of direct democracy in Euro­pean countries, were identified. The most large-scale country cases are characterized. These cases are re­lated to the biggest numbers of implemented projects or the number of citizens who took part in the formu­lation and selection of ideas about local development. Cases of the European capitals from Paris, Madrid, Lisbon and Warsaw are presented. The experience of Russia in this historical context is characterized.  

Discussion and conclusions. The most original approaches that are of interest from the point of view of the citizen engagement procedures or local devel­opment issues are submitted for discussion within the framework of participatory mechanisms revealed. It is shown that the need for direct citizen engage­ment into the budget process is recognized today in different countries.

participatory budgeting, initiative budgeting, citizen engagement, citizen participation, direct democracy, deliberative democracy, participatory management, civil control

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