1 Sustainable governance 23 January 2005 Joseph Cho-wai Chan Centre for Civil Society and Goverance The University of Hong Kong

2 Trends of governance Emphasis on public participation/civil society Collaborative governance (UK) Community governance (UK, AU, NZ, CA) Sustainable governance (EU) Partnership (UK..) State-society synergy (World Bank) Deliberative democracy (US, UK)

3 Trends of governance in western liberal democracies Reasons: Rolling back the state: neo-conservatism Complexity of cross-cutting social issues Environmental protection, social exclusion, public health, area regeneration, culture and arts development Declining public confidence in representative democracy and political parties Growth of civil society

4 Trends of governance in western liberal democracies The role of the state shifts from that of governing through direct forms of control (hierarchical governance)—”government” to governing via a multiplicity of stakeholders— ”governance” that cuts across the public, private, and voluntary sectors

5 Two roles of government government as provider of funding and specific services focuses on efficiency, value for money, quality, service and effective feedback government as facilitator of collaboration focuses on facilitation, networking, dialogue and participation

6 Challenges of governance in HK Hong Kong faces similar challenges Deficit in finance Deficit in democracy Governability crisis Low trust in politicians and political institutions A highly vocal civil society There is all the more reason for HKSAR to take seriously collaborative governance, particularly in the case of WKCD

7 Principles of governance in WKCD Three principles as stated by the Chief Secretary: “People-oriented” 「以人為本」 “Partnership (with property developers and the cultural sector)” 「建立夥伴關係」 “Community-driven” 「民間主導」

8 What has been done? Government claimed to have done Extensive and open consultation with LegCo and different sectors Careful research/consultancy studies Transparent competition and open tendering See CS’s speech in the LegCo on 26 Nov. 2003

9 Principles of collaboration Inclusion Shared goals Shared “ownership” Open, clear, accessible communication Mutual learning Mutual respect and trust

10 What has gone wrong? Was there genuine sharing of information and mutual learning? Stakeholder workshops or formal public hearing or “consultation sessions”? Did the making of crucial moves (single development package, May 2003) involve the stakeholders? Was there a shared ownership?

11 What can we do? Stakeholders’ workshops (Creative Initiatives Workshop) Leading to the establishment of the Logistics Development Council in Nov An inclusion and consensus building process 79 different companies and organizations participated, including 14 government bureaus/depts The whole process took less than two years ( )

12 What can we do? Three phases Phase I: Preparation Identifying the stakeholder community and forming a small subgroup as executive committee Appoint consultants to do research and lead a one-day workshop Consultants to do personal interviews with stakeholders to identify issues and formulate discussion strategies

13 What can we do? Phase II: A one-day workshop to Define the present situation/need Create a vision for future development Agree on a set of principles to define and implement the vision

14 What can we do? Phase III: Follow-up Send report to government Urge government to commission a consultancy study to identify one or two strategies Public consultation Example: A deliberative opinion poll using the methods of random sampling and focus groups