Nov 22, 2016 - participatory budgeting, urban road design, civic technologies, municipal finance reforms and solid waste
PRESS RELEASE Bengaluru, 22 November 2016 Janaagraha and British Deputy High Commission conducts 2 day leadership programme for Karnataka Mayors and Councillors Janaagraha Centre for Citizenship and Democracy (Janaagraha) and Jana Urban Space (Jana USP) with the support of the British Deputy High Commission (BDHC), Bengaluru, conducted a two-day city-systems leadership programme for Mayors, Councillors and Administrators of Municipal Corporations in Karnataka on 21st and 22nd November, 2016 in Bengaluru The programme is the first of a proposed series of focused leadership development programmes for leaders of urban local bodies based on systems thinking. Speaking on the idea behind the programme, Srikanth Viswanathan, CEO – Janaagraha said “The systemic challenges in our cities cannot be addressed without focused political leadership. We hope this City-Systems Leadership Programme provides a platform to Mayors, councilors and commissioners to exchange views and opinions and take away elements of systems thinking. Political leadership that is able to apply a systems approach can surmount the challenges facing most of urban India today.” The city-systems leadership programme was attended by 30 participants from cities across Karnataka including Mysore, Vijayapura, Mandya and the SMART cities of Shivamogga and Hubbali-Dharwad, besides Bengaluru. The Mayors of Mysore, Vijaypura were among those participated. Mr B L Byrappa, Mayor, Mysore Municipal Corporation summarized his experience as “The City Systems Leadership program has not only been beneficial but an eye opener too. Janaagraha is taking the initiative to disseminate knowledge which most of elected representatives are not aware of. Such leadership programs should be held periodically not only for Mayors/Councilors but all people's representatives including MLAs. The programme comprised five sessions spread across two days covering city-systems, participatory budgeting, urban road design, civic technologies, municipal finance reforms and solid waste management. The session on municipal finance reforms was conducted by Mr Vara Prasad Reddy, Joint Director of the erstwhile Karnataka Municipal Reforms Cell (now Karnataka Municipal Data Society), which spearheaded landmark accounting reforms in urban local bodies in Karnataka and Mr D G Nagaraj, Health Officer, Mysore Municipal Corporation shared their best practices in solid waste management. The highlight of the City-Systems Leadership Programme however was a role play to illustrate the need for budget preparation to be informed by data and through citizen participation, and site visits to completed and in progress Tender S.U.R.E roads, where participants got an opportunity to understand first-hand the systemic nature of the Tender SURE solution.
Ms Swati Ramanathan, Co-founder, Jana Group and Mr Dominic McAllister, British Deputy High Commissioner in Bengaluru, inaugurated the workshop. On the involvement of the British Deputy High Commission, Mr McAllister said: “Karnataka and Bengaluru’s population is young and increasingly urban. An International Institute for Sustainable Development study indicates that infrastructure development is key to achieving Sustainable Development Goals. Improved infrastructure accelerates growth in manufacturing, reduces costs and supports smart urban development. It also improves the quality of life and prosperity of people. The UK has extensive expertise in urban development and smart cities and wants to work alongside Karnataka as the state government and civil society devise innovative solutions to tackle urban governance issues.”
About Janaagraha Centre for Citizenship and Democracy Janaagraha is a Bangalore based non-profit having the objective of transforming quality of life in India’s cities and towns. Janaagraha was founded in December 2001 as a platform for citizen participation in cities. Today, it works with citizens on catalysing active citizenship in neighbourhoods and with governments to institute reforms to city-systems. About Jana Urban Space Foundation, Jana Urban Space is a Professional Services Social Enterprise (PSSE), delivering transformational, world-class work on the spatial dimension of India's cities. Jana USP has four inter-disciplinary Studios - Urban Planning Studio; Urban Design Studio; Spatial Mapping and Analytics Studio; and Architecture and Design Studio. The multiple studios reflect Jana USP's systems-driven approach to addressing urban spatial challenges. Jana Urban Space is a not-for-profit entity. About British Deputy High Commission The British Deputy High Commission, Bengaluru, is part of the British High Commission network in India, and is responsible for developing strong and lasting relations between the United Kingdom and Karnataka.
For more information contact: Anil Nair – Senior Manager, Janaagraha – 09871916608 Manjunath K S – BDHC - 7259021102
Attached: Photo 1: Participants at the Janaagraha – BDHC Workshop City-Systems Leadership Programme Photo 2: Corporators and Mayors from urban local bodies learning more about the Tender SURE design at St Marks Road.
