Cambodia started building up its governing structures almost from scratch only in 2000. A first decentralisation reform established democratically elected commune councils with the first local elections in 2002. In 2010, the government adopted the first National Programme for Sub-National Democratic Development 2010-2020 to pursue the reform of sub-national administrations at district and provincial level. At present, the decen­tralisation reform is still impeded by inconsis­tencies in different reforms combined with low capacity and lack of resources for sub-national administrations to effectively implement their duties. Sectoral ministries are still reluctant to transfer meaningful functions, while financial resources have been transferred with complicated procedures. The next steps of reform will now focus on strengthening these new sub-national structures with more capacity building and resources, implemented through the 2^nd National Programme for Sub-National Democratic Development 2021-2030. Special attention will be paid to strengthening the coordination of all key reforms at the national level and simplifying relevant procedures for sub-national administrations.

Gender equality remains insufficiently addressed in Cambodia due to a general lack of political attention. Women representation is around 20% in local decision-making bodies and in sub-national administrations. 

The proposed project will be specifically implemented in three provinces of Cambodia, combined with technical assistance to the national level. The three provinces are characterised by high poverty rates and distinct multi-dimensional vulnerability including natural disasters, while the selected sectors (health, water and waste manage­ment) are considered high priorities in demand.

­People living in 36 districts and municipalities in three provinces (Battambang, Banteay Meanchey and Siem Reap), with around 2.76 million inhabitants (53% women).

36 district and municipality administrations and 9,570 public officials (28% female) including councillors, staff of administrative/ sectoral units, ombudsmen offices and one-window service offices.  

Outcome 1: The National Committee for Sub-National Democratic Development uses recommendations prepared by its secretariat for the further implementation of national decentralisation programme.

Outcome 2: Reforms of the One-Window-Service-Offices have been implemented in districts and municipalities in accordance with the requirements of the national decentralisation programme.

Outcome 3: Selected districts and municipalities in the three partner provinces have strategies in place to shape their water and waste management in a climate sensitive way.

Outcome 4: Citizens' access to decision-making processes and complaint mechanisms at the level of districts and municipalities are strengthened.

Principaux résultats attendus:  

·     Conceptual proposals on topics prioritised by the NP-2 related to decentralised functions and sub-national finance are developed and submitted for discussion at the National Committee for Sub-National Democratic Development.

·     Strategy options to strengthen and digitalise service delivery at district and municipal One-Window Service Offices are developed and adopted.

·     Strategy proposals and options for implementing water and waste management at sub-national level are developed by taking into account the aspects of climate sensitivity

District and municipal mechanisms for multi-stakeholder engagement and complaint mechanisms are established and strengthened.

Principaux résultats antérieurs:   Prior to this project, GIZ implemented a similar project on “Decentralisation and Administration Reform”, funded by BMZ. Key results are 1) framework on functional assignment; 2) structure and working procedures of one-window service offices; 3) the district complaint mechanism/ombudsmen offices; 4) leadership capacity and women empowerment of district administrations and councils, and 5) strengthened civil society engagement and partnership with district administration in local governance. Another project implemented by GIZ and co-funded by SDC was on Regional Economic Development. This project has successfully piloted multi-stakeholder engagement mechanisms such as district sub-committees. All of these learnings will be built on through this proposed project.