The Macedonia Local Government Activity (MLGA) is a four-year project (2007 – 2011) funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and implemented by ARD, Inc. The successful decentralization of government authority and general good governance practice is a US foreign policy priority and a key element of USAID Macedonia’s Strategy. 

Building on the previous USAID achievements in the area of decentralization, the MLGA is aimed at assisting the Macedonian municipalities through 1) support of the development of the intergovernmental finance system, 2) improving municipal financial management capacities, 3) strengthening the creditworthiness of municipalities to enable municipal infrastructure investments, 4) improving tax and fee collection at local level, 5) helping municipalities stimulate local economic development, and 6) increasing local government transparency and accountability.

MLGA works in close cooperation with ZELS. MLGA efforts are guided by a well-designed implementation strategy that involves identification and replication of best municipal management practices developed by some of the leading municipalities in Macedonia.  MLGA focuses on critically important local government operational areas. Following are the major targets of MLGA effort with municipalities over the life of the project:

• Improved decentralization policy framework.
• Enhanced municipal financial management.
• Improved municipal capacity for capital improvement planning & municipal investment.
• Increased municipal “own source” revenues.
• Business climate improved for local economic development.  
• Increased municipal transparency and accountability.

Within the current context and the overall project mission, the USAID Macedonia defined three primary objectives for the MLGA:

1. Municipalities have increased financial management capacity and accountability, and as such: a) are eligible to continue to “Phase II” and b) to borrow from private credit markets;

2. Municipalities are increasingly capable of generating own-source revenues and are decreasingly dependent on central government transfers; and

3. Municipalities are increasingly transparent and accountable to citizens regarding local government finances and decision-making.

In order to efficiently achieve these USAID specified objectives, MLGA has designed an implementation approach and strategy that uses integrated, cross-cutting, state-of-the-art project activities. These project activities comprehensively and effectively focus USAID project resources on advancing the decentralization and local government support policies of Macedonia.

The MLGA continuously monitors and evaluates the progress of the various activities and their impact against a set of related performance indicators. In addition, the specific improvements in the municipal capacity to perform their functions as a result of the project activities are assessed by a revised Municipal Capacity Index (MCI).