Quality of local governance in Portugal

Citizens' alienation from politics has been widely documented in most liberal democracies. A large part of the population feels neglected by political power, which is organised in a complex, multi-level system of governance that makes dialogue between voters and their representatives difficult.

By embodying the power that is closest and therefore most accessible to the majority of citizens, local authorities have played a particularly important role in the development of local communities and the democratic consolidation of the country over the last four decades.

Local governance has undergone countless transformations, which have been taking place at different speeds and in different ways, conditioning the performance of the different municipalities with regard to economic, social, cultural and environmental sustainability challenges. Added to this are increase in the powers and responsibilities of municipalities, as a result of decentralisation processes and greater involvement of local governments in development and regional integration processes.

The participation of local governments in a multi-level governance system is an another challenge, as they have not always had an adequate level of autonomy, institutional capacity and financial resources to cope with the new demands of governance.

This study by Fundação Francisco Manuel dos Santos aims to assess the quality of local governance in Portugal's 308 municipalities, using a multidimensional index made up of 22 indicators identified and weighted by a group of experts, and to understand who the main players are and how they interact in local governance networks in terms of economic development, addressing issues such as:

• How local governance networks are structured in terms of economic and social development, through four case studies: Aveiro, Braga, Mirandela and Setúbal
• The most influential players in formulating and implementing these strategies
• The type and intensity of the relationships between the various public and private actors 
• The possible effects of these interactions on the quality of local governance
• The factors that influence the quality of local governance.

Through this study, Fundação Francisco Manuel dos Santos sought to fill the gap in academic research on local governance and, in this way, contribute to a more in-depth understanding of how Portuguese municipalities operate and serve their citizens, allowing for a more informed assessment of the quality of local governance in Portugal and the problems it faces.