Strategic planning at the municipal level: Russian challenges and Nordic practices

Abstract

The aim of the article is to identify challenges for strategic planning at the municipal level in Russia in the light of local self-government practices in the Nordic countries. Data for the study were collected from literature sources, as well as through analysis of legal documents and statistics, participatory observations of Russian municipal practices, and participation in the Presidential Program for the training of young managerial staff for the national economy of Russia in Norway in 2012. Municipal practices in Russia and the Nordic countries are examined and compared, and the problems which hinder the Russian municipalities in the elaboration and successful implementation of strategic plans for their development are indicated. The study reveals that there are two major groups of problems: those that have an institutional origin and those that are related to the economic situation within which the local authorities in Russia must work. It is shown that formal institutions at the national level to stimulate strategic planning at the municipal level – especially, necessary laws and regulations – are lacking. The same applies to informal institutions such as traditions and the culture of strategic planning at the local level. A typical economic situation within which the local authorities have to work is extremely low budget security at the municipal level, which gives rise to the competition for funds from the regional consolidated budget between the regional and municipal administrations, prevents them from being partners in the process of municipal strategic planning. Taking Nordic experiences into account, policy suggestions for the improvement of strategic planning at the municipal level in Russia are made.