Over the past few months, Apache has surveyed all 285 Flemish towns and municipalities via an online questionnaire regarding the implementation of the so-called Article 304 of the Local Government Decree. Around seven in ten municipalities took the trouble to complete the questionnaire. For those municipalities that did not participate voluntarily, Apache sought out the answers itself.
The results show that 58 of the 285 Flemish towns have no participation or internal regulations setting out the conditions under which questions and proposals can be added to the municipal council agenda. Currently, 17 local authorities are working on drafting such regulations. This means that, as things stand, citizens in around a quarter of Flemish municipalities are unable to speak at municipal council meetings. However, this opportunity for participation is a statutory obligation.
Apache examines the issue in a three-part series, with the first part presenting the results of a data analysis and barriers identified by experts. The second part explores the experiences of a critical citizen in a municipality without regulations, whilst the third part focuses on inspiring examples and challenges.
The online survey was conducted using ParticipAid, a tool developed by the Urban Journalism Network and supported by a previous Journalismfund Europe grant (CB Local).
The journalistic investigation was supported by the Pascal Decroos Fund and carried out as part of the Georges Timmerman Fellowship.
