The INTAMT Academy organized and conducted a professional development tour to Düsseldorf for representatives of local authorities of the Republic of Kazakhstan on the theme of local self-government in Germany. Particular attention was paid to the principle of the separation of powers between the federal government, states and municipalities as well as to the high degree of autonomy of municipalities in Germany as a characteristic feature of the German political system. The affairs of the local community are handled partly as non-mandatory initiatives of the local authorities; while there are mandatory matters that a local authority is under legal obligation to handle. In addition, some federal or Land (state) functions are delegated to urban municipalities and medium-sized towns. The participants of the study tour had to understand the subject of German federalism and gain an overview of functions and responsibilities of local authorities. For the Republic of Kazakhstan, with its strong hierarchical executive structure, the German experience in public governance can give an important impetus for the further development of state administrative structures.
Through firsthand experience and in exchange with their German colleagues – heads of the respective municipal departments – the participants of the Kazakh delegation gained a clear picture about the work of the most important German local authorities. As part of the seminar programme, the Kazakh delegates visited the Main Office and the district government of Düsseldorf, State capital of North Rhine-Westphalia, where they familiarized themselves with the organizational structure of the authorities, their responsibilities, principles of separation of powers at the municipal level, legal framework of the city administration and main elements of the Urban Development Programme 2020. During the visit of the Office of Economic Development in Düsseldorf, the socio-economic reforms of the city of Dusseldorf as well as a legal framework, forms of organization, methods and instruments for fostering entrepreneurship and innovation activities of the city and local authorities were introduced to the Kazakh guests. They also met representatives of the Finance Department to learn how the city budget is formulated and monitored. In addition, the delegates were given the opportunity to become acquainted with the main focus areas and legal regulations in social policy (social allowances for low-income citizens and public-private partnership in the social field) when visiting the Office of Social Affairs. During the visit to the tax office of the district government of Dusseldorf, the Kazakh guests were introduced to the system of municipal supervision and financial control of the local government by the state authorities.
It was not without pride that the participants of the study tour pointed out to their German colleagues the achievements of Kazakhstan in the field of public administration. In terms of digitization of the public sector, Kazakhstan demonstrates even better results than Germany. In general, the professional development tour was an important sharing event enabling German and Kazakh colleagues to exchange their experience and explore opportunities for collaboration and further dialogue.
