Interaction Between Citizens and the Local Administration in the Slivo Pole Municipality via Electronic Communication Channels

The project will be carried out by the Web Shelf Foundation, in partnership with the Open Society Club Ruse and the Slivo Pole Municipality. The goal of the project is to enhance the monitoring and assessment of policies carried out in the Slivo Pole Municipality (LAU 2 level), as well as to enable increased participation of the civil society in the local administration process. The Project envisages research and analysis activities for determining the current level of public knowledge of – and trust in – the Slivo Pole Municipality among key groups such as businesses, NGOs, citizens, administration officials, and municipal councillors. The accent of the research will be on the information value and feedback capabilities of the electronic communication channels (website and Facebook page) of the Slivo Pole Municipality; on the current needs for providing e-services by the Municipality, including electronic application for administrative services; and last but not least, on feedback regarding policies planned by the Municipality. The project plan also includes examination of two subjects: the official internet portals of small municipalities in Bulgaria offering electronic services, as well as the official Facebook profiles of small localities in the Ruse and Silistra districts. Following an assessment of the research results, suggestions will be made to the Slivo Pole Municipality for reformulating certain policies, including improvement of the environment for civil participation in the municipality administration process. The project activities will also include improving the communication skills of the employees in the municipal administration of Slivo Pole and of local mayors in the Slivo Pole municipality. The improvement will focus on: online communication; creating official Facebook pages of each locality, aimed at replacing the now obsolete wired loudspeaker network but with a feedback option; and a wide information campaign for publicizing the results.

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