Participatory Budgeting Experiences in Venezuela

On July 20-22 there was a conference in Caracas on participatory budgeting experiences in Venezuela, organized by the Centro Internacional Miranda. Some of the powerpoint presentations on the PB processes in different Venezuelan municipalities are now available on the Examples page.

A couple observations of interesting techniques used in the Venezuelan PBs:
- In Iribarren, there is a first round of training and information workshops throughout the city focused on explaining the city budget and the PB process, and *only* those residents who attend the training workshops can participate in the latter rounds of budget deliberation and decision-making. The purpose of this requirement is to ensure that participants are sufficiently informed about the budget before making decisions.
- In Merida and Iribarren, organized community and district walks are designated as a full phase of the PB process, rather than an additional activity. PB delegates and staff spend at least one day visiting potential project sites in their area before proceeding with the budget process.
- Venezuela's newly forming Communal Councils are gradually being incorporated into the PB processes. The councils, which are being organized at the very local neighborhood level, are being used to mobilize PB participation and help identify local needs and projects to propose through the PBs.