Integrating the competencies from each sector thus forms the basic rationale for partnering. When these attributes and competencies are considered in relation to a municipality's core objectives, it is possible to see the very different contributions the organisations from different sectors can best make towards each objective. Box 6.25 provides a basic framework that enables a municipality to consider the specific competencies, attributes and capabilities of potential partners in relation to municipal objectives (illustrated in Chapter 3 and discussed in detail in Chapter 7), and to see that a combination of these core competencies is likely to get much closer to fulfilling these objectives than if any one of these partners acted alone. A municipality can therefore begin to design a contextually specific partnership based on the assets that each partner brings to the table.
As we have seen, economic and financial objectives can be largely solved through the inclusion of the private sector's core competencies. The private sector brings a focus on efficiency, profit and programme to the partnership, and it is concerned with maintaining its comparative edge and business reputation. At the same time it may have access to capital assets, is often able to mobilise capital, and focuses on financial viability at the outset and throughout the process. Its very presence, as we have seen, promotes confidence for investment and donor support (and vice versa). An NGO, on the other hand, through its ideology and work practices is often less concerned with economic realities and is rarely able to raise the kind of capital needed for network services. Municipalities need massive organisational and management restructuring and skills development to create commercial operations that enable them to meet these economic and financial objectives, and in so doing become quasi-private entities.25
Yet when the focus shifts to political objectives, the municipality itself holds most of the cards for meeting them, through an ultimate power of veto and control over the allocation of resources, and the ability to convene stakeholders. To some degree they can be supported by NGOs, who are able to mobilise community support by building awareness and understanding of the benefits of particular approaches. One of the great attributes of the private sector is often its ability to sidestep unwanted political interference.
In relation to social objectives, NGOs have detailed knowledge of the poor and vulnerable groups, experience in delivering services to low-income areas, and an understanding of demand-led participatory processes. They also have a reputation for justice and equity, and their established relationships with poor communities often facilitate community understanding and ownership of delivery mechanisms. While municipalities will have varying degrees of experience (often dependent on the strength of the NGO sector), the private sector has rarely developed this experience. Despite private sector protestations that it can simply develop the skill, evidence suggests that civil society organisations can assist in mediation and are central to the success of community mobilisation.
Municipal institutional and environmental objectives cover a variety of issues, and each sector has a fundamental role in their fulfilment. The municipality itself offers important capacities in meeting institutional objectives: without its political will and its role as the champion of change, it is unlikely that a reform process can be initiated. To municipal capacity building, the private sector contributes a focus on effective management and coordination, and often, knowledge- transfer skills, while the NGO partner might contribute to the institutional objectives by building the capacity of community organisations.
All these objectives contribute to more effective service delivery. However the most explicit municipal objective is often to improve the quality, reliability and sustainability of services. While municipalities have a competency in this area, the rapid deterioration of urban infrastructure in developing countries points towards greater need. Together with the efficiency focus described above, the private sector brings specialised skills and knowledge, new technologies and advanced management approaches. In many situations, the NGO sector will bring experience of delivering tertiary-level services and a focus on sustainability. These competencies should then be supported by municipalities, allowing them to focus their attention on legal issues such as the resolution of property rights and the regularisation of informal providers.
Yet despite the generic validity and usefulness of this framework, in practice it is important to recognise that since municipal objectives are diverse and the core competencies of partners will vary in any given context, the allocation of roles may create partnerships with very different structures and sectoral arrangements. Municipalities should not be trying to commit the private sector or NGOs to specific predetermined roles, but instead they should look at the comparative assets of the actors available, and allow the boundaries between actors to shift in relation to competencies. The core competencies framework is a very helpful starting point in establishing where these attributes lie.