European and Latin American experts discussed decentralisation and territorial equity in a new session of the cycle of Debates "Counterpoints Chile-European Union for the constituent process", organised by the European Union Delegation in Chile, through the EUROsociAL+ Programme, together with Chilean universities.
Foto: Jairo Zambrano
Sandra León, Researcher at the Department of Social Sciences at Carlos III University of Madrid and Karl Kossler, Senior Researcher at the Institute of Comparative Federalism, at EURAC Research in Bolzano, in the context of the Chilean constituent process, stated that a centralised State cannot respond effectively to the most complex problems faced by different territories.
As Kössler explained, in Italy a list of competencies that sub-national governments must possess does not exist, but rather when deciding on the distribution of powers between the different levels it must be sought to strengthen the the State as a whole in its capacity to meet the different challenges they face. To do this, it is very important to consider the necessary resources, as well as coordination mechanisms, seeking to achieve complementarity between the actions of the different levels.
For her part, Sandra León emphasised the importance of collaboration between the different levels. As an example, she spoke of the Spanish Constitution that recognises and guarantees the right to autonomy of the nationalities and regions of which it is comprised, and their solidarity with one another. She also mentioned that the Spanish Constitution raises the need to also provide for the transfer of financial means in each case of devolution of powers.
In their speeches, both highlighted the importance of the framework established by the Constitution, and in particular its central doctrine. At the same time, through her analysis of the processes in Spain and Italy, among other countries, she also demonstrated the importance of public policies and political authorities for achieving more harmonious development through horizontal coordination in each territory. They recognised that there will always be power struggles and that therefore it is fundamental to establish and use formal coordination spaces to develop the necessary trust to be able to work together in the face of complex problems such as COVID-19 and climate change.
In the analysis of European experiences, they recognised that a decentralised State is important in divided societies and argued that through the recognition of the rights of minorities and indigenous peoples such states can facilitate greater peace and development.
At the end of the debate and encouraged by questions from the audience, the experts concluded that decentralisation must incorporate political, fiscal and administrative components, emphasising the need to deepen democratic participation in order to meet citizens’ expectations. They emphasised that, although the precise form that the State takes will depend on the doctrine enshrined in the Constitution, at a minimum it must guarantee the autonomy of sub-national governments, as well as establish mechanisms to facilitate horizontal and vertical coordination between the political authorities as well as the technical authorities in the State.
The cycle of debates under the title “Chilean-EU counterpoints for the constituent process” is organised by the European Union Delegation in Chile, through the EUROsociAL+ Programme, together with LEXEN, the University of Chile’s Inter-faculty Centre for Law, Economics and Business, the University of Santiago’s Centre for Future Studies and the University of Concepción’s European Studies Programme, in association with El Mostrador.
