Report when there is something to share or at regular and reasonable intervals (such as every three or six months or annually). Do NOT wait for elections – one of the central recommended practices and lessons learned from Listen, Respond, Report processes is that voters appreciate hearing from their elected officials between elections. Keep in mind that sharing good news is not always necessary, but you should be prepared to show the public that you prioritize their needs and are making progress. Relatedly, be prepared to explain why progress is slow if that is the case.
Refer back to the timelines (listed in Annex IV) from local authorities in Moldova. Within one month after receiving survey results, Moldovan teams will distribute results letters to members of the public. After two to four months, the core team, including the mayor, will convene again to discuss the implementation of their strategy, identify tangible progress and prepare an initial report to the public. This initial report (an intermediate letter about results) to the public will be issued after four and no later than six months. After another four to six months, or at a key moment in the year (end of the calendar or fiscal year, for example), the core team will reconvene to identify tangible progress and issue another report. If the core team had achieved the result earlier (in two months, for example), then they would report on progress at that time.
Try to align the local authorities’ updates with natural moments in the calendar, as well as their existing patterns of communication and outreach. Does the local authority issue a monthly newsletter? Perhaps the start or end of the school year or just before summer or winter holidays are traditional moments to reflect on the past year or months or to look ahead. The end of the calendar year (or the fiscal or budget year, if it is not the same as the calendar year in your country) is a natural time to report on the year’s progress and look ahead at plans for the coming year. Feel free to leverage regular administrative reporting schedules. For example, does the local authority issue a mid-year report on budget expenditures?
Some common benchmarks that you can leverage in your communications:
- 100 days – This is a famous, if early, benchmark (with its origins in the rapid actions and legislation put forward by the first administration of U.S. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt). While likely too early for a local authority to complete its objectives, 100 days offers a clear moment to report on initial steps taken and progress, including an assessment of vendors or bids to implement work. One hundred days is approximately three or four months – this aligns with the experience of Moldovan mayors, councilors and their teams and their preferred reporting schedules.
- Six months – This marks a reasonable halfway point through the year and should be paired with an annual update from the local authority on progress. In addition, it marks a natural moment when the local authority should have some sense of how budget implementation is working: Are we on track to overspend? Are local revenues on track to be higher or lower than last year? Have big events at the national or regional level caused us to rethink and change course?
- One year – The end of the year (the fiscal year or the calendar year, if different) is an essential moment for the local authority to take stock and report to the public on progress. It can accompany and complement any number of official local government documents: an annual audit, the report on budget expenses and revenues from last year, this year, or next year, or the performance reports of various local agencies and departments to the mayor’s office or local council.
Is it customary for the mayor to provide an end-of-year report to the local council or national ministry, or to send a friendly annual message or summary to residents? Can this customary message be expanded to provide small updates on key local priorities, or should a whole separate event (a town hall, a district meeting, or similar gathering) be organized?