Now that the core team has evaluated their strengths and weaknesses, as well as where they might require external support, consider the budget necessary to implement the feedback loop. Depending on the local context, it may be easiest to work with the local council to allocate – as part of the budget – a general budget line item for “citizen engagement.” This can become a standard practice for every budget cycle and will raise awareness of the resources available for this type of participation.
But how much to ask for? Consider the following groups of costs:
- Salaries and materials: This includes the salaries of team members and local authority staff who will implement or support activities, costs for materials needed for data collection (printed forms, a drop box to return forms, computers or software to analyze data collected), and any other supplies or expenses that may be incurred in the process of implementing activities. Regarding salaries, while local authority elected officials and staff are already remunerated for their work, additional remuneration or overtime may be required under local labor laws.
- Travel costs: Will the team need transportation to rural or outlying neighborhoods or communities within the jurisdiction of the local authority? Can you use a personal vehicle (if you have one) to get there (and will the cost of gas be reimbursed)? Or will you need a ferry or other specialized transportation?
- Meeting and convening space: Outreach, dialogue and codesign sessions will likely involve in-person meetings or convenings. If privacy is a concern, reserving a dedicated conference room may be necessary. Does the local authority have dedicated local spaces, such as halls of culture, community centers or rooms in city hall, where these meetings can take place? If not, you may need to rent them for a fee. You may also need to provide a coffee/tea break, in which case a small catering budget will be needed.
- External expertise and support: The core team may decide to recruit external support to implement parts of the feedback loop. This could include a grant to a local CSO to conduct outreach and surveys of a particular community. It could also include hiring a consultant enumerator or data analyst to perform the work of tallying and analyzing data collected and sharing a report with the local authority.
In addition, you may need to hire translation services to reach residents who speak different languages (such as migrants) or engage with a media company to air an advertisement or spot via radio and television. - Accommodations and accessibility: Reasonable accommodations should be accounted for in your budget – for example, access to childcare, interpreters to different languages, including sign language, transportation and accessibility to the venue for persons with disabilities. Time of day and location should also be considered, as it impacts who will be available to attend meetings.
The goal of accommodation is to reduce barriers to broad participation. Also, consider the economic or financial barrier to participating: if you are asking a particular community to meet with you (in a focus group or hearing, for example), can you offer incentives (to offset their costs of attending), such as childcare services or reimbursements for travel expenses or time away from work?52
Next, consider any approvals or procurement processes you need to follow to secure these resources. Do you need further approval from local leadership to give you an operating budget for this activity? Do you need to issue a competitive public procurement process to recruit interpreters, rent meeting space or print needed materials? Be sure to get these approvals ahead of time to avoid slowing you down or halting the process – this is where buy-in can be useful.