In 1999, UNCRD began implementing a series of five training courses for the Republic of Chile on "Strategic Management of Urban Systems and Metropolitanization" in collaboration with Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). From 22 September to 3 November 2003, UNCRD conducted the last one in the series with the participation of fourteen mid-level officials from the central and local governments of Chile. With the completion of the fifth course, UNCRD has now trained a total of sixty-four professional staff from central and local governments in Chile during the five-year programme.

Background

The course was originally designed to address the issues and problems caused by overconcentration in the metropolitan areas in Chile, such as traffic congestion, air pollution, surplus solid waste, and underserviced water supply and drainage systems. The course programme has undergone regular restructuring and updating to deal with current issues and techniques, in particular, on the side of urban administration and management. The first course covered general topics of urban problems such as traffic congestion, pollution, and waste disposal. The second course focused on urban transportation, in particular, how to manage sustainable urban transportation systems, while, the third course covered urban environmental management issues which were closely examined to establish a recycling-based society. Then the fourth course dealt not only with urbanization but also the living environment and studied how to secure the five basic principles of the living environment - namely, safety, health, convenience, amenity, and sustainability - in the context of Chilean urban development. As for the fifth training course, which was expected to round off the four previous courses. UNCRD set "sustainable living environment and urban transport system" as its theme so that participants could learn from the Japanese institutions and practical experiences how to establish sustainable living environment improvements and transport systems in consideration of the environment.

Course Programme and Module

The course contents included lectures, field visits, group discussions, and preparation and presentation of action plans. The lectures covered the following modules: (1) overview of sustainable living environment and transport; (2) local autonomy system; (3) urban development and the living environment; (4) urban environmental management; (5) transport and the environment; (6) urban disaster management; and (7) synthesis. Field visits went to Chikusa's comprehensive district development (Nagoya), Tokyo waterfront development, Kurashiki City's historical landscape conservation, Nagoya City's solid waste management, Yokkaichi City's industrial pollution control measures, the Linear Chuo Express project in Yamanashi Prefecture, Kobe City's urban disaster management, and Toyota Motor Corporation's environmental control measures. The participants reviewed the input from these field studies and discussed with UNCRD resource persons various aspects including possibilities and techniques of applying useful measures to the Chilean context.

Achievements of the Course

The fifth training course focused on issues of the living environment and transport. Japan has rich experience in tackling relevant problems, ranging from industrial pollution -- regarded as the price to pay for post-war economically-oriented strategy -- to traffic congestion and other transport problems caused by the current car-dependent society. In the training course, the participants learned from both successful and unsuccessful Japanese cases through lectures, field visits, and group exercises.

As for concept and theory, citizen participation continued to be a major topic for Chilean participants. The importance of citizen participation in administrative management had been well-recognized by former Chilean participants, but a system for putting this new approach into practice has yet to be established. Considering a request from former participants, the course introduced a methodology to promote citizen participation called the Project Cycle Management (PCM) method. The importance of citizen participation was clearly communicated to the participants through field studies as well. Because of the differences in institutions and concepts between the two countries, such an approach will not be directly applied to Chile, however, it may be possible to devise some way to utilize it.

Among the field visit destinations related to the theme of living environment, the participants took great interest in Kurashiki City's efforts to preserve the historical townscape. In Kurashiki, preservation efforts have been made through citizens' initiatives, and this attracted the participants' attention. While Chile possesses quite a few valuable cultural assets, they are being damaged due to a lack of awareness among local people. It was also noted by participants that the Kurashiki City Government plays a vital role in its timely response and support to such citizens' movements. The Government facilitates policymaking, for instance, on the establishment of necessary ordinances, which provided an instructive example for participants to facilitate citizen participation at home.

Concerning the theme of transport, the participants took considerable interest in the Linear Chuo Express project in Yamanashi Prefecture. To promote balanced development in Japan, the Shinkansen ("bullet train") network, was constructed in the 1960s as the main artery of the transport system and railroad networks were developed to support it. However, the overconcentration of functions into Tokyo continues to this day. The development of the Linear Chuo Express network is expected to contribute to easing such traffic concentration. This was a major interest to participants whose country is facing the same problem of overconcentration of functions into the capital, Santiago. Two participants chose the development of an express railroad network as the theme of their action plan. When the plan was introduced during the presentation session, it sparked a heated debate among the participants about its profitability and other aspects. When the plan enters the implementation phase, it will doubtless fuel more heated discussion because it involves huge investment. It is to be hoped that the plan realized after thorough discussion in Chile.

Group and individual action plans were prepared by the participants after analysis and comparison between the above Japanese cases and those of Chile. Each action plan contained a unique proposal to improve each participant's respective administration system by applying knowledge from Japanese cases. They include "Participatory Community Development in Aysen Region," " Construction of an Express Railroad between Santiago and Valparaiso," and "Environmental Improvement in Maule Region."

If the participants share the inputs from the training course with their supervisors and colleagues, it will probably help them better implement their action plans, which, in turn, will contribute to the well-being of local people. For maximum effect, officials should share this kind of information not only within their organizations but also with the general public. Through such an open attitude on the part of the administration citizen participation will surely be encouraged, thereby leading to better public administration. It is to be hoped that participants make efforts to share information and ideas with the general public as well as with their colleagues for the overall improvement of public administration.