City councils as a local governance model: The Example of Kütahya city council

With the new governance approach, a participation-based governance approach was adopted and thus, an accountable, transparent and auditable governance process was initiated. City councils are involved in the local governance process and exist as an effective mechanism for the realization of governance. The concept of governance, which aims at a multi-actor management structure, is based on the phrase "a sustainable world". Local Agenda 21s were established in line with the 28th chapter of Agenda 21, which emerged as a result of the 1992 Rio Earth Summit. Then, at the HABITAT II Summit, states decided to implement Local Agenda 21 in their countries. Following these developments, city councils were formed in Turkey. Although city councils have continued to exist under different names in Turkey, their establishment became mandatory in 2006, in accordance with Article 76 of the Municipality Law, after they took their place on a legal basis following the Municipality Law No. 5393 and the City Council Regulation. The study consists of three parts. In the first part, the concept of governance, which is closely related to the City Council, is emphasized. In the second part, the subjects of the City Council, the historical process and structure of the City Council, the City Council Regulation, Agenda 21 and Local Agenda 21 are included. In the third part, an interview was conducted with Kütahya City Council Executive Board Members within the framework of questions prepared in line with local governance. In this regard, the aim of the study is; The aim is to discuss city councils, which are one of the implementation tools of local governance in Turkey, within the framework of the Kütahya City Council.