Local Self-Government affairs illustrated on the example of Slovenia, Germany and Croatia

Lokalna samouprava ima veliki značaj za cijelu zajednicu, a različite zemlje u Europi zbog svoje veličine, broja stanovnika i ekonomskog statusa imaju različito ustrojene jedinice lokalne samouprave. Čini se da je danas u većini zemalja lokalna samouprava potisnuta, odnosno da je stavljena u drugi plan u odnosu na državu i državnu vlast. Usvajanjem Europske povelje o lokalnoj samoupravi dao se važan poticaj razvoju lokalne samouprave iz razloga najdirektnijeg ostvarivanja prava građana i njihovog sudjelovanja u vođenju javnih poslova na lokalnom nivou. Za kvalitetnu lokalnu samoupravu i rješavanje njenih problema bitan faktor su i same vještine ljudskih resursa koji kreiraju lokalnu politiku i definiraju ključne korake za njezino poboljšanje i napredovanje. Za komparativni prikaz, zbog svoje su specifičnosti lokalne samouprave, odabrane ove dvije države: Slovenija i Njemačka. Tako Slovenija djeluje na principu 212 općina i 11 gradskih općina, dok u Njemačkoj uz općine postoji 295 kotara i 87 nezavisnih gradova.Local self-government is greatly important for the entire community. Due to their size, population and economic status, different European countries have differently organised local self-government units. Nowadays, it seems that in most countries local self-government has lost its significance and taken on a role which is only secondary to that of the state authorities and central government. Adoption of the European Charter on Local Self-government has greatly encouraged the development of local self-government units in terms of citizens’ direct exercise of their rights and their participation in matters of public interest on a local level. For local self-government units to be successful and able to resolve any potential problems, skilled human resources are an invaluable asset in designing local politics and defining crucial steps for improvement and progress. Slovenia and Germany have been selected for comparison due to the specific structure of their local self-government. In Slovenia, there are 212 municipalities and 11 city municipalities, while in Germany, with municipalities, there are 295 districts and 87 independent cities