THE ROLE OF THE ASSOCIATIVE STRUCTURES OF THE LOCAL AUTHORITIES IN THE GOVERNANCE PROCESS

In most countries in the European Union, the associative structures of local authorities were formally recognized in the early 1990s of the last century. Their establishment and strengthening is a process associated with decentralization. The role of associative structures is to facilitate the dialogue between central and local authorities and to contribute to the assertion of local autonomy. The data on the involvement of associative structures of local public authorities in Romania in the governance process shows that they meet the criterion of legitimacy and, to a lesser extent, the criterion of functionality. We are rather seeing a stimulated participation in order to respond to the implementation of a law than a civic involvement in its true sense. The limited performances of the involvement in the governance process are attributed to the socio-political context