Areas of expertise and examples of projects
Good Governance is key for a democratic government system and GG was addressed in several WB projects in the Middle East working with transparency and accountability. In Libya a project with Tripoli and Banghazi local councils worked with municipal visioning and peer to peer learning was established with the government institutions from Turkey, Lebanon and Tunisia. This way officials form Libyan ministries and local councils got a first hand impression from the other three countries on such issues as local governance, public participation and municipal management.
Sustainable financing for local service delivery is key when building up a local government system. In Bhutan Mr. Bottern developed the Municipal Finance Policy in a participatory process with all stakeholders as part of Danish support. The MFP is now under implementation.
In 2020 PWB Consult and Oxford Policy Management conducted a Global Evaluation of the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs' (SECO) projects within Public Financial Management, which also dealt with some municipal PFM projects..
Development of infrastructure for municipal service delivery is another key issue for municipal development. In Saudi Arabia support was provided to institutional and organizational development of key government institutions for urban development in a World Bank/Saudi Arabia project. Likewise with the WB, Mr. Bottern worked with support to institutional and organizational development to sustain municipal infrastructure development.
Conducting evaluations is crucial to understand interventions and their results. With Adam Smith International, the MTR of the British support to federalism in Nepal was carried out in 2025. Appraisals facilitate that designs and learnings are incorporated in new programmes as during preparations of Danish Partnership Programmes in India and Colombia and the appraisal of the Danish support to C40 in 2025 (DKK 100 million).
Areas of Expertise and Examples of Projects
Local development plans with participatory planning processes to select key investments are highly needed. In Nicaragua, as part of a Danida project, Mr. Bottern lead the development of a system, where local leaders consulted in their communities and presented community needs to the municipal council. Thereafter all information was compiled into municipal draft development plans, which were consulted in public meetings.
Gender mainstreaming is a part of any project to ensure that men and women are addressed properly. Mr Bottern has in such countries as Bolivia, Nicaragua, Palestine, Uganda, Sierra Leone and Tanzania worked to ensure proper participation of women and youth in local planning processes. An example is strengthening inclusive planning processes in small fragile communities in a project financed by AFD (France) on the West Bank.
Addressing Climate Change is essential with the more extreme weather conditions we are facing. Local governments are in the forefront for mitigation and to address some of the consequences. CC needs to be considered in any project, and particular actions were for example incorporated in a project in Palestine, financed by AFD, to support village councils. In 2026, on Solomon Island PWB Consult continues providing support to the implementation of the Local Climate Adaptive Living Facility (LoCAL) in all 9 provinces.
To improve living condition and combat poverty systems are needed to finance, maitain and deliver municipal services. In Saudi Arabia financing of public services (waste management, public spaces and facilities) were analysed and a proposal for their financing discussed as part of a World Bank/Saudi Arabia project. Similar analysis have been carried out in other countries e.g. in Sierra Leone, when the Fiscal Decentralisation Strategy and its proposals for financing of services through sector grants was assessed.