CI T IES’ PARTNERSHIP I NI TI ATIV E S U S TA I N A B L E D E V E LO P M E N T OF POLISH CITIES CI T IES’ PARTNERSHIP I NI TI ATIV E S U S TA I N A B L E D E V E LO P M E N T OF POLISH CITIES IN AREAS OF D I G I TA L , G R E E N INFRASTRUCTURE AND PPP S O LU T I O N S FINAL REPORT This report has been drawn up by the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank. Any findings, interpretations, and conclusions presented in this document do not necessarily reflect the views of the World Bank executive direc- tors or governments which they represent. The World Bank does not guarantee the accuracy of data contained in this document. This Report has been drawn up under the Agreement to Provide Consulting Services for the Sustainable Urban Development – Cities’ Partnership Initiative Project. The agreement was con- cluded between the Ministry of Development Funds and Regional Policy of the Republic of Poland and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development on January 28, 2022. This Report is Product 3: Final Report for the agreement named above. Cover design: Piotr Ruczyński, Londyn, Wielka Brytania Wojciech Wołocznik, Cambridge, Wielka Brytania Layout design and typesetting: Piotr Ruczyński, Londyn, Wielka Brytania CONTENTS Acknowledgments   7 Abbreviations and Acronyms   9 1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY   10 The Project’s Objective and Key Elements   1.1  11 Three Streams of Work: Digital, Green, and PPP  1.2  14 CPI Outputs and Outcomes: Municipal Action Plans, 1.3 Improvement Plans, and a Community of Urban Practitioners   15 Selected Findings and Observations From the Thematic 1.4 Networks   16 Digital City Network  1.4.1   17 PPP Network  1.4.2   20 Green City Network  1.4.3   22 Improvement Plans and Selected Challenges 1.5 and Recommendations    24 Insights From the Digital Network Improvement Plan  1.5.1   25 Insights From the PPP Network Improvement Plan  1.5.1   27 Insights from Green City Network Improvement Plan  1.5.3   28 Key Observations and Recommendations for the CPI Design   1.6  30 2 ACTIVITIES IN THE THREE THEMATIC NETWORKS   32 Digital Network   2.1   34 Introduction to the Work of the Network — “Why?”   2.1.1   34 Synthetic Description of Cities and the CPI’s Work  2.1.2   36 Description of the MAP Digital Network   2.1.3   41 Lessons learned from MAP and Working with Cities   2.1.4   41 Next Steps   2.1.5   50 PPP Network  2.2   51 Introduction to the Network: The “Why?”  2.2.1   51 A Brief Description of the CPI Cities and Activities  2.2.3   52 Description of MAPs of the PPP Network  2.2.3   55 Lessons Learned from MAPs and Work With Cities Within the CPI   2.2.4  56 Next Steps  2.2.5   65 Green Network  2.3   67 Introduction to the Network: The “Why?”  2.3.1   67 A Brief Description of the CPI Cities and Activities  2.3.2   68 Description of MAPs for the Green Network  2.3.3   70 Conclusions from MAPs and Work with CPI Cities   2.3.4   70 Further Steps  2.3.5   75 3 IMPROVEMENT PLANS    77 Digital Network Improvement Plan  3.1   79 Challenges   3.1.1   80 Proposals for Solutions  3.1.2   83 Funding Needs   3.1.3   90 Pilots  3.1.4   91 Improvement Plans for the PPP Network  3.2   96 Challenges  3.2.1   97 Proposed Solutions  3.2.2   97 Financing Needs   3.2.3   100 Pilots  3.2.4   101 Improvement Plan for the Green Network  3.3   105 Challenges  3.3.1   105 Proposals/Recommendations of Solutions  3.3.2   110 Financing Needs  3.3.3   120 Pilots  3.3.4   121 4 BEST CPI PRACTICE: B2B OR “BURMISTRZ TO BURMISTRZ” (MAYOR TO MAYOR)    124 Digital Network  4.1   125 PPP Network  4.2   126 Green Network  4.3   128 5 CONCLUSIONS   130 Annex 1  MAP Description: Digital Network   135 Annex 2  MAP Description: PPP Network   160 Annex 3  MAP Description: Green Network   179 Annex 4  Recommendation Bank: Digital Network   194 Annex 5  Recommendation Bank: PPP Network   214 Annex 6  Recommendation Bank: Green Network   222 BOXES 2.1  Digital Network Products with Potential to Scale xoB 3.4  Contribution of the Cities of the PPP Network to xoB in Poland   38 the Draft Update of the PPP Policy    99 2.2  City Information Architecture   xoB  42 3.5  Selected Lessons from EU Countries Implementing xoB 2.3  Models of Processes Implemented by Cities   xoB  44 Clustered PPP Projects   103 2.4  Digital Solutions for Utility Consumption xoB 3.6  Regional PPP Competence Centers in Germany  xoB  104 Management in Public Buildings    46 3.7  Examples of Solutions Applied in Poland to Raise xoB 2.5  Robotic Process Automation (RPA)    46 Private Funds for the Implementation of Urban Green Investment Projects   110 xoB 2.6  Main Substantive Challenges in the PPP Network   58 3.8  IGNITION — Attracting Private Funds to GI Projects   112 xoB 2.7  Sets of Benefits from NBS, Identified by the Green xoB 3.9  NBS in PPP projects — Climate Toolkit for xoB Network Cities During Workshop Sessions   71 xoB Infrastructure PPPs    116 2.8  Subjects of Selected Local Study Visits 3.10  Monetization of Ecosystem Services: Green xoB of the Green Network   73 xoB Benefit Planner    119 3.1  The Vision of Digitization Realized in Estonia 4.1  Conclusions for Cities that Plan PPP Projects, xoB and its Results    83 xoB Based on Lessons Learned from the PPP Network    126 3.2  Model Solution for Citizen Data Management 5.1  Opinions of CPI Cities Regarding the CPI Alumni xoB (Estonia)    87 xoB Initiative    133 3.3  Proposal for a Center for Testing Digital Solutions xoB for the LGUs    92 FIGURES 1.1  CPI: The Project’s Main Elements  e r ug i F  13 2.2  Maturity Curve of PPP Projects  e r ug i F  54 1.2  CPI: Role Division  e r ug i F  13 2.3  PPP Project Preparation Phases  e r ug i F  56 1.3  Cities Participating in the CPI  e r ug i F  14 2.4  Expectations of PPP Network Participants in the e r ug i F 2.1  Number of Concluded PPP Contracts in CPI program and Types of Effective Meetings That Were Designed to Meet These Expectations   63 e r ug i F 2009 – 2022 in Poland   51 TABELS 1.1  CPI Meetings (February 2022 – March 2023)  e l ba T  16 2.8  Composition of the Green Network   e l ba T  69 1.2  MAP Topics in the Digital Network   e l ba T  18 2.9  MAPs’ Theme of the Green Network Cities  e l ba T  69 1.3  MAP Topics in the PPP Network  e l ba T  20 2.10  Schedule of Green Network Meetings  e l ba T  70 1.4  MAP Topics in Green Network   e l ba T  23 2.11  Key Cities’ Needs Related to the Implementation e l ba T 2.1  Composition of the Digital Network   e l ba T  36 of MAP Solutions   76 2.2  MAP Topics in the Digital Network    37 3.1  IP: Challenges and Proposed Solutions for the e l ba T Digital Network    79 e l ba T 2.3  Schedule of Digital Network Meetings    39 3.2  Summary of the Structure and Estimated Costs of e l ba T 2.4  Composition of the PPP Network   52 e l ba T e l ba T the Proposed Pilots    96 2.5  MAPs’ Topics in the PPP Network  e l ba T  53 3.3  IP: Challenges and Proposed Solutions for the PPP e l ba T 2.6  Schedule of PPP Network Activities   e l ba T  53 Network    96 2.7  Criteria for Assessing the Maturity of PPP Projects    55 3.4  IP: Challenges and Proposed Solutions for the e l ba T Green Network    105 e l ba T ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This report was prepared as part of the Agreement for (Wyszków). PPP Network: Ilona Tonn, Ilona Ostrowska Reimbursable Advisory Services (RAS) on Sustainable Urban and Ewa Wolna (Bełchatów); deputy president Wojciech Development — Cities’ Partnership Initiative (CIP) by a team Kędzia and Ewa Fudali-Bondel (Dąbrowa Górnicza); Damian led by the Grzegorz Wolszczak in the following composi- Kunz, Wojciech Hercka and Krzysztof Michow (Kołobrzeg); tion: Anna Banaszczyk, Iwona Zwierzchowska, Małgorzata Bartłomiej Jewdokimow and Tomasz Czuczak (Koszalin); may- Stępniewska, Joanna Michalak, Agnieszka Kopańska, Bartosz or Małgorzata Żebrowska-Piotrak, Aleksandra Jankowska, Mysiorski, Ireneusz Ignacik, Janusz Sasak. Aneta Gawin and Hanna Dąbrowska (Łomianki); Ewelina Markowska, Joanna Gałązka and Robert Zakrzewski (Mińsk The team would like to express its gratitude to Mr. Grzegorz Mazowiecki); Maciej Wieczorek, Piotr Niesłuchowski and dep- Puda — Minister of Development Funds and Regional Policy uty mayor Artur Zieliński (Płock); Agnieszka Górczewska, for his continued support, and to Ms. Małgorzata Jarosińska- Grzegorz Kamiński and Jan Gosiewski (Poznań); Monika Jedynak — Secretary of State at the Ministry of Development Spychalska, Iwona Fudalska, mayor Piotr Feliński and Robert Funds and Regional Policy for encouraging the project; and Chaiński (Świdwin); deputy mayor Paweł Szewczyk and to the Ministry’s team for their great commitment and as- Piotr Borkiewicz (Zduńska Wola). Green Network: Marcin sistance, in particular: Wiktoria Saganowska, Daniel Wąsik, Tryksza, Celina Kowalska (Gdańsk); Agnieszka Żurawska- who oversaw the CIP and Marta Zimny, Joanna Śliz, Dagmara Tatała, Anna Wasielak (Kostrzyn nad Odrą); Blanka Rdest- Brzeziecka for coordinating the project implementation. The Dudak, Katarzyna Flis (Lublin); vice-mayor Paweł Łysańczuk, team would also like to thank the managers and representa- Piotr Kamasa (Międzyrzec Podlaski); Ewa Klimaszewska, tives of the World Bank Gallina A. Vincelette, Marcus Heinz Justyna Szyndler (Racibórz); Aleksandra Kruszewska, Michał and Christoph Push for their guidance and leadership during Adamczyk, Natalia Czarnota (Ruda Śląska); Laura Omucińska, the report preparation; Horacio Terazza, Irene Rehberger Adam Kiwior (Słupsk); Marta Pokorska, Maciej Bartosik Bescos and Piotr Matczuk for their valuable comments at (Uniejów); Iwona Kapustka, Marek Skowron (Żory); Jacek the review stage of this Report, Ellen Hamilton for provid- Grzonkowski, Sylwia Matejek-Gnacińska, Łukasz Kasperczyk ing advice at times when it was needed most; the team of (Żyrardów). the Water Global Practice — Winston Yu, Camilo Cordoba, Federico Penalosa, and Rafał Stanek for preparing an inter- Team is grateful to ministries that support CPI: Agata esting workshop for CPI participants; Barbara Skwarczyńska, Skrzypek, Wojciech Augustowski from the Ministry of Climate Agnieszka Boratyńska and Małgorzata Bargilewicz for ex- and Environment; Krzysztof Głomb Plenipotentiary of the cellent administrative support of the initiative; and Filip Minister of Digitization for collaboration with the local Kochan and Krzysztof Bastian for communication support. administration of Republic of Poland; Wioleta Zwara and Katarzyna Bis-Płaza from the Chancellery of the Prime The team is also grateful to all the representatives of the par- Minister; Michał Ptaszyński and Michał Piwowarczyk from ticipating cities for their excellent and effective cooperation, the Ministry of Development Funds and Regional Policy, timely feedback and comments, as well as for their passion Martyna Schläpfer, Wioletta Korkuś i Łukasz Białek from in working for the development of their cities and creat- Digital Poland Projects Centre. ing a unique atmosphere of cooperation during the CPI. Digital Network: Monika Kamińska and Igor Nikitin (Białystok); The team also extends its thanks to those who support Jerzy Sieradzki, Elżbieta Zielińska and Mariusz Szewczyk the work of the various networks. Meetings of all three (Dębica); Aldona Slipaczek-Jurek, Łukasz Krawański and networks: wiceprezydentowi Arturowi Szymczyko- Paweł Lichtański (Iłowa); Bartosz Kobus and Patryk Pawlak wi i Łukaszowi Mazurowi z Lublina; wiceprezydentowi (Krzywiń); Jacek Wiśniowski and Kamil Mazurowski Adamowi Pustelnikowi i Natalii Olszewskiej z Łodzi; wice- (Lidzbark Warmiński); Anna Wierzbicka, Karolina Knap, prezydentowi Piotrowi Gulewskiemu z Torunia, Markowi Anna Nowicka and Wojciech Ciesielski (Łódź); Albina Łubian Ustrobińskiemu i Edycie Walczyk z Miejskiego Przedsiębiorst- and Wioletta Jaroń (Pilawa); Tomasz Skoczylas, Cezary Ćwikła, wa Wodociągów i Kanalizacji w Rzeszowie. Cyfrowa: Tomaszo- Krzysztof Stańko and Sławomir Świder (Rzeszów); Magda wi Bońdosowi from the Bydgoszczy City Hall. Sieć PPP: deputy Pietrzyk, Robert Marchewka and Szymon Chojnowski mayor Marcinowi Skwierawskiemu i Joannie Krauze z Sopotu; (Świdnica); Dariusz Korczakowski and Robert Augustyniak wiceprezydentowi Jakubowi Mazurowi i Gabrieli Dąbrows- CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 7 kiej z Wrocławia; Grzegorzowi Kaczorowskiemu i Mon- And also other persons supporting the work of individ- ice Matylewicz z Warszawy; Krzysztofowi Maciejewiczo- ual networks are various stages: Dagmarze Bieńkowskiej wi z Gdańska; burmistrzowi Grzegorzowi Szuplewskiemu z Pi- and team of the Centrum Doradztwa Strategicznego; Ag- astowa; Annie Łopaciuk z Banku Gospodarstwa Krajowego; Ma- nieszce Kopańskiej, Teresie Kamińskiej, Andrzejowi Brzo- teuszowi Krajewskiemu i Michałowi Śliwińskiemu z Ogólnop- zowemu — moderators. olskiego Operatora Oświaty; Przemysławowi Szulferowi, z War- bud; Joannie Shaw i Joannie Jaroszewskiej z Hochtief; Kamilowi The team also thanks the people and institutions that helped Stępiniowi z Megamocni; Michałowi Liżewskiemu i Bartłomie- with the study visits: Green Network: Victoria Lindhardt jowi Tkaczykowi z LEGALLY.SMART; Pawłowi Szykow- Zorzi, Malene Bering Beitzel (State of Green); Jan Rasmussen, nemuzBaltcap;MarcinowiBejmowiiPatrycjiStyczyńskiejzCMS; Josephine Anna Thorén Basthof (City of Copenhagen); Jeppe Robertowi Kacprzykowi z Banku Ochrony Środowiska S.A.; Sikker Jensen (COWI A/S); Christian Kuczynski (Schønherr); Małgorzacie Zielińskiej z BNP Paribas Bank Polska SA; Mar- Maria Aufegger (Cobe); Frida Seidelin, Alfred Figueras (Amphi kowi Kuzace z AMS SA. Sieć Zielona: Maciej Riemer, Michał Consult); Michael Fabritius (Ramboll Group A/S); Signe Baryła z Urzędu Miasta Łodzi; Agnieszka Górczewska, Agniesz- Bacher Madsen (ENERGY & WATER — Greater Copenhagen ka Osipiuk, Agnieszka Dziubała, Marta Kaźmierska z Urzę- Living Lab); Flemming Nielsen (Amager Ressourcecenter). du Miasta Poznania, Dominik Zajączkowski z Aquanet Re- PPP Network: Nikolaos Schmidt from the World Bank; tencja Sp. z o.o.; Lucyna Kaczmarkiewicz z Poznańskiego Alexandra Doga, Georgia Tsompou, Nikos Sergisow, Alika Centrum Dziedzictwa; Paulina Drzewiecka z UWI Inwesty- Papadopoulou, Maria Tzanidaki from the Central PPP Unit cje S.A.; Kasper Jakubowski z Fundacji Dzieci w Naturę; in Athens in Greece. Digital Network: Daniel Bajer from Halina Pomianowska z Urzędu Miasta Torunia; Monika Enterprise Estonia; Maria Golova from the Ambassy of Gołębiewska-Kozakiewicz z zespołem z Zarządu Zieleni Estonia in Poland; and Grzegorz Kozłowski the ambassa- m. st. Warszawy; Jan Piotrowski z Urzędu m. st. Warszawy. dor of the Republic of Poland in Estonia and his team. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 8 ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS API Application Programming Interface JNM Joint Network Meeting APP Air Protection Program JTF Just Transition Fund BGI Blue-green Infrastructure LGU Local Government Unit CIA City Information Architecture MAP Municipal Action Plan CPI Cities’ Partnership Initiative MoCE Ministry of Climate and Environment CPM Chancellery of the Prime Minister MDFRP Ministry of Development Funds and Regional DPPC Digital Poland Projects Centre Policy of Poland DPPP Department of Public-private Partnership MIAA Ministry of Internal Affairs and (MDFRP) Administration EDMSA Electronic Document Management NBS Nature-based Solutions System in Administration NGO Nongovernmental Organization EIRA European Interoperability Reference NUP2030 National Urban Policy 2030 Architecture OECD Organisation for Economic Co-operation and EPP Environmental Protection Programme Development EU European Union ONM Online Network Meeting EZD Electronic document management IR Inception Report FERC European Funds for Digital Development PPP Public-private Partnership Program 2021 – 2027 RAO Regional Audit Office GI Green Infrastructure SIA State Information Architecture GIS Geographic Information System UAP Urban Adaptation Plan INM Individual Network Meeting URBACT Urban Development Network Programme IP Improvement Plan WSDL Web Services Description Language ITI Integrated Territorial Investment WUF11 World Urban Forum CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 9 1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1 Sustainable urban development is one of the key areas of development policy in Poland, which is in line with global trends. Currently, more than half of the world’s population (55%), or 4.2 billion people, live in cities. By 2050, two out of three peo- Executive Summary ple will live in cities (68%). Cities are the main drivers of the global economy, promot- ing education, social inclusion, and stimulating innovation, but they also account for about 70% of global energy consumption, 70% of greenhouse gas emissions and the vast majority of natural resource consumption1. For this reason, cities are a key play- er in the effort to implement a sustainable development model. Sustainable urban development requires an integrated approach that takes into account the complexity and dynamics of phenomena and processes taking place in the urban environment (social, economic, spatial, climate change-related, and others), as well as their interdependencies and wide range of stakeholders. Meeting the challenges of urban development requires, on the one hand, a steady increase in the capacity of cities to plan and implement development projects, and on the other hand, a favorable regulatory and financial framework and support instruments that are an adequate response to the needs of urban centers. The Cities’ Partnership Initiative (CPI) is a flagship project of the Ministry of Development Funds and Regional Policy of Poland (MDFRP) aimed at support- ing sustainable urban development. The CPI contributes to the goals of the Strategy for Responsible Development 2030 and the National Urban Policy 2030 (NUP2030). The selection of CPI participants began in 2021, and implementation of project work took place from February 2022 to March 2023, a period of 14 months. The World Bank (Bank) was a strategic partner of the initiative, responsible for providing substantive support to participating cities and ministries and assisting with project implementation. The Final Report (report) is the third product of the Reimbursable Advisory Service Agreement on Sustainable Urban Development — Cities’ Partnership Initiative concluded between the MDFRP and the World Bank on January 28, 2022. The report summarizes the project work, including the results of the work of 30 CPI-participating cities, and presents conclusions and recommendations on the three thematic networks and the CPI formula itself. 1.1 THE PROJECT’S OBJECTIVE AND KEY ELEMENTS The CPI had three goals that were achieved during the project. First, to raise the capacity of the participating 30 cities in defining the challenges of sustainable urban development in the selected three thematic areas, and then designing and implementing concrete solutions to help overcome them. Second, to enhance the knowledge of the participating ministries regarding the needs and expectations of cities, and of identified obstacles that hinder cities from implementing their ideas that can be resolved at the national level. This will support the ministries in programming future support for cities in three selected thematic areas. Third, the CPI intends to establish a community of urban practitioners (municipal and na- tional) that learn from each other and support each other — also beyond the project scope. 1. United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division (2019). World Urbanization Prospects: The 2018 Revision (ST/ESA/SER.A/420). New York: United Nations. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 11 1 The project formula skillfully combined a top-down and bottom-up approach. On the one hand, the MDFRP determined the three broad issues covered by the CPI, namely, green investments in cities (the Green Network), digital solutions for cit- Executive Summary ies (the Digital Network), and the use of the public-private partnership (PPP) for- mula to implement urban investments (the PPP Network). On the other hand, it was the cities that defined their challenges and needs within these three themat- ic areas, and that formulated proposals (during the work of the network) for their solutions — the so-called Municipal Action Plans (MAPs). This approach ensured the strong involvement of all the participants, because the work took place in ar- eas of strategic importance to the central administration, while at the same time it was driven by actual demand from the cities, which shaped the scope of the adviso- ry support offered. This, in turn, resulted in the preparations of tailor-made solu- tions for local governments. The project’s mode of implementation, geared towards a large number of meet- ings and other forms of interaction, fostered networking among the partici- pants and allowed for an intensive flow of knowledge and experience. Each city worked on its own MAP, and the other participants in the network constituted a sup- port group, actively assisting their partners from other cities in the process. Intense and direct cooperation with other cities gave participants an opportunity to exchange knowledge and share insights on already existing and tested solutions, both the suc- cessful ones, and the less so. The latter proved to be at least as equally important, as they allow local governments to not repeat the mistakes of their peers. The established coop- eration allowed participants to overcome barriers in their preparation of MAPs and inspired and motivated them to plan and implement their own solutions. There were five main modes of work during the CPI: individual network meetings (INMs); joint network meetings (JNMs); online network meetings (ONMs); foreign study visits; and one-on-one consultations. In addition, direct cooperation with the MDFRP, the Bank, and supporting ministries provided added value to the cities. The applied methodol- ogy was based on the experience gained during the pilot edition of the CPI (2017 – 2019) and the Urban Development Network Programme (URBACT). Conclusions from the project clearly indicate that the CPI is a valuable initia- tive with high added value for the participating cities and ministries at the level of individual city solutions, as well as enabling potential systemic changes and improvements. The concept and the main elements of the CPI are well designed and allow for the effective implementation of the envisaged goals, which are character- ized by high relevance for the participants. The products of the CPI have the potential to become useful models for other local governments at home and abroad; it is worth promoting them and monitoring the results of their implementation. Building a com- munity of urban practitioners through the activities undertaken during the CPI opens up many opportunities for further cooperation and knowledge exchange. That consti- tutes a high value — though difficult to quantify — for participants. One of the key rec- ommendations is to root the CPI as a permanent urban policy instrument to support cities and ministries in their pursuit of sustainable development. The basic components of the CPI are schematically presented in Figure 1.1, and the role division among the participants is summarized in Figure 1.2. The remain- der of the document describes the CPI’s individual elements and outputs of each the- matic network. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 12 FIGURE 1.1  CPI: The Project’s Main Elements Digital Network PPP Network Green Network Ministries + MDFRP, CPM WB MDERP, WB MoCE, MDFRP, WB WB (strategic partner) 30 cities of di erent sizes from across Poland 10 10 10 (competition) Activities Individual and joint network meetings; study visits, individual advisory, online meetings, opening and closing conferences 30 Municipal Action Plans prepared by cities Outputs 14 months 3 Improvement Plans prepared by the World Bank Strengthened competence of the participating cities in identifying challenges, and planning and implementing solutions Outcomes Enhanced knowledge of participating ministries about the challenges cities face and the bottlenecks that make it di cult to overcome them Creation of a network of urban practitioners working on sustainable urban development Source: Authors’ elaboration. Legend: PPP — Public-private Partnership, MDFRP — Ministry of Development Funds and Regional Policy of Poland, CPM — Chancellery of the Prime Minister, MoCE — Ministry of Climate and Environment, WB — World Bank. FIGURE 1.2  CPI: Role Division MDFRP Cities Contributing Ministries World Bank Initiates the CPI and is Actively participate in the O er substantive contribu- Acts as a strategic and responsible for project work of the networks tions to the work of the substantive partner of the CPI implementation (network meetings, study networks O ers technical support to Coordinates the entire CPI visits, individual counseling, Inform about current work cities in MAP development, (communication in the knowledge sharing) inside the ministries that is responsible for substan- networks, coordination of Perform substantive work a ect MAPs and IPs and tive organization of network the participation of outside network meetings pertain to the networks’ meetings and stimulation of supporting ministries, Develop their own MAPs subject matter mutual learning between monitoring the work of the Provide inputs to the IPs cities, and substantive Bank team, making Propose contributions to the organization of study visits directional decisions, Improvement Plans (IPs) Develops the IPs for each logistics of meetings, and network publication of information on the CPI) Supports the MDFRP in the implementation of the CPI Provide inputs to project products Source: Authors’ elaboration. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 13 1.2 1 THREE STREAMS OF WORK: DIGITAL, GREEN, AND PPP Executive Summary The CPI brought together 30 diverse urban centers from across Poland (Figure 1.3), selected through an open competition organized by the MDFRP. When ap- plying to the CPI, cities indicated the network in which they were interested, and the particular challenge they wanted to tackle during the project. The participating cit- ies ranged from small, (with a population of less than 2,000), to midsize, to large, (with a population of more than half a million). Each city worked in one network and was represented by a two-person team. The CPI cit- ies were a diverse group also in terms of geography, FIGURE 1.3  Cities Participating in the CPI demographics, economy, or level of experience in the topics of the individual networks. This diversity Słupsk Gdańsk means that the CPI participants reflect a wide range Koszalin Lidzbark Warmiński of types of cities that exist in Poland (and outside the Kołobrzeg Świdwin country), making the initiative’s experience useful for different types of local governments. As a result, Białystok the CPI has the potential to become a kind of an ur- ban laboratory and urban accelerator, where urban Wyszków Płock solutions are developed and tested under favorable Kostrzyn Łomianki Mińsk Mazowiecki nad Odrą Poznań and (possibly) controlled conditions, and at a small Żyrardów Pilawa scale. This process of ‘prototyping’ solutions and im- Krzywiń Uniejów Łódź Międzyrzec Podlaski proving existing ones provides a valuable opportu- Iłowa Zduńska Wola nity to discover and better understand different ur- Bełchatów Lublin ban perspectives. Świdnica The themes of the three thematic networks (Digi- Dąbrowa Górnicza tal, Green, and PPP) are consistent with the chal- Racibórz Ruda Śląska Dębica Rzeszów lenges facing Polish cities on the path to sustain- Digital Network Żory able development. The CPI topics were identified PPP Network by the MDFRP, and the selection took into account Green Network their relevance to the goals of NUP2030 and their Source: MDFRP. potential to develop and disseminate scalable solu- tions. They are also in line with strategic documents at the European level. While the networks (each including 10 cities) have many common elements, as was evident during the project, in general, they worked independently and at their own pace, adapted to the needs of the participants. Representatives of the central administration also participated in the CPI to support the work of the networks. The MDFRP Strategy Department team partic- ipated in the work of all three networks and was responsible for the entire project. The Chancellery of the Prime Minister (CPM) participated in the work of the Digital Network as a representative of the Minister of Digitization, as well as the MDFRP Digital Development Department (which acts as the managing authority of the European Funds for Digital Development (FERC) 2021 – 2027 program) and the Digital Poland Projects Centre (DPPC), the Intermediate Body under FERC 2021 – 2027). The PPP Network was supported by representatives of the Department of Public-private Partnership (DPPP) at the MDFRP (the central PPP unit). The work of the Green Network involved the Ministry of Climate and Environment (MoCE). The participation of representa- tives of the central administration enabled a bi-directional information flow in the CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 14 1 networks, supported the exchange of ideas and proposals, and helped assess the fea- sibility of their implementation. The central administration also helped develop the final form of recommendations, the so-called Improvement Plans for each network, Executive Summary which are one of the main products of the CPI. They are described in detail in Chapter 3. 1.3 CPI OUTPUTS AND OUTCOMES: MUNICIPAL ACTION PLANS, IMPROVEMENT PLANS, AND A COMMUNITY OF URBAN PRACTITIONERS Municipal Action Plans (MAPs) and Improvement Plans (IPs) are two key catego- ries of project outputs. Their most important outcomes are the creation of a commu- nity or urban practitioners, and the enhancement of the capacity of the participating cities to tackle selected urban development challenges, as well as expanding ministries’ knowledge in these areas. During the CPI, a set of 30 MAPs was prepared — one for each participating city, and three IPs were formulated — one for each of the thematic networks. MAPs are succinct documents prepared by cities that act as ‘roadmaps’ for ad- dressing city-specific challenges with implementable measures and solutions. They were the first key output of the project. Each MAP followed a template that struc- tured the process of preparing a city’s solution(s). All MAPs include the following com- ponents: a description of identified challenge(s), goals, and solutions planned to achieve these goals; a description of activities to be implemented; stakeholder mapping and an outline of a communication strategy; and an assessment of resources (human, techni- cal, and financial) required to implement actions and achieve MAP’s objectives. Despite these commonalities, individual MAPs differ from each other (for example, the themat- ic and territorial scope — such as a city, district, square, or street — and the granularity of the description of a particular challenge and solution). This is because MAPs corre- spond to the cities’ challenges and their level of advancement in developing their indi- vidual solutions. A summary of MAPs in tabular form is presented in the Annexes 1 – 3. The cities had full ownership of their MAPs, meaning that city representatives independently prepared their MAPs and took full responsibility for them. This process was supported by the Bank experts assigned to each of the thematic networks, who coordinated and guided the cities’ work to maximize practical and educational benefits for them. The Bank experts also provided individual advisory support to the cities. Two lines of action were important catalysts for the work on individual MAPs that constituted a valuable source of inspiration and practical guidance: i) activities within each network (such as exchanging experiences and knowledge with partner cit- ies and ministries, joint discussions on planned solutions, and local field trips during the network’s meetings); and ii) study visits abroad. Improvement Plans (IPs) are sets of recommendations for the national level, re- sulting from joint work with cities and knowledge gained during the CPI in the three thematic networks. They are to function as ‘transmission belts’ between the CPI lessons learned and the national urban policy. The main goal of the IPs is to identify bot- tlenecks that hinder cities in implementing solutions on the topics addressed by each network and to propose solutions to overcome them. Recommendations are enriched CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 15 1 with a description of good practices pertaining to each network theme. The IPs will help the central administration adjust the implemented and planned instruments and legal frameworks directed at urban development to respond in a more precise manner to the Executive Summary needs of local governments. The Bank team was responsible for IP preparation — one for each thematic network. The IPs constitute Chapter 3 of this Report. The recommenda- tions contained in the IPs have different forms and scope: some are strategic and more general, others are operational and more specific. IPs elaboration provided a space for the joint development of ideas and actions that could be taken by the national level to strengthen sustainable urban development. Lessons and experiences gathered through the collaboration with cities of different sizes and at different levels of thematic knowl- edge can be used to support the programming and implementation of national policies aimed at cities, and to design solutions for a wide range of their future beneficiaries. 1.4 SELECTED FINDINGS AND OBSERVATIONS FROM THE THEMATIC NETWORKS The CPI is characterized by a high intensity of work and a significant number of meetings, which, on the one hand, motivates participants to systematically work on MAPs and IPs, and on the other hand, provides an opportunity for continu- ous capacity improvement during network meetings and networking with the initiative participants. Table 1.1 presents the schedule of meetings conducted during the CPI. Details of these activities are presented in Chapter 2. TABLE 1.1  CPI Meetings (February 2022 – March 2023) Date Event Feb. 9, 2022 Kickoff conference (online) Mar. 28, 2022 Digital Network, PPP Network, Green Network: Online network meeting for each network (ONM #1) Apr. 26, 2022 Digital Network: ONM #2 May 10 – 12, 2022 Digital Network, PPP Network, Green Network: Individual network meeting for each network (INM) #1 (Lublin) May 31–Jun. 3, 2022 Green Network: Study visit — Copenhagen, Denmark Jun. 20 – 23, 2022 PPP Network: Study visit — Athens, Greece Jun. 29, 2022 Presentation of CPI at the World Urban Forum (WUF11, Katowice) Jul. 5 – 7, 2022 Digital Network: INM #2 (Poznań) Jul. 14, 2022 Green Network: ONM #2 Jul. 15, 2022 Digital Network: ONM #3 Aug. 9 – 11, 2022 PPP Network: INM #2 (Gdańsk) Aug. 11, 2022 Digital Network: ONM #4 Aug. 17 – 19, 2022 Green Network: INM #2 (Racibórz, Ruda Śląska, and Żory) Aug. 29 – 31, 2022 Digital Network: INM #3 (Rzeszów) Oct. 3 – 6, 2022 Digital Network, PPP Network, Green Network: INMs #3 and #4 (Łódź) — joint network meeting (JNM) #1 Oct. 25 – 28, 2022 Digital Network: Study visit — Tallinn, Estonia CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 16 Date Event Nov. 7 – 9, 2022 Green Network: INM #4 (Poznań) Nov. 16 – 18, 2022 PPP Network: INM #3 (Wrocław) Dec. 9, 2022 PPP: ONM #2 Dec. 14, 2022 Green Network: ONM #3 Dec. 21, 2022 Digital Network: ONM #5 Jan. 24 – 26, 2023 Digital Network, PPP Network, Green Network: INM #5 (Toruń) — JNM #2 Mar. 7, 2023 Green Network: ONM #4 On a continuous basis Individual consultancy Mar. 27, 2023 Digital Network, PPP Network, Green Network: INM #6 (Warsaw) Mar. 28, 2023 Closing conference (Warsaw) Source: Authors’ elaboration. 1.4.1 Digital City Network Polish cities are placing a stronger emphasis on digitization and implementa- tion of new technologies in order to improve the quality of urban investments and services, the residents’ standard of living, and the attractiveness of the city for both residents and investors. Constant and rapid evolution of social and eco- nomic circumstances, as well as technological development, further compounded by the implications of the COVID-19 pandemic and the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, mean that citizens expect efficient communication from the central and local govern- ment administrations, and the possibility to remotely handle their administrative mat- ters. It is becoming necessary to quickly and easily reach citizens with information and to offer them a growing number of online services by public administrations. This, in turn, requires changes in the modus operandi of city halls, including how they work, and how they collect, process, and analyze data and documents. The difficult financial position of local governments also means that city author- ities are trying to reduce costs by looking for solutions to improve the quality of decisions by utilizing precise data and information provided in electronic ver- sions. Digital solutions are a tool that supports cities in these efforts. The current geo- political and economic crisis caused by Russia’s aggression against Ukraine has caused, among other things, an increase in the prices of utilities (electricity, heat, gas, water, and others) and many other products, which translates into high inflation. These phe- nomena encourage cities to implement IT systems that can not only monitor historical data but can also help react — on an ongoing basis — to abrupt changes, for example, the significant increases of costs related to utility consumption. Budget constraints also make it necessary to tighten the systems of toll and tax collection, which are as- sociated with improving the quality and access to data available to cities. The scope of the Digital Network’s MAPs falls within the general digitization of the public sphere. Among MAPs, there were two types of projects: relatively narrow CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 17 1 (‘monothematic’) projects — such as digital solutions supporting the collection of waste management fees or city monitoring; and also much more cross-sectional, integrated information technology (IT) solutions, implemented in public offices or across the mu- Executive Summary nicipality — for example, the design of solutions for the city information architecture (CIA). The solutions prepared by the Digital Network cities fit into the following hori- zontal areas: integration and data structures (state information architecture [SIA]); open data (re-use of public sector information); description and analysis of processes (Na- tional Interoperability Framework); and cybersecurity (National Cybersecurity System). The two main challenges in which the Digital Network cities were particularly interested, are the following: 1. Streamlining the internal operation of city administration (data and processes) 2. Optimizing resources to generate savings There are three main solutions that were developed within MAPs to address these challenges and they are already partially implemented by the CPI cities: 1. City information architecture (CIA), together with data models for local govern- ment units (LGUs) 2. Models of processes that are executed within cities 3. Utility management in public buildings to increase efficiency and reduce costs The first two solutions have been identified by all the Digital Network partic- ipants as the backbone for other municipal digitization efforts. This is because they catalogue, standardize, and organize city resources and processes, and thus seek to make them compatible with each other. In addition, by defining the minimum rang- es of data needed for a given process, they optimize the process. For example, they also allow data sharing between systems/databases. Defining process standards as well as data models and ranges also allow planning the future development of the city’s IT sys- tems; it is a prerequisite for the consistent implementation of any digital solutions by the city and its subordinate units. The third solution is growing in popularity among local governments due to high energy prices and tight city budgets. A vital feature of all solutions developed under MAPs is their scalable charac- ter and the potential for application in other cities. Table 1.2 lists topics of MAPs developed by the Digital Network members. TABLE 1.2  MAP Topics in the Digital Network No. City MAP Theme 1. Białystok Integrated city management through increased integration of IT solutions 2. Dębica Improving the security of public spaces in the city of Dębica 3. Iłowa Integrated information management system of public administration units in Iłowa municipality 4. Krzywiń Increased digital integration through systems integration at the Electronic Customer Service Office (EBOI) 5. Lidzbark Warmiński Building a system to integrate data from spatial information, monitoring, urban communication, and emergency management CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 18 No. City MAP Theme 6. Łódz Resident Portal 7. Pilawa Eliminating leaks in the waste management fee system 8. Rzeszów Digitization of business processes occurring in Rzeszów City Hall 9. Świdnica City information architecture 10. Wyszków Tightening the system of assessment and collection of the municipal waste management fee Source: Authors’ elaboration. The development of city information architecture will allow for the unambigu- ous identification of information sources, the data models used in them, and such specification and implementation of IT systems that will most effectively allow for the digital transformation of cities. It will give the opportunity to connect cen- tral administration systems with city systems, so that the exchange of information in both directions takes place automatically, without the unnecessary involvement of the human factor, thus minimizing data transmission errors. The city’s information archi- tecture forms the basis for the development and implementation of integrated infor- mation systems. The MAP of the city of Świdnica is focusing on creating a CIA mod- el; it is already being implemented by the city administration. In addition, Świdnica is working with the CPM to ensure that the implemented CIA solution is consistent with the SIAthat is being developed at the central level. This ambitious attempt can be- come a contribution to the creation of a reference model applicable to other Polish cities. The focus of the development of process models was to respond to the identified problem of determining the paths of information flow within a city administra- tion. Determining the location of information sources and the ways of their propaga- tion was a significant challenge in obtaining managerial information. Systems devel- oped based on the description of processes can provide information more effectively, and enable electronic data exchange, not only within the office, but also with external stakeholders and central administration units. The procedural description of the imple- mentation of public services is an unambiguous, standardized, and complete way that allows for the determination of the sources of information, the ways of its flow, as well as the design of optimal communication channels and the discernment of the require- ments for computer systems supporting the work of the office. This procedural descrip- tion of the implementation of public services inspired network participants and encour- aged them to adopt similar solutions (for example, the cities of Rzeszów and Białystok). Digital solutions for media consumption (energy, heat, water, and others) moni- toring and management in public buildings enable not only their ongoing mon- itoring, but also their ongoing management. Thanks to the digitization of this area, it is also possible to automate media management and the detection of irregularities. The Digital Network cities were interested in increasing their competencies in the field of more rational media management, as the soaring utility prices put a strain on city budgets. Better management of media consumption would help cities save consider- able financial resources. Designing a digital tool for media management in public build- ings was the subject of MAP, developed by the city of Dębica. One of the ‘inspirations’ was the already implemented and operational system for the robotization of the ener- gy consumption management process in the public buildings of the city of Bydgoszcz. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 19 1 1.4.2 PPP Network Executive Summary Polish cities are ready and willing to explore new ways of financing their invest- ments, and the current economic and political circumstances encourage such activities. The ongoing war in Ukraine caused the surge in energy prices, which are additionally straining already tight city budgets. This dwindling financial liquidity of cities, on the one hand, hampers their investment capacity and, on the other hand, reorients cities’ thinking towards mid- and long-term savings. The abundance of EU funds since 2004 has made Polish local administration rely, to a large extent, on this source of financing that mostly came in the form of grants — this is especially true for small and midsize cities. Other options (loans, bonds, mobilization of the private sec- tor, and so on) have been rarely used, except for larger cities. Despite massive invest- ments over the last 20 years, the need for investment in municipal infrastructure re- mains high. For that reason, Polish cities are looking for additional financing sources besides EU grants. The use of the PPP formula could help cities effectively address some of the identified challenges in financing investment needs. Public-private partnership is a long-term, stable financing formula based on the transparent allocation of tasks and risks between public and private partners. For this reason, PPPs can become an important tool for a city’s development. In recent years, there has been a growing in- terest among Polish local governments in PPP as a tool for meeting public expecta- tions of providing high-quality public services to residents in conditions of limited resources, especially financial. The PPP Network focused on the process of the preparation and implementa- tion of investment projects through the PPP formula. The thematic areas identi- fied by cities in their MAPs covered the following sectors: 1. Buildings (public buildings: town halls and administrative service centers) 2. Transport infrastructure (residential roads and tram networks) 3. Urban regeneration (redevelopment/renewal of a city center) MAPs developed by the members of the PPP Network focus on structuring the process of preparing PPP investments by cities. Depending on the cities’ level of preparedness, they pertain to different stages of the PPP process, and are character- ized by a different level of detail. The full list of topics of PPP Network cities’ MAPs is presented in Table 1.3. TABLE 1.3  MAP Topics in the PPP Network No. City MAP Topic 1. Bełchatów Extension of the seat of local authorities 2. Dąbrowa Górnicza “The Living Factory” — the new city center in Dąbrowa Górnicza 3. Kołobrzeg Kołobrzeg Administration Center — a new seat of the city, municipality, and district authorities 4. Koszalin Conversion of a bank facility into an office and administration building of Koszalin City Office 5. Łomianki Construction of a new seat of Łomianki City Office CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 20 No. City MAP Topic 6. Mińsk Mazowiecki Construction of a multistory car park with retail space 7. Płock “Modern City Center” — development of a multifunctional and attractive downtown space through the urban regeneration process 8. Poznań Development and extension of a modern and efficient public transport system — new tram routes 9. Świdwin Construction/establishment of six preschool units and a nursery unit at the Public Elementary School No. 2, with integration units 10. Zduńska Wola Urban roads upgrade program Source: Authors’ elaboration. During the work of the CPI, the Bank team identified several elements of MAP preparation that have proven to be a challenge for the participating cities and that required tailored advisory support. They were the following: 1. Division of tasks and risks in planned PPP projects, and awareness that the opti- mal model is one in which each partner deals with what they know best 2. Changing the philosophy of thinking about the cooperation with the pri- vate sector — from the traditional model (based on the simple commissioning and settlement of individual phases of the project — usually infrastructure construc- tion) to a modern model of joint implementation of projects (the integration of the individual phases of implementation into one comprehensive project that includes not only infrastructure construction, but also its maintenance and/or management) 3. Developing a communication strategy with a diverse group of stakeholders who do not always understand the advantages and risks of the PPP model, which may make them unfavorable to the implementation of projects in this formu- la, which is widely (and wrongly) considered to be expensive and nontransparent Three factors enriched the activities of the PPP Network — study visits, active en- gagement of the Department of Public-private Partnership (DPPP) of the MDFRP, and the invitation of private sector representatives to selected network activi- ties. Greece is a champion in implementing hybrid PPP projects, that is, investments that combine PPP models with EU financing. Thanks to a study visit to Greece, the cit- ies from the PPP Network stopped perceiving EU funds as competition with the PPP formula, and instead began to think of them as a complementary source of project fi- nancing. Domestic study visits, organized as one of the elements of network meetings were a useful tool to obtain practical knowledge from cities well-versed in PPP project preparation and implementation (Gdańsk, Sopot, Wrocław, and Łódź), and to enhance their knowledge about the application of the PPP formula in general. The second factor pertains to the active participation of the DPPP from the MDFRP. Thanks to the involve- ment of experts from this department, the participating cities could better understand the development of the PPP market in Poland, the different issues (legal, technical, and financial), and the most important trends, successes, and failures of domestic entities implementing investments in this demanding model. One of the important effects of these activities was to make cities aware that the PPP model provides a high level of transparency throughout the process. For this reason, it is no more prone to corruption than traditional public procurement. The latter erroneous view seems to prevail among CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 21 1 Polish local governments, which is not in line with the facts: to date no local government in Poland has been charged in connection with a PPP procedure2. The participation of representatives of private partners in the network’s workshops allowed better under- Executive Summary standing of their approach to the process of structuring a PPP contract (including the risk allocation between public and private partners) and its management, and provid- ed a unique opportunity to participate in a simulation of selected stages of a process related to the preparation of a project in the PPP formula (for example, market testing and contract negotiation). For some PPP Network cities this was the first opportunity to talk ‘on neutral ground’ with representatives of the private sector. 1.4.3 Green City Network Cities are confronting the pressure of urbanization, which manifests itself, on the one hand, in the densification of the built-up areas and the displacement of greenery from cities, and on the other hand, in the chaotic ‘spillover’ of built-up areas into suburban territory and in pressure on areas with natural functions. These processes of increasingly intensive land development and excessive land sealing in urban areas (for instance using concrete to pave squares and sidewalks) cause an array of negative effects, which are further exacerbated by the ongoing climate changes. The latter include, for example, increasingly heavy rains causing flash floods or flooding in urban areas, the urban heat island phenomenon, and so on. Higher summer tempera- tures, more frequent flooding, and unequal access to recreational areas reduce the qual- ity of life for urban residents. This entails the need to seek solutions that will strengthen cities’ resilience to climate change while improving the quality of life of their residents. The potential of green infrastructure as a strategically planned network of green areas, designed and managed to provide a wide range of ecosystem services, is in- creasingly recognized by city authorities. There is a great deal of interest in the natu- ral aspects of urban regeneration and nature-based solutions (NBS) on a local scale, which can be implemented in intensely developed urban areas. NBS are multifunctional and re- source-efficient, adaptable to local conditions and effectively using natural resources, by introducing diverse elements and natural processes in the city, while providing environ- mental, social, and economic benefits. They are a cost-effective alternative to often more financially intensive conventional solutions based on the use of ‘gray infrastructure’. In light of the COVID-19 pandemic and the energy crisis, which have affected the financial situation of local government units, their optimal use becomes even more important. The thematic scope of the meetings of the Green City Network and MAPs devel- oped by participating cities revolved around three main thematic streams: 1. Planning green infrastructure 2. Natural aspects of revitalization and reclamation 3. Adaptation to climate change. 2. This is also documented in the reports of the Polish Supreme Audit Office from 2013 to 2020: https://www.nik.gov.pl/aktualnosci/nik-o-partnerstwie-publiczno-prywatnym.html and https://www.nik. gov.pl/kontrole/P/19/104/ CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 22 1 Bearing in mind the multifunctional nature of green infrastructure, the thematic scope of MAPs addressed various challenges identified by cities: from creating a space with a high life quality for residents, through providing valuable areas in terms of bio- Executive Summary diversity, to facing the challenges of climate change and strengthening the city’s resil- ience to heat, flash rainfall and flash urban floods. In their MAPs, cities focused on the natural aspects of revitalization, the implementation of new green areas as elements of green infrastructure, as well as local-scale NBS. The full list of topics addressed in MAPs is presented in Table 1.4. TABLE 1.4  MAP Topics in Green Network No. City MAP Topic 1. Gdańsk Promotion of best practice in the greening of small urban spaces 2. Kostrzyn nad Odrą Development of street and estate greenery 3. Lublin “Green Heart of the City” 4. Miedzyrzec Podlaski Green Międzyrzec — improving the quality of natural and social capital by the greening of the city 5. Racibórz Systemic and pilot solutions regarding adaptation to climate change 6. Ruda Śląska “Green Way of the Black City” — connection of two river valleys of the industrial city by means of green areas 7. Słupsk Slowing surface runoff through investing in blue-green infrastructure (BGI) and small retention facilities in the districts of Podgrodzie and Osiedle Zachód 8. Uniejów Green Uniejów — more green infrastructure in Uniejów 9. Żory Green transformation of the post-mining neighborhood of Gwarków 10. Żyrardów Green Żyrardów — from education to regeneration Source: Authors’ elaboration. Advisory support was specifically designed to broaden the view of green infra- structure as a systemic solution providing multiple ecosystem services. This focus stemmed from the fact that this aspect was initially not fully recognized by the partici- pating cities, while it is an important feature of the process of city greening. Cities nat- urally tended to identify the need for greening urban space in which there was a defi- cit of green infrastructure or degraded space. Initially, the participants of the Green Network were focused on the implementation of specific activities, for example, the introduction of new green solutions to the urban fabric, but they did not think about designing them in such a way as to achieve the greatest synergy of benefits. As part of the individual advisory support, the importance of planning, designing, and manag- ing green infrastructure in this context was discussed during the network’s meetings. While working with cities, both individually and in the network format, the mul- tifunctional nature of green infrastructure and NBS was emphasized, pointing to a number of specific benefits that the implemented activities provide, and which originally remained unnoticed in MAPs. The World Bank’s technical sup- port was aimed at highlighting the process of developing solutions that will allow for their systemic dissemination and multiplication on a wider scale. This knowledge was internalized and manifested in a multidimensional approach to MAPs, which included CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 23 1 activities aimed at the implementation of NBS (from pilot projects to systematized sets of activities), the development of systemic solutions — from financial tools through guidelines for spatial development, the establishment of urban interdepartmental Executive Summary teams for sustainable development, as well as the inclusion of residents as important partners in implemented projects. During the CPI, the participants of the Green Network repeatedly emphasized the challenge of meaningfully engaging stakeholders in planning, implemen- tation, and maintenance of green infrastructure and NBS, as well as mobilizing the private sector. Two issues were highlighted as particularly important: i) mobiliz- ing and engaging local communities, and ii) transparent communication about activi- ties undertaken by city authorities that may be perceived negatively by residents, (for example, necessary tree felling). A valuable contribution of the work within the net- work was also to show wider possibilities of cooperation with the business sector to mobilize private funding, with which so far only some cities have cooperated (for ex- ample, Lublin). Both the study visit to Denmark, including the familiarization with solutions in the field of rainwater management in Copenhagen, as well as the domestic study visits to selected Polish cities were an important source of practical knowledge and inspiration for cities which were reflected in their MAPs. Inspirations from the Enghaven Climate Park, Klimakvarter Østerbro — Copenhagen’s first climate-friend- ly district, the revitalized Karen Blixen Plads Square, as well as the SanktaAnnæ Plads adapted for rainwater capture, and the comprehensive approach to treating rainwa- ter as an asset to create an attractive space for relaxation and social integration in Kokkedal, highlighted issues related to rainwater management in the developed MAPs. 1.5 IMPROVEMENT PLANS AND SELECTED CHALLENGES AND RECOMMENDATIONS Improvement Plans (IPs) are sets of recommendations for the central level ad- ministration, resulting from work with the cities and ministries, knowledge gained during the CPI in the field of the three thematic networks, and the tech- nical expertise of the Bank team. There are two aims of the IPs: 1. To identify challenges facing cities that can be addressed at the national level, for example, regulatory or institutional issues 2. To propose solutions to these challenges (systemic and operational) IPs were prepared for each of the networks, they identify key challenges faced by cities and propose solutions that could be implemented by the central adminis- tration. Some recommendations offer concrete solutions, while others point to an area that constitutes a constraint for cities but do not offer a specific solution. The latter is due to the broad scope and complex nature of these challenges. In the Bank team’s view, preparing specific recommendations for these areas requires additional work includ- ing extensive dialogue between key stakeholders that will also involve entities from CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 24 1 outside the public administration. Such a dialogue would lead to working out specif- ic solutions. In such cases, examples of good practices and model solutions from oth- er countries are provided in IPs as a source of inspiration for Polish decision-makers. Executive Summary Additionally, proposals for pilot projects are recommended that would enable the de- sign and testing of such solutions before their further scaling up. Pilot project proposals are an important element of every IP. Testing scalable solutions through small pilot projects is an advisable step before launching a full- fledged implementation. The pilot formula allows working with a small group of en- gaged cities, which accelerates the process, eases coordination and monitoring, opti- mizes a budget, and limits potential risks. It is also an excellent platform for mutual learning and the joint search for the design of optimal solutions, based on evidence resulting from test implementations. Sets of systemic challenges and accompanying proposed solutions are supple- mented in the case of each of the Networks by the ‘Recommendation Banks’, that is, a set of detailed proposals individually submitted by the CPI cities. System- atically collected during the project and verified by the World Bank team, they are an important contribution to the diagnosis of the challenges and needs of cities. Their nature varies greatly from legislative, to strategic, to operational issues related to, for example, the requirements of applying for EU funds. 1.5.1 Insights From the Digital Network Improvement Plan The following are examples of challenges and areas for improvement concerning the digital transformation of cities identified in the Digital Network IP. CHALLENGE 1 Lack of a coherent vision (and a document that operationalizes it) for the digitization of the state, scaled to the LGUs from the level of the central administration (in charge of the digitization of the state) that creates and applies ‘digital minima’ for the LGUs PROPOSED SOLUTION 1 Development of a coherent, stable, and effectively communicated vision for the digi- tization of the LGUs in the short, medium, and long term, in the form of a directional document (a strategy developed at the level of the central administration, consis- tent with the vision for the digitization of the LGUs, and a ‘roadmap’ describing the process for implementation of the strategy, with a mapping of the key stakeholders and their roles, tasks, and ‘digital minima’). This solution is necessary for the plan- ning and implementation of integrated, consistent actions by the LGUs to increase the LGUs’ digital maturity, and the more efficient use of resources, including the expenditure of funds. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 25 1 CHALLENGE 2 Limited institutional capacity, especially of midsize and small cities, to plan and imple- Executive Summary ment short- and long-term digitization activities, and the low awareness of city deci- sion-makers and officials, as well as residents, regarding the benefits of introducing digital solutions PROPOSED SOLUTION 2 Promotion of pilot implementations of solutions concerning the digitization of local government units. This would be a valuable source of practical knowledge for devel- oping standards, good practices, methodologies, and reference solutions and the optimal methods for their verification that can be recommended for wider use by the LGUs. To ensure a more systemic approach to piloting digital solutions and mainstreaming this approach, it was proposed to incorporate into the European Funds for Digital Development 2021 – 2027 program (FERC), a dedicated submea- sure — Pilot Center for Digital Solutions — aimed at the implementation of pilots of digital solutions for local administrations. The aim would be to develop scalable digital solutions for local government units, while contributing to the achievement of strategic goals related to the digitization of the LGUs. This would be accom- plished by operationalizing and adapting (calibrating) the requirements of digital government solutions to the specifics of the LGUs, and by increasing the flexibility and responsiveness of the central administration to the specific demand for digi- tal solutions for local governments. Three pilot projects were proposed in the Digital Network IP: PILOT 1 Designing and testing a city information architecture (CIA) model PILOT 2 Designing and testing a model of digitization and integration (MDI) of data, informa- tion, and municipal processes, based on business intelligence class solutions PILOT 3 Creation of a digital platform for monitoring media consumption and managing energy use in municipal public buildings The implementation of the pilots proposed in the IP will enable the aggregation of knowledge from the practice of individual municipalities in a form that can be used by all local government units. The dissemination of solutions resulting from the pilots may be particularly useful for smaller and less experienced LGUs, which, with the same digital needs, struggle with a limited institutional potential, including in the field of the efficient absorption of financial resources in the area of digitization. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 26 1 1.5.1 Insights From the PPP Network Improvement Plan Executive Summary CHALLENGE 1 Reduction of the cost of financing projects implemented in the PPP formula was the main challenge identified by the PPP. These costs — that can constitute up to about 40 – 60% of the value of capital expenditures — are a key barrier of entry for cities that are considering undertaking PPP projects. PROPOSED SOLUTION 1 Development of a model mechanism resulting in a significant reduction in financing costs that should translate into an increase in the attractiveness and competitiveness of PPP projects in relation to the traditional formula. This, in turn, will allow for a more effective promotion of PPP in the investment activities of the cities. The World Bank team recommended working on developing the assumptions of such a solution, using the ‘roundtable’ formula, that is, convening a series of meetings of key stakeholders representing, among others, the following entities: the MDFRP; Ministry of Finance; Polish Development Fund; Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego and other banks, as well as other institutions financing PPP; institutions potentially able to provide sure- ties/guarantees; private partners; local government units and organizations (city halls, the Association of Polish Cities, the Association of Polish Counties, the Union of Polish Metropolises); universities; consulting companies; and the World Bank. CHALLENGE 2 PPP model is often too complex and expensive for small cities and their relatively small projects. Preparation of a PPP investment requires an upfront investment in the analyses of the financial and economic efficiency, supplemented with both legal and technical assessments. In the case of small projects, such costs may ren- der these investments too expensive. PROPOSED SOLUTION 2 Exploration of ways to either increase the investment scope by packaging multiple investments in a single PPP contract, or to lower the financial burden on the city bud- get by involving EU funds in the implementation (the so-called ‘hybrid PPP model’). The PPP formula has a chance to become an important development tool for Polish cities, enabling them to plan and implement medium- and long-term investment plans aimed at achieving development goals. An important challenge is to imple- ment appropriate solutions that will allow the potential of public-private partner- ships to be used in two areas: project packaging or clustering (by at least two munic- ipalities that are in geographic proximity, e.g within a functional urban area); and hybrid projects using EU funds as a financial lever. In the perspective of the expected CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 27 1 increase in the attractiveness of the PPP formula and interest in its wider applica- tion, the challenge related to building and systematically strengthening the insti- tutional potential of cities in the PPP area is of particular importance. Executive Summary During the CPI implementation, cities from the PPP Network participated in pub- lic consultations of the updated Government of Poland’s PPP policy. The MDFRP approved a number of submitted proposals, including the continuous promotion of in- vestment implementation in the PPP model, the continuation of training in the field of PPP, and the intensification of advisory support in the conducted proceedings. These elements will be incorporated into further work on the Implementation Plan of the government’s PPP policy. This is a great example of the CPI acting as a ‘transmission belt’ between the local and central dimensions of the urban policy. Two pilot projects were proposed: PILOT 1 Developing a financing model for comprehensive urban regeneration programs using the PPP formula PILOT 2 PPP project clustering in functional urban areas 1.5.3 Insights from Green City Network Improvement Plan The identified challenges and areas for improvement included the following examples: CHALLENGE 1 Development of a mechanism for coordinating the investment process using NBS. Deci- sion-making processes for the planning, implementation, operation, and financ- ing of urban infrastructure should be adapted accordingly if nature-based solu- tions are to be applied consistently, and to also maximize their benefits for climate change adaptation and the quality of life in cities. PROPOSED SOLUTION 2 Integration of NBS with investment planning within a properly designed coordination mechanism, supported by the systematic education of stakeholders and the promotion of measurable (and properly monitored) benefits resulting from the implementation of NBS. The implementation of NBS should be a routine part of the infrastructure planning and project preparation process. A set of specific recommendations were developed to guide this process, which included the following: i) establishing an interdisciplinary interdepartmental team within a city administration for investment implementation; ii) taking into account the costs of maintaining the planned green areas and/or NBS as CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 28 1 part of the investment; iii) developing standards and guidelines for urban green in the investment process (for example, investment greening indicators, and natural poten- tial loss indicators); iv) introducing solutions that exclude the possibility of combin- Executive Summary ing the function of a designer with that of a greenery supervision inspector (due to conflict of interest); and v) determining the conditions for the protection of greenery during the execution of works and their enforcement. It is also necessary to take action to map and disseminate knowledge on the possibilities of using the potential of proj- ects implemented in cooperation with private partners to support green investments (green investments as a component of PPP projects in the field of, for example, revi- talization, reconstruction, and modernization of roads, and others). CHALLENGE 2 Insufficient integration of green infrastructure ecosystem services in national legislation and in national level strategic documents. In Poland, the process of integrating ecosystem services into planning and decision-making processes is in its initial stages. Key barri- ers include the following: a lack of knowledge in the field of ecosystem services, as well as in the methodology for their assessment, and data sources among the participants of the environmental management processes, and a lack of the sufficient enshrine- ment of ecosystem services in the Polish legislative and strategic planning systems. PROPOSED SOLUTION 2 Dissemination of existing knowledge about the assessment of ecosystem services among administrative staff at different levels and other key stakeholder groups, and the embedding of a definition of ecosystem services in Polish law. There is also a need for educational and training activities on the importance of identifying ecosystem ser- vices in the planning and decision-making processes, and methods and data sources for assessing them (especially open access data). These activities should be addressed not only to professionals and decision-makers, but also to interested social groups as the users of natural capital. An important element of incorporating the concept of ecosystem services into the activities of central and local government admin- istration is the ability to estimate the benefits they bring, as well as incorporating the definition of ecosystem services in an identified set of national legislation acts. Two pilot projects were proposed: PILOT 1 Preparing a model blue-green infrastructure (BGI) management plan for a selected city(s)/functional area PILOT 1 Preparing a model spatial development plan, taking into account water management at the level of a selected fragment of the city (for example, a district, housing estate, or a selected investment) CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 29 1.6 1 KEY OBSERVATIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE CPI DESIGN Executive Summary The CPI offers great added value for the participating cities and ministries, both at the level of individual urban solutions as well as systemic changes and adjust- ments. The concept and main elements of the CPI (goals, a combination of the top-down and bottom-up character, size of networks, and the number and nature of meetings) are well designed. These allowed achieving and exceeding the initiative’s objectives, that is, the enhancement of the participant’s capacity to design solutions supporting sustainable urban development, and the networking between the networks’ partici- pants. Moreover, the CPI’s outputs have a chance to become useful reference models applicable for other local governments in Poland. The networks of ten cities offered the right size and allowed for the internal dif- ferentiation of the network, while allowing for an intensive exchange of expe- rience and networking, as well as effective workshop work. Each of the networks included large, midsize, and small cities, characterized by different levels of maturi- ty or advancement in the subject covered by the network. Such diversity made it pos- sible to implement the project’s objectives regarding mutual learning of cities, and to reflect the specificity of the challenges and needs of different city groups in the formu- lated recommendations to be used in planning future support instruments for cities. Networking — the CPI’s soft component — fostered a spirit of cooperation be- tween the participants and was one of the key success factors for the project. Mutual learning, sharing experiences (including negative ones, for example, one’s own mistakes or failures), utilizing the help of other participants (also informally and out- side of official project meetings) can only take place in a group that trusts and feels comfortable with each other. This goal was achieved, and the CPI participants consid- ered this social and inclusive aspect of the initiative to be a great added value and one of the important measures of the success of the entire initiative. Systematic branding of the CPI would help increase the impact of the initiative. It is recommended to place a stronger emphasis on continuous and long-term build- ing of the CPI’s brand as a MDFRP flagship project, which has an important role for central and local administration. It would be useful to embed the concept of the CPI as an urban laboratory in the mechanism of the preparation and implementation of urban policies in Poland. The CPI could then become a regular mechanism, while the fuel (thematic content) could be sourced from various actors within the national ad- ministration. Stronger promotion of the CPI’s brand would also help appropriate- ly position the initiative within the existing ecosystem of advisory projects available to Polish cities, increasing the complementarity and synergistic benefits of the entire palette of offered support. The implementation of an attractive formula for the CPI Alumni program has the potential to increase the sustainability of the project results achieved. The CPI’s success is based on effective networking and building a vibrant community of urban practitioners at the national and city levels that is supported with a large dose of substantive knowledge. CPI cities are interested in (i) maintaining the relationships CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 30 1 they built during the project, (ii) further developing their networks with other cities, (iii) continuing to learn from each other and share knowledge, such as through joint projects, and (iv) being able to discuss with national administrations the bottlenecks Executive Summary and optimal systemic and operational solutions to support sustainable urban develop- ment. The creation of the CPI Alumni formula announced by the MDFRP offers an op- portunity to meet these cities’ expectations. It could also allow regular monitoring of the progress of MAP implementation. This, in turn, would be a valuable contribution to the central level both in terms of further finetuning the CPI formula and in terms of adapting national instruments aimed at cities. Selected recommendations for the CPI Alumni formula are proposed in the summary section of this Report (Chapter 5). The Final Report is structured as follows. Chapter 2 describes the conclusions of the work in each network concerning the technical substance and functioning of the net- work. The three Improvement Plans with recommendations for the national level are presented in Chapter 3; it includes a description of the main challenges, proposed solu- tions, and pilots. Chapter 4 presents selected urban good practices that may be useful for cities outside of the CPI in designing their activities that overlap with the network’s themes. Chapter 5 summarizes the Report. The annexes contain additional materi- als: synthetic descriptions of MAPs (fiches) — Annexes 1 – 3, and the sets of the cit- ies’ challenges and proposals pertaining to the topics of each network (the so-called ‘Recommendation Banks’) — Annexes 4 – 6. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 31 2 ACTIVITIES IN THE THREE THEMATIC NETWORKS 2 Each city, by joining the CPI, has committed to putting significant effort and time into project work. To this end, each city appointed teams of two people to work on the CPI. The intensity of the project work had to do with both the meetings of the indi- Activities in the Three Thematic Networks vidual networks, as well as the preparation of two types of documents that were the products of the project — Municipal Action Plans (MAP) and Improvement Plans (IPs). A MAP describes the path to tackle a selected problem at the local level in each city and proposes specific solutions to lead to specific city actions. Each city devel- oped its own MAP, based on a template proposed by the MDFRP with the support of an expert team and partner cities from the respective thematic network. This made the cities the actual owners of these documents and the solutions contained in them. MAP fiches are presented in Annexes 1 – 3. The MAP is a document created for the internal needs of a city and has an imple- mentation-oriented character. In short, MAP operationalizes the proposed solu- tions to challenges identified by cities. The practical dimension of the MAP is import- ant — the assumption was that it should be a document to help implement the city’s plans or needs and be easy to read and implement later. Work on MAPs was evolutionary in nature. Cities applied to the CPI with an iden- tified challenge to which they wanted to find a solution during the project. Some cities already had a proposal for specific solutions they wanted to verify during the project, and some of the cities hoped for support in developing them. The first step in develop- ing the MAP was to verify the city’s identified challenge, which in many cases led to its redefinition. In subsequent steps, city teams worked on a solution and defined a path to achieve it. The majority of CPI activities revolved around this core axis. IPs are sets of recommendations for the national level, resulting from the work with cities during the CPI, and developed by the World Bank team. IPs for all three networks are presented in Chapter 3. The work under the CPI was characterized by a high level of intensity and re- quired considerable commitment from the cities. Meetings of the network were held on a regular basis, every 1.5 months or so, and usually lasted two full days (when possible, these were physical meetings). Meetings were held in cities across the coun- try (see Table 1.1). In between these meetings, individual networks also met online, and one-on-one consultations between city teams and Bank experts were held. Each network participated in one study visit abroad. In addition, participants received in- formation about webinars and events related to the topics of the networks that they could attend — for example, the CPI presentation at the 11th World Urban Forum in Katowice (June 2022), and the consultation of the Polish government’s PPP Policy de- velopment. Participation in these meetings combined with the work on each individ- ual MAP (in the periods between network meetings) required a significant time com- mitment from the participants. The network activities were directed at interaction, stimulating the informa- tion flow between participants, and mutual learning. The possibility of frequent meetings and the inclusion of all participants built an atmosphere of trust, which pos- itively translated into substantive work, as it allowed participants to collaborate more deeply and jointly develop solutions included in the MAP. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 33 2 The Bank team planned the thematic scope of each meeting and the nature of the work during the meetings. In the initial phase of the project, the Bank team, in coor- dination with the MDFRP team, prepared a methodology for the work in each network, Activities in the Three Thematic Networks which guided the development of the work in the network. This made it possible to plan the order of the various thematic blocks during the implementation of the network’s work and set the main thematic directions. The Bank team was also responsible for selecting the workshop methods used during the network’s meetings. This initial schedule was monitored and adjusted according to the progress of the work and the demand of the participants. The conclusions in this Report are based on several data sources. These include the opinions of the Bank and MDFRP teams and supporting ministries, the observa- tions and requests from cities collected during the work, as well as conclusions from the evaluation surveys. Anonymous online surveys were implemented by the Bank team after each network meeting to receive feedback from the participants. They were in the form of open-ended and closed-ended questions concerning the network’s meetings, their preparation and implementation, and potential topics in which the cities would be interested for the future. 2.1 DIGITAL NETWORK 2.1.1 Introduction to the Work of the Network — “Why?” Rapidly advancing social and economic changes, and technological develop- ment3 make citizens expect efficient communication from the national govern- ment and local administrations, as well as the ability to remotely handle mat- ters with public offices. This requires securing quick and easy access to citizens, and providing them with information; it also requires the public administrations to of- fer a growing number of online services. Growing citizen expectations — resulting from, for example, the movement of people within the EU and their perception of the development gap4 between less and more developed countries — make it necessary for the entire Polish public administration to adapt. This, in turn, requires changes in city offices themselves, in how they operate, how they collect, process, and analyze data and documents — in other words, changes in the processes taking place in offic- es (‘from behind the scenes’) that are not visible to citizens. The COVID-19 pandemic and the outbreak of war in Ukraine only confirm and reinforce these needs5. These developments, along with limited public resources, also make city managers increasingly aware of the need to make quick decisions based on 3. Stan_digitization_of_Poland_on_the_tle_region_2022, https://digitalpoland.org/publikacje/pobier- z?id=4ceb0166-6dd6-4c58-ab9a-cf77f56d7c20 dated February 17, 2023. 4. https://news.microsoft.com/europe/features/digital-futures-index/ Select->Digital Government & Public Sector dated February 17, 2023. 5. Survey of needs of Operational Program Digital Poland 2014–2020 Beneficiaries and Applicants. https://www.gov.pl/web/popcwsparcie/raporty-z-badan-potrzeb-beneficjentow-i-wnioskodawcow-ii-osi- popc dated February 17, 2023. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 34 2 up-to-date and complete data and information, not just plans and forecasts. Access to such data and information is possible only with the use of modern, integrated informa- tion systems/platforms, which is dependent on the high digital competence of the pub- Activities in the Three Thematic Networks lic administration. The first concepts of digitizing and opening up public data appeared in Poland as early as the late 1990s. However, to date, there is a lack of comprehensive solutions that allow the free exchange of data and information, not only between the systems/platforms of Poland’s public sphere institutions, but even within a single office. The analysis of the literature, as well as the experiences and observations of par- ticipants in the Digital Network clearly indicate the following assessments6: (i) The digital maturity of Polish cities varies and depends on many factors, for example, size, budget, priorities and vision of the authorities, and the availability of resources and competencies. Some cities have implemented advanced IT systems and advanced solutions in areas such as energy manage- ment (Bydgoszcz), traffic management (Rzeszów), or smart parking (Gdańsk), while in other cities these activities are just beginning. Similar differences can be observed among the cities participating in the CPI. Polish cities are put- ting more and more emphasis on digitization and the implementation of new technologies, for example, to improve the quality of decisions, the living stan- dards of residents and the attractiveness of the city for tourists and businesses. (ii) The availability of human resources with a sufficiently high level of digital competence (IT, information, and functional) is very important for the digital development of cities. Without high digital competencies, the supply of digi- tal public services is limited, but so is the demand for such services. In this con- text, it is important to synchronize the improvement of digital competencies in the area of citizen-facing services (A2C) and intra-administrative services (A2A), in or- der to effectively implement digital transformation7. (iii) It is necessary to develop dedicated solutions for the local governments and integrate them with central government solutions in areas such as data integra- tion and structures (State Information Architecture), data opening (Reuse of Public Sector Information), process description and analysis (National Interoperability Framework), and cyber security (National Cyber Security System). The financial standing of the LGUs compels city authorities to try to reduce costs; they are looking for solutions that improve the quality of decisions (investments and services) by handling precise data and information provided electronically. Digital solutions are tools that can effectively support cities in these areas. The ongoing 6. Examples of reports include: Information Society in Poland in 2021 https://stat.gov.pl/obszary-tematy- czne/nauka-i-technika-spoleczenstwo-informacyjne/spoleczenstwo-informacyjne/spoleczenstwo-infor- macyjne-w-polsce-w-2021-roku,1,15.html dated February 17, 20223; and DESI’s Digital Economy and Digital Society Index https://digital-agenda-data.eu/charts/desi-see-the-evolution-of-two-indicators-and-com- pare-countries#chart={%22indicator%22:%22desi_dps_egov%22,%22breakdown%22:%22desi_dps_ pscit%22,%22unit-measure%22:%22pc_desi_dps_egov%22,%22ref-area%22:[%22EU%22,%22PL%22]} dated February 17, 2023 r. 7. Digital Competence Development Program https://www.gov.pl/web/cyfryzacja/zaproszenie-do-konsul- tacji-programu-rozwoju-kompetencji-cyfrowych dated February 17, 2023. Digital Competence Development Program https://www.gov.pl/web/cyfryzacja/zaproszenie-do-konsultacji-programu-rozwoju-kompetenc- ji-cyfrowych dated February 17, 2023. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 35 2 geopolitical and economic crisis created by Russia’s aggression against Ukraine has resulted, among other things, in higher prices for utilities (electricity, heat, gas, water, and others) and many other products, which translate into high inflation. These phe- Activities in the Three Thematic Networks nomena motivate cities to implement IT systems that not only monitor historical data but can also help optimize the use of utilities in real time, responding to spikes, and preventing significant increases in utility costs. Budgetary constraints also make it nec- essary to seal the systems for collecting fees and taxes, which involves improving the quality of, and access to, the data available to cities. 2.1.2 Synthetic Description of Cities and the CPI’s Work Eight cities initially took up work in the Digital Network: Białogard, Białystok, Debica, Dzierzgoń, Pilawa, Rzeszów, Świdnica, and Wyszków. Within the first three months, two cities, Dzierzgoń and Białogard, decided to withdraw from the project. As the main reasons for the resignations, the cities pointed to staff shortages and the heavy burden of ongoing duties for employees initially selected to work within the network. Cities emphasized that the initiative itself, and the opportunity to exchange knowledge within the network, was interesting to them, but the lack of available hu- man resources capable of engaging in project work caused them to resign. As a result, six cities remained in the Digital Network, and the MDFRP decided to expand the com- position of the network, in order to reap the full benefits of the potential of the project. In July 2022, four new cities joined the Digital Network: Iłowa, Krzywiń, Lidzbark Warmiński, and Łódź. The MDFRP accepted the applications of these cities, based on the Bank’s recommendation. In making the selection, the MDFRP and Bank teams were guided by the size of applicant cities — priority was given to small and midsize cities — as well as their clear interest in the Digital Network’s themes, and a willing- ness to work with other cities. A full list of the ten Digital Network cities that complet- ed their work on MAPs, and basic information about them is presented in Table 2.1, while Table 2.2 describes the themes of each city’s CPI work. TABLE 2.1  Composition of the Digital Network No. City Province Population Surface [km2] 1. Białystok Podlaskie 293,413 102.1 2. Dębica Podkarpackie 44,692 33.9 3. Iłowa Lubuskie 3,947 9.1 4. Krzywiń Greater Poland 1,716 2.3 5. Lidzbark Warmiński Warmińsko-Mazurskie 15,379 14.4 6. Łódź Łódzkie 664,071 293.3 7. Pilawa Mazowieckie 4,563 9.6 8. Rzeszów Podkarpackie 198,609 129.1 9. Świdnica Lower Silesia 55,416 21.8 10. Wyszków Mazowieckie 26,841 20.8 Source: Authors’ elaboration. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 36 2 TABLE 2.2  MAP Topics in the Digital Network No. City MAP Theme Activities in the Three Thematic Networks 1. Białystok Integrated city management through increased integration of IT solutions 2. Dębica Improving the security of public spaces in the city of Debica 3. Iłowa Integrated information management system of public administration units in Ilowa municipality 4. Krzywiń Increase digital integration through systems integration at the Electronic Customer Service Office (EBOI 5. Lidzbark Warmiński Building a system to integrate data from spatial information, monitor- ing, urban communication and emergency management 6. Łódź Resident Portal 7. Pilawa Eliminating leaks in the waste management fee system 8. Rzeszów Digitization of business processes occurring in Rzeszów City Hall 9. Świdnica City information architecture 10. Wyszków Tightening the system of assessment and collection of the municipal waste management fee Source: Authors’ elaboration. When joining the project, the cities had fairly general outlines of the scopes of activities to be implemented within the project framework. For this reason, the first phase of the Digital Network’s activities was focused on clarifying the topics of individual MAPs. This work proceeded at different speeds among the network partic- ipants. Once the themes of the MAPs were defined, work began on developing specific ideas and solutions. Some cities selected MAP themes in line with projects planned for implementation in the city or already underway. As a result, during the CPI, some cit- ies have already started the implementation of their MAPs and are estimated to have completed 50 – 60% of the MAPs’ planned objectives (Świdnica, and Wyszków), some are beginning the implementation process (Dębica), and some are at the stage of seek- ing external sources of funding (Łódź, Białystok, and Krzywiń). If these funding sourc- es are not identified, then MAPs will be implemented using funds coming from the city budgets (Krzywiń, and Białystok). At the moment, all the cities declare that they will achieve the objectives formulated in their MAPs according to the adopted schedule. The work carried out within the framework of the Digital Network has contribut- ed to raising the cities’ level of knowledge in the field of digitization of the pub- lic sphere. The originally assumed scopes of MAPs were verified and modified during the work of the network. Some cities, based on the experience of other network par- ticipants, used the solutions developed by them to modify their MAPs. It is noteworthy that the work of the network was not limited to meetings between city representatives and Bank experts. Representatives of the cities remained in ongoing direct contact and exchanged information and consulted with each other on projects, including those im- plemented outside the CPI. Established relationships allowed members of the network community to locate sources of information within the network that allowed them to quickly obtain assistance with digital data processing and the information systems and solutions used by cities. Work in the network was characterized by a lack of barri- ers to knowledge exchange, a high willingness to cooperate, and a strong commitment CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 37 2 to problem solving. The relationships created seem to be so durable that cities, when planning their next digitization activities, will benefit from the knowledge and expe- rience of the network’s participants, and in particular, will consult and model them- Activities in the Three Thematic Networks selves on solutions already in place in other network cities. All cities participating in the Digital Network have completed their MAPs, and the Bank team sees no difference in either the quality or timelines of the tasks being completed. Additional meetings and consultations with the four new mem- bers of the network have evened out the pace and advancement of work. The adopted concept of MAP as an open, ‘living’ document (a directional, working document that will support the implementation of the city’s digital transformation in the long term) means that cities are beginning to use the adopted form and structure to plan devel- opment in subsequent areas of digitization, expanding the scope of the initial MAP, or creating new documents for subsequent areas based on this model. Activities of the Digital Network led to the development of digital solutions scal- able to other LGUs. The willingness to share knowledge, strong commitment, and very good cooperation between cities led to the definition of solutions based on the developed MAPs that could be used by LGUs in general. A list of scalable solutions is presented in Box 2.1. BOX 2.1  Digital Network Products with Potential to Scale in Poland The scalable solutions developed by the Digital Network cities fit into the following horizontal areas: o Integration and data structures (State Information Architecture, SIA) o Data opening (Reuse of Public Sector Information, RPSI) o Process description and analysis (National Interoperability Framework, NIF) o Cyber security (National Cyber Security System, NCSS) City Scalable MAP Product Białystok o A standardized model for identification, description, and analysis of processes, as well as a model for the 293,413 inhabitants integration of data and information Dębica o A solution for recording utility consumption and detecting deviations, in order to optimize utility 44,692 inhabitants consumption o A standardized model for building a city monitoring center (technical, managemental, and organizational) Krzywiń o A model for customer service and the development of a mobile application of the electronic Customer 1,716 inhabitants Service Office based on the identified good practices Iłowa o Reference solution for integration of systems in the small LGUs (information, management, crisis manage- 3,947 inhabitants ment, and public transport) Lidzbark Warmiński o A model for a system that integrates data from spatial information, monitoring, urban communications, 15,379 inhabitants and emergency management, including incorporating urban monitoring, spatial information, and urban communications systems into an integrated city management system, and an emergency management system Łódź o A model for the implementation and integration of the Resident’s Portal with a set of tools (including: 664,071 inhabitants automation of service at the Łódź Resident Contact Center, provision of Open Data, providing residents with the ability to complete online matters in the area of taxes and fees, increasing tax collection) Świdnica o A scalable model of the city information architecture for the area of municipal land management, consis- 55,416 inhabitants tent with the central-level state information architecture concept CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 38 City Scalable MAP Product Wyszków o A standardized solution including the identification and description of municipal waste procedures with 26,841 inhabitants initiatives including anti-fraud, GIS data, and information integration Poznań o A platform for monitoring utilities and energy management in facilities owned by the city, enabling the 540,000 inhabitants comparison and sharing of data on the consumption of electricity, heat, cooling and energy from renew- (city-moderator in the able sources, taking into account the grouping and comparison of facilities and relating consumption to network) time intervals o Recommendations on model processes and procedures for utility management, IT solutions for optimiz- ing energy management in the city (office and organizational units) in conjunction with the integration of data with geographic information systems (GIS) Pilawa o A model for sealing the municipal waste management system 4,536 inhabitants Rzeszów o A process inventory model with a reference list of office processes (process=task) and a standardized 198,609 inhabitants methodology for describing office processes o Implementation model of the office digitization project with a set of tools Source: Authors’ elaboration. The timeline of activities of the Digital Network is shown in Table 2.3. The work of the network included individual network meetings (INMs), joint meetings of all three Networks (JNMs), study visits, opening and closing conferences, and individu- al online meetings of Bank experts with individual cities, as well as online Network meetings (ONMs). TABLE 2.3  Schedule of Digital Network Meetings Date Event Location Feb. 9, 2022 Inaugural conference Online Mar. 28, 2022 Online network meeting (ONM #1) Online Apr. 26, 2022 ONM #2 May 10 – 12, 2022 Individual network meeting (INM) #1 Lublin Jul. 5 – 7, 2022 Individual network meeting (INM) #2 Poznań Jul. 15, 2022 ONM #3 Jul. 1–Aug. 4, 2022 Individual consultations with cities Online Aug. 9 – 26, 2022 Introductory meetings and working meetings with new cities Online Aug. 11, 2022 ONM #4 Online Aug. 29 – 31, 2022 INM #3 Rzeszów Oct. 3 – 6, 2022 Joint meeting of all networks (JNM) #1; INM #4 Łódź Oct. 25 – 28, 2022 Study visit Estonia Nov. 1–Dec. 10, 2022 Individual consultations with cities Online Dec. 21, 2022 ONM # 5 Online Jan. 24 – 26, 2023 JNM # 2; INM #5 Toruń CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 39 Date Event Location 2 Jan. 19–Feb. 10, 2023 Individual consultations with cities Online Activities in the Three Thematic Networks Mar. 27, 2023 INM #6 Warsaw Mar. 28, 2023 Closing conference Warsaw Source: Authors’ elaboration. A study visit of Digital Network participants was held in Tallinn, Estonia, from October 25 to 28, 2022. This visit was one of the key elements of the CPI, as it allowed the participants to learn about the Estonian digital solutions and inspired the devel- opment and implementation of innovative digital projects. In choosing Estonia as the destination country, the Bank and MDFRP teams paid special attention to the fact that Estonia is considered the most advanced digital society in the world8. The undertak- ings presented during the study visit were preselected by the Bank and MDFRP teams, in cooperation with Enterprise Estonia9, which is affiliated with the Estonian Embassy. The study visit included the following elements, among others: a meeting with Mr. Grzegorz Kozłowski (Ambassador of the Republic of Poland to Estonia) during which the Estonian model of socioeconomic-political development and details of Estonian success in the area of digitization were discussed (the Estonians pride themselves in having 10 unicorns10); learning about digital innovations in public transportation (its features — free for residents of the City of Tallinn, integrated with Helsinki City Card, and e-payment support), testing autonomous city buses and presenting autonomous mobile solutions for courier delivery (small and midsize parcels in cities); discussing e-government solutions, like Electronic ID and X-road (within the general fields of eTaxation, eEducation, eElection, eHealth, and others) that are based on the pillars of “confidentiality, accessibility, and integrity”; and a meeting with representatives of ITS Estonia11. A visit to Tallinn City Hall gave the opportunity to see the scale of dig- itization of the city of Tallinn — the scope of digitization of city hall is impressive. It includes 100% of the services described in online directories, 60 IT systems and 130 e-services implemented, and almost 100% of the matters carried out without paper. Finally, meetings at EdTech Estonia12 , among others, and learning about digital solu- tions developed for education in the areas of virtual and augmented reality, artificial intelligence, the management of educational facilities, laboratories, support for speech therapy activities, language learning and teaching processes, and others. Meetings at TalTech’s headquarters at Tallinn University showcased the digital technologies being developed for both urban transportation (smart sidewalks) and space (satellites). A dig- ital map of Estonia’s egovernment and Estonia’s energy grid was presented, with infor- mation on energy consumption by region, city, and district. When logged in by a resi- dent, information on energy consumption can be obtained, based on where they live. 8. Wired magazine https://www.wired.co.uk/article/digital-estonia dated October 20, 2016. In addition, Estonia has the most startups, unicorns (see footnote # 10), and venture capital (VC) investments per capita in Europe (Estonia has 1,384 startups per 1 million residents, Poland has 90, Latvia has 315, and Lithuania has 523) https://investinestonia.com/estonia-leads-europe-in-startups-unicorns-and-investments-per-capita/ dated December 2022. 9. http://eas.ee 10. Enterprise valuation above $1 billion, for example, Skype, Bolt, TransferWise, and Veriff. 11. An entity for manufacturers of intelligent transportation and logistics systems (ITS). 12. Hub of 49 educational organizations. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 40 2 2.1.3 Description of the MAP Digital Network Activities in the Three Thematic Networks Abbreviated descriptions of MAPs of the Digital Network are presented in Annex 1. 2.1.4 Lessons learned from MAP and Working with Cities Observations of the Digital Network cities have confirmed that despite more than 25 years of efforts to build a modern digital public administration in Poland, there are still impediments in this sphere and room for further improvement. These challenges are caused by various factors, for example, organizational barriers, including red tape, low digital competencies, legal and technological barriers, and the lack of a coherent strategy for the digitization of the state (central institutions and lo- cal government units). The different standards, solutions and models that have been applied over the years have made the databases and information systems in use largely unable to exchange data and information with each other. In addition, in cities, much of the data and information to date has not been transferred to the digital layer and remains in traditional paper repositories. This situation can be observed not only in small offices that have not been able to implement digital solutions due to limited re- sources, but also in large ones. Two challenges that Digital Network cities were particularly interested in tack- ling were: i) streamlining the internal operations of city administrations (data, and processes), and ii) optimizing resources to generate savings. The three main solutions developed under MAP, and partially already imple- mented by cities are: 1. City information architecture (CIA) with data models for the LGUs 2. Models of processes implemented by cities 3. IT system that manages utilities in public buildings to increase efficiency and reduce costs The first two solutions have been identified by all Digital Network participants as the backbone for other municipal digitization efforts, because they support stock-taking and standardization of organizational resources and processes, and thus strive for compatibility. They can, and should be, adapted to the needs and capabilities of cities of different sizes. They are considered by network participants to be a prerequisite for the consistent implementation of any digital solution by city of- fices and their organizational units, as well as for effective and efficient cooperation with the central administration. The third area is growing in popularity due to high energy prices and shrink- ing fiscal space in local government budgets. Modern metering technologies make it possible to create digital solutions directed at monitoring and ongoing manage- ment of current utility consumption. In addition, the digitization of this area also makes it possible to automate utility management and detect potential irregulari- ties in this area. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 41 2 Area I: Development of the City Information Architecture With Data Models for the LGUs Activities in the Three Thematic Networks For cities, digital transformation means a change in the way organizational pro- cesses are carried out by replacing the traditional paper-based information me- dium with an electronic one. An analysis of the topics included in MAPs indicates that access to data and information held in city resources or central repositories is one of the main challenges. The development of the CIA will allow the clear identification of information sources, the data models used in them, and such specification and implemen- tation of information systems that will most effectively achieve the goals of the digital transformation of the cities. The development of the CIA will also create the possibility of linking the systems of the central administration with those of the cities, so that information exchange in both direc- tions is carried out automatically, without unneces- sary involvement of human resources, and with the BOX 2.2  City Information Architecture minimization of data transmission errors. City Information Architecture (CIA) is a solution dedicated to cit- ies, based on the state information architecture, which is a for- The CIA is the basis for developing and imple- mal description of how to organize the state’s ICT systems and information resources, and a method for managing their devel- menting integrated information systems. The opment in accordance with the guidelines of the Integrated State concept of this solution is important for the digi- Informatization Program. CIA — just like state information architec- tization of cities of all sizes is described in Box 2.2. ture (SIA) — includes principles, standards, models and manage- ment processes, and uses the solutions necessary to implement the vision of the digital state, as defined in the European Interoperability Building the models that make up the CIA be- Reference Architecture (EIRA)a . came the goal of the MAP undertaken by the city The SIA and CIA models based on EIRA, consist of four layersb : of Świdnica, although this was not the initial o Legislative layer — which includes business objects representing goal. When joining the Digital Network, the city of laws, regulations, policies and standards Świdnica was at the onset of implementing an inte- o Organizational layer — containing a description of the organi- grated system to support city management, and this zational structure, business processes, functions, and business services was also the first topic proposed for the city’s MAP. o Semantic layer — containing a description of data objects at the The very first implementation work in the city point- conceptual and logical level —  including data sources and their ed out the problems arising from the lack of records flows between application components of data sources, and the directions and possibilities o Technical layer — describing both application components with of their flow. In the course of the workshop work, the services and infrastructure elements city’s team decided that the assumed MAP theme was Source: Authors’ elaboration. too broad. The analysis of the situation made during a. https://joinup.ec.europa.eu/collection/european-interoperability-reference-ar- the workshop work with other cities and experts of chitecture-eira/solution/eira dated February 17, 2023. the network clearly indicated that the precondition b. https://www.gov.pl/web/ia/zalozenia-metodyczne-aip dated February 17, 2023. for effective and efficient implementation of the sys- tem is the development of models of both data and information architecture of the office. For this reason, the Świdnica team narrowed the scope of MAP to the subject of the CIA and focused on developing the necessary data and models. Świdnica worked on MAP in parallel with the implementation of selected elements of its CIA, marking it as the first city in Poland to implement such a solution. The implementation of the CIA in Świdnica is particularly important, as it can become an important input to the creation of reference models for other cities in Poland. The results of the implementation are of interest to all cities in the Digital CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 42 2 Network and beyond. Particularly valuable will be the opportunity for other local gov- ernments to use the developed CIA modelling methodology and information archi- tecture model, together with the data models used in the office. Due to the fact that Activities in the Three Thematic Networks cities generally perform the same tasks (the exception being, for example, the city of Warsaw), it can be assumed that the CIA and data models developed by Świdnica will be largely consistent with practices used in other cities, and their adaptation to the specifics of any city will require relatively little effort. The construction of such mod- els by a larger number of cities will allow the development of reference models that can be the basis for determining the optimal path of digital transformation for Polish cities. Świdnica is supported in its endeavors by the Chancellery of the Prime Minister CPM-Digitization and the Digital Development Department at the MDFRP, which gives hope for a wider dissemination of the results of the work and publication of its solu- tions as reference models. The work on the CIA is also important for the integration of the cities’ informa- tion systems with those of the central administration. The attempt by Świdnica to develop a CIA using SIA methodology will allow a future integration of systems and an automatic exchange of data between these levels of administration. Digital Network cities pointed out the incompatibility, and therefore the inability to exchange information between the LGUs’ systems and the central administration systems. The problem of incompatibility is due to the lack of unambiguous standards for data ex- change in the state’s information systems, which results in the implementation of different solutions in different administrative units that do not allow communica- tion with each other. In addition, in the LGUs, different data models are allowed to be used in domain systems, which do not allow them to be easily transferred and pro- cessed by other systems. One example related to the incompatibility of applied solutions is the prob- lem of municipal waste management. This problem, according to the discussions held in the Digital Network, affects a wider range of local governments in Poland. That is why the cities of Pilawa and Wyszków have chosen the development of sys- tems to seal the collection of fees for municipal waste collection as the subject of their MAPs. The problem is systemic and affects virtually all local governments. Currently, there is a lack of solutions that would allow cities to effectively monitor and enforce the correctness of submitted declarations for municipal waste collection and, conse- quently, collect the due fees. The lack of these systems is mainly related to the lack of the integration of data on residents registered in the system collecting information on submitted waste collection declarations with the population registry systems and PESEL (Polish acronym for “Universal Electronic System for the Registration of the Population”) registers. The data models and the CIA model being developed by Świdnica and the SIA model being developed by the CPM-Digitization will make it possible to integrate the cities’ information systems with the central administration databases. Such integration will greatly facilitate the development of solutions that will help lo- cal governments seal their own fee collection systems and integrate them with those of the central administration (the integration indicated above is in terms of the ex- change of data and information between the systems of declaration records, popula- tion records, and PESEL registers). CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 43 2 Area II: Development of Models of Processes Carried out by Cities Activities in the Three Thematic Networks Process models are the basis of the SIA, and consequently, the CIA and all mod- ern concepts in the areas of management, organization, and IT (for example, the International Organization for Standards (ISO), the Project Management Institute (PMI), activity-based costing, integrated IT systems, management control, risk management, enterprise architecture, and others). Processes are a schematically dissected sequence of actions taken by specific units, events, data needed, and so on, that must occur to achieve specific results, such as, for example, the issuance of an ad- ministrative decision to change the name of a street (see Box 2.3). Process management allows the use of different levels of detail within the adopted notation, depending on the purpose of the initiative undertaken, for example, the implementation of SIA, ISO 27000. Adopting a formal methodology for describing processes based on process mod- els, using diagrams, makes it possible to maintain a common denominator for the ini- tiatives undertaken and to take advantage of economies of scale, learning, and the cre- ation of institutional memory, which is particularly important for public administration. BOX 2.3  Models of Processes Implemented by Cities Process models, based on, and developed in, accordance with reached the third level of process maturitya which significantly the concept of process management, are a formal and simplified hinders the digital transformation and efficient implementation of representation of the organizational processes implemented by IT systems. It is therefore expedient not only to identify and model city administrations — for example, employee recruitment, and processes (define the process architecture, the levels of detail the process of issuing administrative decisions. Process models including, for example, activities, documents, IT systems, human (basic, auxiliary, management, and others) should be developed resources, data, and inter-process flows), but also to parameterize to cover substantive areas of city operations (for example, resi- and analyze them. This will allow the use of benchmarking, which dent services and real estate) presented in appropriate graphic will make it much faster and more efficient to implement new diagrams (maps) with a relevant degree of detail, that is, at appro- solutions in other local governments. It seems recommendable to priate levels of modelling. They should take into account the pur- build a repository of processes and organizational structures avail- pose of modelling, for example, state/city Information architec- able to cities, which will include unique, one-off solutions applied ture activities (Świdnica), implementation of electronic document to cities, as well as reference solutions. Such a repository will help management (Rzeszów), Business Intelligence (Białystok) and other LGUs to model their own processes. basic parameters, for example, time, cost, frequency, and qual- Process diagrams are graphical presentations of organizational ity. Identification, description/modelling, parameterization, anal- process models developed, based on formal description meth- ysis, streamlining and optimization of organizational processes odology. Diagrams can be used to plan activities concerning the are activities that significantly improve the efficiency of cities in maintenance and improvement of the mapped processes and the area of digital transformation, as confirmed by the experience allow the organization of the activities taking place in the office, of the city of Poznań (moderator of the Digital Network). Studies including those concerning the flow of data and information indicate that about 50% of the LGUs in Poland have not even between both systems and organizational units. Source: Authors’ elaboration. a. Pyplacz, P., Sasak J, Research results presented at the 3rd Congress of Modern Management, Mikolajk.i November 17 – 19, 2021. Determining the information flow within a city office is a challenge for many Polish cities. In the work of the Digital Network, the cities of Świdnica, Białystok, and Rzeszów paid attention to this topic from the beginning of the project. Determining the location of information sources and the paths of its propagation was a challenge in ob- taining management information identified by several Digital Network cities, including Iłowa, Krzywiń, and Wyszków. One of the local study visits organized during the Digital Network’s meeting took place in Poznań City Hall — which is one of the leaders in Poland in the area of process management. It allowed members of the Digital Network to get acquainted with the process management concept that has been implemented CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 44 2 there for more than 20 years. The experience of the city of Poznań (including a list of identified and described processes and the methodology for their preparation) in- spired other cities from the network to pay attention to the process description of the Activities in the Three Thematic Networks implementation of public services, which, in an unambiguous, standardized and com- plete way, allows both to determine the sources of information and its flow, as well as to design optimal communication channels and determine the requirements for in- formation systems supporting the work of the office. Digital solutions developed on the basis of the description of processes will provide information more efficiently and enable electronic exchange of data, not only within the office, but also with external stakeholders and central government units (if they share data exchange standards). Poznań’s extensive experience and the relevance of the topic of process manage- ment to the Digital Network cities resulted in the inclusion of a representative of Poznań City Hall in the work of the network as a moderator. Digital Network participants pointed to the positive and useful role that the moderator played in sup- porting the network activities. For example, taking advantage of the experience of the city of Poznań allowed the network participants to significantly reduce the pro- cess description time and avoid mistakes, for example, at the stage of developing pro- cess modelling methodologies. Currently, the city of Dębica — in partnership with Poznań — is working on digital solutions for utilities management (described in the third area). The solutions developed will be based on a process concept, making scal- ability possible. The difference in the size of the two cities gives hope that the devel- oped solutions can be useful to a wide range of the LGUs in Poland. Integration at the implementation stage of the CIA models (complementary to SIA) into the organizational processes of the cities will allow the implementa- tion of a new innovative standard of city management. Cities participating in the Digital Network have diagnosed the problem of insufficient access to information for decision-makers. This creates the need to develop tools that provide integrated man- agement information from existing databases and systems. Sources of data and infor- mation and the scope of their processing are determined by SIA/CIA models, while the directions and scope of information provided are determined by process descrip- tions. Hence, combining these two areas will make it possible to quickly provide the necessary information for managerial decisions in the office. In particular, the cities of Iłowa and Krzywiń explored this theme in their MAPs. The MAP developed by the city of Iłowa focused on providing decision-makers with up-to-date information on ongoing activities, budget execution, and planned expen- ditures. The city of Krzywiń worked on an electronic customer service office, a system for both informing citizens and providing e-services by the city. Some cities with fewer financial and human resources are trying to create one-point solutions that provide information in a specific area. However, these piecemeal efforts are not based on state/ city information architecture and process models. For this reason, there is a high prob- ability that they will not be able to integrate with new systems in the future, so it is par- ticularly important to use CIA models (compatible with SIA) and universal organiza- tional process models of cities in such activities. State and city information architectures, as well as the city’s process manage- ment, form the basis for the smooth and effective implementation of most of the city’s digital solutions by standardizing them and ensuring compatibility. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 45 2 Without knowledge of these issues, implemented digital solutions are fragmented in nature, which does not allow them to communicate with each other. Such solutions do not easily integrate with existing and future planned urban solutions, for example, in- Activities in the Three Thematic Networks formation, IT, organizational, and management systems. Area III: Implementation of Digital Utility Management Solutions in Public Buildings The cities of the Digital Network have been interested in the topic of monitor- ing consumption and utility management from the onset of the project. This is due to rising energy prices and the need (and opportunity) to make savings in this area. These topics are of great importance to cities of all sizes (see Box 2.4). For the city of Dębica, it was one of two areas of focus. Poznań, the moderator city, was also interested in this topic. Thus, a joint initiative was born between Poznań and Dębica, focused on developing a scalable solution that allows for both automated, ongoing management of utility consumption, as well as the detection of irregularities, such as improperly billed charges by operators. The planned solution will be based on a process approach as well as data and city information architecture models, which will greatly facilitate the analysis of data flow and usage. In terms of processes, the experience of Poznań will be used, and in terms of data models and information architecture, solutions de- veloped in Świdnica will be helpful. BOX 2.4  Digital Solutions for Utility Consumption Manage- BOX 2.5  Robotic Process Automation ment in Public Buildings (RPA) Modern metering technologies, combined with the desire of local Robotic Process Automation (RPA) can support governments to seek savings, are opening the field for the creation energy management solutions. As part of a pre- of digital solutions directed at monitoring current utility consump- sentation at the Digital Network meeting in tion and its ongoing management. Moreover, the digitization of Toruń, a representative of the Bydgoszcz City Hall this area also makes it possible to automate utility management and presented a successfully applied solution, based detect irregularities (see Box 2.5). All Digital Network cities expressed on this concept. As can be seen from the data pre- interest in the possibility of increasing their competence in more ratio- sented, since the beginning of the solution’s appli- nal management of utilities. Cities are aware that better management cation, irregularities have been detected each of utility consumption on a city-wide scale will generate significant month, both in the consumption of utilities them- financial savings, and the implementation of digital technologies will selves, as well as in billing. Savings achieved by make it possible to reduce the involvement of human resources (which the city from the application of the solution range is another area of savings). from several to more than PLN 100,000 per month. Source: Authors’ elaboration. Source: Authors’ elaboration. Working Method in the Digital Network The topics of MAPs of Digital Network cities have undergone significant changes in many cases during the initial stages of the project. There are several reasons for this. First, the thematic scope of the network is very broad. Multifaceted and cross-cut- ting, the multitude of possible solutions makes it difficult to define specific challeng- es, goals, solutions, priorities, the sequence of activities, stakeholders, risks, and oth- er elements, to be included in MAPs. Second, smaller cities in particular, lack human resources and experience in operationalizing and implementing digital solutions, CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 46 2 making it demanding to define the topic and scope for MAP. For this reason, succes- sive ‘rounds’ of work on defining the MAPs have resulted in significant changes. In addition, in the case of the Digital Network, the major change in composition during Activities in the Three Thematic Networks the work required the newly joined cities to intensify their engagement, and the evo- lution of their MAPs had to proceed much faster. In the first phase of the network’s work, all cities were involved in a process of mutual analysis and refinement of the original MAP ideas, which was supported by the Bank team. The elimination of bar- riers to communication and intense networking and cooperation allowed for an easy flow of knowledge and for the development of solutions based on the experiences of all cities in the Digital Network. This resulted in the mutual detection of inconsisten- cies in MAP topics and their further specification and fine-tuning. The very process of defining the scope of the MAPs (that is, a fairly narrow defini- tion of the challenge to be tackled by a potential solution) was challenging for a sig- nificant number of Digital Network cities. Thus, this phase of the project requires more systemic support. Such support was provided to city teams by Bank experts, and it strengthened their competence in this area. An example of an interesting evolution in thinking about the MAP topic is Świdnica. Initially, the goal of their MAP was defined broadly as the implementation of an integrated city management system. As a result of the work in the network, the city’s team modified this goal to the development of a CIA, the implementation of which will enable more efficient implementation of an integrat- ed city management system. The development of the CIA itself is already an ambitious challenge and an innovative undertaking on a national scale. Several similar evolu- tions or complete changes of the MAP theme occurred as a result of network activities. A key element of the MAP development process was the work that took place during individual network meetings (INM). It enabled the formal and informal exchange of knowledge and experience and learning about new solutions. Other el- ements of the CPI also played an important role, including, in particular, individual counselling, the cooperation of the cities in analyzing solutions in selected areas (for example, RPA), cyber security, local study visits, and online meetings. In the course of the network’s activities, a modified template for the MAP doc- ument was developed with a view to adapting it to the needs of cities and help- ing them in applying for funds to implement the initiatives included in MAP. Initially, most cities wondered how they would be able to finance the implementation of the ideas and solutions designed in MAP. To a large extent, cities pointed to exter- nal resources (mainly EU funds) as a source of funding. For this reason, the original template for the MAP form was modified to make it easier for cities to use its content when preparing applications for EU funding. For example, the MAP template was en- riched with fields required in application generators used in calls for project propos- als under operational programs. The smooth exchange of information among the Digital Network participants and the achievement of significant knowledge gain by the participants was a deriv- ative of a good working atmosphere, clear focus on the goal, and the continuous creation of added value by all network participants. Interestingly, participants were eager to share knowledge, not only about successes in implementing digital solutions, but also to discuss mistakes and problems in implementing projects and tasks, while proposing specific solutions to address them. This element was particularly important CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 47 2 for the evolution of individual MAPs. It is also noteworthy that cities in the network meetings not only exchanged knowledge related to their MAPs, but also on topics relat- ed to other ongoing or planned digital projects. During these discussions, cities point- Activities in the Three Thematic Networks ed out that there is a lack of a platform for joint (inclusive) development of digitization solutions both between cities and with the central administration. In this way, areas hindering digital transformation were diagnosed. This is reflected in the formulated challenges, for example, Challenge 5 (described in the Improvement Plan of the Digital Network — Chapter 3) regarding the platform for the joint elaboration of digital solu- tions. They affect entire cities, offices, and their organizational units, and are then in- ternal barriers that hinder, and often even prevent, the implementation of digital solu- tions. Barriers diagnosed in the organizational area, for example, include the following: o Insufficient information to cities on the digitization activities undertaken by the central administration, that is, strategic and operational plans for digitiza- tion of the public sphere o Few knowledge repositories and fora for sharing knowledge about good prac- tices in digital transformation o Lack of digitization standards and reference models o Unavailability of tools to support the design and implementation of digital transformation. Changing the composition of the Bank’s expert team and inviting the city of Poznań as a moderator of the Digital Network, had ramifications on network’s work. These changes, combined with a rather long process of formulating the topics of individual MAPs, resulted in a modification of the approach to the work of the net- work. More emphasis was placed on identifying the needs (challenges) of cities. The re- sult was the development of the concept of the MAP as an ‘open’, living document. The assumption made was that in the long run this approach would support the implemen- tation of the city’s digital transformation, and at the same time foster relationships within and outside the Digital Network. Indeed, cities began to exchange experienc- es and analyze available solutions, in new areas (not only directly related to digitiza- tion) —  such as education, PPP, and air quality. The addition of four cities almost at the halfway point of work on MAPs raised concerns that a ‘two-speed’ network would be created. Thanks to a good working atmosphere and intensified support offered to new participants immediately after they accessed the network, this risk did not materialize. Toward the end of the project, all cities were at the same stage of advancement and had prepared complete MAPs. Some cities (Poznań, Białystok, and Łódź) declare that MAPs will become an input for the development of strategies for activities in the area of digital transformation of cities. Activities to Raise Awareness and Provide Inspiration and Knowledge The presentations, workshops, and discussions held during the Digital Network meetings were highly appreciated by the network participants, particularly in the following areas: CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 48 2 o Automation and robotization of processes — based on the example of the solu- tion implemented in the city of Bydgoszcz Activities in the Three Thematic Networks o Digital twins — opportunities to implement new digital public services using advanced data management o Enterprise architecture and process management — based on the exam- ple of solutions used in the city of Poznań o Cyber security — securing the entire lifecycle of digital services o Electronic records management — based on the example of the solution imple- mented in the city of Łódź o Intelligent Transport System — based on the example of solutions used in the city of Rzeszów o Municipal Education System — based on the example of solutions used in the city of Lublin The Bank team highly appreciates the commitment and high quality of solutions pre- sented by the host cities of the local study visits (Lublin, Poznań, Rzeszów, Łódź, and Toruń). Their experiences served as inspiration for the preparation of MAP, prevented mistakes from being made, and drew attention to problems that occurred in the implementation of simi- lar projects. The involvement of representatives of these cities also shows that they see the CPI as a valuable way to promote their solutions and a useful forum for knowledge exchange. Selected Comments From Digital Network Participants The intensive meeting schedule — and most notably, the individual network meet- ings — provided a large amount of new and useful knowledge. However, the meet- ing agendas were described by city representatives as too tight, so it seems advisable in future editions to reduce the substantive parts of the meetings in favor of more time al- located for spontaneous knowledge exchange, and to work in smaller thematic groups, or even in free-exchange inspirational conversations. Representatives of the cities stressed that such forms of activity were important for networking — both for participants of the Digital Network, as well as for other CPI participants (PPP and Green Networks). The Improvement Plan (IP) of the Digital Network was positively perceived by cities and recognized as an important output of the CPI. It was seen as an oppor- tunity to address systemic challenges and needs, coupled with solution proposals and support for MAP implementation. The joint workshops of all three networks (PPP, Green, Digital) held in Toruń were assessed as a useful tool for integrating project participants and exchang- ing valuable knowledge across networks. Digital Network cities identified com- mon areas of interest and opportunities for cooperation applying the PPP Network ap- proaches in financing digital solutions (for example, open data solutions) or the Green Network ones (for example, in utility management: electricity, heat, gas, and water). CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 49 2 Efficient cooperation between the MDFRP and the Bank, in particular in the coor- dination of organizational issues, logistics, and communication, was perceived as one of the CPI success factors. The city teams also pointed to the high level of expertise and Activities in the Three Thematic Networks strong support for the activities undertaken at each stage of their work. 2.1.5 Next Steps To implement MAPs, financial and human resources need to be mobilized by the cities to effectively pursue planned objectives. However, the primary issue is find- ing/selecting funding sources for MAP implementation. Also, the scope of MAP im- plementation is related to available resources, including primarily financial resources. MAPs of the Digital Network cities are being provided for the development of a num- ber of model solutions with high potential for scaling up and implementation by the LGUs not participating in the CPI. Some of them will constitute reference models, rep- resenting good practice for implementation by other cities. The following external re- sources seem to be an appropriate source of funding for MAPs: 1. EU Funds for Digital Development 2021 – 2027 program has the aim to sup- port ICT solutions to meet socioeconomic challenges (measure 2.4.), creating the possibility to support scalable solutions from MAPs of, for example, Świdnica and Białystok, to other LGUs. Under this program, funding will not be provided to one- point local projects, but only to those that fit into the framework developed by the CPM, which will enable the transfer and implementation of digital solutions in a larger number of the LGUs. 2. Strategic project “Model Areas” identified in the National Urban Policy 2030 — in cooperation with the Strategy Department and/or the Digital Development Department of the MDFRP — provides for the implementation of pilot projects, which can be dedicated to the topic of the digital transformation of cities and the test- ing of new solutions with a high potential for scaling and transfer to other LGUs, as de- scribed in MAPs, (for example, the cities of Świdnica, Białystok, Rzeszów, and Łódź). 3. Regional Operational Programmes (ROPs) 2021 – 2027 are indicated by cit- ies in MAP as one of the potential sources of funding, (for example, the cities of Debica, Białystok and Ilowa). However, an important limitation of MAPs funding from ROPs is the fact that only 0.5 – 3% of the EU allocation in the 2021 – 2027 perspec- tive is earmarked for digitization interventions. 4. Pilot implementations of solutions in the area related to the digitization of the LGUs, is possible in cooperation with, for example, the Digital Poland Projects Centre, the Ministry of Climate and Environment, and the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management (Operator of the Modernization Fund13 ) for implementing the MAP developed by the city of Dębica in cooperation with the city of Poznań. 13. Modernization Fund https://www.gov.pl/web/funduszmodernizacyjny/dowiedz-sie-wiecej dated February 17, 2023. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 50 2.2 2 PPP NETWORK Activities in the Three Thematic Networks 2.2.1 Introduction to the Network: The “Why?” There is a growing willingness among Polish cities to look for new ways to fi- nance their investments, which is further encouraged by the current economic and political conditions. The ongoing war in Ukraine has caused a sharp increase in energy prices, which is further straining the already strained budgets of cities. Other factors affecting city finances include: (i) recent changes to the tax system resulting in the reduced revenue streams of cities, (ii) the lack of availability of EU funds, which have been a key driver of infrastructure investment over the past nearly two decades, and (iii) the significant costs incurred by cities in accommodating the wave of refu- gees from Ukraine. The aforementioned factors reduce the liquidity of cities, which, on the one hand, limits their investment potential and, on the other hand, prompts a re- orientation of thinking towards the search for medium- and long-term savings. The abundance of EU funds since 2004 has caused Polish local government units, es- pecially midsize and small cities, to heavily rely on this source of financing, which to a large degree was grant-based and nonrefundable. Other instruments (for exam- ple, loans, bonds, the mobilization of private sector funds, and others) have been rel- atively rarely used, with the exception of mostly larger cities. Despite the large scale of development projects completed in cities so far, their investment needs in municipal infrastructure FIGURE 2.1  Number of Concluded PPP Contracts in 2009 – 2022 and public services remain high. in Poland 180 164 The use of a PPP approach could significant- 154 160 170 ly support cities in implementing their long- 141 140 132 term investment intentions. The implementa- 116 tion of projects under the PPP formula is still not 120 105 yet popular among Polish administrations, both at 100 95 the national and local government levels. Undertak- 72 80 ings planned by cities gathered in the PPP Network 56 60 are among the dozens of PPP projects currently un- 36 der consideration and/or planning in Poland. In to- 40 21 tal, counting all identified projects in Poland, their 20 2 10 investment budget would sum up to PLN 10 billion 0 (circa $ 2.4 billion). In general, the Polish PPP mar- 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 (QI–QIII) ket, despite having already concluded more than 170 contracts for a total amount of almost PLN 9 billion Source: Raport Rynku PPP (https://www.ppp.gov.pl/file.php?i=przegladarka-plikow/Raport- ($ 2.1 billion), is still in the early stages of develop- z-rynku-PPP-II-kw-2022.pdf ), Centralna Jednostka ds. PPP — Departament Partnerstwa ment (Figure 2.1). Publiczno-Prywatnego, MDFRP. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 51 2 2.2.3 A Brief Description of the CPI Cities and Activities Activities in the Three Thematic Networks The PPP Network started as a group of 10 cities: Poznań, Płock, Dąbrowa Górnicza, Koszalin, Zduńska Wola, Kołobrzeg, Marki, Łomianki, Pieszyce, and Szlichtyngowa. During the first months of operation, Marki, Pieszyce, and Szlichtyngowa withdrew from the project. The main reason for the resignation given by the cities was a short- age of personnel and excessive workload across the administration units. For exam- ple, Marki had already been involved in a PPP procedure covering a road construction and maintenance project. In July 2022, three new cities: Bełchatów, Mińsk Mazowiecki, and Świdwin, joined the PPP Network. In order for the new cities to catch up with other PPP Network part- ners, individual consultations were held with them to highlight the CPI objectives, start developing ideas for their undertakings, and learn how to prepare to present them; they were also provided with a set of information materials. Additional workshop sessions were also organized for the new members during the PPP Network meeting in Gdańsk. Again, they were introduced to the CPI work and learned how to draw up MAPs. The PPP Network’s final composition was 10 cities (Table 2.4) that differed not only in size and potential, but also regarding their PPP experience. At the end of December 2022, all network members completed their MAPs, and most started to work on implementation. The list of MAP themes is presented in Table 2.5. For exam- ple, the city of Kołobrzeg signed a letter of intent with all public bodies (city author- ities, the Municipal Office, and the District Office) involved in the PPP project, which was the first milestone in their schedule of the CPI-driven project. Dąbrowa Górnicza, on the other hand, drafted an Information Memorandum for the planned undertak- ing of the regeneration of post-industrial areas in the city center. They planned to per- form a market test in the first quarter of 2023. TABLE 2.4  Composition of the PPP Network Population Area No. City Region [thousands] [km2] 1. Bełchatów Łódzkie 56 34.64 2. Dąbrowa Górnicza Śląskie 118 188.73 3. Kołobrzeg Zachodniopomorskie 45 25.67 4. Koszalin Zachodniopomorskie 105 98.34 5. Łomianki Mazowieckie 17 8.4 6. Mińsk Mazowiecki Mazowieckie 41 13.18 7. Płock Mazowieckie 118 88.04 8. Poznań Wielkopolskie 532 261.91 9. Świdwin Zachodniopomorskie 15 22.38 10. Zduńska Wola Łódzkie 41 24.58 Source: Authors’ elaboration. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 52 2 TABLE 2.5  MAPs’ Topics in the PPP Network No. City MAP Name Activities in the Three Thematic Networks 1. Bełchatów Extension of the seat of local authorities 2. Dąbrowa Górnicza “The Living Factory” — the new city center in Dąbrowa Górnicza 3. Kołobrzeg Kołobrzeg Administration Center — a new seat of the city, municipality, and district authorities 4. Koszalin Conversion of a bank facility into an office and administration building of Koszalin City Office 5. Łomianki Construction of a new seat of Łomianki City Office 6. Mińsk Mazowiecki Construction of a multistory car park with retail space 7. Płock “Modern City Center” — development of a multifunctional and attrac- tive downtown space through the urban regeneration process 8. Poznań Development and extension of a modern and efficient public transport system — new tram routes 9. Świdwin Construction/establishment of six preschool units and a nursery unit at the Public Elementary School No. 2, with integration units 10. Zduńska Wola Urban roads upgrade program Source: Authors’ elaboration. Given the economy segment addressed by the PPP project, the MAP themes picked by the participating cities can be divided into the following groups: 1. Buildings (public buildings — town hall, administrative services center, educa- tional facilities)—Łomianki, Kołobrzeg, Koszalin, Bełchatów, Mińsk Mazowiecki, and Świdwin 2. Transport infrastructure (local roads, tram line) — Zduńska Wola, and Poznań 3. Urban renewal (modern and functional city center) — Płock and Dąbrowa Górnicza The schedule of activities the PPP Network is shown in Table 2.6. It covered indi- vidual network meetings (INM), meetings of all three networks, study visits (abroad and local), kickoff and closing conferences, and individual meetings (consultancy). In addition, the network cities were invited to the World Urban Forum in Katowice (WUF11) for the CPI. They were also consulted on updating the national government policy on public-private partnerships. TABLE 2.6  Schedule of PPP Network Activities Date Event/Meeting Location Feb. 9, 2022 Kickoff conference Online Mar. 28, 2022 Online network meeting (ONM) #1 Online May 10 – 12, 2022 Individual network meeting (INM) #1 Lublin Jun. 20 – 23, 2022 Study visit Greece CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 53 Date Event/Meeting Location 2 Jun. 29, 2022 CPI presentation at WUF11 Katowice Jul. 1–Aug. 4, 2022 Individual consultations with cities Online Activities in the Three Thematic Networks Aug. 9 – 11, 2022 INM #2 Gdańsk Sep. 9 – 19, 2022 Individual consultations with cities Online Oct. 3 – 6, 2022 INM #3; joint network meeting (JNM) #1 Łódź Oct. 17, 2022 Individual consultations with cities Online Oct. 25, 2022 Individual consultation with city Łomianki Nov. 14, 2022 Individual consultations with cities Online Meeting of the Bank, PPPD, and city representatives (Płock Online and Zduńska Wola) on financing PPP projects and organiz- ing a roundtable Nov. 16 – 18, 2022 INM #4 Wrocław Dec. 9, 2022 ONM #2 Online Dec. 20 – 23, 2022 Individual consultations with cities Online Jan. 24 – 26, 2023 INM #5; JNM #2 Toruń Mar. 27, 2023 INM #6 Warsaw Mar. 28, 2023 Closing conference Warsaw Source: Authors’ elaboration. The work carried out within the framework of the PPP Network clearly raised the cities’ knowledge about PPPs. Figure 2.2 presents the Bank team’s assessment of the maturity of the PPP projects run by the network cities. The left-hand figure shows the status at the beginning of the CPI implementation with the final city make- up (September 2022), while the right-hand figure shows the state of affairs at the end of the CPI (February/March 2023). The Bank team assigned cities to these positions based on criteria presented in Table 2.7. FIGURE 2.2  Maturity Curve of PPP Projects a. September 2022 b. March 2023 Phase III Phase III Poznań Poznań Płock Płock Łomianki Łomianki Koszalin Phase II Phase II Diversi cation Diversi cation Koszalin Dąbrowa Dąbrowa Górnicza Górnicza Bełchatów Świdwin Zduńska Wola Zduńska Wola Mińsk Kołobrzeg Mazowiecki Phase I Phase I Mińsk Kołobrzeg Mazowiecki Bełchatów Świdwin Activity Activity Source: Authors’ elaboration. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 54 TABLE 2.7  Criteria for Assessing the Maturity of PPP Projects Phase One Phase Two Phase Three o Interest in the PPP formula o First experience with private partner o Improving new innovative PPP models selection proceedings (both positive and o Consideration of PPP as an implementation o Applying a more creative and flexible negative) model for investment projects approach to the roles of partners o Consideration of further potential PPP o Initiating the formation of a PPP team o Using more sophisticated risk manage- projects ment models o Openness to acquiring PPP skills and o Intensive acquisition of PPP knowledge knowledge o Increased focus on a holistic approach o Preparation of Efficiency Assessment stud- to a PPP project o Willingness to learn about the experiences ies of contemplated investment projects of others in implementing PPP — both suc- o The public partner learns from the private cesses and failures o Starting to develop and implement new partner methods for innovative and effi- hybrid PPP models cient delivery of public services o Preparing to conduct Efficiency Assessments o Transferring PPP implementation experi- ence to other sectors o Sharing PPP experience with other pub- lic entities Source: Authors’ elaboration. 2.2.3 Description of MAPs of the PPP Network The MAPs developed by the PPP Network members are mostly process-oriented documents. They are focused on supporting the process of preparing a PPP project and expanding the relevant knowledge and competence. MAPs are operational documents and are drawn up in a form that should make them implementable. Some cities have already been implementing their original solu- tions or intend to make use of them in the near future. The following are some examples: o Drafting an Information Memorandum — intended to carry out subsequent market testing (to gauge the potential interest of the private sector in the project) o Winning key stakeholders for the project o Continuing the process of an internal pre-execution analysis (for example, the ‘efficiency assessment’ that includes such elements as identification and alloca- tion of risks and responsibilities; appraising of project feasibility; commercial via- bility; value-for-money) Annex 2 contains abbreviated descriptions of MAPs, which briefly present each of the 10 projects. The projects described in the MAPs can be assigned to one of the four stages of PPP project preparation. As shown in Figure 2.3., seven of the analyzed projects are in the concept phase, and three are in the preparation phase. The MAPs are intended to guide the cities through the consecutive stages of PPP preparation. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 55 FIGURE 2.3  PPP Project Preparation Phases Concept phase Preparation phase Partner selection phase Implementation phase Identi cation of needs, E ciency assessment of Private partner selected Construction capacities, and validity of planned PPP project PPP commercial close Use implementing a PPP project Market diagnosis PPP nancial close Selection of advisers Technical dialogue Cities: Kołobrzeg, Koszalin, Cities: Bełchatów, Dąbrowa Mińsk Mazowiecki, Płock, Górnicza, Łomianki, Poznań Świdwin, Zduńska Wola Source: Authors’ elaboration. 2.2.4 Lessons Learned from MAPs and Work With Cities Within the CPI In the reality of the post-Covid-19 pandemic uncertainty, made even worse by the current geopolitical crisis and economic slowdown, the public-private part- nership formula with its attributes of a long-term and stable contract, based on a transparent distribution of tasks and risks allocation has a chance to be- come an important tool for urban development. At the same time, our turbulent times pose an additional challenge for drafting a good and flexible agreement between the public and private partners. It is no accident that the PPP was selected as one of the three thematic areas of the CPI. In recent years in Poland, the PPP has been seen as a positive response to the developmental challenges of local governments, such as to meet the growing social expectations by providing high-quality public services when resources, especially financial ones, are limited. This observation was confirmed in the work of the PPP Network: the PPP often re- mains the only viable way to complete important public projects, that is, if a project is not implemented in the PPP formula, in many cases, and with high probabil- ity, it will not be completed at all. The CPI cities analyzed the needs and possibili- ties of project implementation in the PPP formula and confirmed that today the PPP should be perceived as an important development tool and not just another in- vestment implementation model, as had been the case earlier. Despite the evident and constantly growing interest of Polish cities and munici- palities in PPP, this approach still enjoys insufficient popularity. Suffice it to say, that over the last 10 years less than one percent of all public contracts in Poland have been implemented in the PPP model; in Western Europe it has been, on average, well above 10%. This situation shows how huge the development potential of this segment is; the MDFRP is fully aware of this fact, and has been willing to take an active part in building the PPP market in Poland. Work with city representatives in the PPP Network fully supported these findings. The main conclusions from this work are outlined below. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 56 2 Themes Explored by the Network and How They Evolved The cities’ interest in the preparation and implementation of PPP projects was Activities in the Three Thematic Networks wide-ranging and cross-cutting. The following were the main themes covered during the work of the network: o Setting up a cross-department PPP team o Pre-implementation analysis o Partner selection procedures o Monitoring of PPP project operational implementation o Efficiency assessment o Competitive dialogue o Content of PPP contracts o Financial closing o PPP contract execution o Audit and control of PPP implementation o Communication and promotion of project o Classification of liabilities related to the remuneration of the private partner in pub- lic debt and the individual debt ratio o Financing PPP projects: reduction of financing costs o Options of securing PPP advice from the government administration o Learning the perspective of potential private partners on presented projects and collecting their feedback The challenges faced by the cities in the PPP Network were evolving; in other words, various issues emerged at the different stages of MAP development. For example, at the beginning of MAP preparation, the project cities, especially those less experienced in PPP, struggled to grasp the idea of partnership and how it differed from the traditional model of public service provision. PPP projects were often seen as an opportunity to build physical infrastructure, but not to maintain it or render public services. Consequently, they were considered much more expensive than investment projects pursued in the traditional model. As the work in the network moved forward, the cities were gaining more knowledge and exchanging experiences with other cities. The main challenges shifted toward more technical aspects. They concerned the con- ceptualization of the process of preparing PPP projects and working on more substan- tive problems. Some examples are the division of tasks and risk allocation between the parties to a PPP contract, the mechanism for remunerating the private partner, or a communication and promotion plan. When joining the CPI, the cities of the PPP Network had already diagnosed prob- lems that they wished to target through joining the network. After a series of meet- ings, talks with experts and exchanges of experience within the network, most of its cities refined their specific projects that they wanted to develop by creating MAPs; in contrast, a few cities, after having realized the actual level of undertaking that partic- ipation required of them, resigned from the network. Thanks to workshops and indi- vidual online meetings with experts, the structure of individual MAPs was either fine- tuned or put on the right track. It is not easy to clearly point to sectors or undertakings that best fit the PPP for- mula because the cities’ investment plans generally concern public services, and CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 57 2 their list is fairly long. Still, several market segments can be identified in which the PPP Network cities seemed more interested: buildings (city office, and school/kinder- garten), transport (car parks, roads, and light rail), and the renewal of degraded ur- Activities in the Three Thematic Networks ban neighborhoods. Services related to the provision of water supply and sewage collection, or the replacement of street lighting did not fall within the scope of the CPI. This can be explained by the fact that the CPI admitted cities (municipal offices) and not municipal companies, which are usually tasked with providing such services. This does not mean that the PPP project themes are irrelevant to these important areas. Main Substantive Challenges of the PPP Network The most important substantive challenges identified during the work of the PPP Network are highlighted in Box 2.6. They are discussed in detail below along with the proposed solutions. BOX 2.6  Main Substantive Challenges in the PPP Network During the CPI, the Bank team identified several elements of 2. Changing the philosophy of cooperation with the private the PPP-related MAP preparation process that the participat- sector — a shift from the traditional model (based on the sim- ing cities found particularly demanding. This is a subjective list ple formula of contracting and payment for individual project that does not apply to all the PPP Network cities evenly, as they phases) to the modern model of the joint implementation of have varying degrees of PPP knowledge and experience. This projects (the integration of individual project implementation does not mean that other elements of the PPP process were easy phases into a single comprehensive project) for the CPI cities to handle. Given the actual cities’ competen- 3. Developing a communication strategy with a diverse group cies and the current stage of MAP preparation, three issues can of stakeholders who do not always understand the advan- be delineated: tages and risks of the PPP model. Therefore, they can be 1. Division of tasks and risks in planned PPP projects and doubtful about this approach, which is generally erroneously acknowledging that the optimal model is when each partner perceived as expensive and nontransparent. works on what they are best at Source: Authors’ elaboration. 1. Task Analysis and Risk Sharing One of the key substantive challenges faced by the network cities was to examine project tasks and share the related risks among the PPP project partners. The cit- ies found it problematic to investigate the planned undertakings in terms of possible tasks and potential risks associated with a specific investment project, and to approach them mindful of future (probably long-term) cooperation with a private partner. This challenge can be attributed to the cities’ inexperience in such analyses. This is because when preparing traditional investment projects (often short-term), civil servants do not usually verify them in terms of possible risks occurring at the individual imple- mentation stages (that is, also over the long period of provision of services by a private partner). While preparing MAP documents, the representatives of the network cities faced the challenge of dividing the responsibilities between a public body and a po- tential private partner, as well as developing methods to mitigate risks throughout the entire life cycle of their PPP projects. Having solutions in place concerning risk shar- ing and mitigation seems to be instrumental in the proper drafting of a PPP contract, CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 58 2 which, in turn, determines the future mechanism of remunerating a private partner. At the concept stage, the project participants identified the following risks as the Activities in the Three Thematic Networks most significant in PPP projects: 1. Risk pertaining to the electoral cycle (change of plans or lack of political consen- sus and approval) 2. Risk of lack of social acceptance 3. Risk of insufficient resources (financial, human, and others) The main aspects of these types of risks and examples of mitigation measures are as follows: Political risk: Political risk may occur, for example, when city authorities change as a result of a local election; this may cause a project to come to a halt. This risk can be mitigated by the following measures: embedding the project into the city’s strate- gic plans; adopting implementation resolutions; and by securing funding. Similarly, creating a large stakeholder coalition around a project can enhance its ‘durability’ and sustainability in the face of political change. Another aspect of political risk is the lack of knowledge among municipal decision-makers (executives, councilors, the treasur- er, and secretaries) about the advantages of the PPP model. One remedy may be the regular communication and awareness-raising initiatives among the decision-mak- ers. Important elements supporting this process may be informative materials sup- plied by the MDFRP, participation in training sessions and study visits, and participa- tion in such projects as the CPI or URBACT, during which local decision-makers can learn about the experience of the other LGUs. Social risk: Social risk may occur when local residents are not satisfied with the pros- pects of the implementation of ‘sensitive’ projects (which is not due to the PPP formu- la as such, but is linked to a thematic scope of investment). For example, where there will be reduced parking space along the street (because a new parking lot is going to be built in the PPP model), or, where a new city hall building will be built (“because the bureaucrats must be more comfortable”) or, where green areas will be reduced to accommodate new parking places, and other examples. This type of risk can be miti- gated by an effective communication strategy, public consultations, and by respecting residents’ reasonable suggestions. Well-designed communication strategies reduce political and social risks. This prob- lem is important enough to be included in PPP projects as a separate challenge. It will be discussed further below. Risk of insufficient resources: This risk of a lack of financial resources primarily comes from the LGU’s budget constraints at the project preparation stage (the proper preparation of a PPP project actually requires in-depth analyses; they are not usually carried out in traditional projects as it generates extra costs at the investment prepara- tion stage, which city authorities may be disinclined to incur). Another aspect of financial risk may be the reluctance of city authorities to bear the high costs of implementing PPP projects. PPP projects tend to be more expensive than traditional ones; this is because the construction and maintenance costs must be factored in at the same time (which leads to another identified PPP challenge). This group of risks can be mitigated by raising CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 59 2 funds for PPP projects from external sources (Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego — National Development Bank, and EU subsidies). Another important factor that may pose a risk to the implementation of a PPP project is insufficient human resources. A good prac- Activities in the Three Thematic Networks tice is to appoint a PPP task force within the city administration and to build an insti- tutional memory within the structure of the LGU (see the section on CPI best practice). 2. Change of Attitude to the Implementation of Investment Projects Another challenge for the network cities was to shift the perspective from a nar- row view (only construction) to a broader view encompassing the entire life cycle of planned infrastructure (design, construction, maintenance, and disposal/de- commissioning). The narrow approach is typical of the traditional model where the main objective is to keep the cost of designing and implementing (constructing) an in- vestment project to a minimum. Infrastructure design and construction quality, main- tenance throughout the life cycle, demolition, removal or change of use are much less often taken into account. For this reason, an important goal for the cities in MAP devel- opment was to take a comprehensive look at the planned project throughout its life cycle. This includes the concept phase, the process of the selection of a private partner (includ- ing its preparation phase), construction, financing, and the maintenance/management of the completed infrastructure, and the provision of public services. This broader view of an investment project is characteristic of the PPP formula. It is what significantly distinguishes PPP from the traditional model of supplying public services. The cities prepared access paths and implementation schedules for their planned projects. They also selected measures and indicators for effective progress control and monitoring. 3. Communication Strategy A PPP project is a complex undertaking — its success requires the endorsement of a range of stakeholders. This is why it is necessary to formulate a communication strategy that should cover both the project and the model of its implementation (that is, the PPP). A communication strategy should address the various phases of a PPP project. The starting point should be the proper identification of stakehold- ers (for example, city councilors, city treasurer, residents, entrepreneurs, in- stitutions protecting the natural environment, and others). Among the methods of communication, there are certain measures that should be considered: thematic workshops, consultation of project assumptions, and expert visits (practitioners im- plementing similar projects, representatives of the MDFRP, and consultants). It may also be useful to include stakeholders in the project work. Other findings and subject-matter conclusions from the PPP Network Interestingly, some of the problems identified at the early stage of designing the operation of the network turned out to be relatively easy to resolve later on. Those that proved easy were the following: o To convince network participants with no previous knowledge of PPP mechanisms that it was an innovative and effective formula for supplying high-quality public services CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 60 2 o To build trust among the participants to design an effective and open system for sharing knowledge and experiences (both positive and negative) Activities in the Three Thematic Networks o To draw conclusions from the (sometimes negative) experiences of other cities; cit- ies working on projects within specific market segments (for example, energy effi- ciency) became aware of which elements of the project preparation process need particular attention in order to ensure effective implementation and avoid mistakes that others had previously made, after consulting cities (one of them was in the PPP Network, and another one was invited as a guest speaker to a network meet- ing) already pursuing this type of project. Evolution of the MAP themes in the course of the project: o In the initial phase of the CPI, one of the cities started to work on a project of a park- ing lot in the PPP formula; yet, after receiving funding for the project to be carried out in the traditional formula, it changed its profile and decided to go for a public building accommodating a shared services center. o Another city intended to regenerate an urban quarter — it prepared specific pro- posals for public spaces and services as well as complementary commercial spaces and services; yet, after measuring economic viability indicators, the project turned out not to be profitable enough to encourage the private sector to participate in the undertaking. As a result, the city had to make adjustments (the share of certain cat- egories of services was revised) to make the project bankable. They had to reduce the area for office space and general public activities and to increase the area for residential purposes to be able to finance the entire project. o A city planned to raise a public building, but the key stakeholders did not want to sup- port the project in the PPP formula; instead, they agreed (and were even the first to of- ficially propose) that another public facility in the PPP model be built. The city is cur- rently analyzing the market of private partners for implementing the project proposed by the key stakeholders. In the process, the city has shown that it respects dissenting voices. It may finally turn out that the city will implement a PPP proj- ect of a public building, but it will not be the originally planned investment — in- stead, it will be one proposed by the key stakeholders. Influence of Study Visits on the Shape of MAPs As part of the CPI, the participants of the PPP Network went on study visits to learn from the experience of other cities. The PPP Network travelled to Greece. The CPI also envisaged ‘local study visits’ during INMs and provided substantive support to some of the project cities that undertook to organize their own study visits to other urban centers in the country, in order to learn about their experience. The latter were funded from city budgets. The impact of the study visit to Greece, which is currently one of the leaders in the combination of PPP and EU funds (the hybrid/blended model), should be as- sessed as positive. The visit kindled the CPI cities’ interest in the mechanism of rais- ing EU funds to implement PPP projects. Having learned about the Greek solutions, CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 61 2 the CPI cities stopped approaching EU funds as competitive with the PPP formula and began to see them as a complementary source of funding for projects. Virtually every MAP has a passage pointing to EU funds as an opportunity for supplementary financ- Activities in the Three Thematic Networks ing for planned PPP projects. The domestic study visits were held not only within the CPI, but also outside the project; however, they always had the support of the CPI participants. During network meetings, representatives of the cities participating in the PPP Network had an opportunity to pay ‘local visits’ and learn about the experiences of such cities as: Gdańsk, Sopot, Wrocław, Toruń, and Łódź.14 Sometimes, the CPI cities, thanks to es- tablished contacts and knowledge gained during the project, organized visits on their own. An example of this is Łomianki. In addition to CPI meetings, it organized study tours for the key stakeholders of the planned project: first to Piastów (where a school was being built in the PPP formula) and then to Płock (a water park project). Some oth- er examples include the visit of representatives of Dąbrowa Górnicza to Gdańsk or, of Koszalin to Sopot — all in connection with their planned PPP projects. Quick and easy to organize, the study visits held in the country proved effective as a mechanism raising awareness among key stakeholders. At the national lev- el, the impact of study visits for the key stakeholders of Łomianki’s project was pos- itive, as it did not only confirm the city authorities in their decision (to carry on with the PPP model), but also supplied forceful arguments to include stakeholders who were not supporting the project. There is a chance for dialogue — its ultimate goal being to work out compromises and implement the projects for the benefit of the local society. Process-related Conclusions The following conclusions and observations refer to the process elements of coop- eration within the PPP Network. This chapter highlights those elements of the CPI and network operation that generated particular added value and are worth maintain- ing for future editions. The Bank team and the MDFRP were carefully listening to the cities’ needs and suggestions. The opinions were collected using formal methods (surveys), but cities’ ideas and comments were also gathered and addressed during meetings. How the net- work was responding to participants’ reported needs and expectations, in terms of ad- opted schemes and methods, is shown in Figure 2.4. The Bank experts recommended to the CPI cities interested in following the PPP formula to take a look at PPP projects already completed in Poland and elsewhere, and to talk to experienced practitioners who prepared and ran such projects. The PPP Network managed to connect individuals from inexperienced cit- ies looking for basic knowledge about public-private partnerships with those experi- enced in the PPP, who were implementing or had already implemented such projects. 14. ‘Local study visits’ refer to either tours of the INM host city, or meetings with representatives of cities from outside the network, who were invited to INMs to share their experience, for example, the visit of the mayor of Sopot during the INM in Gdańsk, or the visit of the deputy mayor of Wrocław during the INM in Wrocław. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 62 The workshop methodology allowed all network FIGURE 2.4  Expectations of PPP Network Participants in the CPI members to learn about PPP projects with a sim- program and Types of Effective Meetings That Were Designed to ilar sectoral scope to those that they intend to Meet These Expectations launch in their cities. Workshop sessions primari- stu ly devoted to the effective preparation of MAPs were dy g Raising awa to help the participating cities adjust all their data opin decisio renes vel vis and information to the actual structure of MAPs, so De skills n-m s a its ake mo n rs rso that the document would make a practical and useful ng n pe guide for the implementation of PPP projects, and gs in Op w sol rien g expe angin e ce enn utions also any other task to be carried out in this formula. meetin ing f Exch or Of particular importance for the members of the PPP Network was the opportunity of meet- ing in person, to talk and exchange experience n utio ut Expa ledg u lt a ti o with other cities; they were also able to identify know sol king o ns partners with whom they have kept collaborat- ndi e ons r ing concerning the development of their MAPs. ng Wo al c No less important was participation in study visits id u En and the opportunity to see how PPP projects were ha n i ng d iv skil cing ta blishship run. The visit to Greece played an important role, s in ls E on relati but the local visits during the network meetings, and domestic study visits organized independently by the CPI cities, were also valuable. m e e t i n g s o n li n e The cities also considered individual consulta- Source: Authors’ elaboration. tions very important. They proved especially use- ful when developing a schedule of project preparation and implementation, a promo- tion plan, and a communication strategy. A helpful element supporting the effective work of the PPP Network was the close cooperation with the MDFRP department in charge of the PPP portfolio. Experts from this department led the cities of the PPP Network toward better un- derstanding of the development of the PPP market in Poland. They cast more light on legal, technical, and financial matters, the most important trends, and success and failure stories of domestic PPP implementers following this demanding model. Cities also had the opportunity on several occasions (network meetings in Gdańsk, Łódź, and Toruń) to consult individually with representatives of the PPPD at the MDFRP on issues related to the advisory support that the MDFRP can provide to cities during analytical (pre-implementation) processes and procedures for select- ing private partners. One of the important results of these activities was to make cities aware that PPP is a transparent instrument. Contrary to the widespread belief among the Polish administration, the PPP model is not at all more vulnerable to corruption than tra- ditional public procurement. In recent years, the Polish PPP market has been strug- gling with harmful, unfair and, perhaps most importantly, unfounded negative ste- reotypes, including the so-called ‘fourth P’ (that is, public-private partnership and prosecutor). The CPI cities were able to see that there were no criminal proceedings in Poland related to the preparation or implementation of PPP projects and realized that PPP was in fact a much more transparent procedure within the public procurement CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 63 2 regime than traditional public contracts. This fact is supported by the reports by the Polish Supreme Audit Office15. Activities in the Three Thematic Networks The cities were very involved and well prepared to work in the PPP Network. Not only did they clearly define projects (usually planned or implemented PPP proj- ects) covered by their MAPs, but they were also willing to exchange experience (also gained from other PPP projects) and sparked a discussion about the challenges emerg- ing during the work on MAPs. The network members created an excellent, friendly, and trusting working atmosphere, which undoubtedly fostered openness, mutual learn- ing, and the establishment of lasting relationships. The stable composition of city teams in the PPP Network was conducive to effec- tive work and relationship-building. To build trust, partnership, and knowledge, as well as to develop high-quality results, requires time and commitment. Hence, repre- sentatives of the cities of the PPP Network officially appointed two-person teams that worked on MAPs and IPs, and attended all network meetings. Looking back, most of the team compositions proved to be stable. There were cases when other individuals attended network meetings, that is, local decision-makers (for example, a deputy may- or or mayor). The MDFRP and Bank representatives noted that the social capital ac- cumulated in the cities, as well as the trust and collegial relations, would make it eas- ier for them to implement similar initiatives in the future, even after the CPI is over. The work plan of the PPP Network was implemented for the most part. The plan communicated to the cities served as guidance on what steps to take during the net- work’s work, but it was approached rather flexibly. The sequence of the planned items was modified, and so were the logistics of some of the meetings (for example, venues and dates, which were only free suggestions at the planning stage). Still, the content planned for the meetings was largely covered. Changes to the plan were made after the cities voiced their expectations, and the Bank and MDFRP teams accepted their sug- gestions and attended to their needs. When working with the PPP Network, the Bank experts did not notice any signifi- cant differences that could have been attributed to the size of the participating cit- ies. However, they clearly noticed that the most effective teams to work with were those who display the following traits or behaviors, or who hold certain roles: o They know what they want and are strongly motivated to achieve their goals, espe- cially if the project team has a decision-maker from the city authorities on board and an operational person preparing the project; decisions are made quickly and the produced materials are of a high quality; and the submitted documents reflect the changes proposed or suggested by experts. o They communicate efficiently with others, are open to new ideas, and eager to learn and share experience. o They are directly involved in running the project, or they represent a city unit which implements, and not only supports the project. if the latter is the case, the 15. https://www.nik.gov.pl/aktualnosci/nik-o-partnerstwie-publiczno-prywatnym.html and https://www.nik. gov.pl/kontrole/P/19/104/ CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 64 2 participants focus on the most essential aspects of the project, proactively search for any necessary information, and adopt a practical approach to the developed documentation. Activities in the Three Thematic Networks It is more challenging to work with participants who have the following limitations: o They are in charge of many areas of administration and need to carry out many work duties at the same time; it makes it difficult for them to find enough time to focus on work- ing for the network. Consequently, it poses a challenge in terms of the timely comple- tion of objectives and the quality of the MAP contribution. o They work mainly on their own and have no, or limited, support from other col- leagues in the unit/office. o They know that they will not be involved in the implementation of the project cov- ered by their MAP, or they do not believe that the project will ever get off the ground; therefore, they see no point in getting actively and practically involved in workshop sessions and MAP development. Cooperation with the MDFRP and the Bank determined the effectiveness of the PPP Network. The support of the CPI program partners was essential for the partic- ipants in terms of the coordination of the organization, logistics, and communica - tion. Above all, they rendered assistance in obtaining any necessary help, and expert knowledge and advice at every stage of the operation of the PPP Network. In addition, the representatives of the MDFRP liaised between the national and municipal levels. The PPP Network cities also appreciated the opportunity to share comments and pro- posals about the government’s policy on the development of public-private partner- ships. They were aware that this would have an indirect, or perhaps even direct, im- pact on their own prospective PPP projects. Moreover, some of the cities, for example, Łomianki, Świdwin, and Kołobrzeg, have already started a dialogue with the MDFRP on this matter, and others are planning to seek advice from the ministry. 2.2.5 Next Steps MAP documentation was ready at the end of December 2022. It does not only describe projects but also provides a framework defining what path the cities should take to prepare and implement their planned PPP projects. A MAP docu- ment can be seen as an element of building institutional capacity in cities. It would be ideal if the authors of MAPs implemented projects planned under the CPI. However, the cities are aware, (and the Bank experts worked with them following this assump- tion) that the implementation of plans described in MAPs could also be carried out by teams or individuals who were not involved in their development. Between December 2022 and March 2023, the cities tested the market for potential private partners of their projects. The purpose of this activity is to gauge the potential interest of private partners and financing institutions but also to modify the boundary conditions of planned projects, if necessary. The market diagnostic initiative was launched after discussions during one of the INMs. It (and its results) may be useful, especially at CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 65 2 the stage of the communication with key stakeholders in the city (for instance, city au- thorities, city treasurer, and city councilors). They are not always convinced by specif- ic projects and often believe that the PPP model will not attract any partners. Thanks to Activities in the Three Thematic Networks the market testing, the project team can demonstrate the potential interest of the market in a planned project and verify its core concept. The Bank experts supported those cities that were ready to perform the testing. It is worth noting that they relied on model docu- mentation from the MDFRP (to be sourced from the knowledge based at www.ppp.gov.pl). The observations related to the market diagnostic process are as follows: o Not all the cities decided to take part in this process because some had already done it before (for example, Zduńska Wola). o Not all the cities tested the projects described in their MAPs; some decided, for var- ious reasons, to measure the market’s response to investment projects other than those developed in the Network (for example, Łomianki tested a school construc- tion project because the one included in the MAP, that is, the construction of a new town hall, had been tested before). o Some of the cities decided not to perform the testing for political reasons (for ex- ample, Poznań froze the project temporarily), or due to the lack of interest in the project from (key) partners (for example, Kołobrzeg) o Some of the cities decided to update the market testing test that they had previous- ly completed (for example, Dąbrowa Górnicza) o Some of the cities decided not to test the market, due to too general a definition of the project that would be tested (for example, Płock). More than half of the cities of the PPP Network (that is, Koszalin, Łomianki, Bełchatów, Kołobrzeg, Świdwin, and Dąbrowa Górnicza) declared their interest in seeking advisory support from the Department of Public-private Partnership (DPPP) of the MDFRP. This support may be rendered at two phases of advancement of a planned project: o Providing consultants for the analytical process (efficiency assessment: compari- son of the PPP and the traditional model) to confirm the validity of implementing the project in the PPP formula (Świdwin, Bełchatów, Mińsk Mazowiecki, and Kołobrzeg) o Providing consultants for the process of selection of a private partner (Dąbrowa Górnicza and Łomianki) Based on international, but increasingly also Polish, experience, for the PPP to be successful, certain conditions must be met; PPP success is not only to find a pri- vate partner and conclude a contract but, first and foremost, to implement a proj- ect that benefits the general public. The most relevant conditions are the following: o Solid political support at all levels and throughout the project preparation and im- plementation cycle o Proper and stable legal and macroeconomic environment favoring the PPP CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 66 2 o Proper project planning and preparation (including pre-implementation analyses) o Qualified, experienced, and fixed team carrying out projects (to build up institu- tional capacity) Activities in the Three Thematic Networks o Using the support of experienced advisers o Fair risk sharing and, consequently, choice of the right remuneration mechanism o Transparent and competitive procedure of selecting a private partner o Reliable and experienced private partner Not all of these conditions are under the full control of the public partner (for exam- ple, a stable macroeconomic setting), but even if not, good preparation for the PPP may be helpful in mitigating potential risks. Therefore, given the aforesaid, the PPP Network cities should pay attention to the following elements when taking further steps on their MAP projects: o To design an appropriate communication plan and convince key stakeholders (in- cluding, in particular, the political opposition) of the idea of implementing a spe- cific project in the PPP formula o To measure the potential interest of the private sector in planned projects (for ex- ample, market testing) o To perform pre-implementation analyses that will clearly indicate greater effec- tiveness/benefits/efficiency of public-private partnerships compared to tradition- al models (Efficiency Assessment) o To explore the options of implementing planned projects with the use of EU funds (hybrid/blended/mixed projects) o To seek the advice of experienced consultants whenever the required compe- tence or experience is missing 2.3 GREEN NETWORK 2.3.1 Introduction to the Network: The “Why?” The Green Network, with its themes, responds to the challenges identified and addressed in national strategic documents, such as the NUP2030 and the Strategic Adaptation Plan for Sectors and Areas Sensitive to Climate Change to 2020 with an Outlook to 2030 (SPA 2020). The scope of the network’s work is in line with the central government policy directions related to, among other things, improving the quality of the natural environment in cities and adapting to climate change. Contemporary cities face the pressure of urbanization. On the one hand, urban de- velopment becomes denser at the cost of green areas. On the other hand, cities sprawl into suburban areas and exert pressure on terrain that serves natural functions. Against CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 67 2 the backdrop of intense land development and excessive soil sealing in urbanized ar- eas, the negative effects of climate change become increasingly detrimental. Higher temperatures in the hot season, more frequent floods, including flash floods caused by Activities in the Three Thematic Networks heavy rainfall, as well as uneven access to recreation areas, reduce the quality of life of the urban population. Consequently, solutions must be sought to strengthen urban resistance to climate change while improving the quality of life in cities. Nature-based solutions (NBS) represent a cost-effective alternative to expensive, conventional solutions relying on ‘gray infrastructure’. They are multifunctional and resource-efficient, adapted to local conditions, and effectively use environmental resources. They introduce diverse natural elements and processes to the city provid- ing environmental, social, and economic benefits simultaneously. Given the COVID-19 pandemic and the energy crisis that has affected the financial situation of the LGUs, the optimal use of nature resources becomes even more important. Because of the intense competition for space, activities toward climate change ad- aptation and improving the living conditions in cities by introducing more green and/or promoting the natural renewal of space, especially in the most developed neighborhoods, are challenging. On the other hand, city authorities increasingly recognize the potential of green infrastructure (GI) as a strategically planned network of green areas designed and managed to provide a wide range of ecosystem services. 2.3.2 A Brief Description of the CPI Cities and Activities The thematic scope of meetings of the Green Network and of its MAPs is aligned with the three main thematic trends defined at the early stage and continued throughout the network’s work: 1. GI planning 2. Environmental aspects of urban regeneration and rehabilitation 3. Adaptation to climate change Given the multifunctional character of urban green, the thematic scope of the cities’ MAPs covers various urban challenges: how to create space offering residents a high quality of life; how to provide biodiversity-rich areas; and how to tackle the challenges of climate change and strengthen urban resilience to the negative effects of such phenom- ena as torrential rains and flash floods. When developing their MAPs, the cities focused on the environmental aspects of urban regeneration, new green areas as elements of green infrastructure development, and nature-based solutions (NBS) on a local scale. The Green Network included 10 cities of different area and population sizes (Table 2.8). The group has two cities with an area of over 100 km2, three cities with an area of 50 to 100 km2 and five cities with an area of less than 50 km2. In terms of population, the Green Network has three cities with over 100,000 inhabitants, three cities with a population of 50,000 – 100,000, and three cities with a population of 10,000 – 50,000. One city has less than 10,000 residents. The smallest city of the net- work is Uniejów, and the largest is Gdańsk. This network composition is particular- ly interesting as it contains all groups of cities: from the smallest to the largest ones. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 68 2 Consequently, the project outcomes for this network may be interesting for many LGUs across the country. Regarding geographical distribution, the Green Network is repre- sented by cities from six Polish provinces (voivodeships). Activities in the Three Thematic Networks TABLE 2.8  Composition of the Green Network City Region Total Population [2021] Total Area [hectare] Uniejów Łódzkie 2,930 1,223 Miedzyrzec Podlaski Lubelskie 15,685 2,003 Kostrzyn nad Odrą Lubuskie 17,885 4,614 Żyrardów Mazowieckie 39,069 1,435 Racibórz Śląskie 50,743 7,501 Żory Śląskie 61,839 6,464 Słupsk Pomorskie 87,119 4,315 Ruda Śląska Śląskie 132,766 7,773 Lublin Lubelskie 332,852 14,747 Gdańsk Pomorskie 486,271 26,196 Source: Authors’ elaboration, based on Statistics Poland (stat.gov.pl). The topics of MAPs’ of Green Network cities are presented in Table 2.9. TABLE 2.9  MAPs’ Theme of the Green Network Cities No. City MAP Topic 1. Gdańsk Promotion of best practice in the greening of small urban spaces 2. Kostrzyn nad Odrą Development of street and estate greenery 3. Lublin “Green Heart of the City” 4. Miedzyrzec Podlaski Green Międzyrzec — improving the quality of natural and social capital by the greening of the city 5. Racibórz Systemic and pilot solutions regarding adaptation to climate change 6. Ruda Śląska “Green Way of the Black City” — connection of two river valleys of the industrial city by means of green areas 7. Słupsk Slowing surface runoff through investing in blue-green infrastructure (BGI) and small retention facilities in the districts of Podgrodzie and Osiedle Zachód 8. Uniejów Green Uniejów — more green infrastructure in Uniejów 9. Żory Green transformation of the post-mining neighborhood of Gwarków 10. Żyrardów Green Żyrardów — from education to regeneration Source: Authors’ elaboration. Work in the network covered individual network meetings (INMs), online network meetings (ONMs), a study visit abroad, and individual consultancy. The schedule of meetings is shown in Table 2.10. In addition, the participants had the opportunity to take part in some thematically related events (webinars and online presentations). CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 69 2 The events were announced by the Bank and MDFRP teams. They were also able to use additional materials provided by Bank experts. Activities in the Three Thematic Networks TABLE 2.10  Schedule of Green Network Meetings Date Meeting Feb. 9, 2022 Kickoff conference Mar. 28, 2022 Online network meeting (ONM) #1 May 10 – 12, 2022 Individual network meeting (INM) #1 (Lublin) May 31–Jun. 3, 2022 Study visit — Copenhagen, Denmark Jul. 14, 2022 ONM #2 Aug. 17 – 19, 2022 INM #2 (Racibórz, Ruda Śląska, and Żory) Oct. 3 – 6, 2022 INM #3, joint network meeting (JNM) #1 (Łódź) Nov. 7 – 9, 2022 INM #4 (Poznań) Dec. 14, 2022 ONM #3 Jan. 24 – 26, 2023 INM #5 (Toruń), JNM #2 Mar. 7, 2023 ONM #4 Mar. 27, 2023 INM #6 (Warsaw) Mar. 28, 2023 Final conference (Warsaw) On a continuous basis Individual consultancy Source: Authors’ elaboration. 2.3.3 Description of MAPs for the Green Network Abbreviated descriptions of MAPs of the Green Network are presented in Annex 3. 2.3.4 Conclusions from MAPs and Work with CPI Cities The cities of the Green Network are aware of the challenges and problems oc- curring in their locales. They perceive the introduction of elements of green infra- structure and nature-based solutions as a response to urbanized areas’ environmen- tal and socioeconomic needs. This awareness is most often reflected in general goals, such as improving the quality of life, expanding green areas, or increasing the avail- ability of leisure spots. A greater challenge is to name specific objectives and link them to benefits re- sulting from greening. While the benefits related to the satisfaction of social needs (that is, leisure) are relatively easy to demonstrate, the benefits of regulating services (for example, the control of ambient temperature, and surface retention) provided by ecosystems and their elements in the city were not always reflected in the objectives. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 70 2 During the project, the participants of the Green Network repeatedly emphasized that it was a challenge to involve stakeholders in actions towards green infra- structure and nature-based solutions. Two challenges are particularly important: i) Activities in the Three Thematic Networks to engage communities showing low interest, and ii) to announce urban activities that may be perceived as negative by the public, for example, necessary tree felling. A valu- able contribution of the network was also the highlighting of wider possibilities of cooperation with the business sector; only a few cities had collaborated with business partners before, for example, Lublin. Sharing experience among network participants was an important element of mutual learning in the implementation of green infrastructure projects and na- ture-based solutions. Mutual learning was an important element of meetings during the operation of the network. The World Bank’s recommendations drew attention to the need to develop such solutions that would scale up through dissemination and mul- tiplication on a larger scale. It seems that the cities still underestimate the stage of the monitoring and as- sessment of the achievement of assumed objectives. Concerning this topic, it is crucial to define a set of indicators that will embrace the entire spectrum of anticipat- ed effects, including on a local and broader scale, while not being too elaborate and re- source intensive. The network participants were struggling with translating their MAPs into a struc- tured body of text. This can be attributed to the fact that they are practitioners and implementers and do not produce strategic documents or programs at the city level. The work on MAPs required the linking of multidimensional activities already carried out by the city with those planned in MAPs, which cover not only investment plans, but also processes and educational solutions. BOX 2.7  Sets of Benefits from NBS, Identified by the Green Network Cities During Workshop Sessions The cities were able to easily identify needs relat- One of the elements of MAP development by the Green Network ed to the greening of urban space, which was de- was to identify the advantages of employing nature-based solu- graded or lacking greenery. The Bank recommend- tions (NBS). At the outset, the city teams focused on rather narrowly defined benefits and pointed to the improvement of greenery man- ed that green infrastructure be seen through a big- agement or the positive effects on society. Along with the progress of ger picture of a systemic solution providing multiple work on MAPs and the rising knowledge of the CPI participants, they ecosystem services. Basically, the participants of the broadened the scope of expected benefits, for example, to include biodiversity or participatory planning and management of green Green Network were focused on implementing spe- infrastructure (GI). At the end of the MAP effort, the range of benefits cific actions, for example, to embed new green solu- covered the following sets: tions in the urban tissue, but they did not consider o Space regeneration designing them in such a way as to achieve the great- o Provision of green areas and biodiversity est possible synergy of benefits. As part of individ- o Resilience to climate change and its mitigation ual consultancy, the partners discussed the signifi- cance of planning, designing, and managing the GI o Enhanced water management with a view to achieving this effect. When talking to o Social cohesion the cities, the multifunctional qualities of green in- o Health and well-being of residents frastructure and nature-based solutions were high- o Participatory planning and management lighted. Many specific benefits that could be deliv- o Enhanced economic potential ered were named; these benefits were not initial- ly reflected in the first drafts of MAPs. The benefits Source: Authors’ elaboration. are listed in Box 2.7. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 71 2 The cities’ initiatives are largely focused on meeting social needs and expectations. That is why a more detailed approach to environmental objectives in the initial stage of work somewhat receded to the background. The greening of cities primarily responds Activities in the Three Thematic Networks to residents’ needs, for example, to ensure resting sites or to improve urban aesthetics. In their advice, the Bank emphasized that activities planned under MAPs should deliv- er social, environmental, and economic benefits at the same time. Ultimately, the cities managed to identify the synergy of environmental and nonenvironmental objectives. At the beginning of the project, the cities approached the MAP themes as ex- ecution-oriented, for example, the development of new green areas. The Bank stressed the multidimensional nature of intended projects and the need to structure them in a single document. The Bank suggested the extension of management stan- dards, creating a co-funding program, and appointing an interdisciplinary team made up of representatives of various departments or even city units. The inclusion of the pro- cess of developing these solutions, which is not a project ‘product’, in a MAP document was not so obvious to the participants right at the beginning. During the CPI, such solu- tions were designed and described in MAPs, for example, by Żyrardów and Racibórz. Another relevant segment of individual consultancy was the monitoring and eval- uation of performed activities. Consultancy in this area addressed the use of indica- tors that would allow the effects of activities and not the degree of implementation to be measured. The indicators proposed by the cities chiefly concerned the evaluation of performed activities. Measuring the effects of activities is much more demanding, as it requires data acquisition and analysis; it is an additional obligation, sometimes requir- ing skills in specialist software, as well as the preparation and carrying out of surveys. In addition, evaluation is often seen as ‘thin ice’. The tool aimed at the improvement of a plan is feared as an instrument that can be used to produce a negative evaluation of a city’s initiatives. Hence, the benefits of monitoring can be denied by concerns about its extension. A valuable element of work in this area was also the cooperation with the Ministry of Climate and Environment (MoCE), which published a guidebook, “Environ- mental and Climatic Indicators of Sustainable Urban Development. A Guide for Cities”. Work on MAPs revealed the importance of interdepartmental cooperation (in- side the administrative units) and the need for cooperation with external partners. Speaking of the integration of activities within administration units, the importance of cooperation between investment specialists and greenery maintenance experts was par- ticularly evident. The range of external partners is wide and much depends on the theme and scale of a MAP. This group includes both NGOs, public institutions, for example, schools and kindergartens, but also housing cooperatives and associations. An important element of MAP development is also cooperation with residents. Therefore, MAPs should identify various forms of engagement with, and education for, residents, and a model of cooperation within administrative bodies should be designed. Cities cooperate with the university and business sectors to a lesser extent, although there is potential in this area. For example, Żory developed an innovative MAP for the construction of vertical farms. Of tremendous value is a multidimensional approach to MAPs. It covers propos- als for nature-based solutions (from pilot projects to systematized action plans), de- sign of systemic solutions (from financial tools to guidelines for spatial development), establishment of interdepartmental city teams for sustainable development, and the inclusion of residents as important partners in pursued undertakings. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 72 2 The network’s study visit to Denmark and its acquaintance with solutions in rainwater management is echoed in the cities’ MAPs. Inspiration was received from the following sites: Enghaven Climate Park; the first climate-neutral district of Activities in the Three Thematic Networks Klimakvarter Østerbro; the renewed Karen Blixen Plads; SanktaAnnæ Plads with its rainwater harvesting capability, located in the very heart of Copenhagen; and the com- prehensive approach to rainwater as an asset to create attractive leisure space and social integration in Kokkedal. All of these projects generated interest in rainwater manage- ment in MAPs. MAP documents also contain elements of sustainable urban drainage systems and nature-based rainwater management. In their documents, some cities, for example Racibórz, refer directly to the “Copenhagen yard” as a model of compre- hensive adaptation of space to climate change. Another valuable source of inspiration for MAP solutions was local study visits that accompanied INMs. During the visits, the participants were given a chance to see and talk about solutions employed in other cities, both those that were successful, and those that did not live up to expectations. Given the wealth of solutions present- ed across the hosting cities during the study visits, the inspirations to be reflected in MAPs were many and various. Implementation- and processes-wise solutions relat- ed to cooperation with different stakeholders and project management were very en- couraging to the network. The meeting themes are shown in Box 2.8. BOX 2.8  Subjects of Selected Local Study Visits of the Green Network In Lublin, the network members toured renewed Park Ludowy, the area; they also visited Zamkowy Park and the regenerated saw Plac Litewski, and visited projects implemented under the boulevards on the Odra River. The study visit to Łódź allowed Green Budget. In Ruda Śląska, the participants saw the effects the participants to learn about the experience in the develop- of reclamation and regeneration of the former Orzegów Coking ment of woonerfs (‘living streets’) and other green areas in the Plant and the Góra Antonia zinc mine heap; they also visited the city center. In Poznań, the participants learned about the pro- Ruda Route, a project of greenery development in post-indus- cess of reclaiming and developing the Warta River Valley, includ- trial areas. In Żory, the visitors toured Cegielnia Park, Piaskownia ing the organization of municipal beaches in cooperation with Park, and the Śmieszek Bathing Area. They had under- the private sector, the development of a municipal permacul- gone a project renewal process for post-industrial areas, and ture garden, and a nature trail. Poznań also shared its rich expe- today they stand out as attractive leisure and recreation areas. rience gathered in the renovation of the Warta Riverbank revet- In Racibórz, the participants visited the Forest Arboretum and ment. In addition, the participants got acquainted with the idea learned about the cooperation between various stakeholders in and completion of the so-called ‘pocket forest’. Source: Authors’ elaboration. Remarks About the MAP Development Process Some cities joined the CPI project with a clear vision of MPA, while others worked on the idea during the project. For all participants of the Green Network, MAPs are part of larger undertakings, but the MAP themes are well aligned with their goals set out in strategic and/or program documents, such as the development strategy, the ur- ban regeneration program, and others. The cities indicated that the preparation of a MAP document helped organize and frame the effort of the city team related to the themes covered by the MAP. For some cities, participation in the CPI was an opportunity to sort out and advance their current or planned activities; for others, it was an inspiration to start some- thing new. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 73 2 Of great value is the flexible formula of MAP, which allowed the participants to work out solutions tailored to their needs and resources. This flexible approach proved necessary and kept the network open to both more experienced and advanced Activities in the Three Thematic Networks participants, as well as those with limited human and financial resources. In addition, fostering an individual approach to MAP motivates participants to design a MAP doc- ument that they can really ‘own’. At the same time, the MAP template designed by the Bank contained general guidelines for the inclusion of key MAP elements. Experience gathered from the Green Network shows that cities need to be given enough time to prepare their MAPs. Due to the fact that the drafting of the MAP doc- ument is an extra burden for city staff (on top of other official duties), it is necessary to provide a reasonable time limit for its preparation in regard to the project cut-off date. It may be helpful to schedule network meetings at even intervals throughout the proj- ect, so that the cities may identify challenges and define MAP goals in the first quarter, draw up an action plan in the second quarter, prepare a monitoring and communica- tion plan in the third quarter, and fine-tune the MAP document in the fourth quarter. It should be noted that the city representatives participating in the project are main- ly civil servants working with environmental issues in the city. For city representatives participating in the project who were not working on urban greening and had a different area of competence, the development of a MAP was a challenge. For this reason, partici- pation of people in city teams thematically related to the scope of MAP is recommended. It might also be interesting to have ‘mixed’ teams, where one person is responsible for MAP topics and the other can be responsible for another area, such as financing, implementa- tion of city investment projects, or communication with stakeholders. Such a combination would allow an easier multifaceted description of the issues raised in the MAP and could be a catalyst for the creation of interdepartmental teams within city hall. At the same time, experience from the Green Network shows that municipal units in charge of investment do not sufficiently take environmental aspects into account in their activities. This may be attributed to the lack of proper coordi- nation of investment processes at the stage of planning, designing, and implement- ing as well as in regard to the maintenance of the completed greenery projects. The reason is, on the one hand, the lack of knowledge of the investment teams about how to implement the green component of projects related to other areas of city life, and, on the other hand, the absence of city teams dealing with urban greenery from invest- ment processes. Therefore, if another ‘green’ edition of the CPI is held, the participa- tion of personnel from the municipal investment units should be considered, in order to improve the coordination of activities and increase their level of knowledge about how to run investment projects involving nature-based solutions. Differences between Large, Midsize, and Small Cities Among the smaller cities joining the CPI, there is a recurring problem of limit- ed human resources. In contrast, larger cities struggle with the silo effect among the city units, which makes it difficult to co-manage the green assets in the city. There is also a varied level of availability of staff specialized in rainwater manage- ment. Larger cities delegate rainwater management to specialized units (for example, CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 74 2 in Gdańsk, it is the municipal company, Gdańskie Wody Sp. z o.o.). Smaller cities can- not rely on such expert support. Activities in the Three Thematic Networks In regard to the availability of specialist staff and experts, a lot depends on the available financial resources, because expert services require significant spend- ing that the smaller cities cannot afford. For this reason, some cities do not engage in such topics, and some outsource them (to a limited extent, and only if financially feasible). In consequence, the establishment of advisory teams at a higher level (for example, poviat or regional) is recommended, in order to support the smaller LGUs. Concerning local community involvement in greening initiatives, it can some- times be a challenge for smaller cities; both the social potential and the need for greening are greater in larger urban centers. In smaller cities, residents have eas- ier access to nature. Many of them have their own gardens or allotments; hence, it is more difficult to find individuals who would like to get involved in greening. However, this is not a rigid rule, and smaller cities have also been able to develop effective ap- proaches in this respect. In smaller cities, residents’ expectations focus more on highlighting the social and cultural functions of green infrastructure. This can be linked to the presence of ample nature resources in the immediate vicinity of these cities. Their ecological ad- vantages, including the flow of air masses, water, or migration of flora and fauna, are ‘transferred’ to the urban area. This, however, may create certain barriers due to en- vironmental considerations, for instance, the lengthy process of obtaining a tree fell- ing permit for urban investment projects. On the other hand, in large cities, where, along with the growing concentration of urban development within the city limits, there is a strong pressure on urbanizing suburban areas, residents more often appre- ciate (next to their social and cultural values), the ecological functions of green areas that raise the standard of life. 2.3.5 Further Steps MAP documentation prepared by the CPI cities design actions that can be roughly categorized as implementation- and process-oriented (systemic). Unlike other city policy papers, the scope of MAPs goes beyond the tasks belonging exclusively to munic- ipal offices, taking into account the important role of partners from outside the city administration. Prepared MAP documents organize and frame action sets and include the pur- poseful use of green infrastructure and NBS. The successful completion of the cit- ies’ plans described in MAPs largely depends on the following factors: i) the financial resources allocated to plans; ii) involved stakeholder groups, iii) human resources avail- able in the municipal offices, and iv) the smooth functioning of friendly administrative procedures. Additionally, the effect of the work also hinges on the competence of con- tractors selected in tender procedures. The key needs that the cities pointed to as rele- vant to the implementation of ideas described in MAPs are shown in Table 2.11. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 75 2 TABLE 2.11  Key Cities’ Needs Related to the Implementation of MAP Solutions Group of Needs Cities that Indicated these Needs in MAPs Activities in the Three Thematic Networks Human resources Gdańsk, Słupsk, Żory, and Żyrardów (knowledge, skills, and time) Partner involvement Kostrzyn nad Odrą, Międzyrzec Podlaski, Słupsk, Uniejów, Żory, and Żyrardów Contractors Gdańsk, Kostrzyn nad Odrą, Międzyrzec Podlaski, Słupsk, Uniejów, (effectively selected in pub- Żory, and Żyrardów lic procurement procedures; competent) Legislative changes Uniejów and Żory Funds Gdańsk, Kostrzyn nad Odrą, Międzyrzec Podlaski, Słupsk, Uniejów, Żory, and Żyrardów Source: Authors’ elaboration. Financial resources are necessary to carry out the plans contained in MAPs. The cities repeatedly emphasized that the problem is not how to secure funds for the de- velopment of new green areas. These funds are allocated in the budget or can be raised from external sources. The problem is how to secure funds for maintaining green infra- structure and NBS in the long term. Therefore, low-cost solutions and a change in the approach to maintaining greenery (for example, frequent mowing of lawns) are needed. The developed MAPs revealed the complexity of cooperation with various stake- holders; however, without their participation, projects will not be easy to car- ry out or will not start at all. Mutual learning and proven tools and solutions in the area of management of the cooperation process are a valuable resource in this regard. Qualified staff in municipal offices is an important asset. Given the new systemic and innovative solutions, the development of which requires knowledge, skills, and com- mitment, access to staff who are able to think ‘out of the box’ is gaining in importance in the implementation of MAP objectives. Given the fierce competition on the labor market and the limited financial capabilities of the LGUs, this is becoming a greater challenge. Concerning project implementation, the Green Network cities stress the prob- lem of unsatisfactory cooperation with contractors. Contractors experienced in participatory activities and competent in adopting nature-based solutions are essen- tial to the successful implementation of high-quality green infrastructure (GI) spaces. The cities used Improvement Plans to indicate recommendations on how to improve the investment implementation process. An unquestionable improvement is the de- veloped and adopted standards of, for example, greenery maintenance. They show the methods of the performance of maintenance work (for example, how to cut tree crowns) and are also intended as guidelines for contractors. Finally, the performance of activities, subject to a number of administrative procedures, depends on how efficiently they can be conducted. Particularly de- manding are the procedures of contract award, obtainment of permits, and environ- mental decisions. Other threats to the efficient implementation of plans are changes to the law and requirements during the investment process, and bids submitted in the procedure that exceed the funds allocated to the projects. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 76 3 IMPROVEMENT PLANS 3 Improvement Plans (IPs) are sets of recommendations for the national level ad- ministration, inspired by the cities’ contribution and knowledge gained from the CPI and the three thematic networks. The IP aims are the following: i) to identi- Improvement Plans fy challenges faced by cities that may be tackled at the national level, for example, reg- ulatory and institutional matters, ii) to propose solutions to these challenges, and iii) to support the process of programming future support for the cities, which takes place in the MDFRP and participating ministries (MoCE and CPM). The experience gained through direct cooperation with cities of various sizes and at various levels of techni- cal advancement across the three thematic areas of the networks, can be a useful in- put to the process of programming and implementing national policies intended for cities, and may help design solutions for a wider group of future recipients. The IPs were prepared for each network. They identify key challenges faced by cit- ies but also propose solutions to be adopted by the central administration. Some rec- ommendations go with specific solutions. Some, however, point to areas in which cities face limitations but propose no specific solution. This is due to the scope and nature of these challenges. Some of them require further investigation through an in-depth dia- logue between key stakeholders, often from outside the public administration. In such cases, IPs provide examples of best practice and model solutions from other countries as a source of inspiration for Polish decision-makers. They also advise pilot projects that will help design and test desired systemic solutions. Recommendations of pilot projects are an important element of each network’s IPs. Testing scalable solutions in the pilot formula is an advisable step towards devel- oping implementable systemic remedies. One of the advantages of this approach is its fast and flexible formula and its limited risk if a piloted solution proves ineffective. Pilots are also an excellent platform for mutual learning and the joint search for op- timal solutions developed in an evidence-based manner and relying on the outcomes of test implementations. In each network, this set of systemic challenges is supplemented with the so- called Recommendation Banks (RB), that is, the collections of detailed propos- als submitted by the CPI cities during their work on MAPs. Filled in during the project on a regular basis and verified by the Bank team, the RB is an important con- tribution to the diagnosis of the cities’ challenges and needs. The cities’ recommenda- tions are very diverse and range from legislative and strategic issues to operational is- sues related to, but not only, the criteria of the application for EU funds. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 78 3.1 3 DIGITAL NETWORK IMPROVEMENT PLAN Improvement Plans A summary of the challenges and proposed solutions for the Digital Network is presented in Table 3.1. The details of these solutions are presented in the follow- ing section. TABLE 3.1  IP: Challenges and Proposed Solutions for the Digital Network No. Challenge Proposed Solution 1. Lack of a coherent vision of digitization Development of a coherent, stable, and transpar- of the state, defining and using ‘digital ently communicated vision for the digitization of the minima’ for the LGUs LGUs in the short, medium, and long term (strategy + ‘roadmap’ for implementation) 2. Lack of guidelines to calibrate solu- The development of standards that will form the tions developed by the government basis of the digitization activities of the LGUs in the area of digitization to urban specifics 3. Limited institutional capacity of cit- Pilot implementation of solutions in the area of dig- ies to plan and implement digitiza- itization of the LGUs and use of findings as inputs tion activities and low awareness of to developing standards, good practices, method- the benefits of introducing digital ologies, and reference solutions for dissemination solutions among LGUs 4. Limited resources to meet urban digiti- Introduce mechanisms to increase the efficiency of zation needs digitization spending in terms of licensing costs (pur- chasing scale effect) and implementation costs (stan- dardized implementations) 5. Lack of a platform for joint develop- Establishment of a platform for dialogue and coop- ment of solutions in the field of digiti- eration of key stakeholders in the area of digitization zation of the LGUs of the LGUs 6. Ensuring effective integration of data Introduction of a paradigm shift in the use of data and information in the cities’ systems and information in public administration — the and between the systems of various acquisition of new data and information should public institutions always be preceded by an analysis of the possibil- ity of obtaining them from public administration resources 7. Changing the model of coopera- Introduction of a systemic paradigm shift emphasiz- tion between universities and public ing the creation of measurable added value for the administration institutions in the area operation of public administration of developing solutions supporting public administration 8. Increasing the availability and timeli- Ensure standardization of data and information, as ness of reference databases for domain well as their exchange between IT systems — opera- systems in public administration tional implementation of SIA and interoperability 9. Ensuring data interoperability at the Development of templates defining SIA standards, level of a single office, city (office and including, in particular, applicable data models and organizational units) and nationwide methods and interfaces for data exchange between public administration institutions 10. Increasing efficiency of monitoring and Development and dissemination of digital solutions management of media in cities using to support effective media management by the LGUs digital solutions Source: Authors’ elaboration. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 79 3 3.1.1 Challenges Improvement Plans The activities of the Digital Network led to the identification of several areas where action is recommended to address specific needs of cities to improve the process of planning and implementation of the digitization projects. CHALLENGE 1 Lack of a coherent vision (and a document that operationalizes it) for the digitization of the state, scaled to the LGUs from the level of the central administration (in charge of the digitization of the state) that creates and applies ‘digital minima’ for the LGUs16. The MDFRP is responsible for financing digitization projects under the EU Cohe- sion Policy, but it is not the creator of the state digitization policy — this role belongs to the Minister of Digitization. Scattered competencies result in a lack of transpar- ent communication and difficulties for effective cooperation and implementation of digital projects for the administration. CHALLENGE 2 Lack of guidelines for calibrating solutions developed by the central government in the area of digitization to the urban specifics. For example, in terms of the state infor- mation architecture, these are standards and requirements that should be met by the solutions created by the cities in order to maintain the consistency between the government and the city solutions (design requirements, product requirements, and the exchange and sharing of data and information, and other elements). CHALLENGE 3 Limited institutional capacity, especially of midsize and small cities, to plan and imple- ment short- and long-term digitization activities, and low awareness of city deci- sion-makers and officials, as well as residents, regarding the benefits of introducing digital solutions CHALLENGE 4 Limited resources to meet the digitization needs of cities both within their own bud- gets and from EU funds dedicated to these goals in the 2021 – 2027 perspective — for example, only 0.5 – 3% of the current ROPs’ allocation is earmarked for digitization. In this context, it is particularly important that the implemented projects actually contribute to the achievement of the set goals in the area of digitization, generat- ing added value for all the LGUs, taking advantage of economies of scale, and con- tributing to improving the digital maturity of cities. 16. The digital minimum in public administration is a set of necessary technical infrastructure, databases, and applications, as well as technical expertise of officials to implement public services electronically. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 80 3 CHALLENGE 5 Lack of a platform for the joint (inclusive) development of solutions for digitization Improvement Plans of the LGUs. The LGUs often implement single projects to digitize their operations in various areas, which are not compatible with other digital solutions within the respective LGU, let alone with solutions implemented by other LGUs, or the national level. As a result, a large number of solutions are created that do not work together, making them not scalable, and their adaptation in relation to each other is later resource-consuming. The project approach, in its essence, focuses on achieving goals in the form of completed projects. In the area of digitization of the LGUs, the efficiency of the project implementation and the management of a portfolio of dig- ital projects is no less important. In this context, the need to ensure efficient com- munication and effective coordination of activities between stakeholders concern- ing digitization is of great importance. Existing tools for continuous learning and knowledge management through the use of previously developed solutions (stan- dards, good practices, methodologies, reference solutions, and optimal methods for their verification) can enable the implementation of projects, the results (inputs/ outputs) of which will be effectively scaled to the entire population of the LGUs. However, without a platform for dialogue and cooperation, the implementation of undertakings in the domain of digitization — especially for initiatives that will comprehensively enable the development of solutions to the identified challenges/ needs of the LGUs — will be significantly hampered. CHALLENGE 6 Ensure effective integration of data and information in the city systems and between the systems of different public institutions. Integration of data, information, and sys- tems means combining different sources in order to make more effective and faster decisions. In the case of public administration, it additionally means the ability of various organizational units of local and central government — for example, the LGUs, ministries and government agencies — to cooperate in order to better serve the citizens. Integration of data, information, and systems at all levels of public administration can ensure more efficient management of public resources, includ- ing the use of financial resources and a better understanding of citizens’ needs. CHALLENGE 7 Changing the model of cooperation between the universities and the public admin- istration. Polish universities, supported from public funds, conduct research and develop solutions for the benefit of the public administration, for example, related to providing public services electronically. A commonly observed problem is that in the case of Polish universities, in contrast to leading foreign universities, the developed solutions are not of an applicable nature. Such approaches result in the absence of an important link that transfers the developed innovative solutions from the sphere of largely theoretical concepts to the area of practical use in pub- lic administration. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 81 3 CHALLENGE 8 Increasing the availability and timeliness of reference databases for the domain sys- Improvement Plans tems in public administration. Despite 25 years of building an electronic adminis- tration and the digitization of offices, there is still a problem with access to refer- ence databases in public administration. These databases are essential for efficient and effective implementation of the public administration’s tasks, as well as for improving the quality of services. They allow quick access to up-to-date and reli- able information. For example, they allow to uniquely identify a citizen, and at the same time, to identify reported problems, which enables decision-making based on reliable data. The main problems are the multitude of databases that can act as reference databases and the inconsistency of the data and information they con- tain. This is a consequence of the siloed model of data and information collection by individual public institutions. There are also no rules and standards for feeding domain systems from reference databases. This results in the multiplication of data and information in domain systems, including the duplication of errors. CHALLENGE 9 Ensuring data interoperability, not only at the level of a single office, but also of the city (city office and organizational units), and nationwide. Data/information interop- erability refers to the ability of different information systems to cooperate and exchange without losing their quality and functionality. From the point of view of public administration, data interoperability is particularly important, as it allows various public institutions to work together efficiently in carrying out tasks and serving citizens efficiently, especially in such areas as health, security, business, science, and civic affairs. CHALLENGE 10 Increasing the efficiency of the monitoring and management of utilities (electricity, heat, gas, and water) in cities using digital solutions. In the context of the energy cri- sis and climate change, any action that contributes to the more efficient manage- ment of utilities, including reducing the consumption of electricity, heat, gas, and other utilities, is of particular importance. The Digital Network Recommendation Bank is included in Annex 4. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 82 3 3.1.2 Proposals for Solutions Improvement Plans CHALLENGE 1: Lack of a coherent vision (and a document that operationalizes it) for the digitization of the state, scaled to the LGUs from the level of the central administration (in charge of the digitization of the state) that creates and applies ‘digital minima’ for the LGUs PROPOSED SOLUTION 1 Develop at the level of the central administration a coherent, stable, and effectively communicated vision for the digitization of the LGUs in the short, medium, and long term, in the form of a strategy consistent with the vision for the digitization of the LGUs. This strategy should contain a roadmap describing the process of its imple- mentation, with the mapping of key stakeholders and their roles and tasks, as well as a description of ‘digital minima’ for the LGUs. This solution is necessary for the planning and implementation of integrated, consistent actions by the LGUs to increase their digital maturity and promote the more efficient use of resources. During the study visit to Estonia, CPI cities had the opportunity to learn about the elements of the digitization vision being implemented in the country. These are presented in Box 3.1. BOX 3.1  The Vision of Digitization Realized in Estonia and its Results The most important insights related to the implementation of 4. Organization of a conference center (e-Estonia Briefing Estonia’s digitization vision from the perspective of the study Centre) in the vicinity of the airport tour participants are the following: 5. The feeling of not being in an office, but a friendly place, for A. Important: example, for residents, investors, students, and visitors 1. Interoperability of Electronical ID C. Interesting: 2. X-road (integrated eTaxation, eEducation, eTaxation, eElec- 1. Enter e-Estonia portal tion, eHealth, and others) 2. E-government actually works! What is supposed to be 3. Three pillars of digitization: “confidentiality, accessibility, online, is online, that is, 99% of services for citizens are integrity” online. 4. Digital education at a very high level 3. Open to cooperation and knowledge sharing, for example, meetings with a former prime minister and a minister, pre- 5. Inclusive and effective communication between administra- senting not only their successes but also their failures tion and residents (A2C) that promotes mutual trust, coop- eration, and the achievement of common goals 4. Young people in politics B. Inspiring: 5. Smart sidewalks 1. Aggregation of data in the ID card, including commercial 6. Mobile parcel machine services 7. Mobile library 2. Educational effects of the mega-university in Tartu 8. Autonomous buses are still a distant future, but Estonia’s 3. Inclusive cooperation of business with administration (A2B) readiness to develop this technology is impressive (legisla- and universities (A2E) tive changes in this regard are being made) Source: Authors’ elaboration. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 83 3 CHALLENGE 2: Lack of guidelines for calibrating solutions developed by the central gov- ernment in the area of digitization to the urban specifics, for example, in terms of the state information architecture. Improvement Plans PROPOSED SOLUTION 2 Develop standards that will form the basis of activities in the domain of LGU digitiza- tion. The guiding principle for the implementation of projects in the domain of dig- itization by the LGUs should be the implementation of projects aimed at creating solutions with added value for a specific LGU (internal homogeneity), as well as for all LGUs (external heterogeneity). Such an effect can be achieved by introducing sys- temic solutions for project implementation in the LGUs. For this reason, the devel- opment of standards, good practices, methodologies, reference solutions and opti- mal methods for their verification in the digitization of the LGUs is crucial for the effective use of the funds earmarked for digitization, and for the implementation of digital solutions by the LGUs (including strengthening the institutional capac- ity of the local administration). Due to the fact that the institution responsible for the sphere of digitization of the state is the Minister of Digitization, it is advisable to involve this institution in agree- ing on how such standards, good practices, methodologies, reference solutions, and optimal methods for their verification would be formulated and applied (including the verification and enforcement mechanism). The main thematic scopes in the area of digitization of the LGUs and the entities that have competence in them are, for example: state information architecture (SIA) — Chancellery of the Prime Minister (CPM)-Digitization; cyber security — the state research institute NASK; data integra- tion — the ministries according to SIA; process automation — the ministries accord- ing to SIA; Municipal Technology Exchange — the Polish Development Fund (PFR); and the Platform for Local Services (PUL) — CPM-Digitization. This approach will make it possible to move away from the traditional method of project implementation and apply so-called agile methodologies, based on continu- ous learning and knowledge management and the use of previously developed solu- tions (standards, good practices, methodologies, and reference solutions and the opti- mal methods for their verification). CHALLENGE 3: Limited institutional capacity, especially of midsize and small cities, to plan and implement short- and long-term digitization activities, and the low awareness of city decision-makers and officials, as well as residents, regarding the benefits of intro- ducing digital solutions PROPOSED SOLUTION 3 Pilot implementations of digital solutions for the LGUs. This can be a valuable source of practical knowledge for developing the aforementioned standards, good practices, methodologies, and the reference solutions and optimal methods for their verifi- cation recommended for wider use by the LGUs. For example, the dissemination of CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 84 3 solutions resulting from the conducted pilots may be particularly useful for smaller and less experienced LGUs, which, while characterized by having the same digi- tal needs, face a limited institutional potential, including in terms of the efficient Improvement Plans absorption of financial resources concerning digitization. CHALLENGE 4: Limited resources to meet the digitization needs of cities, both within their own budgets and from EU funds PROPOSED SOLUTION 4 Introduce mechanisms to increase the efficiency of the funds invested in digitization. The proposed solution addresses the two most cost-intensive elements of digitiza- tion: (i) licensing costs, and (ii) implementation costs. The more efficient use of funds in the first case can be achieved by taking advan- tage of, for example, economies of scale of license purchases (Municipal Technology Exchange17 — GMT, Government Administration Service Center18 — COAR, Center for Testing Digital Solutions, and others), or by implementing projects and building national systems scaled to the entirety of the LGUs, in which case licenses are provided free of charge (EZD of the Republic of Poland — Electronic Document Management in Public Administration [EZD RP], and others). In the second case, increasing the efficiency of work in the implementation of digital solutions in the broadest sense can be achieved by reaping the benefits of the experience learned by public admin- istration units, for example, forming groups performing the same tasks, for exam- ple, municipal, poviat, and regional offices. Standardized implementation of spe- cific digital solutions in public administration units of the same type can take the form of, for example, ‘roll-out’ implementation, that is, implementation using a tem- plate developed during the first implementation and then using the evolutionary improvement of the template during implementation in subsequent units. The effect of learning in public administration units of the same type, for example, in units of combined administration or local government, can be successfully used during the implementation at the stage of pre-implementation analysis (one of the first stages of implementation) based on detailed descriptions of the organizational processes. Such an action allows — already at the stage of starting implementa- tion — the development of a common template/resource (the organizational pro- cesses with all related elements, for example, data and information on IT systems, documents, organizational structures, and technologies) that is identical for all organizational units of public administration of the same type. In such an evolutionary approach, the implementation of the work in successive units is based on the use of a template (the product of the first implementation), identi- fication and recording of differences, and the subsequent modification of the tem- plate. The result of such an undertaking is the elimination of activities — in each 17. https://gieldamiejskichtechnologii.pl/ 18. https://centrum.gov.pl/ CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 85 3 successive unit beyond the first — performed for the purpose of developing the pat- tern. In addition, the production of a common pattern, for instance, in digital form, will enable the cooperation of units, for example, at the stage of the maintenance of Improvement Plans the implemented solution. However, the most important element, in the long term, will be the benefit of using the collected data and information in the form of detailed implementation documentation — including, for example, information about orga- nizational processes and details concerning tasks, structures, functions, and docu- ments — that can be reused during subsequent implementations of digital solutions. CHALLENGE 5: Lack of a platform for the joint (inclusive) development of solutions for the digitization of the LGUs PROPOSED SOLUTION 5 Establishment of a platform for dialogue and cooperation between key stakehold- ers in the digitization of the LGUs. The recommended formula for action is the reg- ular meetings of stakeholders active in digitization of the LGUs (the central and local government administration, and, depending on the topic, also the represen- tatives of universities, NGOs, and the private sector). The objective of this forum should be to agree on the vision of the digitization of the LGUs mentioned in pro- posed solution No.1. Preparatory activities preceding the launch of the platform should include the organi- zation of an initiation meeting with the participation of key stakeholders (the MDFRP: Strategy Department and the Digital Development Department, and the CPM-Digiti- zation: Department of State Information Architecture, and the Plenipotentiary of the Minister of Digitization for Cooperation with the Self-government of the Republic of Poland). Their guiding themes would be to define the composition and formula of the platform, as well as proposals for the scope of work. The Bank team recom- mends that the first topic to be addressed should be issues related to city/state Infor- mation architecture, including the use of conclusions from the CPI to conceptual- ize a pilot project concerning city/state information architecture (described later in the text [Pilot project No.1]). The key entity to engage in this effort is the Depart- ment of State Information Architecture in the CPM-Digitization. CHALLENGE 6: Ensure the effective integration of data and information in city systems and between systems of different public institutions PROPOSED SOLUTION 6 Change the paradigm of data and information use in the public administration, accord- ing to which the acquisition of new data and information should always be preceded by an analysis of the possibility of obtaining them from public administration resources. In Polish conditions, the integration of data, information, and systems is significantly hampered by, among other things, differences in technologies, data and information CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 86 3 standards, or by the procedures and processes implemented. Therefore, there are often situations where data and information are obtained several times, despite their availability in the resources of the public administration. Measures taken for Improvement Plans effective integration must be based on the development of uniform data and infor- mation standards and the creation of data/information management rules that will enable their exchange both in the formulae A2A, A2C, A2B, and finally, A2X, (for example, a digital twin). It is worth noting here that the integration of data, information, and systems at all levels of government can also introduce and address issues related to data privacy and security, for instance, using Estonia’s experience in citizen data management (Box 3.2). Therefore, it is important to apply appropriate measures for the stan- dardization, protection, transparency, and the use and sharing of data, informa- tion, and systems. BOX 3.2  Model Solution for Citizen Data Management (Estonia) Data privacy is one of the fundamental issues in the digital transfor- The main benefits of implementing this solution are the mation process. User trust in digital solutions and the subsequent following: scale of their use are built on this basis. In response to this chal- o Increased quality of the data, as it is the data owner who lenge, Estonia has developed the X-Road system for data manage- mainly manages the data, including keeping it up-to-date ment based on three pillars: “confidentiality, availability, and integ- o Increased efficiency of monitoring data sharing by involving rity”. This system enables citizens and public entities to securely the data owner in this activity manage their data. Online access using blockchain technology o Strengthened confidence in advanced digital solutions, makes it possible to manage the data of authorized entities that particularly those used by the public administration, as own it. The system records the fact that the data has been accessed, the data owner has a real opportunity to manage his data, indicates the recipient of the data, the scope and time of the access, including full control over it along with an indication of the legal basis or circumstances, for o Effective elimination of ‘silos’ of public administration, as example, the issuance of a ticket for a parking offense. The owner of there is a reference registry storing the data of owners the data has the opportunity online, in real time, to monitor the use (private and public entities), which is used by authorized of his data and possibly intervene, for example, to report abuse. entities Source: Authors’ elaboration. CHALLENGE 7: Changing the model of cooperation between universities and the pub- lic administration PROPOSED SOLUTION 7 Systemic change of the model of cooperation between units of administration and univer- sities based on the added value created for the functioning of the public administration. A practical action in this area could be the introduction of requirements to the terms and conditions of EU-funded calls for project proposals, regarding the need to imple- ment or demonstrate the application features of the developed solutions. The public administration has limited resources at its disposal and often needs support which can be provided by the universities in the following areas: technological development (the cooperation with National Research Institute, NASK), competence enhance- ment (the cooperation with the National School of Public Administration, KSAP), and the development of dedicated solutions and research (the Accessibility Cen- CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 87 3 ters19 in the areas of architecture and construction, digitization and communica- tion, transportation and mobility, design and everyday objects, and health). In turn, universities benefit from the opportunity to gain access to data, information, and Improvement Plans practical knowledge and experience that their graduates need in order to advance their professional careers. Cooperation between the public administration and uni- versities can bring many benefits to both the academic side and the public adminis- tration, as well as to society as a whole, for instance, in the form of increased digital competence (information, IT, and functional). Another practical measure could be the establishment at universities, for example, by the National Centre for Research and Development (NCRD), of organizations that would systemically support model cooperation between administrative units and national universities, following the example of the European Innovation Centres20. CHALLENGE 8: Increasing the availability and timeliness of reference databases for domain systems in public administration PROPOSED SOLUTION 8 Ensure standardization of data and information, as well as their exchange and IT systems. Operational implementation of the SIA and interoperability is crucial for many appli- cations and services, such as eHealth, eTax, eEducation, eElection, and eCommerce, as well as for risk management and security systems; interoperability directly connects to the area of open public data. At the same time, the data acquired during the imple- mentation of SIA is key to increasing access to up-to-date, complete, high-quality, reliable (state-guaranteed) data, collected in datasets made available in the reference public registries. Only metered data and information can be managed, including being subject to a conscious and purposeful increase in their availability with a permanently conducted analysis of the risks associated with making them available from the pub- lic registries. For the purposes of the implementation of public tasks by the LGUs, it is necessary to use the data contained in the public registers, which are finally processed in the field systems of public administration. Given the scale, complexity, and rele- vance of managing data in reference databases, Bank experts indicate that the entity that should manage data in reference databases should be the Minister of Digitization. CHALLENGE 9: Ensuring data interoperability, not only at the level of a single office, but also of the city (city office and organizational units), and nationwide PROPOSED SOLUTION 9 At the central level, it is necessary to develop templates defining state information architecture standards, including, in particular, applicable data models and meth- ods and interfaces for data exchange between public administration institutions. 19. https://www.gov.pl/web/ncbr/powstana-uczelniane-centra-dostepnosci 20. European Digital Innovation Hubs (EDIH) https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/pl/activities/edihs CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 88 3 The developed models and standards should not only be recommended but required as mandatory for newly developed and implemented IT systems. A mechanism to sup- port the implementation of these solutions could be to link the acquisition of funding Improvement Plans sources to the fulfillment of requirements for the applicant to ensure data interop- erability. For example, applying for funding to expand the back-office systems from the FERC program requires a statement that the requirements for interoperability are met — at the stage of applying for funding, and integration with reference data- bases — at the stage of production work. At the same time, implementation efforts to ensure interoperability, despite the regulations adopted in 201221, face signifi- cant difficulties. Therefore, it is necessary to introduce financial sanctions for public administration entities not applying interoperability regulations. A legislative ini- tiative in this regard should be initiated by the Minister of Digitization. At the same time, it should be emphasized that delay in increasing interoperability will result in postponing the implementation of innovative technologies in the practice of public administration. Examples of such technologies are chatbots, which are interoper- able and can operate 24 hours a day meeting needs in the A2A, A2C, A2B formula, as well as operating digital public services, based on artificial intelligence (AI). The European Commission points to the feasibility of applying new AI-based technol- ogies in public administration and draws on the experience of Estonia (detailed in policy documents), where more than 100 AI-based solutions have been developed and implemented in 2021. CHALLENGE 10: Increasing the efficiency of the monitoring and management of utili- ties (electricity, heat, gas, and water) in cities using digital solutions PROPOSED SOLUTION 10 Develop and disseminate digital solutions to support effective management of util- ities by the LGUs. The LGUs are one of the most important consumers of the utility distribution system, and the search for savings in this area is particularly important to them. Among other things, utility management requires access to information on current consumption and systems that allow the remote management of consumption in municipal facil- ities, and on the territory of the municipality. Monitoring and managing utilities in cities are also important aspects of protecting the environment and improving the quality of life for residents. Cities are large consumers of energy and emitters of greenhouse gases, so it is important to conduct continuous monitoring and man- age energy more efficiently and sustainably; consumption monitoring data should be made public (open data). Urban utility management is key to ensuring sustain- ability and improving the quality of life for residents. 21. https://isap.sejm.gov.pl/isap.nsf/DocDetails.xsp?id=wdu20120000526 CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 89 3 3.1.3 Funding Needs Improvement Plans There are dozens of solutions available on the market to develop and distrib- ute models of both ICT infrastructure and data and information structures and processes. Among these solutions, only integrated systems (one database and inter- face) capable of providing support at the stage of development, implementation, and maintenance of projects for the LGUs in general should be considered: o City information architecture (CIA) o Digitization and Integration model (DCI) of the LGUs’ data, information, and pro- cesses, based on business intelligence class solutions The selection of specific solutions should take into account the following: o Scope of feasible pilot projects o Solutions (software and methodologies) already in use — especially at the central government level — that support the modelling of data, information, and process- es in the areas mentioned o Scale of implementation of the solutions among the total number of the LGUs The purchase of a specific solution for the needs of a single LGU from the point of view of efficiency in the use of public funds raises doubts, especially since the developed solution will not be made available to all LGUs due to licensing provi- sions. There is an apparent dilemma here. On the one hand, the LGUs should be encour- aged to digitize their activities by purchasing/developing digital solutions they require and that are profiled to their specific needs. On the other hand, the standardization of solutions for the LGUs has been in the works at the national level for a long time, but it is not available (and it is uncertain when it will be completed). Thus, there is a real pos- sibility that the solutions purchased by the LGUs may turn out to be inconsistent with the standards that the national level is preparing. In this situation, it seems advisable to promote such digital solutions in the LGUs, which will be a ‘no regrets’ expenditure. In view of the above, the essence of the Bank team’s proposed solution is to pro- vide the tools available on the national platform for all the LGUs. This approach will make it possible to develop models in the proposed pilots and distribute them as reference or benchmark models for the entire population of the LGUs. This will reduce the time for the development and implementation of digital solutions for other local government units that are implementing digital projects. Placing such solutions on a na- tional platform and allowing wide access to the LGUs will allow faster digitization, easier opening of data, and significantly lower costs of implementing ICT solutions. In addi- tion, it will create opportunities to integrate systems and exchange data not only between the LGUs, but also between different levels and institutions of the entire public sphere. The purchase of tools for LGUs in general — which will also be available to insti- tutions of the entire public sphere — is associated with the use of solutions only from large vendors, the licensing method of which allows, for example, the use of CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 90 3 floating licenses (without attribution to a person, position or also organization). A rec- ommendation in this regard could be, for example, reports produced by the consulting firm Gartner Group, covering Enterprise Architecture Tools. The cost of purchasing Improvement Plans such tools, depending on the detailed configuration, is a minimum of PLN 18 million (180 floating licenses for public administration, including all the LGUs). The funds available under the 2021 – 2027 regional programs can play an important role in strengthening the digital maturity of local government administrations. However, it is important that they are properly targeted, so that the supported projects actu- ally contribute to the achievement of the stated goals in the area of digitization. This goal can be achieved by properly designing the system of project selection criteria and the conditions for organizing calls for project proposals, as well as by educating the potential applicants. The Digital Network cities assume the financing of the activities envisaged in MAPs from various sources. External sources of financing indicated by the cities are the following: funds for the implementation of the pilots under the responsibility of the Managing/Intermediate Bodies (for example, the MDFRP, the CPM-Digitization, the Digital Poland Projects Centre [DPPC], and the National Fund for Environment Protec- tion and Water Management-Modernization Fund); and funds from ROPs 2021 – 2027. Some of the activities will be financed with own funds from the cities’ budgets. Funds are needed by cities to finance several basic types of expenditures neces- sary to achieve the goals identified in MAPs: 1. Analytics and training (partly to be carried out by city staff with the support of ex- ternal experts), including, for example, inventory, description, standardization, anal- ysis of data and information in accordance with SIA, project management, train- ing in methodologies and IT systems 2. Consulting and expert work in support of activities related to the develop- ment of solutions to be implemented in subsequent cities (scaling), for exam- ple, in the area of project/product, implementation and maintenance management 3. Purchase of intangible assets — for example, a system for the identification, de- scription, and analysis of data, information, and processes to support SIA/CIA ac- tivities, and data integration systems 4. Information, education, and training activities, including as part of the scal- ing of solutions to the general LGUs that are directed to different groups of stake- holders: the general population, municipal officials, NGOs (including the printing and dissemination of information materials, the organization of information, and consultation meetings), and other LGUs 3.1.4 Pilots Implementation of the proposed pilots will enable the aggregation of knowl- edge from the practice of an individual LGU into a form usable by the LGUs in general. The results of the pilots will be possible to use more widely, thanks to the CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 91 3 developed standards, good practices, methodologies, reference solutions and optimal methods of their verification, recommended for the LGUs. In addition, this approach will make it possible to move away from the traditional method of project implemen- Improvement Plans tation to agile project implementation methodologies, based on continuous learning and knowledge management, and the use of previously developed solutions (stan- dards, good practices, methodologies, reference solutions, and optimal methods for their verification). These results should be developed in cooperation with key stake- holders, especially the central administration, to enable scaling. The pilots could be implemented within the framework of the National Urban Policy 2030 (NUP2030) “Model Areas” strategic project, or from dedicated sector funds. Also, consideration could be given to the possibility of funding the proposed pilots un- der FERC program Measure 2.4 (dedicated subactivity titled “Centre for Testing Digital Solutions for LGUs”, described in Box 3.3), and/or from the Modernization Fund (MF) (pilot to create a platform for monitoring utilities and energy management in public buildings). BOX 3.3  Proposal for a Center for Testing Digital Solutions for the LGUs Proposal for a dedicated subactivity under the FERC program digital government solutions to the specifics of the LGUs, by the fol- Action 2.4: Center for Testing Digital Solutions for the LGUs lowing measures: The planned scope of intervention under Measure 2.4 “Intersectoral o Increasing the program’s flexibility and responsiveness to specific cooperation for digital solutions to socio-economic problems” is demands for digital solutions for the LGUs emerging from local intended to respond to the demand identified in Poland for new and state governments scalable solutions in various areas of socioeconomic life. One of the important dimensions of Measure 2.4 is to support the implemen- o Designing and testing digital solutions in an appropriately coor- tation of innovative projects using breakthrough technologies to dinated manner, that is, fitting in, and taking into account, hor- solve local and regional social and economic problems, for exam- izontal principles (for example, regarding state information ple, in the management of smart cities (public transport, education, architecture) heating, and energy). The formula of the submeasure should provide for the regular The proposed solution is to include a dedicated submeasure involvement of key stakeholders in the creation of a platform for within Measure 2.4 for the implementation of digital solution dialogue and information exchange. Communication between the pilots for the LGUs, titled “Center for Testing Digital Solutions for government and the local administrations is essential for the follow- the LGUs”. The aim of the submeasure is to develop scalable digital ing undertakings: (1) the systematic analysis (identification and pri- solutions for the LGUs. The main target groups of the submeasure oritization) of the needs of the LGUs and central institutions in the are the LGUs and the public administration. Successful pilots will be area of digitization; (2) the development of optimal ways to address applied on a broader scale using funds available either under the them in the form of pilot implementations; and (3) the evaluation FERC program, or from other EU-funded programs or national funds. of the effects of pilot implementations in terms of identifying scal- able solutions and promoting their dissemination. The need for The recommended way of operationalizing this solution supporting such a permanent forum for dialogue is reported by both the cit- experimentation is based on the positive experience of the imple- ies active in the Digital Network and the ministries supporting the mentation of submeasure 2.4.1. under the Operational Program work of the network, and the proposed solutions in this regard are Innovative Development 2014 – 2020, titled “Center for Analyses and described in this report. Piloting New Instruments inno_LAB” .a An analogous pilot measure has also been envisaged for implementation under the European Funds Conclusions from the implementation process and the evaluation for a Modern Economy 2021 – 2027 program (measure FENG.02.14 of the effects of the pilots will feed into the work of the govern- Inno_LAB, with an EU funding budget of EUR 50 million). ment administration in terms of standards, methodologies, ref- erence solutions, and optimal methods for their verification, rec- Implementation of the submeasure based on the pilot formula ommended for use by the LGUs. The dissemination of solutions will allow the aggregation of knowledge from the practice of resulting from the conducted pilots may be particularly useful for individual LGUs — in interministerial and intersectoral coopera- the smaller and less experienced LGUs, which, with the same digital tion — into a form usable by all LGUs. Such an approach will pro- needs, face limited institutional potential, including in terms of the mote a shift from the traditional method of project implementation efficient absorption of financial resources in the area of digitization. to the use of agile methodologies, based on continuous learning and knowledge management, and the use of previously developed Scope of intervention: ICT solutions, electronic services, and solutions. applications for administration (intervention code 016) This proposed solution will contribute to the achievement of stra- The subactivity is to be implemented on the basis of a grant tegic goals related to the digitization of the LGUs, including by project (in accordance with Article 41 of the Law of April operationalizing and adapting (calibrating) the requirements of the 28, 2022, on the principles of the implementation of tasks CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 92 financed from European funds in the financial perspective Beneficiary type — specific: Government administration 2021 – 2027). A grant project is a project, the beneficiary of (MDFRP) (the project is implemented in partnership formula) which provides grants for the implementation of tasks to achieve with the Digital Poland Project Centre (DPPC) the purpose of this project by grantees. A grantee is a public Target group: Local government units or private entity, other than the beneficiary of a grant project or a partner of a partnership project, selected through an open Output indicators: RC014 — Public institutions receiving support call announced by the beneficiary of a grant project as part of for the development of digital services, products, and processes the implementation of the grant project. The grant is the pro- Result indicators: RCR11 — Users of new and upgraded public gram funds provided by the beneficiary of the grant project to digital services, products, and processes; RCR12 — Users of new the grantee for the implementation of tasks. and upgraded digital services, products, and processes devel- Beneficiary type — general: Public administration oped by enterprises Source: Authors’ elaboration. a. The purpose of sub-measure 2.4.1 of the OP Smart Growth 2014 - 2020 was to create and test new tools to support innovation and integrate representa- tives of science, business, business environment institutions, socio-economic partners and administration for the development of innovation at the national, re- gional and local levels. Analytics preceded tests and pilots of support instruments to identify the needs of support recipients and develop a dedicated solution. The next phase consisted of testing the proposed solution within a limited scope (e.g., on a selected group of companies or local governments), culminat- ing in the formulation of recommendations as to its further fate. Recruitment to participate in the pilots was of a competitive nature; selection criteria were approved by the OPSG Monitoring Committee. The Polish Agency for Enterprise Development - based on the identified needs of the entities selected to partici- pate in a given pilot - selected service providers responsible for the support provided to pilot participants for the development and testing of the instrument. PILOT PROPOSAL 1 Development of the City Information Architecture Model (CIA) Brief characteristics: the CIA will be a solution dedicated to the LGUs and will be devel- oped on the following basis: o Recommendations and guidelines of the Minister of Digitization and the Com- mittee of the Council of Ministers for Digitization for the government adminis- tration contained in the SIA o European Commission guidelines contained in the European Interoperability Framework (EIF) o The guidelines of the European Interoperability Reference Architecture (EIRA). The need to develop a scalable product dedicated to the LGUs stems from the gen- esis of such solutions developed at the European level (EIF and EIRA), through the national level (SIA) and down to the level of the LGUs (CIA). Further activities at the level of the LGUs are possible within the framework of the NUP2030 implementa- tion, as well as the pilot projects proposed in this material. Experience in developing state information architecture (central administration) should be used as the basis for developing city information architecture, a scalable product dedicated to the LGUs. This approach of using a template in the form of SIA to develop CIA will ensure the consistency, completeness, and maintenance of the standard across the national administration. At the same time, the use of solu- tions developed by the Minister of Digitization dedicated to the central adminis- tration will allow the integration of solutions at both levels (central and local gov- ernment) to be maintained. In addition, SIA and CIA initiatives are fundamental; they can serve as record-keeping activities of digital activity in public administra- tion, enabling the acceleration of the comprehensive digitization of the country. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 93 3 The product is directly complementary with SIA, the national interoperability frame- work, and the national cybersecurity system, and is in line with the activities of the CPM, the Ministry of Health (National Health Fund), and the Ministry of Justice. Improvement Plans Innovation: Process innovation: documentation (methodology) for the implementation of CIA work and product innovation: models of data sources and the scope of data pro- cessing and flow, and central software to support implementation of the project work Recommended project team: Selected CPI cities (for example, Świdnica), with support from the CPM- Digitization (Department of State Information Architecture) and the MDFRP (as the managing authority of the FERC program, which may be a potential source of funding for piloting under Measure 2.4) PILOT PROPOSAL 2 Development of an implementation model for digitization and integration (MDI) of the data, information, and processes of the LGUs, based on business intelligence class solutions Brief description: The model, which will be developed and implemented as a pilot prod- uct, will integrate data, information, and organizational processes (in full compliance with SIA/CIA) used in the city’s information systems, along with an open data module. The model will enable the management of e-services for external/internal custom- ers and the integration of data, information, and organizational processes, including their development using optimization criteria (cost, time, frequency, and quality) and the achievement of e-services maturity level 5 (personalization level — services are automated and proactively provided ‘push’). The developed model, which includes data, information, and organizational processes, will make it possible to make a com- plete identification of the city’s data sources, information and processes, along with the scope of their processing and how they are collected and optimized. It will be a comprehensive, standardized, scalable and, most importantly, implementable (at the operational and strategic levels of the city) product tailored for each LGU. Implementation of the pilot will enable the development of a model for the digitiza- tion and integration of data, information, and organizational processes in the LGUs, which will include at least the ‘is’ state and the ‘target’ state that comprises at least the following elements: IT systems, databases, the scope of data processing, infor- mation, processes, e-services, electronic and paper documents, contractors and cus- tomers, and parameters (costs, time, frequency, and quality). Prioritization (the selection of implementation elements) of the implementation of digitization and the integration of data, information, and organizational processes will be one of the most important elements of the implementation model and will be fea- sible/implementable, based on collected data as opposed to dedicated expert systems. The pilot and its expected product fits into all four horizontal areas presented in Box 2.1 in Section 2.1.2., namely: i) data integration and structures (--> State Information Architec- ture); ii) data opening (--> Reuse of Public Sector Information), iii) process description and analysis (--> National Interoperability Framework), and iv) cyber security (--> National Cyber Security System) and NUP2030 — Challenge XI, Solution A, and Challenge C. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 94 3 The product is directly complementary to SIA and the KRI and fits into the activities of the CPM and NASK (EZD RP), the MDFRP (NCRD — ”Digital Innovation” competition), the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Administration, and the Ministry of the Environment. Improvement Plans The product is also the foundation for the implementation (at the operational level) of all activities described in Challenge IX of the NUP2030, solutions B, C, D, and E and can indirectly support all challenges I–XI of the NUP2030. The product will contribute to the development and implementation of a standard for digitization activities for the LGUs. Innovation: Process innovation: documentation (methodology) for the implementa- tion of work on the digitization of the organizational processes in the LGUs; prod- uct innovation: models of data, information and organizational processes and their connections, parameters, products, information carriers, and central software sup- porting the implementation of project work. Recommended project team: Selected CPI cities (for example, Rzeszów, Łódź, Białys- tok, Iłowa, and Lidzbark Warmiński). PILOT PROPOSAL 3 Establishment of a platform for utility monitoring and energy management in pub- lic buildings of the LGUs Brief summary: The platform will enable real-time data and information acquisition for utility monitoring and energy management, with the possibility of integration with a GIS module. Reducing the LGUs’ costs through the more efficient use of util- ities (especially energy, but not only) is currently a topic of great interest among the LGUs, because of the current energy crisis caused by the war in Ukraine and the deteriorating financial situation of the LGUs. Analyses of the thermal characteris- tics of buildings will enable better management of energy consumption, and thus can contribute to reduce the budget costs of cities, as well as to support the planning of municipal investments in thermal insulation, photovoltaics, and system heat. Implementation of the pilot is directly in line with activities on sustainable urban management, including energy and reducing pressure both on the environment and on the municipal budget. A potential source of funding for both the pilot and the implementations carried out by the LGUs on a larger scale could be the Modernization Fund (MF), for which the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management is the national operator. The MF is implemented on the basis of so-called Priority Programs, and successive tranches of support will be released until 2030. Supporting investments in energy efficiency is one of the five main areas of support under the MF. The prod- uct is complementary to the conditions for re-use of public information, and is in line with the activities of the MoCE. Innovation: Process innovation: documentation of the platform’s implementation in the LGUs; product innovation: platform for the monitoring of utilities and energy management in public buildings of the LGUs CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 95 Recommended project team: Selected CPI cities (for example, Dębica) with the support of the CPM- Digitization, and the financing entity: the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management or the MDFRP (depending on the funding source) A summary of the proposed pilots is presented in Table 3.2. It also includes an esti- mate of the cost structure that would be needed to implement them. TABLE 3.2  Summary of the Structure and Estimated Costs of the Proposed Pilots Name of the Pilot Project Estimated Cost Structure of the Pilot Project City information architecture model Costs: 1 – 2 support software licenses for each of the 1 – 2 participating LGUs + cost of salaries and logistics Model of digitization and integration of LGU data, information Costs: 1 – 2 licenses of supporting software for each of the 1 – 2 participating and processes based on business intelligence class solutions LGUs + cost of salaries and logistics Utility monitoring and energy management platform for LGU Costs: 1 – 2 licenses of supporting software for each of 1 – 2 participating public buildings LGUs + cost of salaries and logistics Source: Authors’ elaboration. 3.2 IMPROVEMENT PLANS FOR THE PPP NETWORK A summary of the challenges and proposed solutions for the PPP Network is presented in Table 3.3. The details of these solutions are presented in the follow- ing section. TABLE 3.3  IP: Challenges and Proposed Solutions for the PPP Network No. Challenge Proposed solution 1. Reducing the cost of financing projects car- Undertake work on developing the assumptions of the cost-cutting mechanism — using ried out under the PPP formula the roundtable formula, that is, a series of meetings of a wide range of PPP stakeholders Implementation of a pilot PPP project using the developed mechanism 2. Exploring opportunities for designing and Identify opportunities to design and implement solutions to support the PPP market in implementing solutions to increase the Poland in areas related to the following: attractiveness of the PPP formula in Poland o PPP project bundling o Implementation of hybrid projects o Systematically strengthening the capacity of cities in the area of PPP Source: Authors’ elaboration. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 96 3 3.2.1 Challenges Improvement Plans CHALLENGE 1 (MAIN) To reduce the financing costs of PPP projects. This is currently the most burning chal- lenge for the implementation of PPP projects by cities. The costs of PPP projects, accounting for even circa 40 – 60% of the value of expenditure, are the main entry barrier for cities considering such undertakings. Developing a model solution that would significantly reduce financing costs should translate into the greater attrac- tiveness and competitiveness of PPP projects, compared to the traditional for- mula. Also, this will help promote the idea of the PPPs in cities’ investment plans more effectively. CHALLENGE 2 To identify the possibilities of designing and implementing solutions that raise the attractiveness of the PPP formula in Poland. This formula has all it takes to become an important development tool for Polish cities. It can enable them to plan and imple- ment medium- and long-term investment plans to achieve development goals. Yet, an important challenge is to put appropriate solutions in place that will unlock the potential of PPPs for the purpose of project clustering (projects run by at least two municipalities, also within the same urban functional area) and in hybrid/blended projects using EU funds as financial leverage. Expecting the growing attractiveness of the PPP formula and higher interest in its wider application, it is of importance to respond to the challenge of gradually building up and strengthening the insti- tutional PPP potential of cities. The Recommendation Bank for the PPP Network is attached as Annex 5. 3.2.2 Proposed Solutions CHALLENGE 1 (MAIN): To reduce the financing costs of PPP projects PROPOSED SOLUTION 1 To hold a series of meetings at a PPP roundtable in order to find ways to reduce the cost of financing PPP projects The Bank team recommends working on the issue in a roundtable formula, that is, by convening a series of meetings of the key stakeholders represent- ing, but not only, the MDFRP, the Ministry of Finance, the Polish Development Fund, the National Development Bank (BGK), and banks financing PPP projects; also, other institutions from the sector financing PPP projects can participate, as well as entities potentially capable of granting sureties/guarantees (in particular the CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 97 3 Polish Development Fund), private partners, LGU and LG organizations (municipal offices, the Association of Polish Cities, the Association of Polish Districts, and the Union of Polish Metropolises), universities, consulting companies, and the Bank. Improvement Plans A tentative work schedule provides for the following activities at the PPP roundtable: 1. Collecting ideas and proposed solutions: Both those already named in the draft PPP Policy and new ones supplied by all interested parties linked to the PPPs; the ideas and solutions will be a run-up to the PPP roundtable talks (the Bank team has already collected first proposals of the PPP Network cities and other stakeholders of PPP implementation) 2. Holding a series of PPP roundtable meetings to develop effective measures to reduce the PPP financing costs 3. Proposing adequate legislative solutions/programs and procedures enabling the implementation of the new solutions 4. Conducting a pilot PPP project based on the new solutions (recommended inclu- sion of at least two PPP projects developed in this CPI edition 2021 – 2023 in the PPP Network). The proposed idea of the PPP roundtable received positive feedback from the MDFRP and will be included in the action plan for the updated PPP Policy 2030. The first meeting of the PPP roundtable was expected to be convened in the first quarter of 2023. CHALLENGE 2: To identify the possibilities of designing and implementing solutions that raise the attractiveness of the PPP formula in Poland PROPOSED SOLUTION 2 To investigate the possibility of designing and implementing solutions supporting the PPP market in Poland in the area of PPP project clustering, hybrid/blended projects, and strengthening the PPP potential of cities The formula and thematic scope of the roundtable was narrowed down to the high financing costs of the PPP undertakings, as this is regarded as the key entry barrier by stakeholders. However, there are several other areas that are worth exploring as having a potential to further the development of the PPP market in Poland. They require an in-depth analysis and operationalization through dialogue among a wider group of entities, but also pilot implementations. The three areas identified during the CPI and now ‘tested’ in a project financed by the European Commission, and implemented by the Bank in functional areas in the EU (https://functionalareas.eu/) are the following: CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 98 3 o Strengthening the cities’ potential to implement PPP projects, includ- ing for example, the development of a network of PPP competence centers at the regional/local level (for example, integrated territorial investments [ITIs])22 Improvement Plans o Mechanism for the preparation and implementation of clustered PPP proj- ects pursued by partnerships of municipalities; popularization of this approach o Implementation of hybrid/blended projects that rely on European funds. During the CPI, the participating cities and other stakeholders of the PPP imple- mentation process submitted a list of proposals/issues, which, if addressed posi- tively, should further the development of the PPP market. The main challenge is to reduce the high costs of financing PPP projects; this recommendation is included in the input materials for the PPP roundtable. The other expectations include the continuous promotion of the PPP implementation model, more training in PPP projects, and more advisory support to the already initiated PPP procedures. These issues and proposals are collected and commented on in the PPP Network’s Rec- ommendation Bank attached as Annex 5. Any proposed solutions will be taken into account when the PPP department of the MDFRP designs an action plan (implementation document) for the govern- ment policy on the development of PPP until 2030 (PPP Policy 2030). The propos- als of the PPP Network cities concerning this policy are listed in Box 3.4. A number of remarks submitted by the cities from the PPP Network were taken into account in the course of the consultations. BOX 3.4  Contribution of the Cities of the PPP Network to the Draft Update of the PPP Policy The draft update of PPP Policy 2030 (May–November 2022) 3. To consider an exemption from, or reduction of, VAT rates was being consulted while the CPI project was underway. The for the LGUs pursuing the projects for the construction of PPP Network cities took the opportunity to submit their pro- public building infrastructure posals directly to the key PPP policy document in Poland. 4. To apply to the National Council of Regional Audit The cities’ proposals reported during the consultation focused Chambers to harmonize its position on the Regional Audit on the following: Chamber’s interpretation line, as to which risks cause a spe- cific PPP contract not to be classified as public debt 1. To create a platform of dialogue (roundtable) for the key stakeholders in PPP projects to develop specific solutions 5. For the National Development Bank (BGK) to design a ded- that would grow the popularity of these partnerships and icated program for the financial support of PPP projects, would facilitate/enable the use of this form of investment mainly intended for private partners by the LGUs 6. To draw up and publish a list of recommended entities per- 2. To remove the financial burden from municipal budgets in forming good quality efficiency assessments the investment phase by attracting funding by private part- 7. To give priority to providing guidance for projects prepared ners (including with the use of financial instruments that under the MDFRP’s own programs (for example, the CPI); are available on preferential terms) to share the MDFRP’s recommendations regarding specific 22. Today (starting from January 2022), PPP consultants are available at 16 European Funds Information Points. These information points were established in the Marshal’s Offices and are embedded in the struc- ture of the managing authorities responsible for Regional Operational Programmes. Their consultants work to promote the PPP formula, including in the hybrid/blended model, and offer assistance to potential pro- moters of PPP projects (information and promotion of PPP in the region, selecting projects that are worthy of support, including hybrid/blended ones, and substantive support for identified projects). CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 99 undertakings prepared as part of the ministry’s own pro- 9. To prepare a list of reference of PPP projects from across grams with the relevant Marshal’s Offices with the inten- Europe, divided by sectors and market segments, as best tion of securing support at the stage of co-financing and practice and examples of well-prepared and properly run implementation PPP projects 8. To support those local governments implementing inno- 10. To support public entities at the stage of the preparation vative solutions in the field of infrastructure and its main- and implementation of PPP projects, for example, by pro- tenance, and in the provision of public services which viding self-diagnosis tools for the LGUs to assess the institu- decide to test MAP innovations, for example, in GovTech tional potential of implementing PPP projects inno_LAB, a program run by the Polish Agency for 11. To consider the streamlining (time-wise) of the government Enterprise Development, or through grants from the Urban guidance award process Technology Fair Source: Authors’ elaboration. 3.2.3 Financing Needs The basic types of expenditure necessary to implement the MAPs of the cities of the PPP Network fall into several basic categories that reflect the character of the designed investment projects. These categories include expenditure related to the following undertakings: 1. Reconstruction, extension, and adaptation of public buildings (mainly adminis- tration and office buildings) 2. Construction of new buildings and other public amenities and commercial facili- ties (including office and administration buildings, school buildings, concert halls, surface and underground car parks, and commercial facilities) 3. Upgrade of road surfaces (construction works resulting in a change in the func- tional or technical parameters of an existing structure) and alteration of a trans- port system 4. New plantings and elements of street furniture 5. Installation of lighting and video monitoring The PPP Network cities expect that certain elements of the material scope of invest- ment projects, such as the use of environmental-friendly solutions, energy efficien- cy, or removal of architectural barriers will be implementable with external support (by the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management, the State Fund for Rehabilitation of People with Disabilities, the Regional Environmental Protection and Water Economy Fund under the European Cohesion Fund, and the European Regional Development Fund). Some of the cities also consider implemen- tations in a hybrid/blended formula, that is, with EU funds supplementing the financ- ing of private partners. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 100 3 3.2.4 Pilots Improvement Plans The Bank team recommends that two PPP pilot projects be carried out: 1. The PPP as part of a financing mechanism for comprehensive urban regeneration programs 2. Clustering the PPPs in urban functional areas, implemented by municipality part- nerships The concepts of pilot projects, as well as the question of reporting progress and collect- ing lessons from implementation, should be discussed, and key stakeholders should be consulted about them. PROPOSED PILOT 1 Developing a model for financing integrated packages (groups) of urban regenera- tion projects with the use of the PPP formula Purpose of the pilot: To develop optimal models for financing integrated packages (groups) of urban regeneration projects, covering larger areas of cities (for exam- ple, a quarter of a street), based on decision-making schemes and accompanying analytics. Currently, cities rely primarily on nonrefundable forms of financing for urban regeneration projects (primarily EU funds), which results in the limited scope and short-term prospects for their implementation, due to the scarce availability of such financing. External, repayable sources of financing for the revitalization intentions of cities are not properly identified and used on a wider scale, which lim- its the potential for benefits that comprehensive urban regeneration undertakings can generate for urban development. The developed methodology for designing a financing mechanism to support com- prehensive urban regeneration programs will enable cities to make rational deci- sions regarding the selection of optimal financing models. The developed approach will make it possible to assess which types of projects included in a comprehensive revitalization program are suitable (efficient and cost-effective) for financing under (i) traditional, (ii) PPP, and (iii) commercial models. The outcome of the pilot: a methodology to support cities in their decision-mak- ing process for selecting financing models for integrated groups/packages of urban regeneration projects. The availability of such a methodology will allow cities to plan and implement complementary long-term investments, using appropriate financial assembly and maximizing the benefits of optimally selected financing models, tailored to the specific needs and capabilities of cities. In addition, the pilot will map and delineate repayable and nonrepayable forms of the financing of urban regeneration projects and identify potential gaps in currently available financing. Conclusions from the pilot can also potentially be used to make recom- mendations for possible changes to the urban regeneration instruments contained in the Law on Revitalization. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 101 3 Pilot assumptions. In designing the detailed assumptions and scope of the pilot, it is important to take into account and build on the MDFRP’s track record of past sup- port for urban regeneration and PPP projects in cities. The activities undertaken by Improvement Plans the Department of Technical Assistance programs (for example, the Model Urban Regeneration project, and the Revitalization Regions) and the Department of Pub- lic-private Partnership (which offers advisory support to cities on performance eval- uation, and support for the PPP projects) and the accumulated experience resulting from them, as well as available analytical studies, should be an important contri- bution to the development of the final concept of the pilot. City case studies. To increase the applicability of recommendations from the pilot, it is important to use a case study approach. The selected sample should take into account the different characteristics of the cities. Cities that could take part in such a pilot include Płock and Dąbrowa Górnicza, which are preparing PPP projects in the urban regeneration domain. Other cities to consider are: Wołomin, Leszno, Wałbrzych, and Gdansk. Proposed pilot leader: the MDFRP. It is also important to include the department responsible for urban planning in the Ministry of Development and Technology. PROPOSED PILOT 2 PPP project clustering in urban functional areas PPP project clustering occurs when several or even more, similar (from the same sector, or geographically close) investment projects (for example, the thermal mod- ernization of school buildings within an urban functional area, the replacement of street lighting in neighboring municipalities, road reconstruction, and the con- struction and upgrade of school and preschool infrastructure) are combined, and the implementation follows a procedure typical of a single project. The advantages of PPP clustering are pretty obvious: the greater negotiating power of local governments when dealing with private partners; the cost of the prepara- tion of a PPP investment can be shared by several entities; economies of scale due to having smaller projects in the procedure, usually too small to attract potential private partners; attraction of reputable private partners with experience in a spe- cific area; and the reduced cost of materials due to large-volume purchases. Project clustering also presents opportunities: for the wider promotion and infor- mation about PPP among smaller local governments, and for deeper intermunici- pal cooperation within urban functional areas and the increase of their investment potential and willingness to implement projects of a supralocal impact. No clustered PPP projects has been implemented in Poland before. Still, in the years 2018 – 2020, the then Ministry of Investment and Development (today: MDFRP) undertook a number of initiatives to promote this formula for the implementation of investment by public authorities. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 102 3 The ministry began with a letter of intent dated August 9, 2018. The signatories were the MDFRP and the Polish Development Fund (PDF). Next, the MDFRP and the PDF launched the process of identifying potential PPP clusters. A survey was Improvement Plans held among LGUs which showed that barely 40 local governments were interested in participating in PPP clustering. After holding information meetings and talks with representatives of individual potential clusters, it was agreed that prepara- tory work should be continued on clusters in the following sectors: roads, swim- ming baths, and sports facilities. The LGUs planning to implement such projects received immediate guidance from the MDFRP. The swimming baths cluster also received support from external experts contracted by the ministry. Despite the involvement of the MDFRP and local governments, none of the con- sidered clusters made it to the actual implementation phase due to discrepancies between the material scopes intended to be combined into a single project cluster. Accordingly, the Polish market can be said to lack experience that could serve as best practice and inspire other cities. However, the MDFRP remains open to seeking and supporting clustered PPP projects. Clustered PPP projects are successfully implemented in more developed PPP mar- kets (for example, Belgium, Ireland, and Germany). Some examples are described in Box 3.5. BOX 3.5  Selected Lessons from EU Countries Implementing Clustered PPP Projects In Belgium, cluster PPP projects have been implemented in In Ireland, cluster PPP projects focused on council housing and sports infrastructure, specifically for the installation of artifi- university infrastructure. As regards the council housing, sev- cial grass for soccer fields and for simple gyms. The projects eral local governments clustered their projects; as regards uni- were launched at the central level (Ministry of Sport) and fol- versity infrastructure, universities did the same. In both cases, lowed a dedicated regulation on the clustering of projects the sponsor of the idea was the competent ministry. It invited involving sports infrastructure. The ministry invited local gov- public entities responsible for these types of infrastructure ernments to submit proposals of projects related to artifi- to cooperate. Together, they agreed on the scope and basic cial grass and gyms. Next, a specially appointed central unit parameters of the projects. Next, a tender was opened to selected projects for implementation. This unit (in coopera- select a private partner. In the case of the universities, the min- tion with the ministry) played the role of a contracting author- istry enters into an agreement as a party; in the case of the ity upon authorization from each of the LGUs participating in local governments, one of them was appointed as consortium the project. A tender procedure was opened to select a pri- leader. The first cluster PPP projects for council housing were vate partner in the PPP formula for a cluster of projects. The launched in 2015. Today, they are in the management phase selected partner signed a separate final agreement with each (the agreement was concluded for 25 years). Six different local local government. The design-build-finance-maintain (DBFM) governments built 534 council dwellings. Since then, tenders agreements were concluded for 10 years for the artificial grass have been launched for another two project clusters involv- and for 30 years for the gyms. As a result, a total of 35 artificial ing council housing, and another two are currently being pre- grass projects were completed, and nine gyms were erected. pared. As for universities, two cluster PPP tenders have been The value of the projects was EUR 13.9 million for the artificial carried out so far. Eleven different projects have been com- grass and EUR 26.7 million for the gyms (excluding VAT). pleted for these establishments. Source: Authors’ elaboration. The advantages of PPP clustering are pretty obvious: the greater negotiating power of the local governments when dealing with private partners; the cost of prepara- tion of a PPP investment can be shared by several entities; economies of scale due to having smaller projects in the procedure, usually too small to attract potential pri- vate partners; the attraction of reputable private partners with experience in a spe- cific area; and the reduced cost of materials due to large-volume purchases. Project CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 103 3 clustering is also an opportunity for the wider promotion and information about the PPP formula among smaller local governments, deeper intermunicipal cooper- ation within urban functional areas and an increase in their investment potential Improvement Plans and their willingness to implement projects of a supralocal impact. A pilot cluster project may be combined with the building of competence of local/ regional competence centers. These centers would support the LGUs in identifying potential investment opportunities for cluster PPP projects and would help pre- pare them. For more about German best prac- tice related to Regional PPP Competence Cen- ters, see Box 3.6. BOX 3.6  Regional PPP Competence Centers in Germany Regional PPP Competence Centers operating in Germany (ÖPP- Pilot subject: providing consultancy for the Kompetenzzentrum) are tasked with supporting the development of the PPPs in the region. Their role and objectives are, on the one LGUs (at least two municipalities) within an ur- hand, similar to other units operating at the central level (such as ban functional area concerning the preparation the Polish PPP platform at the MDFRP or the German Partnerschaft of a cluster PPP project, which include the follow- Deutschland — Berater der öffentlichen Hand GmbH), that is, they develop a PPP knowledge base, offer guidance to local governments ing undertakings: on planned PPPs, and help prepare agreements or obtain funding. On the other hand, as regional entities, they engage more in specific 1. Joint work on project preparation projects and undertakings relevant for the region, for example, by measuring the interest of private entities in particular projects. Such 2. Procedure for the selection of a private partner centers work closer to local governments in a particular region, and 3. Developing a formula for managing the PPP they understand their local specificity. This close relation facilitates agreement mutual communication and builds the LGUs’ interest in the PPP for- mula. At the same time, they are able to support projects pursued 4. Optionally, guidance for local/regional com- on a larger scale (supralocal), including the PPP clustering. petence centers In the case of Germany (a federal state), Regional PPP Competence Centers are most often established at the relevant ministries of Implementation of the pilot project will facilitate regional governments. However, there are also centers operating the development of a mechanism for the prepara- within the structure of development banks of individual German states or in regional scientific institutions. tion and execution of cluster PPP projects, which may prove to be an attractive formula, especially Source: Authors’ elaboration. for urban functional areas. In 2020, the MDFRP commissioned a report titled “Analysis of the Organizational and Legal Structure of a Cluster PPP Project in the Municipal and District Road Sector”. Its focus was to analyze potential organizational and legal forms of implementing a cluster PPP project. The applicability of its conclusions is limited to a slice of the PPP investment preparation process (that is, the analysis of legal forms) within one thematic area/sector (that is, roads). The pilot will elab- orate on what has been completed so far and will help obtain more comprehensive and operational knowledge about the phases of designing, preparing, and imple- menting a cluster PPP project, including about the institutional potential neces- sary to do so, both at the LGUs and the consulting entities, including the MDFRP. The pilot could be implemented under the NUP2030 “Model Areas” strategic project. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 104 3.3 3 IMPROVEMENT PLAN FOR THE GREEN NETWORK Improvement Plans A summary of the challenges and proposed solutions for the Green Network is presented in Table 3.4. The details of these solutions are presented in the follow- ing section. TABLE 3.4  IP: Challenges and Proposed Solutions for the Green Network No. Challenge Proposed Solution 1. Diversification of funding sources for green invest- Develop a mechanism to effectively mobilize private sector resources for urban ments — mobilization of resources from the corpo- green investments rate sector 2. Promotion of a comprehensive blue-green infrastruc- Develop BGI management plans, effective mechanisms for their implementa- ture (BGI) management approach in cities tion and coordination, and preparing detailed guidelines for cities 3. Development of a mechanism to coordinate the Develop the assumptions of a mechanism for coordinating the investment pro- investment process using nature-based solutions cess with the use of NBS as a good practice to be implemented by cities to pro- (NBS) tect green areas at the stage of planning, design, implementation of invest- ments, and maintenance of the introduced greenery 4. Implementation of green solutions in more than one Carry out a diagnosis of the challenges for the implementation of cross-munic- municipality (for example, partnerships of neighbor- ipal BGI projects in the following areas: spatial planning, common standards ing municipalities, and urban functional areas) in the formation and maintenance of the BGI, and arrangements for the joint financing of intermunicipal BGI projects 5. Inclusion of BGI indicators in spatial planning docu- Analysis of the feasibility of applying a comprehensive greening indicator with ments and decisions at the local level an indication of areas where its introduction would be particularly relevant (planning documents and decisions, and the stages of investment design) 6. Insufficient consideration of green infrastructure eco- Introduction of ecosystem services into relevant national legislation and con- system services in legislation at the national level ducting systemic training activities for participants in environmental manage- and in national strategy documents ment processes Source: Authors’ elaboration. 3.3.1 Challenges CHALLENGE 1 To ensure adequate financing of green investment projects by raising funds from the corporate sector (diversification of sources of funding) In a situation of a deepening crisis of local government finance, the CPI cities par- ticipating in the Green Network report concerns about whether it will be possible to secure adequate funds in municipal budgets for green projects in the coming years. It should be stressed that previously the cities of the Green Network had largely relied on their own budget to finance green projects. In the opinion of city represen- tatives, the funds allocated in the years 2014 – 2020 under regional or national oper- ational programs co-financed by the EU were not properly adjusted to their green infrastructure needs; therefore, they were used only to a relatively small extent (with CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 105 3 some exceptions, for example, Żyrardów and Międzyrzec Podlaski). In the coming months, the cities should obtain detailed information on the principles and condi- tions for obtaining support for projects under the EU Cohesion Policy 2021 – 2027. Improvement Plans CHALLENGE 2 To promote an approach based on the comprehensive management of blue-green infrastructure (BGI) in the city Cities are aware of the role and importance of the multifunctional nature of green infrastructure in the city. The need to introduce new elements of it into the space resounds in the prepared MAPs. At the operational level, cities are introducing green infrastructure where there is a deficit, often emphasizing its importance for improv- ing the quality of life in the city, and less often identifying specific challenges to which it is supposed to be a solution. However, It should be noted, that there is a grow- ing recognition of the need to manage rainwater through nature-based solutions. Working on their MAPs gave a number of the Green Network cities a more comprehen- sive and long-term view of the planning and implementation of BGI management. This was the case in both larger (for example, Lublin) and smaller (for example, Kostrzyn nad Odrą) cities. They saw significant benefits in this, such as more effective work in this area, the growing importance of the BGI in city policies, and using the approach for better coordinated work with key stakeholders within, and outside the municipal- ity. NUP2030 envisages the preparation of detailed guidelines for the development and implementation of BGI management plans by cities (Challenge IV, Solution F). They can be fed by conclusions derived from working on MAPs in the Green Network. CHALLENGE 3 To design a mechanism for coordinating the investment process applying nature- based solutions (NBS) Nature-based solutions are valuable tools in dealing with a wide range of chal- lenges in cities, which include climate resilience, water management, green space management, health and well-being, social cohesion and equity, air quality, space revitalization, increasing biodiversity, participatory planning and management, and improving economic potential23. Specialists in urban green spaces are aware of their role and the importance of their multifunctional character24. However, in the process of design or implementation of urban proj- ects involving various urban entities, this multidimensional potential of NBS and the possibility of including them as an integral part of various projects or invest- ments is not always recognized. 23. Raymond Ch.M., Frantzeskaki N., Kabisch N., Berryd P., Breile M., Nitaf M.R., Geneletti D., Calfapietra C. 2017. A framework for assessing and implementing the co-benefits of nature-based solutions in urban areas. Environmental Science & Policy 77, 15 – 24. 24. World Bank. 2021. A Catalogue of Nature-Based Solutions for Urban Resilience. © World Bank, Washington, DC. https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/entities/publication/c33e226c-2fbb-5e11-8c21- 7b711ecbc725 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 106 3 The lack of proper coordination of investment processes, which take account of the implementation and maintenance of NBS, is a major challenge reported by all cities of the Green Network. Decision-making processes concerning the Improvement Plans planning, implementation, operation, and financing of urban infrastructure should be adapted accordingly if the NBS are to be applied consistently and in a way that maximizes their benefits, in terms of adapting to climate change and improving the standard of life in cities. It is necessary to integrate the NBS with investment plan- ning within a properly designed coordination mechanism. It should be supported by the continuous education of stakeholders and the promotion of measurable (and properly monitored) benefits, resulting from NBS implementation. NBS implemen- tation should be a standard part of infrastructure planning and project preparation. The PPP Network identified a number of investment projects with green com- ponents (for example, PPP projects in Dąbrowa Górnicza and Płock: urban space regeneration; a PPP project in Poznań: the redevelopment of a tram route; and a PPP project in Zduńska Wola: the modernization and redevelopment of city roads), such as new plantings, green enclaves, green spots, tree rows, plazas, and city parks. At the same time, the teams working on PPP projects stress the insufficient knowledge regarding specific guidelines or standards for the implementa- tion of the green components. This is what they should expect from a private partner in a PPP project. This may be attributed to insufficient coordination within municipal offices, resulting in limited involvement of all key stakeholders in the planning process — in this case of the urban greenery teams. On the other hand, these teams may not possess knowledge about the possibility of pursuing green proj- ects as part of the undertakings related to other city’s operational areas (for exam- ple, roads, public transport, and regeneration). There seems to be untapped poten- tial of PPP projects to finance green investment as a way to attract private funds to supplement contributions from constrained municipal budgets. CHALLENGE 4 To implement green solutions across more than one municipality (for example, part- nerships of neighboring municipalities and urban functional areas) Effective interventions for the sake of the protection and development of ecological corridors and the effective management of water resources within a catchment system require municipal cooperation at the stage of plan- ning and implementing projects. It is necessary to strengthen the cities’ ability to plan and implement projects while establishing appropriate coordination with the other LGUs. In order to make it adequate, it is important to identify the main challenges and barriers and to take appropriate action in response to the outcomes of this diagnosis. Identification of areas where this cooperation is key for achiev- ing goals related to the protection and development of blue-green infrastructure and water resources management — including water retention, and the promotion of effective solutions to be enforced by cities — is also necessary to raise the aware- ness of city decision-makers. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 107 3 CHALLENGE 5 To include BGI criteria in spatial planning documents and decisions at the local level Improvement Plans The problem of excessive sealing of urban surfaces and too limited a share of greenery in the areas of new investment projects and renewed areas is not uncommon. At the stage of planning new development areas and new investment opportunities, the main procedure to determine the required level of greening is to indicate the share of the biologically active area in the planning documents. How- ever, the relevant legal requirements are very limited and, as can be seen in prac- tice, they do not ensure an adequate level of greening. The Regulation of the Minister of Infrastructure of April 12, 2002 on the techni- cal conditions to be met by building structures and their location (Journal of Laws of 2002, No. 75, item 690, as amended) says that “on building plots intended for multi-family housing, healthcare facilities (except for outpatient clinics), and child- care facilities, at least 25% of the plot area shall be arranged as a biologically active area, unless a different percentage value is established in the provisions of the local spatial development plan.” Research25 carried out in multifamily housing estates in Warsaw showed that the minimum value provided for in the regulation is not enough to ensure appropriate thermal conditions and hydrological processes in built-up areas. In addition, the indicator covering the share of a biologically active area is very limited in terms of ensuring greenery in new areas, because in no way does it define the type or quality of green that is to be planted in a given area. In addition, in the absence of a local spatial development plan, there are no specific requirements (either procedural or planning) for investors in terms of greenery. The Regulation of the Minister of Infrastructure of August 26, 2003 on the method of establish- ing requirements for new structures and land development in the absence of a local spatial development plan, does not frame any such guidelines. A solution worth considering is the use of a more comprehensive green factor that would be sensitive to the type of greenery and trees along with their nat- ural significance, including ecosystem services for microclimate control and rainwater management. Such indicators are commonly used in many European cities, for example, the Biotope Area Factor (BAF) in Berlin and the Urban Green Factor (UGF) in London. The Municipal Urban Planning Studio in Łódź proposed the use of an additional urban green factor in relation to the share of the biologi- cally active area.26 The proposal covers both permeable and turf surfaces (includ- ing green roofs) as well as trees, shrubs, and vertical greenery, and solutions in the field of rainwater retention and greenery. Similarly, during the CPI, the cities of the Green Network underlined the benefits of such legal changes. 25. Szulczewska, B., Giedych, R., Borowski, J., Kuchcik, M., Sikorski, P., Mazurkiewicz, A., Stańczyk T., (2014) How much green is needed for a vital neighbourhood? In search for empirical evidence. Land Use Policy 38, 330 – 345. 26. Klosse M., Meksa D., Misiak J., Salwa M., Staręga D., 2022. Coś więcej niż trawnik czyli powierzch- nia biologicznie czynna w 3D (Something more than a lawn — biologically active area in 3D). Miejska Pracownia Urbanistyczna w Łodzi. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 108 3 CHALLENGE 6 To address the insufficient coverage of GI ecosystem services in legislation at the Improvement Plans national level and in national strategic documents Ecosystem services are defined as benefits for people created by ecosystems.27 As a tool for strengthening the protection of natural capital, they are already embedded in the strategic documents of the European Union (for example, Euro- pean Green Deal; Biodiversity Strategy 2030; the General EU Environmental Action Programme 2030; Strategy on Adaptation to Climate Change; and Green Infrastruc- ture (GI) — Enhancing Europe’s Natural Capital 2013). The European Commission encourages the member states to follow this approach, including by incorporating ecosystem services in the draft Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on Nature Restoration. In Poland, the process of including ecosystem services in planning and deci- sion-making processes is in the initial phase. References to ecosystem services have been made in some strategic documents linking to development processes of cities in the context of the BGI and the NBS (Strategy for Responsible Develop- ment until 2020 with a perspective until 2030; National Environmental Policy 2030; National Spatial Development Concept 2030; Strategic Adaptation Plan for Sectors and Areas Sensitive to Climate Change until 2020 with a Perspective until 2030; Programme of Conservation and Sustainable Use of Biodiversity 2015 – 2020; and the National Urban Policy 2030). However, the use of ecosystem services in envi- ronmental management processes is still limited. Based on the experience of the Green Network, as well as judging by the opin- ion of stakeholders participating in other meetings on ecosystem service implementation28, the key barriers include the following: 1. Insufficient knowledge of ecosystem services, their assessment methodology, and data sources among the participants of environmental management processes 2. Lack of the sufficient anchoring of ecosystem services in Polish law and stra- tegic planning A list of other challenges and proposed solutions made by the cities of the Green Network (Recommendation Bank) is attached as Annex 6. 27. Natural Capital Accounting: Overview and Progress in the European Union. Publications Office of the European Union, 2019. 28. Recommendations of seminar participants for representatives of central institutions regarding the implementation of ecosystem services as an approach to environmental management (2022); Drivers of the Ecosystem services Approach in Poland and Perception by Practitioners (2018); Possibilities of Using the Concept of Ecosystem Services at the Regional Level in Experts’ Opinions (2017). CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 109 3 3.3.2 Proposals/Recommendations of Solutions Improvement Plans CHALLENGE 1: To ensure adequate financing of green investment projects by raising funds from the corporate sector (diversification of sources of funding) PROPOSED SOLUTION 1 The Bank team recommends taking measures to develop an effective mechanism to raise private sector funds for urban green investment projects. Obtaining extra funds will enable the continuation and scaling of previously planned and new green projects. Companies’ initiatives in the area of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and the environmental, social, and governance (ESG) reporting obligation29 imposed on more and more types of businesses create opportunities for cities to establish long- term cooperation with companies that can promise financial support for green undertakings. A number of cities have already done so. An example of best prac- tice in involving the private sector in financing urban green is to prepare an offer with cooperation scenarios from which the investors can choose. Some examples of engaging the private sector are presented in Box 3.7. BOX 3.7  Examples of Solutions Applied in Poland to Raise Private Funds for the Implementation of Urban Green Investment Projects ECO-Pact for Łódź So far, owing to the cooperation with business, Łódź has planted flower meadows and several thousand trees, and has 2019 saw the launch of ECO-Pact for Łódź — an initiative that arranged the so-called wild spots for pollinating insects. For attracted a wide range of stakeholders, including local govern- example, owing to the significant financial contribution of com- ment authorities, property owners, administrators, utility com- panies (PLN 170,000), the square between the Poznański Palace panies, public transport companies, and business. EKO-Pact and the Puro Hotel in the center of Łódź has received a new is founded on environmental education focused on foster- green face. Puro Hotels, Orange Polska, PwC, MakoLab, ing a sense of shared responsibility for the environment, and Warimpex, and Commerzbank have joined the project as part- on raising environmental awareness among residents, particu- ners to sponsor plantings on an area of 300 square meters (m2). larly children. Among the strategic objectives of the initiative, They will also cover the costs maintenance of the new greenery. there are development and protection of urban green, and the optimization of water management, including rainwater. Green Fund for Warsawa Each strategic objectives goes with a targeted implemen- Launched in 2021, the Green Fund for Warsaw is a platform tation action. The implementers and sources of financing, for cooperation with enterprises and individuals who want including private funds, are identified. The expected effects to contribute to the green transformation of the capital city. of implementation of the ECO-Pact project can be measured Resources collected in the Green Fund are used to pay for using a set of indicators. The Department of Ecology and plantings and maintenance, street furniture and park renova- Climate of the Łódź Municipal Office, along with an appointed tions, nature inventories aimed to increase biodiversity, solu- implementation team, is in charge of managing and monitor- tions in sustainable water management, and projects proposed ing the effects of EKO-Pact. by the donors themselves (after consultation with the city). 29. ESG reporting (environmental, social, and governance) is nonfinancial reporting on environmental, social, and corporate governance matters. Currently, in some EU countries, selected enterprises must publish such reports (for instance, currently it applies to about 300 companies in Poland). This group is going to grow on a regular basis (in 2025, the obligation will apply to all large enterprises with more than 250 employees). The European Commission shared a draft Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive which imposes the obligation of ESG reporting on all companies, both public and private. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 110 The municipal unit responsible for managing the fund is For example, in 2021, melliferous plants were planted in the City Green Management Authority of the Capital City of Tysiąclecia Park, and houses for pollinating insects were installed, Warsaw. A company or person joining the Green Fund con- thanks to the generosity of the Wrocław Fashion Outlet. cludes a donation agreement with the authority. It speci- fies the donated amount, its purpose, date of payment, and The Green Sponsorship program, fashioned after a similar solu- the expected date of performing the contracted action. After tion from Wrocław, was launched in 2021 in Kielce (https://idea. entering into the agreement, the donor transfers the money to kielce.eu/https-idea-kielce-eu- Zielony-mecenat.html); a similar the city, and then the City Green Management Authority per- initiative was started in the autumn of 2022 in Toruń. forms its agreed obligations. Donors may also take part in the Poznań: Afforestation campaign project implementation phase as volunteers. The minimum donation amount is PLN 100. Depending on the amount of The private sector is also involved in urban afforestation cam- donation, donors can be awarded a special title (partner, key paigns. An example of this is Poznań’s cooperation with partner, or main partner of the Green Fund); their commitment Green-Up representing Reforest’Action, and with the Poznań is announced in the social media of the Warsaw Municipal Forests Municipal Company. Reforest’Action is an organization Office, and their logos are placed in the Green Fund tab. that raises funds from companies and individuals via a ‘crowd- planting’ platformc to support local afforestation projects. The Examples of companies that have supported the Green Fund so far cooperation resulted in the afforestation of 10 ha in the years are the following: Veolia, Allegro, Polish Society for Lung Diseases, 2021 – 2022, which translates into 53,000 new trees in Poznań Teva Pharmaceuticals Polska, and InPost. InPost allocated PLN 500,000 from the budget of its InPost Green City program for the (including oak, lime, and birch). Another example is the coop- greening of Warsaw. This amount will translate into new plantings eration between Volkswagen Poznań and the Babki Forest (800 m2 of grasses, perennials, and bulb plants in the districts of District. Together, they planted 25,000 trees to celebrate the Mokotów, Ochota, and Żoliborz) along with their year-long main- 25th anniversary of the Volkswagen vehicle factory in Poznań. tenance; a new pocket park will also be established. InPost Green Cityd as an example of cooperation between Green Sponsorship in Wrocław b business and local governments in the area of urban green investments Since 2020, the main objective of the Green Sponsorship program in Wrocław has been to enhance the aesthetics The InPost Green City program involves cooperation between and development of urban green areas through cash dona- the company and local governments. They implement joint tions raised by the program organizer, the Municipal Green projects in sustainable development and climate protec- Management Authority (MGMA). Donations may be made by tion aimed at reducing CO2 emissions. The program is part natural persons of age, legal persons, or other entities with of the long-term ESG strategy of InPost. The company pur- legal capacity. sues the target of total climate neutrality before 2040. Through the partnerships established with local governments, InPost Donors select a municipal task that they want to support from a list provided, along with the prices of services (for implements sets of green initiatives, such as the gradual example, planting a 3.5 m high tree with three-year mainte- replacement of the vehicle fleet with electric cars, installation nance, setting up a small flower bed with three-year mainte- of charging stations at parcel lockers, or planting air-purify- nance, or installation of a park bench). A list of proposed tasks ing plants. In cooperation with municipal governments, InPost submitted to companies includes, for example, purchase of also implements individual projects to improve air quality. equipment for playgrounds, purchase of elements of open- At the end of 2022, 44 Polish cities participated in the program, air gyms, afforestation of a hectare of land with three-year including, which is interesting, a fast-developing group of mid- maintenance, or development of a pocket park. All tasks sup- size cities (for example, Rumia, Śrem, Tarnowskie Góry, Bytom, ported under the Green Sponsorship initiative are carried and Chełm). out on landed property managed by the MGMA (they can be viewed on a map made available on the program website) and Besides, InPost supported the organization of the Nature on green belts along the city roads that are supervised by the Festival in Lublin (as a strategic partner), sponsored new trees MGMA, based on an agreement with the Road Management and shrubs during the Green on Concrete campaign in Rumia, and City Maintenance Authority. and set up a new pocket park in Warsaw. Source: Authors’ elaboration. a. https://zzw.waw.pl/zielony-fundusz/ b. https://www.wroclaw.pl/zielony-wroclaw/zielony-mecenat-wsparciem-dla-srodowiska c. In 2015, the city of Ghent, the Netherlands, launched a crowdfunding platform (crowdfunding.gent) to encourage the bottom-up generation and funding of projects producing social benefits, among them, city greening. In the years 2015 – 2022, almost EUR 500,000 was raised via the platform. The amount was expended on a number of green projects (for example, new plantings, park upgrades, urban agriculture and edible streets, that is, the trans- formation of building façades into vertical ‘edible’ gardens). d. https://greencity.pl/ The experience of the cities of the Green Network shows that there are no model mechanisms of the effective collection and expending of private sector funds for urban green investment projects on a larger scale. In addition, local gov- ernment and corporate partners lack knowledge on how to manage cooperation in CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 111 3 terms of the formal, legal, and financial requirements. Also, they do not promote available and proven solutions and best practice (and model mechanisms, if any). As a result, they fail to use the potential of private funding, which is so crucial in Improvement Plans the crisis situation of local government budgets. For example, as is the case with green bond authentication or energy efficiency certificates for specific investments (in terms of the energy consumption savings), it is necessary to work out a trust- worthy mechanism that would allow cities to ‘validate’ an ‘investment offer’ for companies, so that they can show investors or shareholders that it actually fits into ESG reporting. Creating such a mechanism, for example, beginning with relatively standardized projects, could work as a catalyst for ESG-oriented green infrastruc- ture undertakings on a larger scale. The ability to ‘sell’ a project to private sector players requires a good understanding of what such partners expect from it, and what they may find attractive and engaging to encourage involvement. An exam- ple of such an approach is the IGNITION project in Manchester, England (Box 3.8). BOX 3.8  IGNITION — Attracting Private Funds to GI Projects IGNITION (Manchester)a: Novel financial solutions support- The IGNITION project developed a number of tools to raise ing urban green investments awareness among businesses, local authorities, landowners, One of the key lessons learned from the IGNITION project car- and communities about the measurable benefits of NBS imple- ried out in Manchester by a partnership of local governments, mentation. A knowledge base of possible financing mecha- the university, NGOs, and business was that a strong business nisms was established, including a financing model for sustain- case for investing in NBS is needed to attract private funds. able urban drainage projects which enables investors to share This requires, among other things, that lower financial risk and financial benefits and offer significant reductions in water and increased investment opportunities should be demonstrated if sewerage bills for public institutions. natural capital is present at the early stages of project design; besides, a plan communicating the value of ecosystem services Based on conclusions drawn from the IGNITION proj- for business must be designed and implemented. ect, a Natural Environment Investment Readiness Fund was set up to provide guidance on projects that will contribute to To create attractive financing mechanisms, the following are attracting funds to projects related to environmental protec- required: tion and the development of the ecosystem service market (for o Aggregating more sites/projects to create sufficient invest- example, investment or trading platforms, certification, and ment opportunities aggregated investment vehicles). The fund is a grant program o Dissemination of evidence-based and measurable knowl- intended for projects that have the capacity for generating rev- edge on the benefits of NBS implementation, by pre- enue from ecosystem servicesb to attract and repay investment cisely indicating their financial value and ability to generate outlays and to create scalable investment models. income or return on investment (ROI) The following are examples of supported projects: the devel- o Developing an appropriate business model and a related opment of a model of environmental bond for investments in investment management mechanism sustainable drainage systems in industrial estates; and the con- o Earning investors’ trust by supplying specific evidence of cept of an insurance product that channels profit to projects the effectiveness of planned projects, including through the that reduce the risk of local flooding and monitoring tools that implementation of pilot programs and risk mitigation will promote the approach in the insurance sector. Source: Authors’ elaboration. a. https://www.greatermanchester-ca.gov.uk/what-we-do/environment/natural-environment/ignition/ b. Examples of ecosystem services that can generate revenue: sale of carbon credits from forest land development or peatland rehabilitation, sale of biodi- versity units using a biodiversity offsetting metric, and the sale of ‘catchment services’ (such as water quality enhancement and natural flood management benefits), resulting from the improvement of environment quality. Another proposed solution is to use the available repayable support instruments, especially the Green Urban Transformation Instrument (GUTI) of the National Recov- ery and Resilience Plan (NRRP) (Investment B3.4.1). CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 112 3 Projects that will be eligible for financial support under GUTI should fall within at least one of the following areas: improvement in energy efficiency in public buildings, managing water resources, counteracting noise and air pollution, Improvement Plans nature conservation and biodiversity, or less concrete in urban space. Projects can be submitted by individual cities, their associations, and a number of other enti- ties responsible for investment, for example, municipal companies, cooperatives, foundations and associations, and entrepreneurs (also in the PPP model). The pro- gram budget totals EUR 2.8 billion, that is, over PLN 12.5 billion. Funding will be provided in the form of loans with a redemption option.30 The program implementation should begin after the EU funds are made avail- able under the NRRP. Projects may be submitted under open continuous calls, that is, until the available allocation has been exhausted. The National Development Bank will be responsible for calls, assessment of applications and project eligibil- ity, assessment of applicants’ creditworthiness, as well as the conclusion and set- tlement of loan agreements. The last loan agreements should be concluded by no later than mid-2026. Investment projects should be implemented in accordance with the adopted schedule and may reach beyond 2026. In the medium term, funds for green investments can be mobilized by devel- oping a payment system for ecosystem services. The potential of this approach for water management is exploited by the principle of reimbursement for water ser- vices, included in the Water Law of July 20, 2017. The implementation of this prin- ciple is expressed, among other things, in the differentiation of fees for water ser- vices for the discharge of rainwater from the sealed areas of cities, depending on the level of retention of these waters applied, as well as the introduction of fees for the reduction of natural field retention (in accordance with § 8 and § 9 of the Decree of the Council of Ministers of December 22, 2017 on unit rates of fees for water ser- vices). The Bank experts recommend that the payment system for ecosystem ser- vices should also be developed for other components of blue-green infrastructure. In this regard, Green Network cities point to a fuller reflection of the value of eco- system services as a priority in tree protection regulations. This includes raising the amount of administrative penalties for those who remove trees illegally, and the effectiveness of enforcement of those penalties. The Green Network cities also call for allowing local governments to increase the rates of tree removal fees and pen- alties for illegal tree cutting, taking into account the value of lost ecosystem ser- vices. In the sphere of fiscal instruments, the Green Network cities’ recommenda- tion includes the introduction of effective incentives for private entities to green private land in the form of tax breaks. From the experience of the Green Network cities, it is clear that, to date, the cities’ cooperation with private entities to diversify the financing of green invest- ments is limited in scope. The Bank team’s recommendations presented in this chapter, aimed at ensuring adequate financing of green investments, are short- to medium-term in nature. Prospective mechanisms for mobilizing private sector funds, which can be implemented in Poland in the longer term, are presented in the 30. The loan will be able to finance up to 100% of the net investment outlays for the project. In accordance with the NRRP rules, VAT expenses cannot be financed from the program. Applicants will need to finance the VAT from another source. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 113 3 Bank’s thematic report on creating a new generation of infrastructure through the integration of so-called gray infrastructure with green infrastructure31. Improvement Plans CHALLENGE 2: To promote an approach based on the comprehensive management of blue-green infrastructure (BGI) in the city PROPOSED SOLUTION 2 The Bank team recommends that an in-depth discussion with stakeholders be held concerning the scope of BGI management plans, their optimal status among other exist- ing planning documents, programs, and strategies (for example, municipal environ- mental protection programmes or urban adaptation plans (UAPs); besides which, effective mechanisms for their implementation and coordination should be identi- fied. A valuable outcome of the work would be detailed guidelines for cities concerning the framework of the BGI management plan, the method of its preparation, and the coordination of its implementation within municipal units. The needs reported by the cities of the Green Network in this respect helped propose a pilot project described below. Experience gained and lessons learned from the implementation of the pilot project should be used for the development of the aforesaid guidelines for cities. CHALLENGE 3: To design a mechanism for coordinating the investment process apply- ing nature-based solutions (NBS) PROPOSED SOLUTION 3 The Bank team recommends that, through a dialogue with key stakeholders, the frame- work of a mechanism of coordinating the investment process using NBS be designed, which could be promoted as best practice to be implemented by cities for the sake of the protection of green areas at the stage of planning, design, and implementa- tion of the investments and for the maintenance of new greenery. Regular inclusion of NBS in the planning of urban investment projects will help stimulate a desired supply of projects, and will grow the list of financing instruments. Several of the cities of the Green Network (Racibórz, Ruda Śląska, and Międzyrzec Podlaski) have already implemented, or are planning to implement, organizational solutions that should better coordinate activities at the investment planning and implementation stage and include stakeholders. The effects of imple- menting these solutions should be monitored and evaluated for effectiveness and ability to be promoted among other cities. During the work of the Green Network, a number of proposals were formulated that may serve as a starting point for developing a coordination mechanism: 31. Browder, G. S. Ozment, I. Rehberger Bescos, T. Gartner, and G-M Lange. 2019. Integrating Green and Gray: Creating Next Generation Infrastructure. Washington, DC: World Bank and World Resources Institute. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 114 3 1. The investment planning stage is crucial for the protection and introduc- tion of greenery. At this stage, it is important to perform an inventory/balance/ audit of existing environmental resources, including greenery, wetlands, and Improvement Plans even the landform, which will underlie further work and the investment design. The cities pointed to the potential solutions that will ensure the presence of the urban green supervision inspector and/or the establishment of an inter- disciplinary interdepartmental working team for investment implemen- tation. This is in response to the problem of the lack of knowledge reported by investment teams. It is crucial to allow for maintenance costs of the planned green areas and/or NBS right at the planning stage. Ensuring the support of specialized staff at this stage would make it possible to plan solutions that are not resource-intensive when maintaining the GI or NBS elements. 2. Standards need to be developed (indicators measuring the degree of inclu- sion of the natural potential) and guidelines on greenery in investment processes (for example, investment green factors, and indicators of the loss of natural potential). This proposal links to the recommendation to use BGI indicators, which may be incorporated in planning documents and/or docu- ments related to the implementation of investments. At the stage of investment design, the project should be adjusted to natural conditions. For this reason, it would be useful to develop a set of best practice cases at the national level; also, the requirement of the protection of existing greenery should be imposed on the design conditions, for instance, by relevant provisions of law (regulation). It is also advisable to prepare a manual indicating species recommended for plant- ing in the urban environment (fitting the area) and, which is equally important, the cost of their maintenance. Developing NBS that are resource-efficient and do not require high maintenance costs is also a response to the financial chal- lenges faced by the LGUs32. The Green Network cities also draw attention to the need to make the systemic use of wasteland potential (fourth nature). As new self-regulating ecosystems, resistant and adapting to conditions often signifi- cantly transformed by people, they deserve protection. However, this approach needs to be disseminated and promoted. 3. It is reasonable to introduce solutions that exclude the option of combining the function of an urban greenery designer with the function of a green- ery supervision inspector, due to a conflict of interest. Another proposal is to increase the responsibility of designers for including in the design the rec- ommendations listed in the inventory/balance/audit referred to above. This is to force designers to take care of the proper selection of species, to ensure that the requirements of plants match the conditions existing in the habitat at the planting site, which is to prevent the denial of responsibility in case the vital- ity of greenery is lost. 4. At the stage of implementation of an investment project, it is necessary to define the conditions for greenery protection during works and to enforce them. Certain relevant solutions are already being introduced and used by some 32. The Bank team is currently developing a publication titled: Guidelines for Assessing the Benefits & Costs of Nature-based Solutions for Climate Resilience, which will discuss this issue. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 115 3 cities in Poland (for example, Lublin, Poznań, Kraków, and Wrocław)33, and they are worth being disseminated. It is recommended to adopt national standards in this area and ensure supervision over the work by the greenery supervi- Improvement Plans sion inspector. The experience of the Green Network cities shows that guide- lines for the protection of greenery are not always respected when working in the field; for example, instead of manual work with a shovel around a plant root, heavy equipment is used, which damages the roots and causes plant death. Stricter regimes in this respect would be designed to control the compliance with protection rules and penalize noncompliance. Control should also be exercised on the alignment of project implementation with the original project concept. 5. Replacement plantings require more effective protection by the provisions of the Act of April 16, 2004 on Nature Conservation. Pursuant to Article 84 of the act,34 the authority that ruled against a tree felling may control the tree’s vital- ity for three years and, if necessary, enforce the payment of a fine for tree removal. After this period, the trees are no longer protected. By virtue of the rules, the owner may request their removal, and, considering the small size of trees planted as a replacement, their removal is not a major formal and finan- BOX 3.9  NBS in PPP projects — Climate Toolkit for Infra- structure PPPs cial difficulty. At the same time, the Green Net- work cities also highlight the need to make the How to include NBS in PPP projects? Climate Toolkit for provisions on replacement planting more flexi- Infrastructure PPP Projectsa ble because in some situations it would be more The Bank prepared a Climate Toolkit for Infrastructure PPP Projects to address the need to consider the aspect of climate change in the reasonable to introduce other types of green- process of structuring and implementing PPP projects. Properly ery than the removed one. designed PPP projects can increase climate resilience by offering innovative solutions for both mitigation of climate change, and adap- tation to it. These aspects are currently not sufficiently addressed and 6. Action is needed to map and disseminate supported — this will be the role of the toolkit. The toolkit should knowledge on the possibility to use the assist civil servants and their consultants in identifying solutions con- potential of cooperation with private part- ducive to the implementation of climate-friendly investments and in unlocking the financial potential of the private sector for this pur- ners to support green investment projects pose. Modern infrastructure should meet the criteria of sustainable (green projects as a component of PPP under- development. Among other things, it should protect biodiversity, reduce pollution, and rely on NBS and ecosystem adaptation. takings in, for example, urban regeneration, upgrade, and redevelopment of roads, and oth- How to apply NBS and green solutions in infrastructure projects is the subject of two dedicated modules of the toolkit (1.1 and 1.2); assess- ers). An example of this approach is described ment of the effectiveness of climate change mitigation solutions is in Box 3.9. Another example of the PPP formula one of the components of the screening of PPP projects for compli- ance with climate goals. to design, build, and maintain green infrastruc- ture is Brooklyn Park in New York City. This Source: Authors’ elaboration. was part of a bundled contract in which the city a. https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle/10986/37287 allowed the developer to make the investment35. 33.  https://bip.lublin.eu/gfx/bip/userfiles/_public/import/prawo/zarzadzenia-prezydenta/2022/kwiecien/ pz_2022_4_51_zalacznik_zielen_miejska-standardy.pdf https://www.poznan.pl/mim/wos/news/poznan-przyjal-standardy-ochrony-drzew,182764.html https://baw.um.wroc.pl/api/file/3522cc63-e97e-4639-b03b-d0da53db90f8 https://zzm.krakow.pl/standardy-utrzymania.html 34. “If a fee is charged for the removal of a tree or shrub and if the issuance of a permit to remove a tree or shrub depends on the replanting of this tree or shrub or performance of replacement plantings, the author- ity competent to issue the permit shall postpone the fee for removal for a period of three years from the date of expiry of the time limit indicated in the permit for replanting or replacement planting. If the replanted or planted trees or shrubs, or some of them, do not remain alive after the expiry of the above-mentioned time limit for reasons attributable to the property owner, the charged fee shall be recalculated in proportion to the number of trees or shrubs that have not survived.” 35. https://dirt.asla.org/2022/01/27/domino-park-privately-managed-publicly-owned-coastal-infrastructure/ CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 116 3 In the conclusions of the chapter on activities of the Green Network, the challenges resulting from ‘silo-like’ structures (in the case of large cities) and the insufficient availability of specialized staff and experts, especially in the area of stormwater Improvement Plans management, were mentioned. The solutions proposed there for the creation of such expert support at the supralocal level (for example, county or regional) are valid in the context of the IP. CHALLENGE 4: To implement green solutions across more than one municipality (for example, partnerships of neighboring municipalities and urban functional areas) PROPOSED SOLUTION 4 The Bank team recommends that as part of a dialogue with key stakeholders, an in-depth diagnosis be carried out of the most important challenges for the imple- mentation of supramunicipal BGI projects referring to the following: 1. The implementation of spatial planning at the supramunicipal level through identifying the BGI of supralocal importance and its coherent incorporation into the studies of land-use conditions and directions of spatial development, as well as local spatial development plans drawn up by individual municipalities 2. The design of common standards of developing and maintaining the BGI, including solutions based on nature resources, and regarding water reten- tion in a supramunicipal scope 3. Arrangements concerning the joint financing of projects of the supramu- nicipal BGI A performed diagnosis should facilitate the development of solutions supporting the implementation of supramunicipal BGI and the promotion of this knowledge among other cities. CHALLENGE 5: To include the BGI criteria in spatial planning documents and decisions at the local level PROPOSED SOLUTION 5 The Bank team recommends that, during an in-depth discussion with key stake- holders, consideration be given to the possibility of changes to the requirements for the greening of the areas of planned investment projects. It is advisable to identify the possibility of using a comprehensive green factor, along with pointing to areas where it would be particularly important to apply both, for the sake of planning documents and decisions, as well as at further stages of investment planning. It is also necessary to determine the planning and/or investment processes for which the proposed solutions might be implemented as a response to identified challenges. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 117 3 It is worth stressing that the proposed solution creates a synergistic effect along with the activities of MoCE under the initiative, No More Concrete in City Cen- ters, which is aimed to respond to the effects of legal regulations in the field of spa- Improvement Plans tial planning that are regarded as insufficient as of now. The proposal to engage in an in-depth discussion on BGI indicators in planning documents and decisions responds to the need to encourage micro and small retention and to develop legal solutions for the planning stage, which is pivotal for spatial development. It complements the solutions of the MoCE developed in parallel with the initiative mentioned above, that is, to set the level of 30% of biologically active area for new investment proj- ects in the planning documents. In addition, the proposed use of the BGI indicator is linked to the indicators contained in the ministry’s manual for cities, “Natural and Climate Indicators of Sustainable Development”. Some of these indicators are intended to be included in a regulation specifying the components of the UAPs. In the longer term, the introduction of the BGI indicator at the level of spatial planning will translate into the values of environmental and climate indi- cators of sustainable urban development. The recommendation is well aligned with the current work on the regulation by the European Parliament and the Coun- cil on Nature Restoration. As regards urban ecosystems, the draft regulation enu- merates requirements for the preservation and enlargement of green areas in cit- ies, including tree crowns, as well as seeking to integrate greenery with existing and new buildings, infrastructure, and regeneration processes in cities. CHALLENGE 6: To address insufficient coverage of GI ecosystem services in legislation at the national level and in national strategic documents PROPOSED SOLUTION 6 To introduce ecosystem services to key national legal acts and to conduct training for the participants of environmental management processes With regard to barriers related to knowledge about ecosystem services, visible progress in the import of current European know-how to Poland was made through the project, Services Provided by the Main Types of Ecosystems in Poland: An Applied Approach36, initiated by MoCE under the Environment, Energy and Climate Change program of the European Environment Agency (EEA) Financial Mechanism 2014 – 2021. The results of the project spanning the period 2020 – 2023 are the following: recommended sets of key ecosystem services for individual types of ecosystems; practical indicators for the assessment of ecosystem services at vari- ous spatial scales; and examples of the analyses of ecosystem services on a national, regional, and local scale — all developed by leading Polish scientific institutions. It is necessary to undertake activities that promote any existing knowledge on the assessment of ecosystem services among civil servants at various levels of hierarchy and among other key stakeholder groups. This support may include 36. https://ecoservpol.amu.edu.pl/ CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 118 the promotion of the manual for administration and expert-practitioners, developed within the BOX 3.10  Monetization of Ecosystem Services: Green ECOSERV-POL project (a free electronic version Benefit Planner of the manual will be made available in Q4 2023). Green Benefit Plannera — a tool for calculating the financial gains There is also a need for education and training from ecosystem services (the Netherlands) covering the relevance of the inclusion of eco- Green Benefit Planner is a tool that can convert the benefits of green- system services in planning and decision-mak- ery into figures, thus giving an idea of the social value of greenery ing processes, and methods and sources of data for people in the context of enhancing biodiversity, improving peo- for assessing ecosystem services (especially open ple’s health status, or the value of real property. The planner sup- ports urban decision-makers in processes related to spatial and data). These initiatives should be addressed, not investment planning by calculating their impact on natural capital. only to professionals and decision-makers but The tool was developed by the Dutch National Institute for Public also to any concerned social group as users of nat- Health and the Environment (RIVM). It draws from the Natural Capital Model (designed through RIVM’s cooperation with Wageningen ural capital. An important aspect of including the Environmental Research and the Dutch Environmental Assessment ecosystem services approach in the activities of Agency). It uses maps (land use, population density, and vegetation) central and local government administration is as input for calculating a model of different types of ecosystem ser- vices and monetary benefits they can generate. RIVM provides the the ability to estimate their values. An example models of Green Benefit Planner via an application programming of this is a Dutch approach known as the Green interface (API). Through the smart pairing of RIVM models with the Benefit Planner (Box 3.10). Tygron Design platform, the benefits of greening can be calculated and even visualized in the form of a digital replica of the physical liv- ing environment. Regardless of attempts to lift the barrier of the insufficient knowledge of ecosystem services, Source: Authors’ elaboration. the implementation of this approach in the a. https://www.rivm.nl/bibliotheek/rapporten/2017-0040.pdf GI and NBS management requires its greater anchoring in the legislation and the strate- gic planning system. This anchoring should take account of all the natural, cul- tural, and economic benefits provided by ecosystems. Further efforts should focus on the incorporation of ecosystem services directly into the following key laws gov- erning the protection and use of green infrastructure and nature-based solutions: 1. Environmental Protection Law of April 27, 2001 — To incorporate ecosystem services into the provisions on environmental protection in spatial development and in investment projects; to safeguard ecosystem services when developing and updating concepts, strategies, plans, and studies referred to in Article 71. 1. (the country’s development concept, medium-term national development strategy, regional development strategy, regional spatial development plans, supra-local development strategy, municipal development strategy, studies of land-use condi- tions and directions of spatial development, and local spatial development plans) 2. Act of October 3, 2008 on the provision of information on the environment and its protection, as well as public participation in environmental pro- tection and environmental impact assessment — This law has the significant potential of incorporating ecosystem services directly into all documentation prepared for environmental impact assessments (EIA). Including the aspect of ecosystem services in EIA reports/forecasts will allow any future changes to the type and level of benefits from natural processes to be included. 3. Water Law of July 20, 2017 — The assessment of water and water-dependent ecosystem services should be developed within the framework of legislation governing the recovery of the costs of water services. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 119 3 4. Act of April 16, 2004 on Nature Conservation — To include the characteris- tics and assessment of ecosystem services in protection plans drawn up for the form of nature protection indicated in Article 18 of this law Improvement Plans 5. Act of July 20, 1991 on the Inspectorate for Environmental Protection — To include ecosystem services within the scope of state-run environmental mon- itoring provided for in Article 21(11) of this law. This will work as a response to the deficit of quantitative data required for the assessment of regulation and maintenance ecosystem services, thus facilitating the inclusion of ecosystem services in national reporting systems as expected by the European Commission. 3.3.3 Financing Needs The cities of the Green Network expect to finance their MAP initiatives primarily from their own resources, that is, municipal budgets. However, they also point to some external sources of funding: the Government Road Development Fund, Regional Environmental Protection Funds, and the Regional Operational Programmes 2021 – 2027. These funds are necessary to finance several basic types of expenditure: 1. Analysis and diagnosis (partly to be carried out by municipal personnel, and with the support of external experts), including, for example, inventorying sites fit for new plantings, the preparation of a map and the concept of planned plant- ings, analysis of the possibility of introducing NBS in planned investment proj- ects, the development of a concept of a subsidy program aimed at supporting the creation of green spaces in the city, the development of design guidelines for the implementation of planned projects, and the development of a concept for road reconstruction and changes to traffic organization, in connection with the planned ‘de-concreting’ of transport routes 2. Creation and modernization of green areas, including for example, the financ- ing of small retention facilities (rain gardens, retention basins, and rain-absorb- ing lawns), the renovation of parks, plazas, and other green areas (new plantings, street furniture, recreation and leisure areas, and better accessibility for various social groups), the reconstruction of urban green in roadside areas (for example, planting, green bus shelters, and woonerf-like solutions) 3. Outreach activities and education intended for various stakeholder groups: all residents, children and youth, civil servants, NGOs (including the printing and dis- tribution of information materials, the organization of information and consulta- tion meetings, and study walks). CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 120 3 3.3.4 Pilots Improvement Plans PROPOSED PILOT 1 Preparation of a model BGI Management Plan for a selected city/cities/functional area This proposal for a pilot project aligns both with the cities’ identified needs and the support of the process of implementing the solutions provided within the frame- work of NUP2030 (Challenge IV, Solution F: Introduction of the urban BGI management plan as the implementation of the recommendation to draw up a “greening plan”, included in the EU Strategy for Biodiversity). The cit- ies acknowledge the need to prepare and implement comprehensive BGI manage- ment plans that will facilitate the systematic planning of activities and better coor- dination of their implementation; they will also raise stakeholders’ awareness and will win their stronger involvement in joint activities, as well as raising the signif- icance of BGI in the city’s investment policy. On the other hand, NUP2030 provides for the requirement to introduce the Urban BGI Management Plans. It also points to the preparation of detailed guidelines on the scope and manner of their design and the incorporation of their rules of implementation and coordination into the local government structure. The Bank team recommends that a pilot project be prepared and implemented which would cover the following: o Formulating a BGI Management Plan for a selected city or group of cities (functional area) o Using conclusions from the pilot preparation of the plan as an input to the work on the detailed guidelines mentioned above The detailed concept of the pilot should be discussed in consultation with key stake- holders using a formula corresponding to the needs, in order to include the key ele- ments necessary to contribute to the work on the guidelines. The pilot might be carried out under the strategic project, NUP2030 Model Areas or from dedicated funding provided by an entity responsible for implement- ing Solution F, Challenge IV, in accordance with the NUP2030 Implementation Plan, which is being drafted now. The development of the pilot project plan should involve an expert team while elic- iting full substantive involvement of the cities participating in the pilot as sponsors of the proposed solution. In addition, any individual elements and phases of the pilot project should be presented and discussed among key stakeholders; they should be invited to consult on proposed solutions and work on selected elements. The experi- ence already gathered should be taken advantage of, for example, the experience of the cities from the Green Network in EMPIRIE, the Experience Exchange Network37, 37. https://www.empirie.miasta.pl/sieci/miasto-zielone CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 121 3 the town of Sławków (Śląskie)38, or the urban functional areas. The widest possible involvement of stakeholders will help accumulate useful knowledge and proposals that will facilitate the achievement of the best possible final pilot product. At the Improvement Plans same time, they should be actively involved in the preparation of horizontal guide- lines for the development of plans relying on the lessons learned from the pilot. The Model Plan — in addition to the elements indicated in NUP2030 (for example, inventorying and assessing BGI resources, setting action directions and the assess- ment of the rules of financing projects related to the development, modernization, rehabilitation or protection of BGI resources, and the identification of problems and barriers resulting from the lack or insufficiency of data) — should include a mecha- nism for coordinating project development and implementation within munic- ipal offices and should consider areas where it is necessary to go beyond the city’s administrative boundaries to protect and develop BGI effectively, in col- laboration with neighboring communes, or within functional urban areas. The pilot should allow for educational initiatives about the ecosystem ser- vices provided by the BGI and addressed to both decision-makers and citizens. The pilot should cover cities from the large city group, for which NUP2030 identifies the importance of plan implementation as very high. The experi- ence of the Green Network also confirms that the complexity of challenges related to BGI management, including pressure on, and expectations for, BGI, is the high- est in this group of cities. The lessons learned from the pilot should be used as a valid contribution to the detailed guidelines for the development of Urban BGI Management Plans. PROPOSED PILOT 2 Preparation of a master spatial development project that covers water management at a local level or in a selected part of the city (for example, district, housing estate, or selected investment project) The proposed pilot theme is in line with the cities’ needs identified in NUP2030 (Challenge IV, Solution E: Counteracting urban floods and droughts and their effects by legislative changes) and during the work of the Green Network. Some model solutions, such as those developed in the district of Rummelsburg in Berlin, which was designed in accordance with the Sponge City concept, show the possibility of designing built-up areas where water is regarded as a resource and not a ‘problem’, and it is managed without the use of storm water sewerage, instead, relying on mechanisms involving nature resources. The following are the objectives of the pilot project: 38.  https://www.slawkow.pl/zaglebiowski-park-linearny-rewitalizacja-obszaru-funkcjonalnego-dol- iny-rzek-przemszy-i-brynicy-miasto-slawkow CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 122 3 1. To develop a systemic approach to planning and coordinating the implementa- tion of stormwater management solutions based on the NBS Improvement Plans 2. To prepare guidelines for Stormwater Management Plans along the lines of the Cloudburst Masterplan39, 40 The pilot project could include the following activities: identifying areas at risk of flooding; developing scenarios for NBS-based stormwater management solutions; estimating the costs of the proposed scenarios; evaluating the proposed scenarios in terms of the benefits provided; and preparing the implementation process and testing the solutions. Model solutions can also be tested in densely built-up areas. A good example of probing solutions aimed at improving the city’s resilience to climate change is the district of Østerbro in Copenhagen. It was transformed in compliance with nature- based solutions, combined with technology to protect the population against urban flooding caused by heavy rainfall. The pilot should envisage educational activities focusing on ecosystem ser- vices delivered by the NBS for both urban planners and personnel dealing with municipal water and sewerage. The pilot might be carried out under the strategic project, NUP2030 Green Trans- formation of Cities and Urban Functional Areas or from dedicated funding provided by an entity responsible for implementing Solution E, Challenge IV, in accordance with the NUP2030 Implementation Plan, which is being drafted now. In addition, the draft law amending the Environmental Protection Law and some other acts provides that funds from the Regional Development Fund can be allo- cated to strengthen the investment capacity of cities and urban functional areas that are focused on green transformation. Green transformation is understood as a pro- cess leading to greater climate neutrality, while ensuring the quality of the natural environment, and not diminishing the potential for socioeconomic development. The pilot project would aim to test NBS rainwater management solutions in the field. The lessons learned from this pilot will support alterations in the develop- ment model of Polish cities, related to activities mitigating the negative effects of climate change. The outcomes of the two pilots can support the work of strengthening the aspects of ecological and climate transformation of cities, both at the legislative level (for example, the draft law amending the Environmental Protection Law and some other acts) and at the level of strategic planning (for instance, updating the Climate Change Adaptation Strategy). The proposed leader for both pilot projects is the MoCE. 39. Cloudburst Masterplan For Ladegårdså, Frederiksberg East & Vesterbro, https://ramboll.com/projects/ group/copenhagen-cloudburst 40. Cloudburst Resiliency in New York City https://ramboll.com/-/media/files/rgr/documents/markets/trans- port/n/nyc-cloudburst-resiliency.pdf?la=en CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 123 4 BEST CPI PRACTICE: B2B OR “BURMISTRZ TO BURMISTRZ” (MAYOR TO MAYOR) 4.1 4 DIGITAL NETWORK Best CPI Practice: B2B or “burmistrz to burmistrz” (mayor to mayor) When launching projects involving the deployment of integrated systems, a team should be appointed that is made up of (in addition to an IT specialist) a per- son knowledgeable about data processing and analysis (best practice from Świd- nica). A common practice found in projects related to the digitization of institutions is to involve their IT departments as the only units responsible for project implementa- tion. This view comes from the common understanding of the role of an IT specialist as a person who has all the necessary skill and knowledge to select and operate hard- ware and software as well as identifying sources of information and methods of data integration. Concerning system deployments, it is usually the vendor who is responsi- ble for supplementing dictionaries and feed data into the system. It is not so infrequent that systems are fed with unverified data that contain errors or duplication of the same information. Cities’ IT personnel are usually not able to verify data correctness. Ap- propriate preparation of reference data for IT systems installed in public institutions requires knowledge of the models of data and databases used (not only electronic but also traditional) and relations among data items. Hence, the requirement to have indi- viduals on board, who are familiar with these operations and are able to validate data. The digitization of public offices can be carried out through projects, but the projects should be part of a larger digitization strategy. The digitization of public institutions in Poland is usually supported by external funds raised through calls for proposals — usually through EU funds. Terms of these calls generally impose certain re- strictions and requirements on projects. The desire to obtain funds means that submit- ted applications are often tailored to open calls (for instance, the Digital Municipality call) and do not follow the digitization strategy adopted in the institution, based on real needs and priorities. Therefore, public administration should have a digitization strategy in place and its implementation can be done through projects. The developed strategy should be a document that integrates IT projects so that the deployment of digital systems and solutions takes place in the right order, taking into account the priorities of digitization, and at the same time, eliminates the repetitive performance of the same project tasks for different projects, for example, detailed pre-implemen- tation analysis, collection of data and dictionary information, and the development of project documents. Digital transformation of a public institution requires, first of all, the invento- rying of information sources, quality of resources, and data models used (good practice from the city of Dębica). When planning the digitization of a specific func- tional area of an administration unit, decision-makers usually focus on IT solutions available on the market, their cost, and available support. Taking into account the ex- perience of the cities participating in the CPI, before choosing a solution, it is necessary to determine what information and in what form the institution stores it at the moment in the domain intended for digitization. Data models and types of repositories deter- mine the outcomes and costs of implemented solutions. Missing data or the inabili- ty to transfer data to the implemented systems automatically renders the deployment ineffective or generates additional cost (data cleansing or collection) and extends the deployment time. Knowledge of data sources and models also makes it easier to inte- grate new solutions with the existing ones and to plan subsequent stages of digitization. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 125 4 When implementing digitization projects in public institutions, it is advisable to rely on best practices and standards developed in other administration units (good practice from the city of Rzeszów). The experience gathered in the Digital Best CPI Practice: B2B or “burmistrz to burmistrz” (mayor to mayor) Network shows that taking advantage of solutions developed in other cities signifi- cantly shortens the time of project implementation. The MAP developed by the city of Rzeszów focuses on the digitization of administrative processes. Before launching such an initiative, it is necessary to identify such processes, describe them, and de- fine methods and tools of digital support. Thanks to the use of the concept for process identification and description developed by the network’s city-moderator (Poznań) and the list of (previously) identified processes provided by Poznań, it was possible to precisely define the project framework and significantly shorten the time of the first two project stages. Currently, Poland has no database containing data on completed IT projects in public administration and their results. Therefore, the networking of pub- lic offices and the use of formal and informal knowledge of network partners appears to be of special importance. Added value for the LGUs is created through systemic solutions incorporated in cities’ project implementations (good practice from the city of Wyszków). The guiding principle for the implementation of projects in the digital area by the LGUs should be the implementation of projects aimed at creating solutions with added val- ue for a specific LGU and at the same time creating added value for the LGUs in gen- eral. The MAP developed for the city of Wyszków focuses on enhancing the effective- ness of the municipal waste management fee system. During the work, Digital Network participants confirmed the existence of the same need in their cities and their inter- est in searching for a similar existing solution. The Digital Network participants con- firmed that solutions to the identified challenges can be obtained by introducing sys- temic solutions for project implementation in the LGUs focused on creating standards, good practices, methodologies, reference solutions and optimal methods for their ver- ification, recommended for wider use by the LGUs. 4.2 PPP NETWORK BOX 4.1  Conclusions for Cities that Plan PPP Projects, Based on Lessons Learned from the PPP Network 1. It is worth appointing a special, interdisciplinary PPP team 5. The support of experienced advisers should be sought, but dedicated to the planned project. do not rely solely on materials received from advisers; instead, examine the project in detail within the PPP team. 2. A political leader must be identified who will be deter- mined enough to advocate project implementation at every 6. Pre-implementation analysis is essential for project success. stage — from preparation to implementation. 7. It is worth diagnosing the market of private partners who 3. It is worth building PPP institutional memory within the struc- might be potentially interested in the planned project; then ture of an LGU. hold consultations with institutions that will be able to pro- vide funding for the planned project. 4. It is important to develop a communication strategy for the project; the political opposition should be invited right from 8. It is advisable to explore possibilities to obtain funding for the the start to consult projects intended for implementation in project from external sources. the PPP formula. Source: Authors’ elaboration. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 126 4 After identifying a project that will be implemented in the PPP formula, the municipal- ity should appoint an interdisciplinary task force (PPP team) within the city ad- ministration (best practice from Płock). The PPP team is instrumental in the project Best CPI Practice: B2B or “burmistrz to burmistrz” (mayor to mayor) success. The team makeup should be diverse, that is, individuals should be appointed from selected departments who will support the project preparation and implemen- tation effort within their remit. In order to build (and maintain) the project team and ensure the members’ buy-in, financial incentives (allowances) for the team members should be considered. The team should be given quick access to decision-makers in the office; the best solution would be to directly involve a decision-maker in the team, for instance, as a chair/leader. At the same time, operational decisions should be made by the heads of individual working groups (technical subteam, organizational subteam, legal subteam, and others). Only strategic decisions affecting the project should be made by the LGU authorities. At the same time, it is advisable to identify a politi- cal leader who will support the project through its subsequent stages. It is worth building institutional memory within the LGU (best practice from Łódź [documentation] and Płock [Contract Guide/Manual]). Documentation drawn up for the project should be well prepared and kept for future activities undertaken within the life cycle of the investment. A PPP project is implemented over a long period of time, which is why it may be vulnerable to changes of people responsible for its imple- mentation, both at the decision-making and the operational level. It is very import- ant to produce a Contract Guide. It is a ‘manual’ for the PPP contract. It contains a list of the most important assumptions and elements of the project implementation pro- cess (division of tasks and obligations of the contract parties, key deadlines, possible penalties, document workflow rules, and so on). Municipalities should pay special attention to the project communication strate- gy, especially when implementing socially and politically ‘sensitive’ investments (best practice from Łomianki). Of key importance is the identification of stakehold- ers and an attempt to change their attitude (for example, councilors, residents, entre- preneurs, institutions in charge of environmental protection, and others). Inclusion of hesitating stakeholders in the project work is a recommended (best) practice. The stakeholder involvement formula may be varied, depending on the needs and possibil- ities of the municipality: thematic workshops, consultations of project assumptions, organization of expert visits (practitioners familiar with similar investments, repre- sentatives of the MDFRP, and consultants). Pre-implementation analyses are essential for the project success. It is natural that the LGUs, especially smaller ones, do not have personnel that can independently perform all analyses necessary for the proper run-up to a project. There is a number of companies/law firms specializing in consultancy services for public entities on the market. It is worth taking advantage of their know-how. However, it should be kept in mind that consultants’ proposals must be verified for alignment with the LGU’s specificity and planned goals. When preparing project assessment, do not rely solely on materials received from a consultant; additionally, perform a de- tailed project analysis within the PPP team (best practice from Koszalin and Płock). Launching a partner selection procedure for a PPP project should always be pre- ceded by a market diagnosis (best practice from Dąbrowa Górnicza). The process should begin with the drawing up of an Information Memorandum concerning the CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 127 4 project and a list of potential partners, including financial institutions. The market di- agnosis is a validation of the initial project assumptions against the requirements of private partners; it also tests the bankability of the project. Direct contact with part- Best CPI Practice: B2B or “burmistrz to burmistrz” (mayor to mayor) ners during (physical) meetings is preferred (because mailing is not effective). A prop- erly conducted market diagnosis and the use of its outcomes for the development of the project concept significantly improves the chances of attracting high-quality bids (meaning high-quality partners) to the tender procedure. Cities should actively seek opportunities to fund projects from external sources, especially at the preparation stage. It is recommended as a best practice to report the need for support, consultancy with the MDFRP, or a subsidy/loan from dedicated government programs with every project. Obtaining external funds significantly re- lieves the burden imposed on the municipal budget, which may later appear to be an important factor in favor of implementation. 4.3 GREEN NETWORK A systemic approach to the regeneration of backyards in Żyrardów As part of its MAP, the city of Żyrardów developed a systemic solution for the regen- eration of the backyards in a former estate for factory workers. In order to compre- hensively resolve the problems of degraded urban sites while tackling the challenges related to climate change, Żyrardów took action on three levels. First, in order to pro- mote the idea of regeneration of urban backyards, the city prepared a concept of a bud- getary subsidy program supporting the development of ‘green backyards’. Its aim was to incentivize the local community to take action and assume co-responsibility for the project success. Second, the city prepared “The General Design Guidelines for the Development of Local Space in the Regeneration Area of the City of Żyrardów”. The document described a systemic and harmonized approach to space regeneration, in- cluding solutions on designing greenery and green backyards as well as on the care and maintenance of plants. The guidelines specifically take into account solutions for rainwater retention, expanding biologically active areas, and introducing and restor- ing greenery. Third, the project of backyards regeneration goes along with an eco-edu- cation program for residents, covering the negative effects of climate change and how to adapt to it. The description of the MAP process and approach can be a model for guidelines for the comprehensive handling of problems in urban space, in coopera- tion with various stakeholders, and with the conscious control of project activities, in order to generate environmental, social, and economic benefits. Słupsk Green Wedges: Development of green areas within the boundaries of the city of Słupsk The implemented project of developing urban green wedges is aligned with the Słupsk’s slogan of “Close City” — close in terms of space and urban functions. The project covers the development of a system of green spaces that encourage various forms of recre- ation in the immediate vicinity of the place of residence. At the same time, they create an urban setting with the following benefits: it is resistant to climate change, including CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 128 4 by the mitigation of the phenomenon of heat islands, it improves city ventilation, and it provides for the retention of rainwater, and the recharging of underground water re- sources. The project branches into a number of functionally and spatially related activ- Best CPI Practice: B2B or “burmistrz to burmistrz” (mayor to mayor) ities that help create/complement the green wedges stretching from the suburbs to the city center. Two new parks were developed as part of the project (West Park and East Park), three city squares (by Lutosławskiego St., Niedziałkowskiego St., and Solskiego St.), and roadside greenery was restored along with street furniture (404 extra trees planted along the streets of the city’s central district of Śródmieście). The Słupsk Green Wedges project was recognized by the Society of Polish Town Planners as the best re- generated public space in Poland in 2022. Work coordination between key city services concerning green infrastructure: the Sustainable Development Team at the Racibórz Municipal Office Racibórz has taken action in 2023 to improve the coordination of work among key city services regarding sustainable development, including the integration of greenery ini- tiatives with the processes of planning, designing, developing, and maintaining ur- ban investment projects. The Racibórz Municipal Office appointed a city Sustainable Development Team. Before that in 2022, all personnel of the office completed a train- ing program called “Sustainable Development Goals. Sustainable Cities”. Lublin: Establishment and maintenance of green areas in highly urbanized neighborhoods Lublin works on a regular basis to restore and (re-)introduce green elements and spac- es in its most urbanized districts: the Old Town and Śródmieście. The effort covers, for example, the installation of larger trays/bowls for existing trees and the removal of sections of pavement to introduce biologically active surfaces, such as green enclaves and biodiversity refuges. This greening program is in line with the standards for the establishment and the main- tenance of greenery in the city of Lublin. The standards were set up by Ordinance of Mayor of Lublin of April 14, 2022 on the Standards for Urban Greenery. This act of local law contains recommendations regarding the greenery development and maintenance works, as well as providing guidance on the standard of materials. The city’s organiza- tional units were tasked with implementing the standards in cooperation with entities providing the services of greenery maintenance for the municipality. Consequently, all designs, studies, and activities related to the establishment and maintenance of ur- ban green should refer to the guidelines contained in the standards. The standards are also shared with external investors as a book of best practice. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 129 5 CONCLUSIONS 5 The Cities’ Partnership Initiative is a valuable project generating high added value for the participating cities and ministries, both at the level of individu- al urban solutions and potential systemic changes and its continuation is rec- Conclusions ommended. The implementation model of the initiative is conducive to the achieve- ment of project objectives and it motivates participants to develop planned outputs and stimulates their buy-in and sustained commitment. The mix of a top-down selec- tion of broad themes relevant for the national urban policy with a bottom-up identi- fication of individual urban challenges is well-balanced. The CPI objectives are well defined and have been achieved and partly exceed- ed. The 30 participating cities prepared their individual Municipal Action Plans that tailor solutions to the sustainable urban development challenges they identified. The three Improvement Plans were prepared by the Bank team and are based on the work in the three thematic networks (group and bilateral discussions with city and ministry representatives and participants’ inputs) and the Bank team’s expertise. Work during the project created many opportunities for the participating cities to exchange experi- ences, but also to engage in dialogue with one another and with the participating min- istries. These outputs and CPI activities led to the following benefits: i) the enhance- ment of the technical capacity of the participating city teams to tackle their challenges, ii) a deepened knowledge and understating of the participating ministries about the cities’ challenges and the systemic bottlenecks that hamper the capability to address them, and finally iii) the establishment of a community of urban practitioners that are interested and willing to share their knowledge and experience with other cities. These project outcomes are expected to have further impact, beyond the initia- tive’s timespan. First, the generated knowledge that is presented in IPs is expected to help shape future national support programs dedicated to sustainable urban devel- opment. Second, the individual urban solutions that were developed within MAPs can serve as examples for other cities in Poland (and beyond) to solve their urban challeng- es. Many solutions have a scalable character and could, with the support of the central administration, be turned into templates for such scaling up. Third, the community and personal connections that were established during the project should also last af- ter the project ends. Thanks to that prospect, further collaboration and knowledge ex- change among some of the participants is expected. The broad thematic framework of the networks were defined by the MDFRP and the participating cities filled it with content reflecting their own needs; this approach is a clear win-win solution. It skillfully combines the needs exist- ing at the central level, which initiate the project, and the needs of the participating cities. Consequently, the MDFRP channels the project work toward strategically rel- evant themes, but without imposing predetermined and detailed solutions. On the other hand, cities can show initiative by proposing challenges and solutions that fit into this (broad) framework in a way that reflects their individual needs. This means that, despite the top-down imposition of the project themes, its very essence comes from the bottom (is demand-driven), as it is tailored to the needs of individual cities. Thanks to the tailored approach, all the project participants have a strong motivation to engage in CPI activities during the whole project. In turn, this translates into high- er quality outputs and outcomes. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 131 5 The themes selected for the networks (Digital, PPP, and Green) won the cities’ in- terest as pivotal in supporting sustainable urban development. At the CPI design stage, the MDFRP accurately identified these three areas as challenges for sustainable Conclusions urban development. This is where support is needed to enhance the cities’ competence, but there is also a potential for knowledge exchange. In addition, these challenges stem from European strategic documents (for instance, the European Green Deal), nation- al strategic documents (for example, the Strategy for Responsible Development 2030 and the National Urban Policy 2030), as well as regional and municipal strategies. MAPs and IPs are the CPI’s main products, and their flexible formula allowed them to be tailored to the needs of the cities and ministries involved in the proj- ect. Focusing the networks’ effort on specific (tangible) products of the project was ef- fective and helped maintain the structure of the initiative. As a result, both the par- ticipating cities and ministries pursued clearly defined work objectives, which they found motivating. The proposal of an eight-step process of developing MAPs based on the URBACT methodology was the right approach and was positively welcomed by the cities. The key success factor of a MAP is that the document is ‘owned’ by the city. In other words, the city decides its thematic and geographical scope (for example, an entire city, district, street, or yard) and which of its elements are more or less import- ant. The city team decides whether its MAP is more formal (publication-ready) or has an internal character and is to be only used in-house by the project team (named in the MAP). Owing to this flexibility, the city teams were able to adapt the content of MAPs to their competencies, resources (including time available), and the progress of work on a specific solution. As a result, the documents were tailored to the cities’ needs and were implementable within the project timeframe. The soft component of the networks’ activities, that is, ‘atmosphere’, was very important. Mutual learning, sharing experiences (including negative ones, such as one’s own mistakes or failures), asking for help from other participants (including in- formally and outside of formal project meetings) can only happen in a group that trusts and feels comfortable with each other. For this reason, the social aspect of CPI was considered an equivalent goal of the initiative. Hence, the two-day network meetings were so important for building relationships based on openness and trust. The spir- it of cooperation that was born between the cities and ministries at successive stag- es of the project was conducive to achieving the goals of the CPI and to strengthen- ing the initiative’s brand. The CPI is a unique community of urban development practitioners in the first place. Designing an attractive CPI Alumni formula by the MDFRP would support its work and development. The CPI cities are interested in maintaining and strengthening the established relations, networking, knowledge exchange, and further cooperation, for example, during other joint projects. The participants also stressed the value of contin- uous networking among cities of different sizes, and the increased capability of reach- ing the government administration with their proposals and needs. Examples of opin- ions collected from cities regarding the CPI Alumni initiative are presented in Box 5.1. Monitoring the MAP implementation process and what happens to recommenda- tions contained in the IPs is key for measuring the success of the network theme and allows the CPI formula to be fine-tuned to better support cities and project products. Including the MAP monitoring component in the CPI Alumni initiative CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 132 BOX 5.1  Opinions of CPI Cities Regarding the CPI Alumni Initiative Feedback from the CPI cities highlighting the greatest benefits of o Exchange of information between the LGUs and the central building a CPI Alumni community: government o Establishing new contacts and forging ties that will facilitate o Thematic groups, joint legislative initiatives, participation in joint work in the future (not only on MAPs) industry consultations, perhaps creating an advisory body o Joint development of a best practice database and an experi- o Cooperation and exchange of knowledge with large cities ence logbook o Developing joint solutions, exchange of experience in various o Implementation of developed MAPs areas and mutual support in pursuing shared goals. o Joint problem solving Cities’ ideas regarding the CPI Alumni formula: o Evaluation of projects completed as a result of participation in o Mixed formula: face-to-face and online meetings the CPI, learning from errors, gaining and exchanging knowl- o Regular ‘reunions’ of former CPI cities in a form similar to net- edge, opportunity for smaller cities to be heard work meetings during the project, that is, thematic training o Exchange and transfer of experience; adapting experience to and a study visit to a selected project own needs o Regular workshop and training sessions aimed to exchange o Mutual inspiration to implement out-of-the-box solutions knowledge about any running and planned projects and project-financing instruments; developing ideas for projects o Competence-building among direct participants; increased together competencies of the CPI cities — sharing knowledge and information with associates o Participation of the central administration in CPI Alumni meet- ings in order to use the opportunity to consult cities and o Opportunity of driving positive changes in your city, based on cooperate on future projects the experience of other cities; new inspirations; joint proto- typing; greater credibility due to the participation in the CPI Source: Authors’ elaboration, based on an online survey for cities conducted after a meeting of all the project networks in Toruń (January 2023). would make it possible to verify the actual ‘implementability’ of MAPs. It would re- veal those aspects of support offered under the CPI that would have the potential of enhancing it. Knowledge about MAP implementations, including pilot projects that will be launched following the CPI conclusions, can also be a valuable source of prac- tical and operational knowledge for the NUP2030 implementation process, and for the design and implementation of specific city support instruments. An important characteristic of the CPI theme is that it sets new trends that are likely to scale up across the country. In other words, implementation of urban solu- tions in the three thematic areas is a novelty for many Polish LGUs or else they con- sider them too demanding or uncertain; hence, they make no effort to pursue them. Getting to grips with these themes within the three networks of diverse makeup and with the direct participation of the national level administration (supplemented with technical support from the strategic partner) paves the way for other local govern- ments, adds credibility to the developed solutions, and identifies bottlenecks. If the lat- ter are resolved at the national level, it may facilitate the future scaling up/down of the solutions. Consequently, the CPI becomes a kind of testbed or prototype lab of urban solutions that can be experimented with in a small group and at a relatively fast pace. The current edition of the CPI stressed a need to look at challenges that cut across various thematic aspects. Some examples are to include green elements in PPP proj- ects or to employ digital solutions to plan the implementation of ecosystem services and monitor the achieved benefits. Cities are aware that many of the challenges they face require an integrated, multifaceted approach, yet there is a shortage of skill and experi- ence in this area. It would be a good idea to create, in each CPI edition, one network em- bracing two or more thematic aspects (next to the ‘standard’ monothematic networks). CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 133 5 Regular CPI brand-building would leverage the impact of the initiative across several levels. In addition to the steps the MDFRP has been taking so far, such as cre- ating the CPI website41 and promoting the CPI during major national and internation- Conclusions al events (as at WUF11 in Katowice, in June 2022), other activities could be considered. The CPI’s strength comes from its participants. Hence activities could include the fol- lowing undertakings and effects: i) publishing materials (after consultation with the cities) that were developed during the initiative, for example, the completed MAPs and technical documents — such as MAP templates and process descriptions; ii) empower- ing the cities and participating ministries to leverage their social media channels and websites to promote the solutions prepared during the CPI and their subsequent im- plementation; and iii) establishing the CPI Alumni program, as discussed above, that could be complemented by the cooperation with other urban networking projects. 41. https://www.gov.pl/web/fundusze-regiony/partnerska-inicjatywa-miast CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 134 ANNEX 1 MAP DESCRIPTION: DIGITAL NETWORK BIAŁYSTOK INTEGRATION OF CITY INFORMATION SYSTEMS Surface Position Population Unemployment rate County Voivodeship 102.13 km2 The city is located in the Białystok Upland, 293,413 5,5% A city with Podlaskie which is part of the North Podlaska Lowland poviat macroregion. rights Challenges Main stakeholders Increasing the use and integration of technological 1. Officials of the Municipal Office in Białystok solutions supporting the functioning of the City and 2. IT Services Center in Białystok — expert knowledge, its internal management processes, efficient service organization of implementation and supervision for residents, the ability to monitor the situation in the over its implementation City, increasing the sense of security. Meeting the ex- 3. Municipal units — having data and information pectations of residents and stakeholders regarding ac- necessary to make decisions cess to data important to them by creating an open 4. External stakeholders data platform. 5. Colleges 6. Companies from the technology industry 7. Local government units Diagnosed problems 1. There is a lack of interoperability in the Main activities City’s IT processes 2. A variety of programs and applications that do not 1. Carrying out an inventory of the City’s BI state exchange data with each other 2. Conclusions on the potential of IT in the field of BI 3. Decisions made on the basis of incomplete data 3. Assessment and inventory of the current state in the 4. Some areas, such as real estate management, have field of BI not yet undergone digital transformation processes 4. Developing a methodology for inventorying 5. Lack of funds to implement comprehensive the IT resources of the city of Białystok solutions 5. Carrying out an inventory 6. Conclusions on IT potential 7. Inventory of your systems in terms of communica- Scope of the target solution tion, data integration, etc. 8. Selection of areas for digitization and integration Implementation of a technological solution support- 9. Structuring the areas selected for implementation ing city management processes and efficient service 10. Determining solutions and assigning roles for residents. At the same time, the solution will give 11. Selection of key systems for further development the opportunity to increase the sense of security and 12. Development of the solution architecture meet the expectations of residents and stakeholders in 13. Choosing the right tools and implementation terms of access to data — the development of an open methodologies data platform. 14. Developing the solution architecture and assign- ing roles CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 136 15. Preparation/collection of documentation, e.g. for Main risks the purposes of initiating proceedings 16. Initiation of proceedings 1. Legislative and legal risk, e.g. related to data owner- 17. Signing a contract ship and related to the statutory obligation of local 18. Supplier selection government units to use tools or solutions intended 19. Providing a test environment for the implemented for government administration solutions 2. Lack of documentation and lack of knowledge about 20. Testing individual systems 21. Staff training 3. Risk of loss of availability or confidentiali- 22. Launching a production solution ty of information/data 23. Implementation of selected solutions 4. Risk of information security breach 24. Collecting user feedback to correct any errors 5. Lack of resources — programmers, analysts, 25. Continuous performance monitoring architects 26. Constant development, adaptation to new technolo- 6. Integration risk — risk of IT systems integration, gies and legal requirements open code, lack of API, unfulfilled interoperability 27. go-live requirements. 7. Silo data resulting from silo implementations. Estimated budget Key success/implementation indicators PLN 7,000,000 1. W1 — Increase in the amount of data exposed out- side (open data) Time horizon 2. W2 — % of integrated APIs 3. W3 — % of older solutions/applications replaced o Start of the MAP report — October 2023 4. W4 — Number of processes integrated and man- o Completion of the MAP implementation — June aged with ICT 2026 5. W5 — Reducing the number of people/units/de- partments involved in the implementation of the process. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 137 DĘBICA IMPROVING THE SAFETY OF THE PUBLIC SPACE OF THE CITY OF DĘBICA Surface Position Population Unemployment rate County Voivodeship 33.9 km2 Dębica is a town in south-eastern Poland. It 44692 4.9% Debicki Subcarpathian belongs to the Podkarpackie Voivodeship, the Dębica County. It is the seat of the Dębica commune. Challenges 4. threat to life and health — 73 5. fire hazard (catastrophes) — 2 The video monitoring currently operating in Dębica 6. technical failures — 86 was introduced to ensure public safety and order, to in- 7. animals — 337 crease the sense of security of residents in places at 8. other — 60 risk, and to have a preventive impact. preventing acts of vandalism in public places, offenses The location of the city on the communication and crimes. In addition, the recordings are used as evi- route — 2 exits from the A4 motorway, national road dence in court proceedings against the perpetrators of 94, railway connection and the expectations of resi- offenses and crimes. Video surveillance has been de- dents determine to take action to improve security in signed with the vision of its development in the com- the commune. ing years in order to cover all places important from Taking into account the above data, the city’s poten- the point of view of security. tial in terms of its fiber optic network, the experience Until December 31, 2020, the system had 30 cam- of the City Guard, cooperation with the Poviat Police eras installed in various locations in Dębica, super- Headquarters so far in Dębica, as well as numerous de- vised by the City Guard on duty. The system consists mands of residents, the following needs (challenges) of high-quality fixed and high-speed digital cameras. have been identified in terms of improving the safety Data transmission is carried out using fiber optic links of the public space of the City of Dębica: from the camera points to the monitoring center. 1. effective prevention of dangerous and criminal In 2021, the City Guard already had 47 cameras of the events, video monitoring system. 2. effective and organized monitoring of events in the Despite the expansion of the camera system, according city and on national roads running through the city, to the Report on the State of the City in 2021, it was ad- 3. reducing the number of criminal events that are not opted 1,356 reports of public order disturbances from recorded, the city’s residents and peace, road traffic hazards, en- 4. development and implementation of the princi- vironmental protection and waste management, life ples of cooperation between the local government and health hazards, fire hazards and catastrophes, and uniformed services responsible for public safe- technical failures and animals. The topics of applica- ty (the need to integrate the activities of entities re- tions received from residents are as follows: sponsible for ensuring security in the city), 1. disturbance of public order and peace — 104 5. securing security during sports and cultural events, 2. traffic hazards — 388 etc. 3. environmental protection and waste 6. increasing the effectiveness of uniformed services. management — 306 CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 138 Diagnosed problems 2. littering, 3. robbery or burglary, Despite the expansion of the camera system, accord- 4. unauthorized trade, ing to the Report on the State of the City in 2021, 1,356 5. fights, reports were received from the city’s residents regard- 6. pedestrian harassment, ing disturbances to public order and peace, road traffic 7. traffic violations, hazards, environmental protection and waste manage- 8. Accidents, ment, life and health hazards, fire hazards and disas- 9. car crimes, ters, technical failures and animals. Issues have been 10. prohibited social behavior (including vandalism, identified based on the available data drinking alcohol in public places), 1. lack of knowledge of local government employ- 11. traffic, ees about available modern technologies and solu- 12. the number of free parking spaces and other tions on the market in the field of city monitoring, services, 2. lack of knowledge of local government employees 13. recognition of license plates (which will primarily regarding the possibility of using artificial intelli- allow the Police to constantly supervise and monitor gence in city monitoring, vehicles moving in space), etc. 3. lack of an organized monitoring center ensuring ef- fective monitoring of events in the city and on na- tional roads running through the city, Main stakeholders 4. lack of a concept for the functioning of the monitor- ing center along with analyzes of the costs of its es- 1. Mayor tablishment and operation. 2. City Treasurer 5. insufficient number of cameras (including smart 3. City Councilors/Committees of the City Council cameras) ensuring the possibility of monitoring 4. Municipal Police public spaces, 5. Office of Security and Crisis Management 6. a significant number of criminal and dangerous 6. Department of Urban Infrastructure and events that are not recorded, Investments 7. insufficient and unregulated level of cooperation 7. City Development Department and coordination of services 8. Office of Legal Counsels 8. and entities responsible for public safety (the 9. City Promotion Office need to integrate the activities of entities responsi- 10. Police (Poviat Police Headquarters in Dębica) ble for the implementation of activities for broadly 11. Dębica commune (rural) understood security in the city), 12. Żyraków Commune 9. lack of monitoring to secure sports or cultural 13. Plzen Commune events in the city, 14. GDDKIA 10. devastation of equipment and small architec- 15. inspection of road transport ture in city parks and playgrounds, 16. Neighborhood councils 11. the inability to detect and respond to crimes or of- 17. Local entities operating in the field of protection fenses at the time they are committed. 18. Residents 19. Others — to be identified at a later stage Scope of the target solution Main activities The task of the municipal monitoring system will be to support the work of municipal services, the Police 1. Selecting a coordinator and people to work in the and other services responsible for maintaining order task team and public order. It will be used to observe people, vehi- 2. Application to the City Council to secure funds for cles and other elements located in the monitored public the development of the concept in the city budget space. Monitoring will include events such as: 3. Selection and conclusion of the contract with the 1. destruction of private and public property, contractor CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 139 4. Consultation of assumptions for the concept of ex- Estimated budget panding video surveillance 5. Consultation of the assumptions for the con- Approximately PLN 10,000,000 cept of establishing and functioning of the monitor- ing center 6. Working on a conception Time horizon 7. Consultation of the concept with stakeholders 8. Development of the concept, taking into account o Start of the MAP report — January 2023 the reasonable comments collected during the o Completion of MAP — September 2024 consultations 9. Approval of the concept and preparation of the con- cept acceptance protocol. Main risks 10. Application for securing funds for the develop- ment of technical documentation in the city budget The following risks have been identified: 11. Selection of the contractor and conclu- 1. Lack of financial resources for the implementa- sion of the contract and development of technical tion of the project, documentation 2. Technical difficulties due to very different meter- 12. Verification of compliance with the concept and ac- ing of media consumption in individual public util- ceptance of technical documentation ity facilities. 13. Application for obtaining the necessary architectur- 3. Legal barriers in the field of data transfer and con- al and construction permits clusion of relevant agreements. 14. Application for securing funds for the implementa- tion of the investment in the city budget 15. Selection, conclusion of a contract with the contrac- Key success/implementation indicators tor, implementation of the investment 16. Selection and conclusion of a contract with a super- 1. Number of developed concepts — 1 pc. vision inspector 2. Number of on-line media monitoring systems cre- 17. Acceptance of the investment and commissioning ated — 1 pc. 18. Organization of a working meeting 19. Internal and external consultations of the draft agreement by the Stakeholders 20. Organization of a working meeting 21. Conclusion of an agreement CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 140 IŁOWA AN INTEGRATED INFORMATION MANAGEMENT SYSTEM FOR PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION UNITS IN THE IŁOWA COMMUNE Surface Position Population Unemployment rate County Voivodeship 9.11 km2 a town in the Lubuskie Voivodeship, in the Żagań 3947 no date Zaganski Lubuskie county, the seat of the urban-rural commune of Iłowa. Located in the Śląsko-Lużycka Lowland, partly in the Żagań Valley and the Gozdnicka Plain, at an altitude of 122 – 125 m above sea level, among the Lower Silesian Forests, on the banks of Czerna Mała, Czerna Wielka and Czernica Challenges 2. heads of subordinate units 3. employees of the office and subordinate units Access to current information on the functioning of the 4. internal customers office and administrative units of the commune 5. external customers Diagnosed problems Main activities 1. Lack of current information and long waiting time 1. Saying the needs of employees regarding the re- for information collection quired information. 2. lack or difficult access to source data; 2. Development of the scope of opera- 3. data in the office varies depending on the depart- tion of the IT system creating the so-called data bus. ment — incomplete and inconsistent data neces- 3. Selection of the contractor by open tender. sary to conduct administrative and enforcement 4. Implementation of the system. proceedings 5. Training employees in the operation of the system. 4. unsatisfactory supervision over the costs of func- 6. Execution of system tests. tioning of the office and units 7. Make corrections if needed. Scope of the target solution Estimated budget Increasing the effectiveness of management in the Iłowa Approximately PLN 500,000 Commune in terms of information exchange, substantive activities and implementation of an integrated informa- tion management system for public administration units Time horizon o Start of the MAP report — April 2023 Main stakeholders o Completion of the MAP implementation — January 2024 1. management staff, including the mayor, secretary, treasurer, heads of departments CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 141 Planned schedule Key success/implementation indicators o Commencement 04/2023 1. Reduction of service time for internal and external o Completion 01.2024 customers. 2. Improving the quality of data between depart- ments of the office and subordinate units. Main risks 3. Making investment decisions easier. 1. risk of selecting a contractor without appropriate experience in local government units; 2. the risk of prolonged tender procedures; CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 142 KRZYWIŃ DIGITAL INTEGRATION AND CHANGE OF THE CUSTOMER SERVICE MODEL OF THE OFFICE AND SUBORDINATE UNITS USING THE EBOI APPLICATION Surface Position Population Unemployment rate County Voivodeship 2.3 km2 Krzywiń is a town in central-western Poland. 1716 3.1 Kościanski Greater It belongs to the Greater Poland Voivodeship, Poland Kościan County. It is the seat of the urban-rural commune of Krzywiń. Challenges documentation and the completion of case files, end- ing with the archiving process. Established in UMIG Increasing digital integration by integrating systems, Krzywiń from July 1, 2022, the Customer Service programs serving clients. Today, the challenge for each Office — a place where ultimately letters to the desk of local government in Poland is an attempt to integrate officials will only be sent in electronic form. the systems used. On the one hand, centralized systems offered by the central authority, e.g. ZMOK at the Civil Registry Office, very often fail. Commercial software Diagnosed problems offered on the Polish market causes significant stratifi- cation and problems with the integration of individu- Currently, there are many technological solutions al systems in a given unit. On the example of the Town available on the market that accelerate the digitization and Commune Office in Krzywiń, we can see this after of offices in Poland. On the one hand, the barrier to the the implementation of the PROTON program for EZD. rapid implementation of digitization may be financ- The implementation needs integration (plugins) with es, but the barrier to the digitization process is also the existing programs, e.g. from RADIX. There are no uni- lack of conviction among local government leaders and fied procedures for integrating the programs available office employees. on the Polish market. The pandemic has accelerated the process of digitiza- Increasing the quantity and quality of electronic ser- tion in the Office, in a way forced to use more and more vices — EBOI and an application dedicated to the inhab- forms of electronic communication, new programs and itants of the city and commune. Improvement of digital applications. However, each new application or pro- accessibility, i.e. access to optical fiber throughout the gram raises resistance from officials. commune (numerous white spots in the commune, in- The problem is also taking into account all real needs cluding Inveni Investments, which built the network on and succumbing to fashions and changes in the law, in- behalf of the Ministry of Digitization, went bankrupt, cluding those related to public procurement. did not complete the investment, today many residents Lack of good conditions in Poland for the possibili- still do not have access to high-speed internet) . ty of carrying out the digitization process, especially in The digitization of the office is another element of terms of education. Lack of funds, staff, resources and building an efficient and transparent local government time for educating the society to show that many things unit. The system will allow for comprehensive man- can be done without leaving home for the benefit of the agement of documentation in the unit, starting from local environment. the handling of incoming and outgoing shipments, The problem is in the attitude. For young people, it is through the separation and assignment of correspon- almost an obligation, the elderly avoid digitization, al- dence, assignment, classification and qualification of though it is not a problem for them, but prefer the CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 143 so-called. “paper version”. Digitization, and thus the Main activities process of data management, contributes to the devel- opment of companies in the IT sector. 1. Elimination of white spots in access to the fiber op- The problem is also the fact that still few inhabitants tic network of the commune have a trusted profile and thus use 2. Implementation of additional 15 seats of the Axence ePUAP. Lack of legal solutions, e.g. creating an obliga- nVision program — Inventory Module and, most im- tion. But here, access to the fiber optic network must portantly, the purchase of an additional HelpDesk be guaranteed in every village, hamlet (this fragmen- module tation of towns is a problem for every commune in 3. Purchase and implementation of the FORTIGATE Poland — lack of equal access to the network). 60F device that allows the use of VPN — both IPSec The problem with the integration of many processes dedicated for encrypted connections between loca- in the office is caused by the lack or poor integration of tions and SSL-VPN as a secure connection for mo- programs, applications that are already used at UMIG. bile users There is no good program for remote connection be- tween clerks and IT specialists. After the implementation of the PROTON electronic Estimated budget document handling program, there were many requests from employees for the possibility of remote work, with Approximately PLN 350,000 such a growing number of officials working remotely, the network infrastructure needs to be improved Residents report the problem of the lack of one cen- Time horizon tral municipal application connected to the Electronic Customer Service Office (EBOI). o Commencement of the MAP report  — December 2022 o Completion of the MAP implementation  Scope of the target solution — February 2024 1. An extensive EBOI application — an electronic cus- tomer service office on the phone Main risks 2. Expansion/Purchase of additional mod- ules of the Axence nVision 11 program — at the mo- 1. High cost of implementation and then manage- ment of MAP preparation, the city had the follow- ment of the purchased product, ing modules: 2. Creation of a so-called helpdesk for users, o Network module 3. Lack of widespread use of prepared solutions, o 40 positions Inventory module o DataGuard module 3. The expansion plans an additional 15 workstations Key success/implementation indicators for the Inventory Module and, most importantly, the purchase of an additional HelpDesk module Number of logins per week, month, year to EBOI and the central web application of the resident. Main stakeholders 1. Mayor of the City and Commune, 2. councillors, 3. village leaders, 4. employees of the Office and subordinate units, 5. residents, 6. potential investors, 7. entrepreneurs. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 144 LIDZBARK WARMIŃSKI INTEGRATED CITY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM Surface Position Population Unemployment rate County Voivodeship 14.4 km2 Lidzbark Warmiński is a town located in 15379 8.8% Lidzbarski Warmia and north-eastern Poland. It belongs to the Warmian- Mazury Masurian Voivodeship, Lidzbark County. It is the seat of the municipal commune of Lidzbark Warmiński. Challenges Main stakeholders Implementation of an integrated city management sys- 1. Mayor tem that will integrate publicly available IT systems 2. Deputy Mayor in the field of spatial information, monitoring, pub- 3. Secretary lic transport, crisis management, along with 7 touch 4. Treasurer screens placed in public places, thanks to which resi- 5. Heads of Departments of the Municipal Office dents and tourists will clearly obtain all necessary in- 6. Residents of Lidzbark Warmiński formation on the functioning of the city , as well as in- 7. Tourists formation on the current crisis situations 8. Municipal companies in the scope of their activities 9. Emergency services Diagnosed problems Main activities 1. The city has several IT systems that operate individ- ually, necessitating separate management. You can 1. Including the monitoring system in the integrated notice the dispersion of data and the problem of us- city management system. ers with the proper search for information. In par- 2. Including the spatial information system into the ticular, external users, i.e. residents, do not use the integrated city management system. capabilities of the systems in question, due to the 3. Including the public transport system in the inte- problem of the multitude of functioning systems. grated city management system. 2. Lack of an appropriate ICT network to run the sys- 4. Building and incorporating a crisis management tem in public places. Without the appropriate infra- system into the integrated city management system. structure, information will not be delivered direct- Building a wireless ICT network and installing touch ly to selected groups of interested parties screens in public places. Scope of the target solution Estimated budget Integration of the monitoring system, spatial informa- The initial cost of implementing the project was esti- tion system, public transport system and crisis man- mated at PLN 400,000 agement system into one integrated city management system. Construction of a wireless ICT network, includ- ing the installation of 7 information screens in public places, equipped with cameras and loudspeakers. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 145 Time horizon Key success/implementation indicators o Start of MAP coverage — October 2022 The indicator of project implementation is the com- o Completion of the MAP implementation  pletion of individual milestones, and the measure is — December 2023 the time of implementation of specific activities. It is important to meet milestones in accordance with the agreed course of action. Main risks The indicator and measure of implementation will be the number of people using the integrated city man- 1. No possibility of merging existing IT systems into agement system — based on a report from the system. one. 2. No possibility to expand the ICT network. (no ar- rangements, internet access) 3. A threat to the security of sensitive data, such as personal or other data subject to the con- cept of privacy. 4. Lack of budgetary resources related to the uncer- tain economic and political situation. No funds from EU or national programs. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 146 ŁÓDŹ RESIDENT PORTAL Surface Position Population Unemployment rate County Voivodeship 293.3 km2 Łódź is a city with poviat (voivodship) rights 664.071 4.9% A city with Łódź located in central Poland. It belongs to the Łódź poviat Voivodeship. It is the seat of the Łódź commune. rights Challenges Therefore, today, it is necessary to implement solutions that allow the resident to be served via electronic chan- The city of Łódź has been implementing its develop- nels. Such activities are part of the City’s Strategy for ment strategy for many years. One of the key areas of the coming years. this strategy is the “digital” development of the City. So far, several e-Office solutions have been implement- When planning strategic activities in the area of “Smart ed in the Łódź City Hall. However, it should be empha- City”, one should take into account, above all, the fact sized here that the maturity of e-services offered on that the very concept of “Smart City” has evolved. Today, these portals is of the nature of services with the 2nd “Smart” activities are not only technology and its use. degree of e-maturity. In addition, they are located on Currently, a modern city, even in the area of digital ser- several portals and our resident is not always able to vices, must focus on the needs of its residents and vis- find the right service that will settle his case. Therefore, itors who use the services offered by the City on a dai- it is important to create a “one window” through which ly basis. The planned activities must involve citizens in all e-Services offered by the City will be available. management processes, where city users become co-de- Considering the above, one of the main projects that cision makers. The role of the city authorities should be has been planned for implementation in the near fu- to organize the cooperation of various groups of city us- ture is the implementation of the Resident Portal. It is ers in such a way as to achieve the synergy effect, acceler- this project that will be the basis of this study and will ating the development, be the basis for the implementation of the assumptions So far, many projects have been implemented in the city of the Municipal Action Plan (MAP). that use “smart” solutions, such as public Wi-Fi networks, intelligent traffic control or various sensors, meters and controllers. In the coming years, we plan to further de- Scope of the target solution velop the “Smart” technology, and we plan to increase the active participation of residents in these projects. The Resident Portal planned for implementation will be a continuation of the currently operating internet portal of our city. The new portal is to be a place where, Diagnosed problems as before, residents will obtain information about our city, but they will also be able to have their own resi- One of the basic duties of local government units is to dent’s cat, through which they will be able to commu- ensure efficient service of the hybrid. Every day, the nicate with municipal units and settle their affairs. The number of people using the City who need to deal with resident will also be able to set various types of noti- their matters directly at the municipal office or oth- fications that he would like to receive. Such notifica- er municipal unit reaches several thousand. Settling tions will concern, for example, information about ini- such a case in a traditional way involves the need to ap- tiatives and events in the city, current threats as well as pear in a given unit. This entails the need to give up the upcoming payment dates for financial liabilities from free time of the resident, the need to move around the various types of fees and taxes. The implementation of city, and the creation of many resident service points. such a portal fits directly into the needs indicated in the CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 147 course of the statistical survey, which is the basis for The functionalities of the Resident Portal that we plan the creation of the “Digital City” strategy. Residents in- to launch in the first phase are: dicated that the possibility of settling matters in the of- 1. Sharing a knowledge base on handled matters via fice via Internet services is an important element of chatbot and voicebot. both the sense of social security (especially important 2. Providing the functionality of reporting cases re- in the conditions of isolation during the pandemic) and garding noticed problems with urban infrastruc- as an element of improving the quality of life by short- ture or other negative events related to public space. ening the time needed to settle one’s affairs. Thanks to 3. Providing functionality enabling verification of the this, the resident will be able to devote his time to vari- status of receivables and the possibility of their ous types of recreation, including participation in cul- payment in terms of selected taxes and fees. tural events organized in the city. The planned portal is to be a resident’s “window” on the affairs of the city and its inhabitants. that the possibility of settling matters Time range in the office via Internet services is an important ele- ment of both the sense of social security (especially im- The launch of electronic services for residents will take portant in the conditions of isolation during the pan- place successively, with all planned functionalities in demic) and also as an element of improving the quality phase 1 to be put into use by December 31, 2023. of life by shortening the time needed to settle one’s af- Currently, the implementation of the project has al- fairs. Thanks to this, the resident will be able to devote ready started. At this stage, we have implemented: his time to various types of recreation, including par- 1. Analysis of the functional scope of the portal in the ticipation in cultural events organized in the city. The 1st phase planned portal is to be a resident’s “window” on the af- 2. Identification of data sources for the portal fairs of the city and its inhabitants. that the possibility 3. Determining the functional requirements of the of settling matters in the office via Internet services is portal for the area of ​​taxes and fees an important element of both the sense of social secu- The next stages of the project will include the follow- rity (especially important in the conditions of isolation ing tasks: during the pandemic) and also as an element of im- 4. Determining the functional requirements for the proving the quality of life by shortening the time need- chatbot and voicebot area ed to settle one’s affairs. Thanks to this, the resident 5. Determination of functional requirements for will be able to devote his time to various types of recre- the area of ​​reporting other negative events relat- ation, including participation in cultural events orga- ed to public space nized in the city. The planned portal is to be a resident’s 6. Selection of the system contractor “window” on the affairs of the city and its inhabitants. 7. Providing data from source systems, especial- As regards the use of new technologies in order to im- ly in the field of fees and taxes plement the strategy in the area of ​​Łódź that is friendly 8. Portal implementation and open to all people, we plan to implement a system 9. User training that will facilitate efficient automatic communication 10. Production launch of the solution for people using the services of the office. The system, through the use of chatbot and mailbot technology, will facilitate obtaining basic information on handled mat- Main stakeholders ters. The planned solution will include elements of ar- tificial intelligence (AI), which will allow for flexible 1. Mayor of the city of the city communication (no need to ask only a group of provid- 2. Employees of the departments of the City Hall ed questions) with the office. This solution, in conjunc- 3. Inhabitants of the city of Łódź tion with the new Resident Portal, will increase the sat- 4. People paying taxes in the city isfaction of residents with contacts with the office. In 5. Municipal companies providing ser- the next phases, the solution will also be implemented vices to residents in municipal units. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 148 Main activities Main risks 1. Identification of the current functionalities of the At present, the following risks have been assumed: ŁCKzM portal 2. Determining the functional requirements for the 1. Financial risk — lack of budget funds relat- chatbot and voicebot area ed to the uncertain economic and political situation. 3. Preparation of the functionality of the Resident Lack of funds from EU programs (the current per- Portal in the area of ​​contacts with residents spective has not been announced). 4. Selection of the system contractor 2. Personnel risk — lack of human resources in the of- 5. System tests fice to carry out the above-mentioned activities. The 6. Stakeholder training current staffing of the IT department (IT Service 7. Production launch of the system Department) does not allow to carry out this project 8. Identification of data sets that can be made available both in the sphere of direct activities and substan- 9. Preparation of data exchange interfaces in or- tive supervision over the potential contractor. der to make them available 3. Risk related to the attitude towards the project (in- 10. Making data sets available in the Resident Portal ternal client) related to reluctance to implement 11. Identification of tax liabilities that can be made changes. available in the 1st phase of the project 12. Preparation of data exchange interfaces in or- der to make them available Key success/implementation indicators 13. Providing functionality in the area of ​​taxes and fees in the Resident Portal The indicator of the implementation of the Specific 14. Information and promotion activities will be ad- Objectives is the achievement of individual mile- dressed to the indicated stakeholder groups stones, and the measure is the time of implementa- tion of specific actions (DS). It was assumed that the project cannot be continued until the preceding mile- Estimated budget stone is completed. It is allowed to change the scope of individual specific objectives in order to achieve un- The initial cost was estimated at PLN 500,000 realistic milestones. An example is the achievement of a milestone regarding the implementation of “prior- ity 1 processes”. If there are too many of these process- Time horizon es, or their implementation is delayed, then in order to achieve a milestone, it will be necessary to consid- o Start of the MAP report — August 2022 er whether the list of processes should be verified in o Completion of the MAP implementation  such a way as to transfer the given process to a list — December 2023 with a lower priority. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 149 PILAWA TIGHTENING THE SYSTEM OF FEES FOR WASTE MANAGEMENT Surface Position Population Unemployment rate County Voivodeship 6.7 km2 Pilawa is a town located in central Poland. 4563 9.6% Garwolin Masovian It belongs to the Mazowieckie Voivodeship, Garwolin County. It is the seat of the urban-rural commune of Pilawa Challenges b. selectively collected municipal waste divid- ed into fractions: paper, metals, plastics, glass, The following municipal waste collection system oper- multi-material packaging waste: once a month, ates in the town and commune of Pilawa: c. bulky waste: once a year, d. ashes — Point of Selective Collection of 1. SECTOR I — multi-unit development Municipal Waste. o unsorted (mixed) municipal waste and biowaste o at least once a week in the period from April to October, Diagnosed problems o at least once every two weeks in the period from November to March, The main problem in the creation, implementation and o selectively collected municipal waste divided into management of the municipal waste management sys- fractions: paper, metals, plastics, glass, multi-mate- tem are property owners and residents who generate rial packaging waste: once every two weeks waste and at the same time are unable to dispose of this o bulky waste: once a year. waste on their own without harming the environment. In 2. SECTOR II — single-family housing addition, they do not have adequate funds to pay for indi- o single-family housing and real estate with summer vidual access to the appropriate dedicated infrastructure. houses or other real estate used for recreational and Residents are more willing to avoid financial burdens in leisure purposes in the City of Pilawa: the field of municipal waste management than care for a. unsorted (mixed) municipal waste and biowaste the natural environment and the common good, such as o at least once every two weeks in the period ditches, forests, public lands, where municipal waste is from April to October, willingly thrown away, regardless of the knowledge and o at least once a month in the period from education of the above-mentioned issuers. November to March, The effects of such action are very costly for the com- b. selectively collected municipal waste divid- mune and other residents, as the level of fees for mu- ed into fractions: paper, metals, plastics, glass, nicipal waste management increases for property own- multi-material packaging waste — once a month ers/residents who are covered by the system and have c. bulky waste — once a year, submitted appropriate declarations regarding waste d. ash — once a month from September to April management. inclusive; The waste management system in the City and o single-family housing and real estate with summer Commune of Pilawa covers 9,799 people living in res- houses or other real estate used for recreational and idential properties (data as at the end of September leisure purposes in the Pilawa Commune: 2022), which were included in 2,992 submitted declara- a. unsorted (mixed) municipal waste and bio- tions. The number of registered residents for the same waste:once a month, period is 10,844, including: CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 150 10,771 permanent residents, o 6. Residents 73 people registered temporarily. o 7. Others — to be identified at a later stage The difference of 1,045 people between the number of people covered by submitted declarations for waste management (9,799 people) and the number of peo- Main activities ple registered for permanent residence (10,844 people) may partly result from the fact that many pupils and 1. Development of a concept for preventing students undertake education outside the place of per- leaks in the municipal waste management system. manent residence and from professional migration of 2. Analysis of needs and construction of the con- people who, despite being registered, stay outside the cept of achieving the goal. commune due to their work. At the same time, the dif- 3. Planning the actions necessary to be performed. ference shown above may be the number of residents 4. Determining the needs for identifying residents who who do not pay the fees for waste management. evade paying fees for municipal waste management. In general, the difference between the number of sub- 5. Selection of potential applications and sourc- mitted declarations for waste management and the es of obtaining batch data. number of registered residents will be the subject of 6. Development of the application process and in- analysis in order to tighten the waste management sys- structions for use and training. tem in the City and Commune of Pilawa. 7. Implementation of applications and procedures re- garding the waste management fee system. 8. Application implementation. Scope of the target solution 9. Information activities for residents. 10. Establishing a database of properties covered by the Implementation in the area of ​​the City and Commune waste management system and maintaining the ap- of Pilawa of measures streamlining the tasks of local propriate quality of data. government units in the field of waste management, i.e.: 11. Monitoring, control and making improvements 1. Creation and implementation of the process of seal- ing municipal waste management, 2. Implementation of a tool identifying residents who Estimated budget evade paying fees, 3. Call for payment of fees from residents identi- Approximately PLN 12,000.00 fied as part of measures to improve the waste man- agement system, 4. Monitoring the effectiveness of generated calls and Time horizon possible repetitions of calls for payment of waste management fees. o Commencement of the MAP report  5. Ongoing performance of process activities in accor- — December 2022 dance with the implemented process. o Completion of MAP — October 2023 Main stakeholders Main risks 1. Mayor The following risks have been identified: 2. City Treasurer 1. Insufficient financial resources 3. City Councilors/Committees of the City Council 2. Lack of human resources to complete and imple- 4. Neighborhood councils ment the process and other work to achieve the 5. Local entities operating in the field of protection MAP objective CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 151 Key success/implementation indicators 1. Improvement of one system (1 system) of municipal waste management. 2. Including the waste management system in addi- tional persons residing/registered in the City and Commune of Pilawa, according to the amount gen- erated by applications under the MAP — change ex- pressed in %. 3. Increase of the Commune’s income — change ex- pressed in % (Value of income after the implemen- tation of the MAP solution/Value of income before the implementation of the MAP solution). 4. Change in the rate of fees for municipal waste man- agement in % (Amount of the rate after the imple- mentation of the MAP solution/Amount of the rate before the implementation of the MAP solution). CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 152 RZESZÓW DIGITALIZATION OF BUSINESS PROCESSES OCCURING AT THE RZESZÓW CITY OFFICE Surface Position Population Unemployment rate County Voivodeship 129 km2 Rzeszów — the largest city in south-eastern Poland, 198.609 4.9% A city with Subcarpathian the capital of the Podkarpackie Voivodeship and poviat the center of the Rzeszów Metropolitan Area. The rights seat of local government and provincial authori- ties, government and judicial institutions. It is the economic, academic, cultural and recreational cen- ter of south-eastern Poland Challenges to a limited extent. Some applications lose their use- fulness after the warranty period (due to the expiry of Integration of IT systems owned by the office and IT the durability period of the project from which it was systems of subordinate units. Creating a homogeneous created). It should be noted that many websites (cul- environment that would allow for: ture, transport, 1. Full use of the existing ICT infrastructure, Another problem to be solved is the ICT infrastruc- 2. Smooth cooperation of database systems communi- ture scattered across various organizational units of cating with the open data portal, the city. An example is the network of CCTV cam- 3. Unification of the structure of data creat- eras, the number of which exceeds 1,000. However, ed in applications, they are managed by the Municipal Guard, the 4. Reducing the amount of software necessary to im- Municipal Road Administration and the Municipal plement business processes in the office, Administration of Markets and Parking lots. It is true 5. Improvement of the ergonomics of the application that the data from these cameras are made available for internal users (office employees) and external to city services and the police, but due to the amount users (residents) of data, new technologies (artificial intelligence) are needed to support the few teams of dispatchers in de- tecting phenomena or events that require interven- Diagnosed problems tion by the services. The city already has an open data portal, thanks to which it is possible to build an inte- The city, together with its subordinate organization- gral data exchange around it. A serious problem, how- al units, currently uses over 120 applications, both do- ever, is the diversity in the presentation of this data main-specific and websites. They have been put into and the time of their updating. use for many years. They were often one of the prod- ucts of EU projects under which they were supposed to support the project’s objects. In this way, separate en- Scope of the target solution tities were created that required separate management and did not communicate with each other. The natu- Digitization of business processes in the Rzeszów City ral consequence of this was the differentiation of da- Hall. A business process is understood as a set of re- tabase systems and the introduction of the same data lated, structured activities or tasks performed by peo- into them in different data structures. Users very often ple or equipment in which a specific sequence produc- do not use many applications and websites or use them es a service or product for a specific customer. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 153 Main stakeholders be incurred in the range of PLN 60,000 for 1 strategic process up to approx. PLN 700,000 PLN net for several 1. City secretary processes, depending on their size and complexity. The 2. directors and employees of departments of the costs listed above include the costs of execution, i.e. Rzeszów City Hall programming works, license purchase, software imple- 3. Residents of the city of Rzeszów mentation or IT infrastructure maintenance. 4. Municipal companies providing ser- vices to residents Time horizon Main activities Commencement of the MAP report — December 2022 Completion of the MAP implementation — February 1. Overview of sources of knowledge about process- 2027 es at the City of Rzeszów (ISO, individual and col- lective procedures, document circulation) 2. The method of mapping processes in the office was Main risks defined 3. Actions for the implementation process have been At present, the following risks have been assumed: defined 1. Financial risk — lack of budget funds relat- 4. Selection of a sample business process to implement ed to the uncertain economic and political situation. 5. Implementation analysis, resources and schedule Lack of funds from EU programs (the current per- prepared spective has not been announced). 6. Implementation and testing of the process 2. Personnel risk — lack of human resources in the of- 7. Analyzing and making corrections in the process fice to carry out the above-mentioned activities. The implementation methodology current staffing of the IT department (IT Service 8. Preparation of a list of processes carried out in the Department) does not allow to carry out this project office both in the sphere of direct activities and substan- 9. Preparation of a list of internal stakeholders in the tive supervision over the potential contractor. field of processes 3. Risk related to the attitude towards the project (inter- 10. Determining the scope of mapped processes nal client) related to reluctance to implement changes. 11. Establishing a list of priorities for the implementa- tion of process digitization 12. Selection of priority 1 processes from the priori- Key success/implementation indicators ty list 13. Carrying out an implementation analysis of select- The indicator of the implementation of the Specific ed processes Objectives is the achievement of individual mile- 14. Selecting the implementation team and setting the stones, and the measure is the time of implementa- implementation schedule tion of specific actions (DS). It was assumed that the 15. Implementation of selected priority 1 processes project cannot be continued until the preceding mile- 16. Verification and improvement of the process imple- stone is completed. It is allowed to change the scope of mentation model individual specific objectives in order to achieve un- 17. Implementation for lower priority processes realistic milestones. An example is the achievement of a milestone regarding the implementation of “prior- ity 1 processes”. If there are too many of these process- Estimated budget es, or their implementation is delayed, then in order to achieve a milestone, it will be necessary to consid- Providers of such services were initially verified and er whether the list of processes should be verified in if these activities were outsourced to an external en- such a way as to transfer the given process to a list tity, costs of consulting services should be expected to with a lower priority. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 154 ŚWIDNICA CITY INFORMATION ARCHITECTURE Surface Position Population Unemployment rate County Voivodeship 21.8 km2 Świdnica is a city located in south-western Poland. 55,413 4.6% A city with Lower Silesia It belongs to the Lower Silesian Voivodeship, poviat Świdnica County. It is the seat of the municipal rights commune Challenges The introduction of the City’s Information Architec- ture and, based on this model, the construction of the Using the potential of the data at the disposal of the Knowledge Base in the City Hall in Świdnica is aimed Municipal Office in Świdnica, for the efficient man- at organizing all information resources of the City and agement of the city, which has an impact on improv- facilitating access to them for employees and manage- ing the quality of life of its residents and the function- ment of the Office, in order to more efficiently perform ing of business. current tasks and make decisions in based on data. The functional scope of the project was defined indi- vidually in relation to individual project products. Diagnosed problems 1. City Information Architecture (CIA) — a for- mal description of the city’s information struc- The main problem is the difficult access to data nec- ture that, according to EIRA42consists of four lay- essary for the efficient implementation of the City’s ers — legislative, organizational, technical and tasks. The main problem consists of a number of semantic. Adoption of a uniform way of describing sub-problems, including: information resources will allow for their arrange- 1. data scattered in different systems, often diffi- ment by individual functional areas. cult to “pull” 2. Inventory of office data — development of a meth- 2. some data collected in traditional form (e.g. note- odology for conducting an inventory of data re- books) as well as text documents and spreadsheets sources processed in the office, taking into account 3. varied quality of data in the databases of the sys- the requirements of the adopted CIA model, will al- tems used, e.g. incomplete data, which often re- low for the collection of all data processed in the of- sults from legal doubts as to the scope of data that fice, their systematization, diagnosis of the legal- can be stored ity of processing and planning actions to increase 4. lack of knowledge of employees about where, who the level of their security (confidentiality, integrity, and in what form stores certain data availability). 5. the use of non-uniform data models by software 3. Process diagrams — development of process dia- vendors grams in the adopted methodology, as well as plan- ning activities related to the maintenance and im- provement of these processes, will allow for the Scope of the target solution organization of all activities taking place in the of- fice, including the flow of data between organiza- Organizing the City’s information resources in ac- tional units. cordance with the guidelines of the Integrated State 4. Knowledge base — it is to be a tool gathering struc- Informatization Program. tured information about all data processed in the 42.  EIRA (the European Interoperability Reference Architecture) — European Interoperability Reference Architecture; source: https://www.gov.pl/web/ia/ nowa-version-eira CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 155 office and about the method of their processing. Its Estimated budget main functions will include quick access to informa- tion on data processed in the office in the CIA sys- 1. In the case of using only own staff, the cost of man- tem. It will enable integration with external sys- hours spent on the project will be approximately tems operating in accordance with the EIRA model, PLN 1,900,000 which will facilitate the construction of e-services 2. In the case of hiring a company/experts with their own software, the MAP execution peri- od will be shortened to approx. 6 months — the Main stakeholders cost is approx. PLN 2,100,000 1. Top management 2. Managers of organizational units Time horizon 3. Content workers 4. Governmental institutions (KPRM, NASK) Start of the MAP report — June 2022 5. LGU Completion of the MAP implementation — March 6. IT companies 2025 7. Residents 8. Entrepreneurs Main risks Main activities o Lack of human and financial resources. o A long lead time may affect the timeliness of the 1. Development of a general CIA model mod- data inventory and its flow. eled on EIRA 2. Preparation of the inventory methodology 3. Carrying out an inventory of data relating to the Key success/implementation indicators management of land belonging to municipal property 1. Development of a general CIA model mod- 4. Development of the CIA model in the area of ​​ eled on EIRA — Indicator — yes/no data relating to the management of land belong- 2. Preparation of the inventory methodology ing to municipal property Indicator — yes/no 5. Choosing a methodology for developing process di- 3. Carrying out an inventory of data relating to the agrams. Tool selection and purchase management of land belonging to municipal prop- 6. Development of the process of selling the premis- erty Indicator — yes/no es at the request of the tenant 4. Meter — number of identified public registers 7. Conducting an inventory of data in all functional 5. Development of the CIA model in the area of ​​ areas of the office data relating to the management of land belong- 8. Development of detailed models in all functional ing to municipal property Indicator — yes/no areas of the office; development of target CIA 6. Choosing a methodology for developing process di- 9. Development of process diagrams for all functional agrams. Tool selection and purchase — Indicator areas of the office 1 — diagram development methodology select- 10. Preparation of functional requirements for the ed — yes/no, Indicator 2 — tool selected — yes/no Knowledge Base creation tool. Proceedings for the Indicator 3 — tool purchased — yes/no delivery/construction of the tool 7. Development of the process of selling the premis- 11. Filling the Knowledge Base with data on the man- es at the tenant’s request — Indicator — yes/no agement of land belonging to municipal property 8. Conducting a data inventory in all functional ar- 12. Creation of a Knowledge Base in relation to all func- eas of the office — Indicator — all organization- tional areas of the office al units of the office in which data inventory was CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 156 carried out — Measure — number of organizational units in which data inventory was carried out — tar- get 39 9. Development of detailed models in all function- al areas of the office; development of the target CIA — Indicator — development of the CIA for all public registers identified during the data inven- tory -yes/no Measure — number of developed CIA models 10. Development of process diagrams for all func- tional areas of the office — Indicator — develop- ment of process diagrams for all areas — yes/no Measure — number of processes 11. Preparation of functional requirements for the Knowledge Base creation tool. Proceedings for the delivery/construction of the tool — Indicator — yes/ no CS11 Filling the Knowledge Base with data on land management belonging to municipal property — Indicator — yes/no 12. Creation of a Knowledge Base for all function- al areas of the office — Indicator — creation of a Knowledge Base for all functional areas -yes/no Measure — number of functional areas (public reg- isters) placed in the Knowledge Base. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 157 WYSZKÓW TIGHTENING THE SYSTEM OF ASSESSMENT AND COLLECTION OF FEES FOR MUNICIPAL WASTE MANAGEMENT Surface Position Population Unemployment rate County Voivodeship 20.8 km2 Wyszków is a city located in central Poland. 26841 3.1 A city with Masovian It belongs to the Mazowieckie Voivodeship, poviat Wyszków County. It is the seat of the urban-rural rights commune of Wyszków. Challenges In the verification process, it is also important that in multi-family buildings declarations are made by man- Tightening the system of assessment and collection of aging entities — for which there are no developed tools fees for municipal waste management. In 2022, the op- forcing them to carry out ongoing control of persons erating costs of the system increased significantly. The submitting declarations related to the municipal waste local government needs to update the fee rate to bal- management system. ance the system. In the case of sealing the system, the scale of the increase may be smaller. Scope of the target solution Diagnosed problems Developing a model for the functioning of the fee as- sessment and collection system for municipal waste Not all residents submit declarations regarding the col- management. Diagnosis of the current situation, indi- lection of municipal waste, and thus not all of them cation of powers and good practices from other local pay for the waste they generate. As a consequence, pay- governments, description of the implementation, indi- ing residents incur higher burdens on this account (the cation of challenges for the future. costs are spread over a smaller number of people). In In particular, the functional scope: order to initially estimate the payment gap, the num- 1. modification of internal procedures ber of people registered in Wyszków can be compared 2. implementation of tools for catching real estate not to the number of people covered by the municipal covered by the municipal waste management sys- waste collection system. tem (RapidSoft program, database of real estate o Number of people registered: 39,376 people not covered by the municipal waste management o Number of people covered by the system: 34,416 system) people 3. improvements for residents (access to customer ac- o Difference: 4,960 people (12%) counts, SMS notifications) It is worth emphasizing that currently there is no reg- istration obligation in Poland. Therefore, the data of registered people does not accurately reflect the num- Main stakeholders ber of people living in our commune. Wyszków is in- habited by residents registered in other communes. 1. Officials Also some residents registered in Wyszków live outside 2. Councilors of the Wyszków Commune it (mainly in Warsaw). Also full-time students — during 3. Mayor their stay outside our commune, they are not subject to 4. Residents the local economy system. 5. Waste collection companies CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 158 6. Visitors to the Commune Guests (the image of a Time horizon clean commune) 7. Property managers o Commencement of the MAP report  8. Software companies — December 2022 9. Entities with data (OPS, Companies, Schools, o Completion of the MAP implementation  Kindergartens, Offices) — February 2024 Main activities Main risks 1. Full implementation of RapidSoft 1. Insufficient human resources — heavy burden 2. Modification and implementation of internal proce- of other tasks dures related to the enforcement of the fee for mu- 2. Formal and legal problems regarding the deter- nicipal waste management mination of persons not indicated in the declara- 3. Preparation of a database of properties not cov- tion in multi-family real estate (joint declarations ered by the municipal waste management sys- submitted for the entire building) tem — with the implementation of GIS solutions 3. Technical problems related to the implementation 4. Implementation of access to individual custom- of IT tools er accounts along with SMS notification of ar- 4. Insufficient financial resources rears in payment of the fee for municipal waste management Key success/implementation indicators Estimated budget 1. Number of paying persons — covering the largest possible number of obliged persons with the system About PLN 10,000 2. Reducing the burden on individual residents of the fee CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 159 ANNEX 2 MAP DESCRIPTION: PPP NETWORK POZNAŃ DEVELOPMENT AND EXPANSION OF A MODERN AND EFFICIENT PUBLIC TRANSPORT SYSTEM  — CONSTRUCTION OF NEW TRAM ROUTES Challenge Private partner From the perspective of spatial development, one of o Architectural and urban studios — at the design the greatest challenges for the city is the development stage of the degraded area of ​​the so-called Wolnych Torów o Construction companies — at the implementation and the use of the potential that the construction and management stage of a new district with an area of about 118 ha. The area of ​​the so-called Wolnych Torów is located in close prox- imity to the city center, in the vicinity of the Poznań Stakeholders Główny railway station and the Poznań International Fair. The aim of this project is to build a tram line as the o PKP SA main communication axis of the designed new district o Municipal Roads Authority of Poznań “Wolne Tory”. o Aquanet o Public Transport Authority o Urban transport company Objective o Project Coordination and City Revitalization Office o PKP PLK The planned route will improve transport connections o residents serving the potential investment and residential ar- o entrepreneurs eas of the new district, as well as facilitate connection to the City Center of the Dębiec and Wilda districts. The aim of the project is also to improve the quality of Estimated capital expenditures public transport services and infrastructure in Poznań. Efficient and fast transport connections encourage no data people to settle in the close city center as well as to open new places for doing business. The implementation of the project results from the Partner compensation Development Strategy for the City of Poznań 2020+ adopted in 2017. Availability fee, the ability to collect benefits from the operation of the infrastructure PPP model Risk allocation: DBFMO (Design/Build/Finance/Maintain/Operate) o Public entity: Partial demand risk o Private Partner: Construction, financing, availabili- Public entity ty, partial demand risk City of Poznań CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 161 Planned schedule The biggest design challenges o Implementation status: Concept stage no funding o Announcement of the proceedings: no data o The term of the PPP contract: no data CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 162 PŁOCK MODERN CITY CENTER — IMPLEMENTATION OF A MULTIFUNCTIONAL AND REPRESENTATIVE DOWNTOWN SPACE IN THE REVITALIZATION PROCESS Challenge Private partner Comprehensive recovery from the crisis state of de- o Architectural and urban studios — at the design graded areas of the city through the implementation stage of integrated projects. The investment is aimed at the o Construction companies — at the implementation construction of the Philharmonic and the development and management stage of its surroundings. The commune is considering in- cluding open or built-up urban spaces in the project as a supplement to revitalization, in terms of expand- Stakeholders ing the housing fabric, its creation and reconstruction. o Płock Symphony Orchestra and other cultural institutions Objective o residents o property owners On the investment site, a place will be created that will o entrepreneurs encourage activation and intergenerational integration of the inhabitants of the revitalized sub-area. The area will become a safe place to spend free time and a space Estimated capital expenditures for socio-cultural animation. As a result of the imple- mentation, a high-quality space will be created that PLN 420 million will allow the cultural offer to go outside (organization of outdoor events, meetings, theater performances, music concerts). This place will contribute to building Partner compensation positive relationships and ties and will have an impact on increasing the level of participation of the inhabi- Availability fee, the ability to collect benefits from the tants of the first sub-area of ​​revitalization in social life. operation of the infrastructure PPP model Risk sharing DBFMO (Design/Build/Finance/Maintain/Operate) o Public entity: Demand risk o Private Partner: Financing, Construction, Availability Public entity City of Plock Planned schedule o Implementation status: Concept stage o Announcement of the proceedings: 2024 o The term of the PPP contract: Twenty years CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 163 The biggest design challenges o Interest of private investors, o the scope of revitalization arrangements, e.g. with the conservator of monuments, o amount of financing costs, interest rates CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 164 DĄBROWA GÓRNICZA FACTORY FULL OF LIFE — THE NEW CENTER OF DĄBROWA GÓRNICZA Challenge Private partner Bringing out of the crisis state of degraded areas lo- o Architectural and urban studios — at the design cated in the center of Dąbrowa Górnicza. The mate- stage(already mostly done) rial scope of the Investment consists in the demoli- o Construction companies — at the implementation tion, construction, extension and reconstruction of the and management stage premises of the former “Defum” machine tool facto- ry. As part of the infrastructure, public spaces, educa- tional and service buildings, residential buildings and Stakeholders the center of culture and social activation of Dąbrowa Górnicza are to be built. o Councilors of the City Council, Mayor of the City, Deputy Mayors and management of the Office, re- sponsible departments City Treasurer (Steering Objective Committee) o Team for the implementation of the assump- Changing the profile of Dąbrowa Górnicza — from an tions of the “Factory Full of Life” project — revital- industrial city to a place of high quality of life, a cen- ization of the city center of Dąbrowa Górnicza ter of jobs in modern sectors; using environmentally o Working teams established for the City friendly solutions; development of education (includ- Development Strategy: Dąbrowa Górnicza 2030 and ing ecological) culture and support of local identi- other project teams ty. According to the assumptions of the Project, it will o Factory Full of Life Sp. z o. o./company directly re- be a showcase of the city, attracting and integrating the sponsible for revitalization activities in the project inhabitants of the city (city agora) of the surrounding o Area residents communes, as well as tourists from all over Poland and o Residents from outside the area/Potential residents/ abroad. Factory Full of Life is a field of various types of future users of the area activity, interaction and investment — the implement- o Entrepreneurs from POR Centrum ed and planned activities concern a wide range of is- o NGOs operating in the field of economic develop- sues, such as ecology, transport, support for entrepre- ment and entrepreneurship as well as revitaliza- neurship, development of culture, development of civil tion of the city society. The project has been conducted in a compre- o WSB Academy in Dąbrowa Górnicza hensive manner since 2016, integrating spatial, con- o KSSE SA struction, infrastructural and social processes (more at o Private Partner or Task Contractor www.fabrykapelnazycia.pl) o Financing institutions o Future users of the public website area and part- ners in the projects: Civic Activity Center, MOPT PPP model Municipal Creative Work Centre, Municipal Public Library, Municipal Museum “Sztygarka”, DBFMO (Design/Build/Finance/Maintain/Operate) Zagłębie Palace of Culture, Center for Continuing and Vocational Education, Psychological and Pedagogical Counseling Center together with Public entity Psychological Counseling Center In Corpore o Zagłębie Chamber of Commerce, Guild of Various City of Dąbrowa Górnicza, Factory Full of Life Sp. z o. o Crafts, CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 165 o Association of Entrepreneurs of Choice leading the in the area of ​​revitalization of the commune, includ- task Dąbrowski Incubator of Entrepreneurship ing the performance of the commune’s own tasks o PKP SA, PLK, Tramwaje Śląskie, Górnośląsko- in the public utility area referred to in Article 3(1) of Zagłębiowska Metropolis the Revitalization Act) under the name Fabryka Full o Media/social media of Life along with equipping it with assets — real es- o Marshal’s Office of the province Silesian, tate constituting the area of ​​Fabryka Full of Life.In or- o Ministry of Development Funds and Regional der to increase the company’s institutional capaci- Policy, ty for its implementation, a merger of two municipal o Public administration bodies companies is being prepared by taking over the com- pany Przedsiębiorstwo Miejskie MZUM.PL SA with its registered office in Dąbrowa Górnicza by Fabryka Estimated capital expenditures Full Life Sp. z o. o. with its registered office in Dąbrowa Górnicza. 375 million PLN net The need to carry out the entire investment in one pe- riod, without dividing it into stages. There is also the risk of incorrect determination of the value of real es- Partner compensation tate for sale to the Private Partner and the lack of de- mand for flats and services designed as part of the task. Availability fee, the possibility of drawing benefits Therefore, loyal, honest and very demanding cooper- from the use of infrastructure, sale of part of the real ation with the Private Partner/Contractor of the task estate is necessary. Meeting the expectations of stakeholders in the Project is also a great challenge. It is a space with which all inhabitants of the city identify. High expecta- Risk sharing tions towards the authorities — huge political, financial and organizational risk. o Public entity: Demand risk (partially) o Private Partner: Construction risk, availability risk, demand risk (partially) Planned schedule o Implementation status: Preparation stage; re-exam- ination of the market, submitting applications for co-financing from JTF. o Announcement of the proceedings: End of March 2023 o The term of the PPP contract: 10–15 years The biggest design challenges The biggest risk of MAP is the lack of financing for the key project Fabryka Full of Life — the new cen- ter of Dąbrowa Górnicza, because without its imple- mentation the comprehensive revitalization of the area will fail. In order to minimize the risk of the proj- ect’s impact on the public debt of the commune, the project was entrusted for implementation to a compa- ny established for this purpose (conducting activities CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 166 KOSZALIN RECONSTRUCTION OF THE BANK BUILDING INTO AN OFFICE AND ADMINISTRATIVE BUILDING OF THE MUNICIPAL OFFICE IN KOSZALIN Challenge Public entity Increasing the accessibility to public services in the City of Koszalin area of ​​administration for all residents of the city. The investment consists of five stages of implemen- tation: I. reconstruction and adaptation of the bank Private partner building into an office and administration building; II. Reconstruction of the connector of the Municipal Construction companies Office building enabling functional connection with the rebuilt bank building, III. Expansion of the adapt- ed bank building, consisting in building up the court- Stakeholders yard and the north-western corner to the full height of this building; IV. Construction of a two-level car park o Management of the office (underground and above-ground) in the inner square o councilors of the Town Hall and reconstruction of the existing car o task force park by Młyńska St.; V. Construction of a new hall for o private partners meetings of the City Council within the inner square of o financing institutions the Town Hall above the car park designed in stage IV. o facility users o residents o media Objective o supervisory bodies over the activities of the municipality o Improving the quality and increasing the availabil- o Ministry of Development Funds and Regional Policy ity of public services provided by making most ser- vices available to residents in one location. o Counteracting social exclusion by facilitating ac- Estimated capital expenditures cess to the town hall for all social groups, includ- ing excluded communities, seniors and people with approx. PLN 35,000,000 gross disabilities. o Energy savings through the use of modern and en- ergy-saving technologies to modernize the office. Partner compensation Availability fee PPP model DBFM (Design/Build/Finance/Maintain) Risk sharing o Public entity: Demand risk o Private Partner: Construction risk, availability risk CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 167 Planned schedule The biggest design challenges o Implementation status: Concept stage o Agreeing with the Voivodeship o Announcement of the proceedings: Q1 2024 Conservator of Monuments the scope of the project o The term of the PPP contract: 20 years (includ- and changes to the Local Spatial Development Plan. ing a 2-year Investment Stage and an 18-year o Determining the scope of the project and Maintenance and Management Stage) terms of cooperation with potential private partners. o Obtaining external funds to finance the project. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 168 BEŁCHATÓW EXPANSION OF THE SEAT OF PUBLIC AUTHORITIES Challenge Presidents/City Secretary/Treasurer) o employees of the City Hall The main project challenge is to improve the quality o private partner of public services provided. In order to achieve the in- o financial institutions tended goal, it is necessary to demolish the current, de- o insurance institutions graded town hall building and to expand the existing o external advisor office building with a new part. o external entity (in order to develop an efficiency assessment) o entrepreneurs/service recipients — potential ten- Objective ants of newly established premises o the Ministry of Development Funds and Regional The main idea of ​​the project is to extend the town hall Policy in order to provide all administrative services for resi- o the County Office dents in one location, adequate to the needs and expec- o monument conservator tations of individual age groups and the level of fitness. o recipients of public services who are not resi- In addition, the investment aims to: dents of the city o With increasing accessibility for people with spe- o potential users developing premises in the existing cial needs, locations o improvement of the infrastructure of public utili- o media ty facilities, o increasing the security of document circulation o optimization of investment implementation and Estimated capital expenditures maintenance costs. PLN 25 million PPP model Partner compensation DBFM (Design/Build/Finance/Maintain) Availability fee Public entity Risk sharing City of Bełchatów o Public entity: Demand risk o Private Partner: Construction risk, availability risk Private partner Construction companies Planned schedule o Implementation status: Concept stage Stakeholders o Announcement of the proceedings: January 2026 o The term of the PPP contract: Twenty years o residents o councilors o management of the City Hall (Mayor/Vice CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 169 The biggest design challenges o getting to know the specificity of the PPP formu- la as an innovative model of public investment im- plementation — the city of Bełchatów has not im- plemented any investment in this mode so far o planning activities to acquire social acceptance both for the implementation of the investment scope of the project as well as the PPP formula itself; o carrying out social consultations on improving the quality of services provided — workshops for all relevant stakeholders (including councilors) in- troducing PPP issues, indicating the need to in- volve them in project implementation — conduct- ed in a hybrid formula, i.e. on-site with online transmission o conducting competitive dialogue o development of a draft PPP contract CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 170 KOŁOBRZEG KOŁOBRZEG ADMINISTRATION CENTER  — A NEW CITY, MUNICIPALITY AND COUNTY OFFICE Challenge Private partner The main project challenge is primarily to improve the Construction companies quality of administrative services for the residents of the City, Commune and Poviat. The subject of the in- vestment is the implementation of a project consist- Stakeholders ing in the design, construction and operation of the new seat of the Kołobrzeg City Hall, the Kołobrzeg o The authorities of the above-mentioned local gov- Commune Office and the District Office in Kołobrzeg, ernment units, i.e. together with an above-ground car park, and the de- o the Mayor of the City sign and development of the remaining part of the plot o the Commune Head covered by the investment. o the Poviat Starost o the City Council o the Commune Council and the Poviat Council Objective o private partners o financing institutions The project will contribute to: o residents of the Kołobrzeg City Commune o improving the quality of life of residents by concen- o Kołobrzeg Commune and other residents of the trating public administration service entities in one Kołobrzeg Poviat location and in many cases shortening the travel o Media/Social Media time and service time in offices; o Ministry of Development Funds and Regional Policy o improving the quality of work of officials by in- creasing the comfort of work, improving health and safety conditions, facilitating the circula- Estimated capital expenditures tion of documents; o reducing energy consumption through the PLN 100 million — cost of building a cubature facility use of energy-saving technologies, which will have a positive impact on the natural environment. Partner compensation PPP model Availability fee DBFM (Design/Build/Finance/Maintain) Risk sharing Public entity o Public entity: Demand risk o Private Partner: Construction risk, financing risk, The Municipality of the City of Kołobrzeg, the availability risk Municipality of Kołobrzeg and the District of Kołobrzeg CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 171 Planned schedule The biggest design challenges Implementation status: Concept stage o Lack of acceptance and support from residents Announcement of the proceedings: 2024 and councilors for the unpopular investment, The term of the PPP contract: 24 years (including 4 which is the construction of a building for the years of construction) needs of offices, o Withdrawal of one of the Stakeholders from the project, o Lack of agreement on participation in costs and in preparations and at the stage of operation, o Risk of specifying the wrong subject of the contract, maintenance standards, too high expectations to- wards the private partner, indication of inadequate technologies and functional solutions, o Risk of changing political goals (political risk) o Interest rate risk o Inflation risk CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 172 ZDUŃSKA WOLA MODERNIZATION PROGRAM OF CITY STREETS Challenge Private partner Taking advantage of the city’s good geographical lo- Construction companies cation to “open up” to labor markets in large urban agglomerations of Łódź and Wrocław, while taking measures to improve living conditions (in particular Stakeholders housing) in the city in such a way as to attract new res- idents. Actions in this area will consist in: moderniza- o Residents of the City of Zduńska Wola — users of tion of the city’s road system aimed at increasing the the project share of public transport systems in local transport, in- o city Council creasing the possibilities of moving around the city us- o Public administration bodies ing alternative means of transport (bicycles, individual o Local Media — public opinion electric vehicles/devices — extension and moderniza- o Financing institutions tion of the bicycle route system), including the use of o Relevant Minister sharing solutions (creating and improving conditions o Social and ecological organizations for the functioning of the public bicycle system, as well as the rental of electric vehicles/devices). Estimated capital expenditures Objective PLN 40 million The main goals of the project are: o development of appropriate quality communication Partner compensation infrastructure, o improvement of the internal transport accessibili- Availability fee ty of the city as well as the functionality and capaci- ty of its road system, o revitalization of the city space, Risk sharing o reduction of CO2 emissions — creating conditions for the use of public transport and alternative emis- o Public entity: Demand risk sion-free means of transport. o Private Partner: Construction risk, availability risk PPP model Planned schedule BFM (Build/Finance/Maintain) o Implementation status: Preparation stage; devel- opment of technical documentation and further pre-implementation analyses Public entity o Announcement of the proceedings: First half of 2023 City of Zduńska Wola o The term of the PPP contract: 12 years CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 173 MIŃSK MAZOWIECKI CONSTRUCTION OF AN ABOVE-GROUND MULTI-STORY CAR PARK WITH RETAIL SPACE Challenge Stakeholders The main design challenge is to calm down and lim- o Residents of the city and surrounding towns it individual car traffic in the city center for the sake o tenants of retail space — a potential private partner of popularizing and greater use of public transport, o city authorities, walking, cycling and shared mobility, increasing the ​​ area of green areas. The initial concept assumes ti- dying up the city center by building a 5-storey car Estimated capital expenditures park for passenger cars (the top floor is not roofed) with retail space for a large-format store located on PLN 30 million, of which the cost of construction of the ground floor. In total, approximately 480 parking retail space with a warehouse section is approx. PLN spaces have been planned. 5 million, the cost of construction of parking spac- es — PLN 25 million Objective Partner compensation The main objective of the project is to improve the quality of life of residents by organizing urban space the amount corresponding to the amount of rent for and creating sustainable urban mobility. In addition, renting commercial space, possibly an availability fee, increasing human mobility using means of transport other than the car — free public transport, bicycles, personal transport devices or pedestrian traffic, which Risk sharing will directly translate into improved air quality and lower noise emissions. o Public entity: Demand risk o Private Partner: Construction risk, availability risk PPP model Planned schedule DBFM (Design/Build/Finance/Maintain) o Implementation status: Concept stage o Announcement of the proceedings: May 2025 Public entity o The term of the PPP contract: June 2027 – June 2045 The city of Mińsk Mazowiecki The biggest design challenges Private partner Appropriate preparation and conduct of the procedure Retail chains — Biedronka, Lidl, Top Market, etc. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 174 ŁOMIANKI CONSTRUCTION OF A NEW SEAT OF THE MUNICIPAL OFFICE Challenge Stakeholders Improving the quality of administrative services for Key stakeholders city residents. The construction of a modern seat of o Mayor of Łomianki with the board (deputies, secre- the town hall will enable the implementation of pub- tary, treasurer) lic tasks of the commune, including providing services o PPP Team, to residents in comfortable conditions, worthy of the o other employees of the municipal office, 21st century. ​​ o city councilors, o residents and other recipients of municipal services o Private Partner, Objective o financial institutions of the project, o external advisor. The aim of the construction project of the new seat of the town hall is: Other stakeholders o improvement of the state of public infrastruc- o employees of the Social Welfare Center in Łomianki, ture in Łomianki o employees of the municipal kindergar- o creation of a modern, citizen-friendly communal ten at Szpitalna St. in Łomianki, center of public services in Łomianki; o children attending the municipal kindergar- o creating a center-creating place for the Łomianki ten at Szpitalna St. in Łomianki and their parents, Commune; o Integration Teaching and Sports o improving the quality of public services by creat- Center in Łomianki, ing new infrastructure in the field of public utility o Starosta (County Governor) of the West Warsaw facilities; County, o the use of the latest technologies and the provi- o Ministry of Development Funds and Regional sion of the best materials and equipment in or- Policy, der to optimize maintenance costs and protect the o residents of neighboring municipalities, natural environment. o institutions offering external financing of the project, o recipients of the services of the municipal office PPP model who are not residents of the commune. DBFM (Design/Build/Finance/Maintain) Estimated capital expenditures Public entity No data The city of Łomianki Partner compensation Private partner Availability fee Construction companies CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 175 Risk sharing The biggest design challenges o Public entity: Demand risk Obtaining the support of the City Council for the im- o Private Partner: Construction risk, availability risk plementation of the project Planned schedule o Implementation status: Preparation stage o Announcement of the proceedings: First half of 2023 o The term of the PPP contract: 25 years CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 176 ŚWIDWIN CONSTRUCTION OF 6 PRE-SCHOOL DEPARTMENTS AND A NURSERY DEPARTMENT AT THE PUBLIC PRIMARY SCHOOL WITH INTEGRATION DEPARTMENTS NO. 2 Challenge Stakeholders The biggest design challenge is to provide the city’s res- o Mayor of the City, Deputy Mayor, Secretary, idents with access to high-quality educational infra- Treasurer structure that would improve the quality of life in the o Świdwin City Council city. An important aspect for the city is also the cre- o Public-Private Partnership Team and employ- ation of additional places for children under 3 years of ees of the City Hall age. In addition, the construction of a new kindergar- o Private partners ten is an urgent need due to the poor technical condi- o Financing institutions tion of the current kindergarten building and limited o Other users (school principals, employees, students space available in this place. and their parents) o County Building Supervision o External advisor (Ministry of Development Funds Objective and Regional Policy) o (Ministry of Development Funds and Regional Policy) The main objective of the project is to ensure access to educational infrastructure for all children of pre- school age, both healthy and disabled. An important Estimated capital expenditures goal of the investment is also to improve the quality of the pre-school base, which will fully meet the needs No data of the residents. The investment will directly affect the improvement of teaching conditions, will provide the basis for acquiring skills at higher levels of educa- Partner compensation tion and will significantly increase children’s educa- tional opportunities. Availability fee PPP model Risk sharing DBFM (Design/Build/Finance/Maintain) o Public entity: Demand risk o Private Partner: Construction risk, availability risk Public entity Planned schedule City of Świdwin o Implementation status: Preparation stage o Announcement of the proceedings: January 2024 Private partner o The term of the PPP contract: 20 – 30 years Construction companies, Educational Operators CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 177 The biggest design challenges Proper preparation and conduct of the partner selec- tion procedure, obtaining external financing. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 178 ANNEX 3 MAP DESCRIPTION: GREEN NETWORK GDAŃSK POPULARIZATION OF GOOD PRACTICES IN THE FIELD OF GREENING SMALL URBAN SPACES Challenge o creating o planting 1. the need for educational activities in the field of cre- o care ating and maintaining green spaces by the residents o rules of operation themselves, o possibility of further development, 2. frequent concentration of city services on large- o distribution of the information brochure among scale projects and tasks, overlooking the impor- residents and administrators of areas, communities tance of small green spaces, and housing cooperatives, 3. deficit of small and micro green areas in the imme- o carrying out a pilot change and greening of the diate vicinity of residents, complementing the ur- school yard using good practices included in the in- ban greenery system. formation brochure. Objective References to the strategic document The aim of the Municipal Action Initiative is education o Gdańsk 2030 Plus City Development Strategy in the field of creating, by ‘de-concreting’, and main- o Adaptation Plan of the City of Gdańsk to climate taining small green spaces by city residents. The proj- change until 2030 ect includes the printing and distribution of a brochure containing descriptions of good greening practices with an emphasis on small and very small urban spac- Stakeholders es, as well as a pilot change of selected spaces (school yards). o City of Gdańsk, o Gdańsk Road and Green Areas Authority, o Gdańskie Wody sp. z o. o., Actions o Conservator of Monuments, o District Councils, The initiative is a response to the needs of greater ed- o Experts, ucation and information of residents about urban o Housing Communities and Cooperatives, greenery and their participation in co-creating the im- o Educational Institutions, mediate surroundings. The scope of planned activities o Residents includes: o development and printing of an information bro- chure, which will include descriptions of estab- Schedule lishing, among others, herbaria, small gardens and neighborly beds, pocket parks, street greenery, flow- 20 – 25 months er meadows, butterfly gardens, rain gardens, verti- cal gardens, green walls and roofs, to natural play- grounds and community gardens. The brochure will Sources of funding discuss the next steps of greening: o choosing a plac Funds from the Department of the Environment of the o determining the nature of greenery Municipal Office in Gdańsk and educational institu- o choosing plants tions in Gdańsk CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 180 ŻYRARDÓW GREEN ŻYRARDÓW — FROM EDUCATION TO REVITALIZATION Challenge development of “green backyards” for their devel- opment, which will stimulate the activity of the lo- o a significant degree of degradation of the residen- cal community and take responsibility for the suc- tial areas of the former factory settlement, cess of the planned activities, o negative assessment of the inhabitants of the devel- o implementation of an environmental education opment of yards and their functionality, program for residents. o insufficient, neglected greenery, o threats resulting from climate change, in particular torrential rains and droughts. References to the strategic document o Municipal Revitalization Program for the Objective City of Żyrardów until 2030 o Climate Change Adaptation Plan for the Solving the problems of developing and degrading City of Żyrardów neighborhood spaces in the context of climate change. Implementation of measures to mitigate climate change and improve air quality, which will also bring Stakeholders socio-economic and environmental benefits, including: o activating and integrating residents around a com- o Coordinator: Department of Revitalization and mon space, Development of the Medical University of Łódź o dissemination of the civic attitude of responsibility o Other involved Departments of the for the neighborhood space, Municipality of Żur: Department of Municipal o implemented ecological education program (in- Management, Department of Environmental crease of inhabitants’ knowledge); Protection and Waste Management, o improving the standard of living and leisure Department of Education, Department of Culture and conditions, Promotion of the City, Legal Office, Treasurer of the o implementation of an instrument to support civ- City of Żyrardów and Department of Finance and ic activities to improve the quality of the living Budget, Municipal Conservator of Monuments. environment, o Potential external partners: Żyrardów City o improving the aesthetics and functionality of Revitalization Committee, non-governmental or- neighborhood spaces, ganizations, informal groups, residents of the revi- o increasing biodiversity, talization area, municipal educational institutions, o retention of rainwater. housing communities, property managers. Actions Schedule o developing design guidelines for the development 2022 – 2024 of neighborhood spaces, taking into account in par- ticular rainwater retention, increasing biologically active areas and introducing and restoring greenery, Budget/Sources of financing o preparation of assumptions for a subsidy pro- gram from the city budget supporting the Own funds and obtained external funds CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 181 KOSTRZYN NAD ODRĄ DEVELOPMENT OF STREET AND HOUSING ESTATE GREENERY Challenge References to the strategic document o deteriorating condition of trees growing in the city, o Environmental Protection Program for the o poor in terms of the presence of plants, generally City of Kostrzyn nad Odrą for 2019 – 2022 accessible green areas in housing estates, with a perspective for 2023 – 2026 o use of grassy areas as parking spaces, o Environmental Protection Program for the o improper maintenance of some street greenery. City of Kostrzyn nad Odrą for the years 2023 – 2026 with a perspective until 2030 (in preparation) Objective Stakeholders Revitalization of housing estate and street green ar- eas located in the central part of the city, within o The city of Kostrzyn nad Odrą, Śródmieście and Drzewice. Developing a mode of co- o housing associations, operation with managers and owners of real estate lo- o the Kostrzyn Cultural Center, cated in housing estates, with particular emphasis on o the University of the Third Age, multi-family residential buildings. o private partners, o experts, o residents. Actions The municipal initiative puts particular emphasis on Schedule the areas of multi-family housing estates, which were built in the 1970s and 1980s, as well as post-barracks Implementation of activities after obtaining funding areas, built in the 1920s, which were rebuilt and used for housing and service functions. Planned activities include: Budget/Sources of financing o reconstruction of vegetation in road lanes, o increasing the number of trees in the city, Obtained external funds and own funds o revitalization of backyards, o redevelopment of the square in the post-garrison estate, o educational and promotional activities to make the city’s inhabitants aware of the benefits associat- ed with the presence of trees in housing estates (ac- tions to give or plant trees, publications, leaflets, brochures, competitions, festivals). CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 182 ŻORY GREEN TRANSFORMATION OF THE GWARKÓW POST-MINING ESTATE Challenge o organizing the food supply chain, o organizing research and development facilities, o degraded urban tissue and spaces without assigned o creating an urban energy island based on ecologi- functions in the neglected spaces of the post-min- cal sources and ensuring energy self-sufficiency for ing estate of Gwarków, farms, o social and economic problems of the local o implementation of “soft” solutions related to the community, certification of professional competences, labora- o perception of the estate as unfriendly and unat- tory classes for children and youth in the field of in- tractive for living and doing business, novative urban agriculture, workshops for residents o untapped natural, business and residential poten- (implementation of the idea of ​​home gardens, zero tial of this area, despite a very attractive location, waste and slow food), o negative effects of climate change, o creating a “green heart” of the estate that also o limited access to good quality and fresh food, plays a cultural and integration role, o ensuring the distribution of food to mass cater- o giving new innovative functions to post-industri- ing outlets, including schools and kindergartens, al areas. due to problems related to congestion. References to the strategic document Objective o Local revitalization program for the City of Żory Comprehensive reclamation and readaptation of part until 2023 of the infrastructure of the former mining plant and o Project of the commune revitalization program giving it new socio-economic and educational func- o Draft Local Plan for Just Transition tions, including the creation of an innovative devel- opment center to be an impulse for the green economy and transformation and stimulation of the multifacet- Stakeholders ed growth of the post-mining area. o City of Żory, o Revitalization Committee, Actions o Private Partners specialized in implementing solu- tions for vertical farms, The main initiative will consist in the renovation, ex- o Experts, tension and adaptation of some of the existing post- o Architects, mine buildings for hydroponic and aquaponic farms o School community, with a complex of laboratories, research and develop- o Residents. ment facilities, office facilities and workshop rooms, as well as a catering space. Activities include: o providing technology enabling fish farming and Schedule vertical plant cultivation based on a closed water cycle, 2021 – 2026 o transfer of good practices in the field of urban apiary, CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 183 Budget/Sources of financing PLN 150,875,249.62 Own funds and obtained external funds from the Just Transition Fund under the European Funds for Silesia for 2021 – 2027, project entitled “Green impulse for the Knowledge and Competence Mine (KWK) — socio-eco- nomic transformation of the former mine KWK Żory”. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 184 LUBLIN THE GREEN HEART OF THE CITY Challenge References to the strategic document o urban pressure and deficit of green areas in the city, o Lublin Strategy 2030 o limited access to greenery in old, intensively built- o Plan of Adaptation to Climate Changes of the up, historic and highly urbanized districts of the city, City of Lublin until 2030 o difficult living conditions for plants in highly ur- o Environmental protection program of the banized urban tissue, in particular in the Stare city of Lublin for 2021 – 2024 Miasto and Śródmieście districts. Stakeholders Objective o Coordination: Department of Greenery and 1. Creation of a coherent network of green areas in the Municipal Management of the City of Lublin Old Town and Śródmieście districts. o Partners: Lublin Provincial 2. Improving the quality of life in highly urbanized Conservator of Monuments, Office of the Municipal districts. Conservator of Monuments and Revitalization, 3. Increasing the awareness of residents regarding the Roads and Bridges Authority in Lublin, role of green solutions for the quality of life. Department of Traffic and Mobility Management, 4. Improvement of living conditions for plants in a Stare Miasto District Council, Śródmieście District highly urbanized part of the city. Council, residents. Actions Schedule o restoration of elements of the greenery sys- 2022 – 2025 tem of the Old Town and Śródmieście; o Introduction of new elements of greenery in the area of ​​the Stare Miasto District and Śródmieście Sources of funding District, o introduction of rainwater retention solutions o Implementation of the task within own financial o dissemination of standards for establishing and and human resources maintaining green areas in the city of Lublin — “City o Participatory Budget projects Greenery-Standards” among private and public investors, o promoting solutions based on nature, educating and engaging residents in local projects. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 185 RACIBÓRZ SYSTEMIC AND PILOT SOLUTIONS IN THE FIELD OF ADAPTATION TO CLIMATE CHANGE GREEN DOT ABOVE “I” Challenge 3. Strengthening the involvement of residents and cooperation with external stakeholders in the 1. Challenges related to the state of the natural en- field of adaptation to climate change. vironment and threats: local flooding after heavy rains; urban heat islands; low emissions and smog; low-quality urban greenery, often growing in un- Actions suitable conditions; increasing surface area of ​​the impermeable surface. o creation of a conceptual project for the pilot devel- 2. Challenges related to the climate change adaptation opment of a yard resistant to climate change and at- management process: tractive to residents (“Copenhagen yard”) with the o lack of application of sustainable green stan- use of vegetation resistant to climate change, which dards at the stage of designing and implementing does not require watering or excessive care, urban investments, o creating a team for sustainable development at the o lack of conviction in the rightness of applying Racibórz City Hall, the principle of the maximum possible protec- o organizing the training “Sustainable Development tion of greenery during the implementation of the Goals. Sustainable Cities”, investment, o conducting thematic classes for resi- o actions according to established schemes. dents as part of social consultations, includ- ing as part of the URBAN LAB in Racibórz. 3. Challenges related to the awareness and atti- tudes of residents in the treatment of greenery: o the problem of subordinating space to the References to the strategic document needs of communication and car parking, and the expectations of society in terms of intensive Racibórz City Development Strategy 2030 care of greenery (mowing), o insufficient awareness of climate problems among decision-makers, officials and residents, which is a Stakeholders major obstacle in introducing innovative solutions, o lack of systemic formal and legal tools at the office Responsible authority: level for the implementation of sustainable devel- o Racibórz City Hall, opment standards in investment tasks; o URBAN Lab Gliwice. o lack of financial resources, e.g. for non-obligatory Partners: analyzes of runoffs, heat islands. o Municipal Buildings Authority, o Students of the Architecture of the Silesian University of Technology and URBANLab, Objective o Nursery, Słoneczna St. 9, o Kindergarten No. 14, Słoneczna St. 14, 1. Building a city that is sustainable and resilient to cli- o Arboretum of the Moravian Gate. mate change. 2. Integrating and strengthening the city’s activi- ties in the field of sustainable development. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 186 Schedule Sources of funding 2023 – 2024 Own funds and external funds obtained — includ- ing from the FENIKS 2021 – 2027 programs, European Funds for Silesia 2021 – 2027, WFOŚiGW CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 187 UNIEJÓW GREEN UNIEJÓW — ENRICHING UNIEJÓW WITH GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE Challenge o collecting the city’s previous experience and good practices as a basis for further enrich- o no socio-economic connection between the old ment of Uniejów with green zones, town area and the spa complex, o inspiration of private individuals with a propos- o large disproportions in the spatial structure resulting al of actions to protect the climate and ecology in- from the uneven distribution of land development cluded in the MAP good practices for self-imple- functions, as well as the low quality of the urban tis- mentation on their home properties. sue compared to recreational and leisure facilities, o lack of standards in shaping the city’s landscape, lack of a coherent “picture” of the city and its References to the strategic document attractions, o opinions and needs of residents regarding plac- o Local Revitalization Program for the Commune es to relax, squares and urban green areas tai- and City of Uniejów for 2017 – 2025 Environmental lored to social needs, Protection Program for the Commune of Uniejów o flooding of streets during heavy rainfall, few places for 2022 – 2026 with a perspective until 2030 shaded by trees, few places collecting water. o Low-Emission Economy Plan for 2015 – 2025 o The Development Strategy of the Uniejów Commune for 2022 – 2032 and the urban concept Objective for the implementation of the Green Uniejów poli- cy from 2020 1. Exposure and increasing the attractiveness of the city, and in particular developing solutions sup- porting both the protection of the landscape and Stakeholders the preservation of the city’s identity in the condi- tions of modern transformations and the demand o Coordinator: City Hall in Uniejów (Employees for the health resort function of Uniejów. for Investment Implementation, Environmental 2. Solving the problem of dividing the city into the Protection, Communal Roads, Promotion and City left and right bank parts by enriching the city part Treasurer). with green belts and leisure zones and encourag- o Partners: Municipal Management Company ing residents to create green areas on their proper- Termy Uniejów Sp. z o. o. in Uniejów, the Turek ties by the streets and in home gardens. Forest Inspectorate, Polsat TV, the Monuments Conservator of Łódź, the Poddębice District Office (Department of Construction), Companies se- Actions lected in a tender procedure for the imple- mentation of the investment, the Municipal o increasing the area and improving the attractive- Kindergarten in Uniejów, residents, patients, tour- ness of greenery, ists of ecological education. o transformation of streets in accordance with the o Potential partners in terms of obtaining funds for woonerf concept, the implementation of the investment: Government o ecological education in the field (thematic walks) for Road Development Fund, Voivodship Fund for all interested, Environmental Protection in Łódź, State Forests, lo- o ecological education during the cyclical event “Earth cal government units. Festival”, CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 188 Schedule Sources of funding 2022 – 2023 Implementation of the task within own financial and human resources and based on the obtained external funds. CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 189 SŁUPSK SLOWING WASTEWATER RUNOFF THROUGH INVESTMENTS IN BLUE-GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE AND SMALL RETENTION FACILITIES IN PODGRODZIE AND OSIEDLE ZACHÓD Challenge o creating a Team for the creation of Standards for the design and maintenance of public spaces in the city, o problems arising as a result of intense weather o introduction of guidelines for investors regarding phenomena, such as torrential rainfall, prolonged the collection of rainwater and biologically active heat or intense wind, surfaces, o problems with infiltration of rainwater, the need o development of the Słupsk action plan to reduce the for urgent intervention in the management of this effects of drought. water, o deficit of green public spaces at a distance of less than 300 m from places of residence. References to the strategic document o Development Strategy for the Słupsk-Ustka Objective Functional Urban Area for 2022 – 2030 o Adaptation plan to climate change for the Increasing the city’s resilience to the effects of climate City of Słupsk change by creating a blue-green infrastructure, includ- o Municipal Revitalization Program for the ing improving the efficiency of planning and stormwa- City of Słupsk for the years 2017 – 2025+ ter management in the city. Strengthening cooperation and information exchange between municipal units in the planning and implementation of blue-green Stakeholders infrastructure. The city of Słupsk, the Center for Civic Initiatives, resi- dents, schools, urban planners Actions The municipal initiative covers the areas of Schedule Podgrodzie, i.e. an area located in the city center with compact, historical buildings and large spatial dis- 2022 – 2030 order, and Osiedle Zachód — a dynamically develop- ing residential area on the western edge of the city. The municipal initiative defines a catalog of interventions Sources of funding to increase the city’s resistance to local flooding and the negative effects of drought, including: External funds — including those obtained from the o developing a coherent concept of developing the European Union, the European Economic Area, the area of ​​Podgrodzie and Osiedle Zachód into green Program for Increasing Development Opportunities areas and small retention facilities, for the Słupsk Region for 2019 – 2024 - and own funds o identification of places where natural retention occurs, o using existing green areas to implement FDI in- vestments and adapting them in terms of water retention, CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 190 MIĘDZYRZEC PODLASKI ZIELONY MIĘDZYRZEC — IMPROVEMENT OF THE QUALITY OF NATURAL AND SOCIAL CAPITAL BY GREENING THE CITY Challenge o modernization of bus shelters into green stops, o education of residents for greening — educa- o easing the intense impacts of urbanization, espe- tional workshops, meetings with experienced cially in areas far from the current “green”, i.e. in the practitioners. city center and in the suburbs, o passive attitude of residents — the need for educa- tion and increased participation of residents in ac- References to the strategic document tivities for green infrastructure, o stimulating the development of the city through Municipal Revitalization Program for Międzyrzec new pro-climate solutions. Podlaski 2023 – 2030 Objective Stakeholders The guiding goal of the municipal initiative is to im- o The city of Międzyrzec Podlaski, prove the quality of natural and social capital through o housing cooperatives, greening the city. This will be achieved through the im- o non-governmental organizations, plementation of specific objectives, which include: in- o private entities, creasing the area of ​​green areas in highly urbanized ar- o experts, eas; revitalization of degraded large urban areas into o residents. parks and green areas; revitalization of housing estate and street green areas; active involvement of the lo- cal community in the greening process; and improv- Schedule ing the image of the city and increasing its attractive- ness for visitors. 2022 – 2026+ Actions Sources of funding The Municipal Action Initiative “Zielony Międzyrzec” External funds obtained (including from the European complements the Revitalization Program for the City Union, obtained in cooperation with non-governmen- of Międzyrzec Podlaski. The Revitalization Program tal organizations and local entrepreneurs) and own focuses on socio-economic issues, while the Municipal funds Initiative deepens revitalization plans with works in the field of green infrastructure. The implemented ac- tions will include: o implementation of green assumptions, including parks, green areas, small gardens, o planting trees and shrubs in free spaces of road lanes, o installing parklets, green benches, o development of green roofs, green walls, CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 191 RUDA ŚLĄSKA GREEN ROAD, BLACK CITY — CONNECTING TWO RIVER VALLEYS OF THE INDUSTRIAL CITY WITH GREEN AREAS Challenge 2. Strengthening the role of ecosystem ser- vices in the area of ​​the city and the central o degraded natural industrial areas with a large part of the Metropolis as a factor supporting eco- area, as a result of past and present mining exploita- nomic development. tion and after metallurgical and coke production; 3. Promotion of blue and green infrastructure as an el- o open areas requiring revitalization, currently most- ement enhancing a healthy lifestyle and an alterna- ly undeveloped, littered and unable to use their tive to the automotive industry. potential; 4. Decontamination or protection of heaps containing o improving the image of the city with a nega- toxic materials, stabilization of their surfaces and tive image in terms of the quality of the natural slopes, and their rational access to the public. environment; 5. Social participation explaining the objectives of ac- o deficiencies in pedestrian and bicycle communica- tivities and allowing for the rationalization of solu- tion in the center of the agglomeration. tions in the process of consultations. The above priorities will be supported by i.a. activities: Objective o integration of post-industrial areas in an advanced state of natural succession with the urban greenery 1. Maintaining the continuity of “corridors”, “strings” system; and “nodes” within the system of watercourse val- o increasing the share of native and habitat leys and water reservoirs. plants in the greenery of city parks; 2. Undertaking actions aimed at protecting the most o construction of small retention elements in parks valuable natural elements of the city. and green areas. 3. Shaping new and preserving the existing ar- o reconstruction of greenery along rivers, resto- eas of greenery, in particular in areas with a high ration of native species degree of environmental degradation. in aquatic habitats; 4. Creation of a network of green wedges connecting o enriching biodiversity by planting habitat native individual districts of the city, in the north-south species in urban green areas; relationship, connecting river valleys, but also east- o introducing plantings of melliferous herbaceous west, thus creating alternative pedestrian and bi- plants in urban green areas; cycle routes, connecting neighboring cities, Zabrze, o construction of amphibian breeding sites; Bytom, thus “plugging” them into the regional net- o setting up birdhouses, bat boxes, beehives, insect work of communication corridors. houses. 5. Increasing the retention capacity of river valleys o recultivation of areas and facilities degrad- with their buffer zone. ed by purpose for the implementation of cultural, educational and recreational functions Actions and economic; o designation of degraded areas for ecological and rec- The implementation of the objectives set out in the reational functions, where valuable natural ecosys- MAP consists of the following priorities: tems have developed due to spontaneous succession; 1. Protection of natural capital against activities that o remediation and phytostabilization of post-zinc reduce its potential. heaps; CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 192 o maintaining and strengthening ecological corridors; Stakeholders o enhancing biodiversity; o building a coherent system of bicycle paths for the Residents of the city of Ruda Śląska, residents of the entire city supported by social participation; central part of the GZM (Górnośląsko-Zagłębiowskij o construction of natural and cultural educational Metropolii), Silesian Botanical Garden paths; in Mikołów o introducing educational activities for schools aimed at developing awareness of the value of natu- ral plant communities; Schedule o actions expanding the offer of green areas for the disabled and the elderly; 2023 – 2025 (with an option until the first half of 2026) o promotion of local artists and increasing the number of sculptural accents and art installa- tions in parks and green areas. Budget/Sources of financing Own and external funds, including funds from the References to the strategic document Territorial Just Transition Plan o Municipal Revitalization Program for the City of Ruda Śląska until 2030, o Urban plan for adaptation to climate change, o Development Strategy for the City of Ruda Śląska 2030 CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 193 ANNEX 4 RECOMMENDATION BANK: DIGITAL NETWORK AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 1 RESIGNATION FROM THE OBLIGATION TO PREPARE A FEASIBILITY STUDY (FS) FOR PROJECTS CO-FINANCED BY THE EU FS preparation is a time-consuming and very often very expensive process. Preparation of the FE within the applicant’s organization is often impossible due to the lack of adequate human resources that would be able to handle the develop- ment of such a comprehensively thematic document. Moreover, so far it has been a practice to develop FS in a way that describes the project in detail, often in the nature of a technical project. It is worth emphasizing here that at the stage of applying for co-financing, the applicant is only able to develop an intermediate project concept, and not a technical proj- ect containing, for example, the exact number of servers to be purchased. As a result of the current approach, it was nec- essary to make changes to the project during its implementation phase. Often, it turned out that a given project cannot be carried out in accordance with the assumptions adopted at the application stage. The lack of such a possibility of imple- mentation often resulted from a natural change in technology or solutions available on the market, the more so that from the moment of applying for EU funds to the actual implementation of the project, it often took even 1.5 years. RECOMMENDATION: • Introduction of a solution where in the process of applying for funds from various sources of co-financing, only the ap- plication for co-financing is required, instead of two documents combined, i.e. project application and FS. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  strategic/systemic • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  short-term (up to 1 year) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  The managing authority of a given EU-funded operational programme • PRIORITY:  AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 2 CHANGING THE METHOD OF EVALUATING APPLICATIONS FOR CO-FINANCING In the period 2014 – 2020, the project evaluation included many evaluation criteria, some of which were technical design evaluation criteria. At the stage of applying for funds, the applicant rather has a project concept (description of the prob- lem described in the proposal above). RECOMMENDATION • Changing the method of assessing project application and the basic assessment criterion, apart from formal issues, should be the definition of goals — results — and the total amount for their implementation. The description of the products necessary to achieve the goals would be of secondary importance and would not affect the assessment of project application. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  strategic/systemic • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  short-term (up to 1 year) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  The managing authority of a given operational programme • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 195 AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 3 SIMPLIFICATION OF THE GRANT APPLICATION TEMPLATE Application template should not require detailed description of solutions in the scope that results directly from legal re- quirements, e.g. the use of WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines). This is an action using developed templates and boils down to the “copy/paste” operation without creating any added value to project application. RECOMMENDATION • Introducing a solution so that the applicant in the application only declares, by selecting the appropriate field, that’s he/he will meet the formal requirements — similarly to the approach adopted in the so-called “Fast-track”. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  strategic/systemic • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  short-term (up to 1 year) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  The managing authority of a given operational programme • PRIORITY:  AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 4 CHANGING THE APPROACH TO MILESTONES IN PROJECTS CO-FINANCED FROM EU FUNDS The practice of the projects implemented so far as part of the EU co-financing indicated a discrepancy in the understand- ing of milestones between the applicant and Program’s Managing Authority. When preparing the FS, the applicant de- scribed milestones in accordance with project management methodologies, e.g. PMI, PRINCE2. Meanwhile, in the co-fi- nancing agreement, milestones were directly linked to the payment schedule and the tasks performed. This led to the need to sign annexes to co-financing agreements and the implementation of a lengthy procedure of amending the agreement. Such activities unnecessarily involve members of the project team. It is worth emphasizing here that changing the date of the milestone implementation is a natural part of the project implementation. RECOMMENDATION • Standardization of requirements regarding milestones and modifications in this respect did not require signing an an - nex to the contract. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  strategic/systemic • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  short-term (up to 1 year) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  The managing authority of a given EU-funded operational programme • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 196 AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 5 ALLOWANCE IN THE CATALOG OF ELIGIBLE COSTS OF FUNDS CLASSIFIED AS CURRENT FUNDS FOR THE PURCHASE OF CLOUD SERVICES The increase in current costs related to the implementation of the project was not included in the catalog of eligible costs. This fact makes it impossible to finance cloud services, the need for which is constantly growing, and sometimes it is an indispensable element of an IT project. RECOMMENDATION • Extension of the catalog of eligible costs included in current funds to include costs related to the purchase of cloud services. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  strategic/systemic • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  short-term (up to 1 year) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  The managing authority of a given EU-funded operational programme • PRIORITY:  AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 6 INTRODUCTION OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SETTLING PROJECTS CO-FINANCED FROM EU FUNDS IN A LUMP SUM Flat-rate cost settlement should apply to projects with a low budget, e.g. up to PLN 1 million, in order to effectively settle co-financed projects. In addition, such a form of co-financing would be possible for projects in which the MA could deter- mine the cost of a given service and evaluate the project on this basis, e.g. training projects. These solutions have already been used in programs such as POWER, POKL. RECOMMENDATION • Allowing the settlement of costs in the form of a lump sum in projects with a low budget and indicating the maximum value of costs in the competition documentation. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  strategic/systemic • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  short-term (up to 1 year) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  The managing authority of a given EU-funded operational programme • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 197 AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 7 CHANGING THE CATEGORY OF EXPENDITURE WITHOUT THE NEED TO AMEND THE CO-FINANCING AGREEMENT Introduction of the possibility for the beneficiary to transfer funds between categories of expenditure — up to 100%, and not up to 20% as currently. Often, product price changes are very rapid, and the savings achieved in a project in one cat- egory could be spent in another. This would save work on possible changes to the co-financing contract, preceded by the project application reassessment procedure. *The total amount of the project could not be changed. RECOMMENDATION • Introduction of a solution enabling the transfer of funds to be decided by the beneficiary, however, within 1 month Intermediary Body (IP) could not agree to the transfer or submit comments. Responsibility for spending the funds with- in 1 month would rest with the beneficiary.. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  strategic/systemic • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  short-term (up to 1 year) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  The managing authority of a given EU-funded operational programme • PRIORITY:  AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 8 INCLUDING THE INFLATION RATE IN THE CO-FINANCING AGREEMENT In the current economic situation, which will be financially reflected in the near future in the implementation of multi-an- nual projects, the value of co-financing loses its purchasing power, often by 50%, which is very important in project im- plementation, causing a significant reduction in quality or a significant burden on local government budgets. RECOMMENDATION • Enabling the indexation of the project value by the inflation rate or market prices. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  strategic/systemic • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  long-term (from 3 to 5 years) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  MDFRP • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 198 AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 9 UNIFICATION OF THE PROCEDURE FOR IDENTIFYING NATURAL PERSONS AND BASING IT ON THE PESEL NUMBER AS THE BASIC REFERENCE DATA Currently, there is no single, default method of identifying a natural person (citizen) in an office. The set of metadata that can be collected in connection with a given proceeding depends each time on the legal status in the area to which the pro- ceeding relates. Despite the validity of the National Interoperability Framework and the objects described therein, includ- ing a natural person with an assigned identifier in the form of a PESEL number, in official practice it is not always collected, e.g. due to the lack of such metadata on the form attached to the Act. This causes chaos in the database of contractors — the same person may appear in it several times. The problem concerns the traditional way of providing services, because when using digital services, the identification of the party is made automatically — the person authenticates himself using the National Node. The lack of equality in the treatment of both (in theory, equal) ways of using services is glaring, the more so that the final data obtained as a result of both ways of using services are sent to the same place — to the office system. The need to verify and complete the data ob- tained in the traditional way in order to enable the identification of a person significantly extends the time of the service and causes additional costs of such proceedings. It also increases the risk of errors. RECOMMENDATION • Legal regulation of the above issues as follows: whenever we are dealing with the individualization of the website, the default method of identifying a person should be DIRECT IDENTIFICATION, i.e. using PESEL identifiers. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  strategic/systemic • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  medium-term (from 1 to 3 years) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Chancellery of the Prime Minister (Minister of Digitization) • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 199 AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 10 ESTABLISHING UNIFORM DATA MODELS FOR ALL OBJECTS AND ORGANIZING LEGAL ACTS IN THIS AREA If interoperability is to be achieved, it is necessary to use the same DATA MODELS for individual facilities throughout public administration. The most typical example of an identified problem is a natural person running a business. Currently, a natural person con- ducting business in the office’s IT systems is an “ugly hybrid”, which each company providing the systems defines and treats in a different way. Once it is classified as a company, another time as an individual, each time with a different set of data. RECOMMENDATION • Including information about the activity conducted by a given natural person in the model of a natural person, speci- fying identifiers (PESEL, NIP, REGON), addresses (residence, correspondence, business, etc.) and other necessary ele- ments. This model should be built taking into account the planned launch of e-delivery, where the address of a natural person for service is to be separate from the address for service in the context of his business activity. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  strategic/systemic • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  medium-term (from 1 to 3 years) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Chancellery of the Prime Minister (Minister of Digitization) • PRIORITY:  AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 11 ARRANGEMENT OF CENTRAL REGISTERS, WHICH ARE THE SOURCE OF DATA FOR THE FUNCTIONING OF THE CITY Due to the large number of errors in the central registers, a dedicated channel should be created for local governments to report them. Procedures should be established to correct them, depending on the nature of reported non-conformities. RECOMMENDATION • Launching a dedicated communication channel based on an electronic reporting system operating in accordance with the procedures published in the system. The response time and correction of the indicated data should not last lon- ger than 3 days. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  strategic/systemic • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  medium-term (from 1 to 3 years) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  COI, Chancellery of the Prime Minister • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 200 AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 12 PROVIDING LOCAL GOVERNMENTS WITH A FORUM FOR EXCHANGING EXPERIENCES Improving communication between local governments, the possibility of exchanging good practices, solving problems to- gether and announcing initiatives to be implemented together — it is worth providing local governments with a tool that will enable them to implement all these postulates. The Forum can be a powerful knowledge base for all local governments. RECOMMENDATION • Building/making available to municipal offices a database of IT solutions used in Poland, together with an indication of of- fices where given solutions are used. Such a database would make it easier to reach both the formal knowledge of sys- tem users, as well as informal knowledge, information about errors and ways of solving software-related problems. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION: operational/implementation • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  short-term (up to 1 year) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  MDFRP, Chancellery of the Prime Minister • PRIORITY:  AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 13 UNIFICATION AND LEGAL AUTHORIZATION ENABLING PERMANENT AND ONGOING ACCESS TO THE RESULTS OF METERING OF MEDIA CONSUMPTION (ELECTRICITY, HEAT, GAS, WATER, COOLING) According to the legal status, e.g. an energy company is not obliged to provide current/current energy consumption data to the user/manager of the facility. Access to such data is the basis for introducing energy management systems. Currently, there are no uniform technical standards for data sharing. Legal regulation of this issue will enable efficient management of energy consumption in facilities belonging to local government units. This issue also applies to data on the consump- tion of other utilities. An example is Estonia. Technically, energy suppliers are able to adapt their systems to provide ac- cess to information on utilities supplied to public facilities in a relatively short period of time. RECOMMENDATION • Legal regulation of the issue of providing current/current data on media consumption, along with specifying the max- imum delay in providing data. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION: operational/implementation • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  short-term (up to 1 year) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  The Chancellery of the Prime Minister, the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage, the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 201 AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 14 SEALING THE WASTE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM BY IDENTIFYING THE SO-CALLED “DEAD SOULS” IN THE SYSTEM AT THE CENTRAL LEVEL Sealing the waste management system by identifying the so-called “dead or unregistered souls” in the system at the central level. Currently, there is no central register containing information on the place of payment for the collection of munici- pal waste. The lack of the need to have a residence permit means that there is no register containing information about the place of actual residence of a citizen or whether he pays a fee for collecting municipal waste. The solutions functioning in local governments contain information on the number of people living in the property voluntarily submitted by property owners. The lack of a common system makes it impossible for local governments to verify the amount of payments made by residents. Without building a central register based on data from the PESEL register and data from population regis- tration systems, it is not possible to tighten the system of fees for municipal waste collection. Therefore, there is room for abuse and not paying fees for waste collection and actions to the detriment of the natural environment. RECOMMENDATION • Building a central register based on data from the PESEL register and data from population registration systems. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION: operational/implementation • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  short-term (up to 1 year) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  The Chancellery of the Prime Minister, the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage, the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management • PRIORITY:  AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 15 FACILITATING ACCESS TO A LARGER NUMBER OF CENTRAL REGISTERS (AUTOMATIC DOWNLOADING OF DATA TO THE OFFICE’S DOMAIN SYSTEMS) The implementation of the tasks of local government units requires access to the databases of the State Register System (SRP) for the purposes of performing the tasks of local governments. Currently, the process of obtaining access is compli- cated, lengthy and lacks the possibility of automatic data acquisition to the extent required by local governments. RECOMMENDATION • Possibly wider and easier access to SRP, which will significantly shorten the time of providing services and lower their costs. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION: operational/implementation • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  short-term (up to 1 year) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Chancellery of the Prime Minister (Minister of Digitization), COI • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 202 AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 16 PROVIDING AN API FOR MACHINE VERIFICATION OF LOCAL DATA SETS WITH CENTRAL REGISTERS Currently, it is not possible to verify entire data sets, which is a big problem in the ongoing work on the digitization of ad- ministration. Any replacement of systems and related migrations result in the transfer of incomplete/outdated data and major problems with launching electronic services. In current operations, there are also no such tools, e.g. the inability to query the Source database for deaths of people from outside the commune area. RECOMMENDATION • Providing an API for machine verification of local data sets with central registers. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  strategic/systemic • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  short-term (up to 1 year) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Chancellery of the Prime Minister (Minister of Digitization), COI • PRIORITY:  AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 17 CHANGING THE STRUCTURE/MODELS OF REFERENCE REGISTERS Consideration should be given to changing the structure/models of data stored in central registers. The change would be that no central register would hold copies of data from other registers. Four reference registers: PESEL, REGON, land and mortgage registers and EGiB cannot contain copies of data from other registers. Each of the registers would store only its own data in question and associated indicators (identifiers) relating to other registers. For example, data of a natural per- son are only in the PESEL register; reference to this data in other registers should be made through the PESEL identifi- er, without duplicating data such as name, surname, address, etc. An example of the right way to solve the problem is the construction of the Integrated Real Estate Information System (ZSIN) by GUGiK. RECOMMENDATION • Changing the structure/models of reference registers. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  strategic/systemic • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  long-term (from 3 to 5 years) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Chancellery of the Prime Minister (Minister of Digitization), COI • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 203 AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 18 UNIFYING THE INTERPRETATION OF ISSUES RELATED TO ACCESS TO PERSONAL DATA AND THEIR PROCESSING Currently, each office implementing the regulation on the protection of personal data is based on the policy and guide- lines indicated by Data Protection Officer (IOD)employed in the unit. This results in a situation where there is no consis- tency in the interpretation of the provisions on the identification of natural persons in offices. Some of the developed pol- icies and guidelines presented by the DPO indicate that a citizen does not have to identify himself with a PESEL number, which means that the IT systems of the office are supplied with incomplete data. This results in data redundancy and a sit- uation where errors occur in the databases of the office. RECOMMENDATION • Introduction by law or regulation of the requirement to identify a citizen by means of a PESEL number. It would sim- plifying procedures, organizing databases and unambiguous identification of the citizen. Thanks to such a provi- sion, it would be possible to integrate databases both within the office and between offices of different levels. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION: operational/implementation • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  short-term (up to 1 year) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Chancellery of the Prime Minister (Minister of Digitization) • PRIORITY:  AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 19 ENABLING LOCAL GOVERNMENT UNITS TO DOWNLOAD DATA DIRECTLY FROM THE PESEL DATABASE Currently, each office implementing the regulation on the protection of personal data is based on the policy and guide- lines indicated by Data Protection Officer (IOD)employed in the unit. This results in a situation where there is no consis- tency in the interpretation of the provisions on the identification of natural persons in offices. Some of the developed pol- icies and guidelines presented by the DPO indicate that a citizen does not have to identify himself with a PESEL number, which means that the IT systems of the office are supplied with incomplete data. This results in data redundancy and a sit- uation where errors occur in the databases of the office. RECOMMENDATION • The introduction of the possibility of automatic verification of the citizen’s (resident’s) data in the PESEL database would allow for limiting the size of local databases, would facilitate checking the correctness of data in the systems used and would reduce the working time spent on collecting and processing citizen’s data. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION: operational/implementation • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  short-term (up to 1 year) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Chancellery of the Prime Minister (Minister of Digitization) • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 204 AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 20 TAKING INTO ACCOUNT THE DESCRIPTION OF ORGANIZATIONAL PROCESSES WHEN CREATING AND AMENDING LEGAL ACTS — ECONOMIC ANALYSIS OF LAW SHOULD BE MADE ON THIS BASIS Consistency, timeliness, completeness and cross-sectional nature of the law is a prerequisite for the effective implemen- tation of digital transformation. Information on the functioning of public administration, including the implementa - tion of organizational processes in public administration, is also a prerequisite for the effective implementation of digi- tal transformation. The selected area for improvement is a solution modeled on the procedure of the European Commission, whose activi- ties related to the creation/amendment of legal acts (initiation of the legislative path) are each time preceded by a descrip- tion/design and economic analysis of organizational processes in the area in question. It is only on the basis of such a de- scription of the organizational process that specific legal provisions are formulated. An example of such actions taken by the European Commission is the determination of maximum roaming charges for international telecommunications calls in the EU. On the national level, the preparation of unified descriptions of organizational processes in the area of ​​ potential legisla- tive changes regarding administration would significantly facilitate and increase the efficiency of creating/amending le- gal acts regarding digitization, e.g. local government, combined), but also in areas (central, territorial, judicial, GUS, ZUS, NFZ, etc.). Optimizing solutions or implementing and maintaining solutions in the field of e-delivery using process de- scriptions would significantly improve the effectiveness of the actions taken. Similar digital solutions, using descriptions of organizational processes, based on legal regulations, could apply to the sphere of cooperation between local govern- ment, central government and combined administration, e.g. RECOMMENDATION • Law-making using descriptions of organizational processes for all IT, information, organizational and management solutions for public administration. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION: operational/implementation • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  short-term (up to 1 year) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Chancellery of the Prime Minister (Minister of Digitization) • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 205 AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 21 USING STANDARDIZED DATA MODELS AND INTERFACES BY LGUS AND PATTERNS/DATA EXCHANGE METHODS (API, WSDL) The developed guidelines for the construction of public administration IT systems do not contain data models that will be used in the systems, and there are no guidelines on what standards and data models must be supported by applications used in offices. This situation makes the developed new systems supporting the management of public administration units incompatible with each other, which means that they cannot automatically exchange data. This problem concerns both the interface between various public institutions and the systems used within one office. This situation leads to du- plication of data and duplication of errors. RECOMMENDATION • Introduction of the requirement to use in new (newly built and/or implemented) systems of public administration of- fices of specific data models and standards for their exchange between systems, this would allow for simple data inte- gration while maintaining the competitiveness of IT solutions offered by companies. It would also enable the automa- tion of reporting and information provision processes in vertical and horizontal administration structures. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION: operational/implementation • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  short-term (up to 1 year) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Chancellery of the Prime Minister (Minister of Digitization) • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 206 AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 22 REVIEW OF LEGAL REGULATIONS REGARDING THE COLLECTION OF DATA BY LOCAL GOVERNMENT UNITS FOR THE PURPOSES OF KEEPING RECORDS AND OPTIMIZATION OF SOLUTIONS IN THIS AREA THROUGHOUT THE PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION The review of the legal regulations regarding LGUs’ collection of data for the monitoring purposes is linked e.g. with the GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation), which defines the general conditions for the collection and processing of personal data, laws and regulations in the field that define the scope of data required to consider cases. There is an incon- sistency in this respect, which means that there are no clear guidelines defining the scope of the necessary data required to consider the case. These inconsistencies, in turn, lead to incomplete data in IT systems and the inability to standardize and automate data processing and case handling processes. RECOMMENDATION • Reviewing the legal regulations regarding the collection of data by local government units and keeping records and op- timizing solutions in this area on the scale of the entire public administration. The result of the activities would be lists containing the ranges of data that can be processed by the unit when performing a specific task. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION: operational/implementation • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  short-term (up to 1 year) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Chancellery of the Prime Minister (Minister of Digitization) • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 207 AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 23 DEVELOPMENT OF MECHANISMS ENABLING INTEGRATION WITH STATE REGISTERS AND THE USE BY LOCAL GOVERNMENT UNITS OF REFERENCE DATA FROM THESE REGISTERS, INCLUDING VERIFICATION WITH REGISTERS HELD BY LOCAL GOVERNMENT UNITS The interface between central and local government systems in many cases does not allow for automatic data exchange, e.g. important in reporting at the national level. There is a lack of standards, models and methods of data exchange, which makes it necessary to manually transfer large amounts of data between systems, e.g. geodetic data. This is not only labori- ous, but also error prone. Another challenge is the multitude of dedicated applications, e.g. CEIDG, ZUCH, GEOPORTAL, GUS Portal, ZUS, MF, MS, which require users to log in each time, get to know and get used to a different interface and du- plicate data. RECOMMENDATION • Development and introduction of mechanisms, e.g. procedures, enabling the integration of systems operating in pub- lic administration units with state registers. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION: operational/implementation • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  short-term (up to 1 year) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Project Center Digital Poland • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 208 AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 24 COMMUNICATION WITH STAKEHOLDERS REGARDING THE DEVELOPED INFORMATION, IT, ORGANIZATIONAL AND MANAGEMENT SOLUTIONS OF A SYSTEMIC NATURE IN THE SO-CALLED CENTRAL PROJECTS Projects implemented by the central administration in which transparent, inclusive communication was carried out are for example launching confirmation of a profile trusted by banks. Thanks to this solution, many applications for the 500+ benefit were submitted through the digital channel. A similar situation (transparent and inclusive communication regarding services provided electronically) concerned the submission of annual financial statements by natural persons (PIT). Activities related to the development, launch and promotion of the solution were consistent and carried out in a timely manner, and the planned indicators were achieved. RECOMMENDATION • Maintained by the relevant national entities (e.g. Chancellery of the Prime Minister, Ministry of the Interior and Administration, National Health Fund) transparent and inclusive communication regarding the developed informa- tion, IT, organizational and management solutions of a systemic nature in the so-called central projects • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION: operational/implementation • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  short-term (up to 1 year) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  The Chancellery of the Prime Minister and other ministries in accordance with the scope of activity, e.g. Ministry of Health, Ministry of National Education, Ministry of the Interior and Administration • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 209 AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 25 PREPARATION AND SUBMISSION OF IMPLEMENTATION DOCUMENTS TO LOCAL GOVERNMENTS, NOT JUST DESIGN DOCUMENTS (TECHNICAL, MARKETING) FOR CENTRALLY IMPLEMENTED PROJECTS E.G. SIA, EZD RP Projects such as SIA, EZD RP, which are implemented at the central level, are not provided with implementation docu- mentation. The technical documentation supplied with the products does not contain e.g. descriptions and organization- al conditions for implementation. Descriptions of implementation procedures, detailed pre-implementation procedures allowing for proper preparation of the office for implementation, implementation and post-implementation works would be a great help for local governments wishing to use these solutions. The knowledge to develop such documentation can be acquired, for example, during the implementation of pilot projects and supplemented (corrected) during subsequent implementations. RECOMMENDATION • Providing a complete set of documentation for centrally implemented projects, including implementation documen- tation before starting the implementation of activities in a public administration unit. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION: operational/implementation • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  short-term (up to 1 year) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  All entities implementing central projects • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 210 AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 26 STRENGTHENING THE POTENTIAL OF PRIMARILY SMALLER CITIES TO PLAN AND IMPLEMENT PROJECTS IN THE AREA OF DIGITIZATION The basic problem diagnosed in smaller local governments is the shortage of staff and knowledge necessary to implement new digital solutions. This problem is exacerbated by the lack of access to good practices and documentation of imple- mentation procedures. Therefore, it is advisable to create competence centers whose role will be to provide technical, sub- stantive and training support in the field of implementation of IT systems. The establishment of such centers will result in a reduction in the costs of operating the systems, making them available to smaller entities, and the number of entities serviced by one center will also translate into the quality of service and a relatively higher level of competence of the center. RECOMMENDATION • Establishment of competence centers whose role will be to provide technical, substantive and training support in the field of security, integration of IT systems, implementation of organizational solutions, open data, information archi- tecture, processes, management control, education. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION: operational/implementation • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  short-term (up to 1 year) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Chancellery of the Prime Minister (Minister of Digitization) • PRIORITY:  AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 27 DATABASE/LIST OF IT SYSTEMS USED IN POLAND FOR RESIDENTS AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT UNITS The multitude of IT systems used in public administration, in particular in local government administration, causes dif- ficulties in making adequate choices. It is necessary to support decision makers of public administration units in the ex- change of knowledge and experience at the stage of planning projects related to the creation, selection or updating of sys- tems used in the current functioning of public administration units. RECOMMENDATION • Creating a database/list of IT systems used in Poland for the resident and local government units, including a data- base/list of recommended IT systems with an indication of users, e.g. local governments, that use a given solution and have experience in its implementation. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION: operational/implementation • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  short-term (up to 1 year) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  PFR, CPPC, Chancellery of the Prime Minister (Minister of Digitization), COI, Ministry of the Interior and Administration • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 211 AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 28 DEVELOPING A MECHANISM AND PATTERNS OF CONDUCT FOR LOCAL GOVERNMENTS TO PURCHASE CLOUD SERVICES Individual offices develop mechanisms and patterns of conduct for their own needs, including those regarding the pur- chase of cloud services. There are no currently recommended solutions for the administration, and knowledge in this area is the know-how of consulting companies and law firms. The increasing scope of services provided in the cloud and their universality force the development of mechanisms and patterns of conduct. Such a bottom-up initiative is already being implemented by most large and medium-sized cities. RECOMMENDATION • Development of a mechanism and procedures for local governments to purchase cloud services. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION: operational/implementation • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  short-term (up to 1 year) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Chancellery of the Prime Minister (Minister of Digitization), UKE, UZP • PRIORITY:  AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 29 DATABASES OF GOOD PRACTICES IN THE FIELD OF RECORDING PROCESSES, DATA, RESOURCES, IT SYSTEMS AND THEIR USE IN SPECIALIZED PROJECTS A knowledge platform on good practices in the field of digitization could be part of a wider project related to information and knowledge exchange between public administration units. An important element in this solution is the participation not only of local government units, but also of central administration. The exchange of knowledge and experience in the field of digitization is extremely important, especially in the context of information exchange between systems support- ing various administration units. Such a database would allow for quick acquisition of knowledge and avoidance of errors at the stage of choosing solutions, implementation works and operation of IT systems. RECOMMENDATION • Creating a database of good practices in the field of recording processes, data, resources, IT systems and using them in spe- cialized projects, e.g. integration of IT systems, data recording for data integration, open data. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION: operational/implementation • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  short-term (up to 1 year) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Project Center Digital Poland • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 212 AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 30 TRAINING ACTIVITIES TO RAISE THE LEVEL OF KNOWLEDGE AND STRENGTHEN THE DIGITAL AWARENESS OF OFFICIALS AND END-USERS THROUGH REGULAR TRAINING Activities in this area are carried out by various central and local units. These activities are not coordinated with each oth- er. And they are not related to the strategy of implementing IT solutions in the public sphere. In addition, the scope of training and the timing of its implementation and availability for officials and end-users is largely limited. The lack of training in the field of implemented solutions results in growing resistance to changes and hinders the implementation of solutions. Coordination of training activities should take into account strategic documents and launch trainings in ac- cordance with the needs resulting from the implementation of IT systems and include training in areas complementary to IT, e.g. information, organization, management, design. RECOMMENDATION • Implementing systematic, planned and coordinated training activities to raise the level of knowledge and strengthen the digital awareness of officials and end users. An extremely important issue is the implementation of training activ- ities in a purposeful, planned and coordinated manner in a manner focused on creating added value from the imple- mentation of training and the necessary, objective verification of the effects achieved as part of the training. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION: operational/implementation • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  short-term (up to 1 year) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Project Center Digital Poland • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 213 ANNEX 5 RECOMMENDATION BANK: PPP NETWORK RECOMMENDATION 1 SENDING RECOMMENDATIONS OF SELECTED MAPS BY THE MINISTRY TO THE RELEVANT MARSHAL OFFICES JUSTIFICATION/DETAILING THE RECOMMENDATION: • Support for selected MAPs at the stage of obtaining funding and implementation (e.g. by awarding additional points in the assessment). • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  MDFRP • PRIORITY:  RECOMMENDATION 2 IMPROVEMENT OF PPP FINANCING CONDITIONS JUSTIFICATION/DETAILING THE RECOMMENDATION 2.1: • Developing financial mechanisms to improve the financial effectiveness of PPP projects. For example, in the case of revitalization projects, complementary mechanisms for transferring ownership of real estate to a private part- ner are necessary (including potentially adapting the provisions of the Real Estate Management Act). • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  MDFRP • PRIORITY:  JUSTIFICATION/DETAILING THE RECOMMENDATION 2.2: • Creation of a dedicated credit program/offer for PPP projects by the Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego, which would be addressed to private partners. Creating a transparent credit offer would allow to verify the financial capa- bilities and costs of both the private partner and the public entity at an early stage. It would also speed up the financial closure of projects. Standardizing the loan offer could stimulate the PPP market • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  MDFRP • PRIORITY:  JUSTIFICATION/DETAILING THE RECOMMENDATION 2.3: • Allowing the Private Partner to apply for EU funds as a Beneficiary. Such an arrangement is already possible, but rarely used. We also assume support from the Public Entity, which could not only support the Partner in the application process, but also be a kind of guarantor of such funding, because it is a more credible beneficiary of the funds. Perhaps non-repayable support could be allowed for Private Partners who, in PPP projects, provide public services through pub- lic infrastructure on behalf of the Public Entity and finance it. • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  MDFRP • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 215 JUSTIFICATION/DETAILING THE RECOMMENDATION 2.4: • Preferential loans/credits for Private Partners from the banking sector. Perhaps an example to follow should be the support of commercial banks granting preferential loans (assuming a certain percentage of redemption) for residents and communities for the replacement of heat sources and retrofitting activities. Private banks can be encouraged, fol- lowing the example of BGK, to grant preferential loans to Private Partners for the provision of public services, perhaps with the option of early repayment without or repayment of part of the debt without additional costs or with the op- tion of redemption, in accordance with the idea as above, i.e. providing public services through infrastructure on be- half of the Public Entity and its financing. • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  MDFRP • PRIORITY:  JUSTIFICATION/DETAILING THE RECOMMENDATION 2.5: • Adoption of solutions to amend the regulations, to exempt or reduce the rates for local government units from the tax on goods and services for investments in the construction of infrastructure of public utility buildings, which will contribute to generating large savings on the part of local government units — in particular, that in most cases construction of public building infrastructure, local government units are not entitled to a deduction or the de- duction calculated with the pre-indicator is very small. • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  MDFRP • PRIORITY:  RECOMMENDATION 3 GREATER INVOLVEMENT OF THE GOVERNMENT IN THE IMPLEMENTATION OF PPP PROJECTS — AS AN EFFECTIVE FORM OF IMPLEMENTATION OF PUBLIC TASKS JUSTIFICATION/DETAILING THE RECOMMENDATION: • For example, indicating to government units the percentage share of tasks that should be implemented in the PPP formula within a specific time horizon. • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  MDFRP • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 216 RECOMMENDATION 4 EXTENSION OF THE RULES FOR PROVIDING GOVERNMENT SUPPORT IN THE FIELD OF CONSULTING JUSTIFICATION/DETAILING THE RECOMMENDATION: • Enabling local governments to choose the option of conducting the advisor selection procedure themselves, e.g. in the negotiated mode with an announcement, which would allow them to familiarize themselves with the ex- perience and offer of consulting companies and to make the right choice and determine effective cooperation rules. • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  MDFRP • PRIORITY:  RECOMMENDATION 5 INTRODUCTION OF PREFERENCES FOR PPP (HYBRID/BLENDED PROJECTS) IN THE SELECTION CRITERIA FOR PROJECTS APPLYING FOR EU FINANCIAL SUPPORT JUSTIFICATION/DETAILING THE RECOMMENDATION: • Regardless of whether the beneficiary of EU funds could ultimately be a Public Entity or a Private Partner, grant- ing preferences (additional points when evaluating application documentation, calls for proposals dedicat- ed only to PPP projects) in the process of obtaining funds for PPP investments would reduce the costs of fi- nancing the entire project. It is important that the preference is attractive. High chances of obtaining co-financing for PPP projects would allow, with high probability, to assume external co-financing already at the stage of pre-imple- mentation analyses of the project. • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  MDFRP, Managing Authorities for national and regional EU-funded programmes • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 217 RECOMMENDATION 6 FINANCIAL SUPPORT FOR PUBLIC ENTITIES AT THE INITIAL STAGE OF PPP PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION (EFFICIENCY ASSESSMENT) — TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE JUSTIFICATION/DETAILING THE RECOMMENDATION: • The proposal concerns the maintenance of the existing support from the MDFRP for financing consultancy for Public Entities, but also offering technical assistance (financial support) in the form of reimbursement of the local government’s own expenses for the initial, mandatory pre-implementation analyses, which are contract- ed faster when the principal is a local government than when the service is commissioned by MDFRP. In addition, the rule of “cheaper” contracts for consulting is noticeable in the case of commissioning the provision of these services by lo- cal government units, than in the case of commissioning by the Ministry of Finance. • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  MDFRP, Managing Authorities for national and regional EU-funded programmes • PRIORITY:  RECOMMENDATION 7 OBLIGATORY OE OPINION — CARE FOR HIGH QUALITY OF ANALYZES THAT INDIRECTLY AFFECT THE ESTIMATION OF THE PROJECT VALUE AND THE OFFER PRICE FROM THE PRIVATE PARTNER JUSTIFICATION/DETAILING THE RECOMMENDATION: • We propose to change the assessment of pre-implementation analyzes by MDFRP from a recommended op- tion to a mandatory one. This would be a signal to develop better quality pre-implementation analyses, and thus fi- nancial analyses of the project, which would result in better estimation of the project value and lower risk of its fail- ure. It also has the effect of minimizing events affecting the additional costs of the project. • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  MDFRP • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 218 RECOMMENDATION 8 DESCRIPTION OF A UNIFORM INTERPRETATION APPROACH IN THE SCOPE OF BUDGETARY CLASSIFICATION OF PUBLIC LIABILITIES DUE TO REMUNERATION OF THE PRIVATE PARTNER — THE ACTION SHOULD NOT FOCUS ONLY ON DRAWING UP FURTHER INTERPRETATIVE GUIDELINES, BUT ON ADOPTING THE “SLOVAK MODEL”, IN WHICH THE GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION ISSUES A BINDING OPINION ON THE PROPOSED PPP CONTRACT IN TERMS OF ITS IMPACT ON THE DEBT RATIOS OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT UNITS JUSTIFICATION/DETAILING THE RECOMMENDATION: • The binding opinion should concern the model/proposal of the PPP contract, after obtaining which the public entity could start negotiations in legal and financial rounds with private partners during the tender procedure. This would save time and costs for both private partners and the local government unit itself. The RIO’s opinion on the im- pact of investments on public debt is now de facto obtained after the conclusion of the PPP contract. If we accept a high risk of the impact of the PPP agreement on the debt of local government units, and currently this risk is increasing, then it should not be surprising that local government units are too little interested in the PPP formula (often the only condition for considering the implementation of investments in the PPP formula by local government units is the lack of impact of the PPP contract on debt ratios ). • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  MDFRP • PRIORITY:  RECOMMENDATION 9 DEVELOPMENT AND INTENSIFICATION OF ADVISORY SUPPORT IN THE FIELD OF PPP JUSTIFICATION/DETAILING THE RECOMMENDATION 9.1: • Preparation and sharing of framework contract templates for projects implemented in the PPP formula, in- cluding e.g. contracts for specific sectors (energy efficiency, public buildings, housing, etc.) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  MDFRP • PRIORITY:  JUSTIFICATION/DETAILING THE RECOMMENDATION 9.2: • Preparation and provision of a list of recommended entities performing performance assessments • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  MDFRP • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 219 JUSTIFICATION/DETAILING THE RECOMMENDATION 9.3 • Preparation of the recommended list of contractors who correctly implement the PPP documenta- tion — based on the experience of the MDFRP in issuing opinions on the documentation regarding the correctness and completeness of the analyzes carried out prior to the implementation of the project. • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  MDFRP • PRIORITY:  JUSTIFICATION/DETAILING THE RECOMMENDATION 9.4 • Preparation and sharing a recommended list of European projects whose experience can be used in the imple- mentation of the MAP. • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  MDFRP • PRIORITY:  JUSTIFICATION/DETAILING THE RECOMMENDATION 9.5 • Creation and sharing a checklist for public entities supporting the decision-making process on the selec- tion of PPP as the optimal investment implementation formula (not every project fits it and decisions in this mat- ter must be made on the basis of reliable calculations). • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  MDFRP • PRIORITY:  JUSTIFICATION/DETAILING THE RECOMMENDATION 9.6 • Update (including adaptation to Polish conditions) of a self-diagnosis tool for local government units used to as- sess the institutional potential for the implementation of a PPP project, which will allow for a more conscious use of external advisory support to fill identified competence gaps and/or better targeted building of own competence re- sources. Such a tool has been developed by the EIB, but it needs to be updated and adapted to current conditions in Poland. • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  MDFRP • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 220 RECOMMENDATION 10 POPULARIZATION OF PPP: TRAINING JUSTIFICATION/DETAILING THE RECOMMENDATION: • Systematic training for city treasurers on the technical aspects of PPP projects is essential. Aware and commit- ted Treasurers are one of the key success factors for PPP projects. • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  MDFRP • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 221 ANNEX 6 RECOMMENDATION BANK: GREEN NETWORK AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 1 COOPERATION WITH NETWORK INFRASTRUCTURE OPERATORS IN AREAS WHERE INVESTMENTS IN GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE AND NBS ARE PLANNED RECOMMENDATION PROPOSAL 1.1: • Simplification of legal procedures. Optimization of currently long-term consultation procedures (e.g. Waters of Po- land — hydrotechnical facilities, PKP — railway infrastructure, GDDKiA — road infrastructure). • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  strategic/systemic • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  medium-term (from 1 to 3 years) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Ministry of Climate and Environment • PRIORITY:  RECOMMENDATION PROPOSAL 1.2: • Guidelines for operators to include a greenery specialist in the process of cooperation with other authorities in mat- ters related to investments. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION: operational/implementation • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  short-term (up to 1 year) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Ministry of Infrastructure and Construction — in cooperation with the Min- istry of Climate and environment • PRIORITY:  AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 2 GREENERY AND MONUMENT PROTECTION RECOMMENDATION PROPOSAL 2.1: • Simplification of legal procedures. Optimization of — currently long-term — arrangements with the conserva- tor of monuments. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  strategic/systemic • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  medium-term (from 1 to 3 years) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Ministry of Culture and National Heritage — in cooperation with the Minis- try of Climate and Environment • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 223 RECOMMENDATION PROPOSAL 2.2: • Under the subsidy instrument “Special Regeneration Zone”, established by the provisions of the Regeneration Act, the catalog of possible works resulting from the Act on the Protection and Care of Monuments (Article 77) should be ex- tended to include neighboring spaces and specified in terms of acceptable renovation and construction works, to ef- fectively support the comprehensive regeneration of the most degraded spaces, including the improvement of the liv- ing conditions of residents. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  strategic/systemic • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  medium-term (from 1 to 3 years) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Ministry of Culture and National Heritage • PRIORITY:  AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 3 MEASURES TO ENFORCE THE APPLICATION OF GREENERY LAW BY LAND AND BUILDING OWNERS RECOMMENDATION PROPOSAL 3.1: • Raising the amount of administrative penalties for people who illegally remove trees, as well as the effectiveness of their enforcement. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  strategic/systemic • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  medium-term (from 1 to 3 years) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Ministry of Climate and Environment • PRIORITY:  RECOMMENDATION PROPOSAL 3.2: • Allowing local governments to increase fees for removing trees and fines for illegal tree felling. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  strategic/systemic • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  medium-term (from 1 to 3 years) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Ministry of Climate and Environment • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 224 AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 4 GREENERY PROTECTION IN THE INVESTMENT PROCESS RECOMMENDATION PROPOSAL 4.1: • National standards for greenery at the investment planning stage (indicators that will show the degree of taking into account the natural potential, e.g. indicators of investment greening, indicators of loss of natural potential). • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION: operational/implementation • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  medium-term (from 1 to 3 years) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Ministry of Climate and Environment — in cooperation with the Minis- try of Development and Technology • PRIORITY:  RECOMMENDATION PROPOSAL 4.2: • Introducing the obligation to conduct a greenery audit before the planned investment — e.g. on the model of an ener- gy audit, which is a mandatory document when applying for external funds. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  strategic/systemic • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  medium-term (from 1 to 3 years) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Ministry of Climate and Environment • PRIORITY:  RECOMMENDATION PROPOSAL 4.3: • National standards for the protection of greenery in the investment process and ensuring supervision over the work by a greenery supervision inspector. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION: operational/implementation • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  medium-term (from 1 to 3 years) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Ministry of Climate and Environment — in cooperation with the Minis- try of Development and Technology • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 225 RECOMMENDATION PROPOSAL 4.4: • Creation and maintenance of a platform for the exchange of good practices and experiences in the field of: implemen- tation of green infrastructure, taking into account information on the costs of maintaining green solutions, and not only the investment outlays needed for their implementation; species recommended for planting, taking into account urban conditions and maintenance costs. Such knowledge would support cities in choosing solutions and help them optimize budget expenditures in the medium and long-term. European example: https://oppla.eu/ • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION: operational/implementation • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  medium-term (from 1 to 3 years) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Ministry of Climate and Environment • PRIORITY:  RECOMMENDATION PROPOSAL 4.5: • Disseminating good practices of sustainable use and protection of wastelands (the so-called fourth nature) — includ- ing national recommendations, educational and promotional campaigns. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION: operational/implementation • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  medium-term (from 1 to 3 years) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Ministry of Climate and Environment • PRIORITY:  RECOMMENDATION PROPOSAL 4.6: • Introduction of solutions excluding the possibility of combining the function of a designer with the function of a green- ery supervision inspector due to a conflict of interest. Increasing the responsibility of designers in terms of greenery, which is to prevent the blurring of responsibility in the event of failure to maintain the vitality of greenery. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  strategic/systemic • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  medium-term (from 1 to 3 years) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Ministry of Climate and Environment • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 226 RECOMMENDATION PROPOSAL 4.7: • Making the provisions on replacement plantings more flexible, allowing for the introduction of other types of green- ery than those removed. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  strategic/systemic • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  medium-term (from 1 to 3 years) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Ministry of Climate and Environment • PRIORITY:  RECOMMENDATION PROPOSAL 4.8: • Strengthening the protection of replacement plantings after a period of 3 years from their implementation. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  strategic/systemic • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  medium-term (from 1 to 3 years) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Ministry of Climate and Environment • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 227 AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 5 GREENERY PROTECTION IN SPATIAL PLANNING RECOMMENDATION PROPOSAL 5.1: • Introduction of a comprehensive greening indicator in planning documents in the spatial planning system. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  strategic/systemic • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  medium-term (from 1 to 3 years) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Ministry of Climate and Environment — in cooperation with the Minis- try of Development and Technology • PRIORITY:  RECOMMENDATION PROPOSAL 5.2: • In the absence of a local spatial development plan, there are no specific requirements (procedural and planning) for the investor in terms of greenery. It is recommended to implement the following post-inspection conclusions from the au- dit conducted by NIK in 2021 – 2022 (https://www.nik.gov.pl/aktualnosci/tereny-zielone-w-miastach.html; https://www. nik.gov.pl/kontrole/P/21/074/ post-inspection information from April 2022): introduction of a legal basis for specify- ing in the decision on land development and land use orders, prohibitions, admissions and restrictions in land develop- ment resulting from the environmental protection needs referred to in in art. 72 of the Environmental Protection Law; • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  strategic/systemic • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  medium-term (from 1 to 3 years) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Ministry of Development and Technology — in cooperation with the Minis- try of Climate and Environment • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 228 AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 6 COORDINATION OF ACTIVITIES BETWEEN KEY CITY SERVICES IN THE FIELD OF GREENING INVESTMENTS RECOMMENDATION PROPOSAL 6.1: • Dissemination of good practice related to the appointment of municipal, interdepartmental teams for sustainable de- velopment in order to improve the coordination of activities between key city services. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION: operational/implementation • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  medium-term (from 1 to 3 years) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Ministry of Climate and Environment, Ministry of Development Funds and Regional Policy • PRIORITY:  RECOMMENDATION PROPOSAL 6.2: • Financial support for the digitization of data related to the investment implementation process, most often dis - persed in various departments, and allowing project teams ongoing access (e.g. information about plots, projects, cost estimates, etc.); including support for the creation of cloud systems (a support program similar to Digital Commune). • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION: operational/implementation • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  medium-term (from 1 to 3 years) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Ministry of Development Funds and Regional Policy • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 229 AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 7 RAISING THE AWARENESS AND INVOLVEMENT OF OFFICIALS, CITY COUNCILORS AND RESIDENTS IN THE FIELD OF GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE AND SOLUTIONS BASED ON NATURAL RESOURCES RECOMMENDATION PROPOSAL 7.1: • Co-financing/organization of trainings, workshops, study trips for decision-makers and local leaders. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION: operational/implementation • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  medium-term (from 1 to 3 years) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Ministry of Climate and Environment, Ministry of Development Funds and Regional Policy • PRIORITY:  RECOMMENDATION PROPOSAL 7.2: • Co-financing/organization of trainings for employees of city offices, municipal companies (related to both environ- mental protection and investments) in the field of green infrastructure and solutions based on natural resources. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION: operational/implementation • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  medium-term (from 1 to 3 years) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Ministry of Climate and Environment/City Offices • PRIORITY:  RECOMMENDATION PROPOSAL 7.3: • Co-financing for schools to involve experts in the implementation of curriculum content in the field of adaptation to cli- mate change through green infrastructure and solutions based on natural resources. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION: operational/implementation • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  medium-term (from 1 to 3 years) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Ministry of Education and Science, Ministry of Climate and Environment, Ministry of Development Funds and Regional Policy • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 230 AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 8 FINANCING INVESTMENTS IN GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE AND SOLUTIONS BASED ON NATURE RESOURCES RECOMMENDATION PROPOSAL 8.1: • Introducing effective incentives for private entities to green private areas, e.g. in the form of appropriate tax reliefs. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  strategic/systemic • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  long-term (from 3 to 5 years) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Ministry of Finance — in cooperation with the Ministry of Climate and Environment • PRIORITY:  RECOMMENDATION PROPOSAL 8.2: • Subsidy programs • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION: operational/implementation • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  medium-term (from 1 to 3 years) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Ministry of Development Funds and Regional Policy — in cooperation with the Ministry of Climate and Environment • PRIORITY:  RECOMMENDATION PROPOSAL 8.3: • Subsidy programs • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION: operational/implementation • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  short-term (up to 1 year) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Under the new EU perspective 2021 – 2027, VAT is ineligible in transformation projects above EUR 5 million. Therefore, in addition to the necessary own contribution, as well as ineligible costs (if any), public beneficiaries will also have to bear the entire cost of VAT. It is postulated to support local governments in en- suring their own contribution at a level at least for eligible costs. These can be subsidy or repayable mechanisms. In the case of loans granted for the above-mentioned purpose, it is worth considering that they should not be classified as pub- lic debt. • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  National/Provincial Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Manage- ment, Ministry of Development Funds and Regional Policy • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 231 RECOMMENDATION PROPOSAL 8.4: • Subsidy programs • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION: operational/implementation • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  medium-term (from 1 to 3 years) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Unification of the line of interpretation of the Regional Accounting Chambers (RIO) in terms of assigning funds spent on urban greenery to a specific category of expenses. If RIOs classify these ex- penses as property expenses, and not current expenses, then city treasury officials are negative about including green- ery expenses in city budgets. • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Ministry of Finance • PRIORITY:  AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 9 LEGAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL CONDITIONS RECOMMENDATION PROPOSAL: • Increasing the possibility of establishing municipal companies that could implement innovative projects. The postu- late concerns the abolition of restrictions resulting from art. 10 sec. 1 of the Act on Municipal Management. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  strategic/systemic • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  medium-term (from 1 to 3 years) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Ministry of Development and Technology • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 232 AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 10 STRENGTHENING THE EXCHANGE OF EXPERIENCES BETWEEN CITIES RELATED TO INVESTMENTS IN GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE AND SOLUTIONS BASED ON NATURAL RESOURCES RECOMMENDATION PROPOSAL: • Continuation and development of support for the exchange of experiences by cities within the framework of themat- ic networks • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION: operational/implementation • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  short-term (up to 1 year) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Ministry of Development Funds and Regional Policy • PRIORITY:  AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 11 EXPERT SUPPORT FOR CITIES RECOMMENDATION PROPOSAL: • Organization of expert support for smaller cities, including advice on rainwater management, including small reten- tion. The creation of regional groups (e.g. at the poviat or voivodeship level) may be considered. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION: operational/implementation • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  medium-term (from 1 to 3 years) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Ministry of Infrastructure, Ministry of Climate and Environment • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 233 AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT 12 COOPERATION OF GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION WITH LOCAL GOVERNMENTS RECOMMENDATION PROPOSAL: • Appointment of a “green round table” with the participation of representatives of government administration and lo- cal governments, in order to implement the New Urban Agenda and the National Urban Policy. The Team’s work would focus on initiating and creating actions undertaken by cities, prioritizing tasks to be undertaken by local government units, developing recommendations for local government units. • THE NATURE OF THE RECOMMENDATION: operational/implementation • RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION HORIZON:  short-term (up to 1 year) • THE ADDRESSEE OF THE RECOMMENDATION:  Ministry of Development Funds and Regional Policy • PRIORITY:  CITIES’ PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:  Sustainable development of Polish cities 234