Birzeit School of Government Hosts Local Government Expert Knip

The Birzeit School of Government at the Birzeit University Faculty of Law and Public Administration held on March 10, 2015 a public lecture on "Dutch-Palestinian Local Government Cooperation: Policy Lessons," delivered by international expert Peter Knip. Knip is the president of VNG International, the international cooperation agency of the Association of Netherlands Municipalities, and founder and president of The Hague Academy for Local Governance. He also serves as vice president of the United Cities and Local Governments, an umbrella organization for cities, local governments and municipal associations throughout the world.

The lecturer addressed the nature of local government system in the Netherlands, and the support provided by the Association of Netherlands Municipalities to some Arab countries including Palestine over the last two decades. Knip also touched on the world's most prominent systems of local governance and the relationship between local government and central government, explaining the mechanisms and implications of transformation from centralization to decentralization in various countries.