LOGOTRI Reconvenes in Penang
14 October 2019
PENANG, MALAYSIA – The Network of Local Government Training and Research Institutes in Asia and the Pacific (LOGOTRI) General Council Meeting (GCM) reconvened last 14 October 2019, presided over by the Center for Local and Regional Governance (CLRG) Director, Dr. Erwin Alampay. He currently serves as Acting President of the network following the resignation of its last president from India. The meeting was held in the SPICE Convention Center at Penang, Malaysia on the sidelines of the Seventh Asia-Pacific Urban Forum: APUF-7 organized by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the PACIFIC (ESCAP). LOGOTRI was co-founded by UNESCAP in 1999.
Twelve (12) Representatives from member institutes from nine (9) different countries were in attendance. Local Government Academy (LGA) Executive Director Thelma Vecina, current LOGOTRI Secretariat and organizer of the meeting, also helped facilitate the GCM. The main agenda of the meeting was to discuss the revitalization of the network as it has been dormant since 2011. Dr. Alampay, in his opening message, said that the attendance of everyone in the meeting reflects their interest in reviving LOGOTRI. He said: "I'd also like to believe that you came over here from hours of travel because you are open to reviving (LOGOTRI) and you see the value of the network.". UNESCAP also expressed their optimism over these efforts through their representative - Natasha Wehmer. “I am very happy for LOGOTRI to come together again and that UNESCAP always stands ready to support LOGOTRI.” she added.
Among major discussion points of the meeting included revisiting the history of the network, the Declaration of Recommitment among member institutes, status of membership fees and funds, the LOGOTRI charter, election of the vacant officer positions and next steps for reviving the network. The network plans to hold another GCM, hopefully with more members in attendance, around October 2020. The LOGOTRI was founded with 24 member institutions from 14 different countries with the main goal of building the capacities of local government training and research institutes so that they can provide better training and research services. It was founded as a “self-help network” which seeks to develop programs for its members with very limited influence from themes or subjects of donor-driven capacity building programs. More CLRG News.
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