ความร่วมมือระหว่างองค์กรปกครองส่วนท้องถิ่นในบริบทสากล: เหตุผล รูปแบบ และเงื่อนไขความสำเร็จ

Abstract

Inter-local cooperation has been widely implemented as an approach for improving the capacity of local governments in providing services. Many academic works have been emerged in relation to that topic. This article aims to: (1) synthesise reasons for the initiation of inter-local cooperation; (2) investigate types of inter-local cooperation that have been used in international context; and (3) analyse factors affecting successful cooperation. Documentary research was conducted for collecting data, while thematic and narrative approaches were employed to analyse the data. Findings are as follows. First, there are two key reasons for creating inter-local cooperation. Firstly, local governments wish to achieve efficiency and economies of scale, particularly in the face of austerity. Secondly, they need to deal with wicked and cross-cutting issues.  Second, inter-local cooperation can be implemented in various types by which the perspective of inter-organisational relationships can be used to gain in-depth understanding of such types. This perspective proposes that types of inter-local cooperation range from the lowest level of relationship – that is the relationship without a written agreement that developed on interpersonal relationships among local leaders, to the highest level of relationship – that is the integration of two or more organisations into a single unit.  Third, for the key success factors for inter-local cooperation, findings demonstrate the presence of factors namely competent boundary spanners, collaborative culture among local governments, inter-organisational trust, and the socio-cultural conditions in each local area are vital. These factors must be given a significant consideration when implementing inter-local cooperation in any type.