Satisfying the expressed by citizens need for government transparency in the pre-election campaign Local Elections Teteven 2003 and the need of creating real conditions for citizen participation in the process of developing local management policy and in decision-making processes.

The system of new forms of work with citizens form Teteven Municipality envisages timely informing, improving the communication processes, enhancing citizen initiatives and undertaking responsibilities, participation in decision-making processes. It was based on real local legislative framework, establishment of informal structures and dialogue promotion. Energy, imagination, intellect, will, responsibility and time these are the resources to implement the process.

Since January 2004 the municipal administration simultaneously with the approved standards of communication with citizens proposed and implemented new forms of promoting communication processes.

4 reception days were introduced one for the Mayor, Tsetska Dimitrova, for the Chair of MC, Silva Hristova, and the rest two for both deputy mayors Nako Nakov and Stayko petrov. This provided and opportunity for citizens to enter direct dialogue and for a shorter period of time to receive decisions on topical issues and problems, based on the competent statement of experts from the administration, who are usually attending the meeting on the reception day.

In January, February and March the Mayor of the Municipality and the Chair of the MC carried out outside reception days on the territory of mayoralties within the municipality with the community councils and citizens.

On March the managerial team of the Municipality carried out a reception meeting with the mayoralty administration of the village of Ribaritsa, the community council, representatives of small and medium tourist business and other stakeholders and citizens. Various opportunities for implementing a business project The Magic of the Mountain (skiing complex, with a vacation village and hotel), proposed by a company willing to invest money in the region was discussed.

The practice Mayor s Day was approved every last Monday of the month mayors and mayors of mayoralties from 12 settlements within the municipality meet the Mayor of the municipality and institutional representatives, to ask their specific questions. For example in March managers of Energy Supply and water Supply companies took part in the meetings. Through a direct dialogue with mayors of mayoralties they provided answers to questions and suggested alternatives of fixed deadlines.

The meetings between the Mayor of the municipality and the Chair of the MC and political leaders form the region are also positive ones. We outline problems and suggest joint solutions - is their message. They meet every last Thursday of each second month of the year. In March the most discussed problem was the status of the semi-ruined hotel complex in the center of Teteven. The discussions were ended with a package of suggestions and recommendations addressed to the Regional Governor, Zafir Zarkov, because the hotel is state property.

The practice of every official in the Municipal administration to monitor and support citizens in the maintenance and management of a street or a neighborhood in the city is also a new one. This was initiated by traditional spring cleaning campaign.

New informal structures were also established:

Community councils to support cultural activities and business sector within the Municipal administration;

A group to inform the administration on behaviour and recommendations of citizens; it consists of citizens representing different political parties and possessing various professional competencies to perform monthly meetings.

Business Women Club;

Youth Center after identifying the youth formations meetings with their leaders were carried out; through provision of municipal properties for free usage conditions for youth contacts and activities were created.

Information services:

Since January the municipal administration started performing press-conferences with the local media. The citizens were informed about the members of the managerial team and the priority activities for the year 2004, as well as about the increase of the promile of waste fee. The media receive weekly up-to-date information about the work of the administration and the municipal council; the administration and the municipal council make their reports on the activities every three months and announce them to citizens through the local media; the mayor of the municipality regularly responds to questions addressed by the citizens.

In the beginning of March the administration located in all neighborhoods special information boxes for opinions, recommendations and suggestions of citizens. The information is gathered by citizens volunteers, members of the informal info group.

Coming practices of Teteven Municipality:

- project Referendum and Citizen Initiative , organized by Balkan Assist Association;

- project Community Forum - medium and small business in the field of tourism.

Through implementing new practices we achieved:

Increase of interest and reviving the dialogue between local authority and citizens of Teteven Municipality;

The municipality shortened the distance between citizens and the administration, regularly gets acquainted with their problems on the spot; consults with the citizens on key community issues and discusses perspectives;

Attention to youth formations; increasing the interest of young people and activating their communication with the local authority;

Government transparency ;

Confidence in the managerial team;

Replicating the experience of the municipal administration in mayoralties, for example: outside reception days were carried out in the mayoralty of Cherni Vit; Golyam Izvor developed its own Sustainable Development Strategy for the managerial mandate;

Tolerant relationships among representatives of political parties.

Press-conferences .