Opportunities and Challenges of Citizen Participation in the Territorial Planning System in Ecuador

Fragmented public action and the limitations to coordinate national and local public policies with the involvement of the citizenry require the creation of spaces for citizen participation linked to the planning processes of the different levels of government. In Ecuador (2008), citizen participation is a constitutional right of mandatory compliance for the entities and instruments part of the National Decentralized System of Participatory Planning. This study analyzes the normative aspects of the citizen participation system for territorial planning at the national and subnational levels, its opportunities and challenges to promote citizen involvement in formulating and updating territorial planning instruments. For this purpose, an in-depth reading of the national legislation is conducted, contrasted with interviews with those who participate in the planning process. The results show that the constitutionally established model of participation has been limited to a legal method of obligatory compliance at the consultative and information levels of the different levels of government. It is necessary to implement regulatory and methodological adjustments that contribute to a new culture of public planning.