From October 10 to November 15, the municipality of Auderghem is looking for 33 residents to form its Citizen Evaluation Council. These residents will be trained and compensated to evaluate the municipal action neutrally and independently, thus answering questions about the effectiveness, relevance, and coherence of the actions taken.
This initiative is the result of research conducted in collaboration with researchers from the Policy Lab at ULB. The mayor emphasizes the importance of this approach: « In a world where fake news makes us doubt everything, such discourse is no longer enough. We have therefore decided to give residents the power to evaluate what we do. »
For the first time in Europe, residents will annually evaluate their municipality's actions. The call for applications is open to any Auderghem resident aged 18 or over. An online application form will be available, and outreach will be conducted in neighborhoods for those less comfortable with the internet. Following the call, the 33 members will be randomly selected using a diversified sampling methodology.
The Council's installation is planned for early January 2027. Members will begin with a 3-half-day training on the municipality's competencies and functioning, to understand its scope of action and conduct evaluation work. The first evaluation session will start in March 2027 and will focus on achievements from 2026.
Each alderman and municipal department will report to the Council members, presenting what was planned, achieved, or delayed. The exercise will draw upon the legislature's roadmap, annual activity reports, and a satisfaction survey conducted annually between December and January.
The evaluation will follow three criteria from the OECD reference framework, adapted by the Policy Lab at ULB: effectiveness, relevance, and coherence. « The CEC will therefore rely on a completely neutral objectification tool that guarantees an objective result, » specifies Sarah Touil, head of the Participation service.
The annual process will conclude with a public presentation in June, on the same day as the 'Apéro des Habitants'. Results will be published online and officially presented to the Municipal Council. The mayor clarifies that the CEC does not replace the Municipal Council or the College but adds direct resident involvement to monitor and correct municipal actions.
At the end of the legislative term, these successive evaluations will lead to a memorandum presented to all lists running in the 2030 elections.
