In Hungary the main responsibility of social service provision falls under the municipalities. However regulation and consequent financing is very centralised. It is regulated in a national act, the social act which municipality has to provide what kind of services. The biggest challenge in front of Hungary regarding social service provision is how to overcome old planning processes and centralised regulations about what to provide, where and to whom.
The first such initiative from the Ministry of Youth, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunity (MYFSE) was in 2001 with an amendment of the 3/1993 Social Act. According to the new regulation all counties and municipalities have to create a so-called “social service provision plan”. By planning of social services we mean assessing demand, estimating future needs and calculating comparative costs and benefits of the different types of services.
Since that time the Municipality of Budapest has formulated its Social service provision plan in the year 2003, which has been revised in 2005.
The revision of the plan helps to monitor the social services delivery development and also to create a better understanding of the most crucial and long-term problems. The revision also highlights good examples from the practices of district authorities. The policy document gives the municipality of Budapest a coordinative role among the district governments. It assures expert knowledge, information database and help with dissemination of practices to the district governments.

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Municipality of Budapest
Hungary
http://www.budapest.hu
Mr József Skultéti (Head of Social Services Unit), tel. +36 1 327 1190

01/01/2005

policy

Urban Policy > Social inclusion & integration > Quality of life

Social services