Digital platforms of citizens participation: Russian and foreign experience

Introduction: the first Russian Internet portals of initiative budgeting started in 2016, making it possible for citizens to participate in the distribution of budget funds in a digital format. According to the initiative budgeting development monitoring data in the Russian regions, the number of such Internet portals amounted to 24 in 2023 (specialized Internet portals functioning in 20 regions of Russia). At present, the development of these internet portals is not regulated by normative acts of the practices of initiative budgeting, there are no strategic documents that would determine their prospects. In addition, the accumulated experience has not been sufficiently studied and does not assess their development and utility for users. Objectives: to evaluate the functionality of Russian internet portals for initiative budgeting and compare them with their foreign analogs. Methods: improved methodology of the United Nations Organization for assessing the development of public participation Internet portals. Results: most of the evaluated Internet portals for initiative budgeting require improvement and expansion of their functionality (a detailed characterization of the reviewed Internet portals in five categories is given). Only 8 out of 24 evaluated Russian Internet portals exceeded the median evaluation value. Comparison of Russian and foreign Internet portals showed the developed functionality of the latter. Conclusions: the existing Internet portals of initiative budgeting are mainly used as information resources, while the direct involvement of citizens through digital platforms remains underdeveloped.