Local government in the Arab Union

In the Union of Arab Republics (UAR; informally known as the Arab Union) local government is organised in a uniform manner. As the constitution makes virtually no reference to governance or public administration at the local level, the Local Government Act, 2004 serves as primary legislation enabling local government and outlining its areas of responsibility and authority as distinct from higher levels of government.

The Arab Union is a federation of 20 republics, and as such local government occupies the third tier of public administration, below governorates and the government of the Arab Union. The basic unit of local government is called a baladiyah (plural baladiyāt), variously translated as township, commune or municipality.

Structure
Each baladiyah constitutes a defined geographic area and forms a single level for the purposes of public administration, with no distinction between cities and counties. All permanently inhabited areas form part of a particular baladiyah, as well as surrounding land up to the boundaries of adjacent baladiyāt, with the exception of large expanses of uninhabited areas which are unincorporated. As a general rule, each individually defined city or town constitutes a separate baladiyah, although this is less defined in metropolitan areas where several neighbouring baladiyāt form a single contiguous urban area.

Each baladiyah is administered by a council, which is elected every two years. Councils are led by an internally elected chairperson, who appoints a professional manager to administer the council's executive functions. Councils collect property taxes and provide local services, such as utilities, road maintenance, zoning and urban development, schools, libraries, parks and recreational facilities.