%0 Journal Article %T Construcci¨®n pol¨ªtica ciudadana y desarrollo en Venezuela %A C¨®rdova Jaimes %A Edgar %J Fr¨®nesis %D 2008 %I Scientific Electronic Library Online %X citizen participation is linked to the promotion of endogenous development by the venezuelan state; it is carried out in the midst of structural re-adjustments purposed to define a new political-economic organization model that arose from the national constitution in effect since 1999, which establishes citizen participation as a central element for democracy. this constitutional precept has been developed through a series of laws, establishing, in the author£¿s judgment, a broad spectrum legal citizenry: recent changes have established participation systems, such as the communal councils, to plan, design and execute public policy. the assumed premise is that promoting an economy that values what is local requires the re-politicization of the citizens (political construction), that is, £¿converting the legal citizenry into political citizenry.£¿ the objective of this study is to determine the characteristics that the construction and functioning of communal councils are taking on, particularly on the east coast of the lake in the state of zulia. research is of a documentary, field type using interviews and participant observation. it was noted that the communal councils are structures promoted by the central government, weakening their potential as mechanisms for citizen construction of public spaces that make endogenous development viable. %K citizen participation %K communal councils %K endogenous development %K legal citizenship. %U http://www.scielo.org.ve/scielo.php?script=sci_abstract&pid=S1315-62682008000200004&lng=en&nrm=iso&tlng=en