Commonwealth Local Government Forum

Southern Africa \ Local democracy

This section contains information relating to all aspects of lcoal democracy and good governance at the local level. The Commonwealth principles on good practice for local democracy and good governance - known as the Aberdeen Agenda - which have been adopted by all CLGF members and are incorporated in the Commonwealth Charter, set the framework for the promotion of local democracy in the Commonwealth. The materials in this section relate to the constitutional and legal provisions for local government and include a range of studies, policy and training materials on local elections, leadership, community participation, representative local government, local government management and partnerships between local government and other key stakeholders such as traditional authorities.

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Corruption in Zimbabwean Urban Local Authorities: A Case of Gweru City Council

The research aims to analyze the causes of corruption, anti corruption measures that have been put in place, the challenges that have been faced in the implementation of these strategies and what can be done to improve them. Public sector officials have been seen engaging in corrupt activities and meeting their private gain at the expense of service delivery. Corruption is caused by a variety of factors, if they are not addressed corruption will not be successfully arrested and society will continue to suffer. Forms of corruption which include bribery, nepotism, gross mismanagement of council funds and misuse of council assets, selling of council assets at low rates and the bribing of council workers, have impacted negatively on service delivery. The research was conducted at Gweru City Council and questionnaires and interviews were used to elicit data from the informants. The anti corruption measures revealed include internal and external auditing, punishing of offenders, whistle blowing, use of the code of ethics among other strategies. However, these strategies have not been fully implemented to make them totally effective. The recommendations are that codes of conduct and strong independent oversight bodies should be put in place, improvement of remuneration, internal and external auditing will help curb corrupt practices, penalties should be stiffer but not discriminatory and whistleblowers should report cases of corruption without fear, the media should investigate, report and expose corruption without undermining the credibility of anti corruption efforts. Civil society organizations should be allowed to access and question council information and decisions.

Author: Angeline Sithole Publisher: Asian Journal of Social Sciences & Humanities Publication year: 2013


BOOK REVIEW: Improving Local Government

This book is a compilation of ten essays on local government with an introductory and concluding chapter. The themes discussed include metropolitan governance, the role of community leadership, the value of best practice as an administration technique, indigenous knowledge, intergovernmental relations, public-private partnerships and local management.

Author: Jaap de Visser Publisher: Commonwealth Journal of Local Governance Publication year: 2009


Improving local government: outcomes of comparative research

Local governments encounter mammouth problems, and although there is not one panacea that works internationally, this book argues that there are mechanisms to improve the local situation and theer is evidence that this can suceed. By considering a number of key case studies from Latin America, Africa and Asia, the authors review best practices in good governance, thereby demonstarting that things can improve at the local level.

Author: Michiel S. de Vries, M. Shamsul Haque Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan Publication year: 2008


The Commonwealth Local Government Forum: An Overview

The Commonwealth Local Government Forum (CLGF) was established in 1994, coinciding with rapid moves towards decentralisation at that time, especially in Commonwealth Africa. It uniquely brings together national associations of local government and individual councils, ministries responsible for local government, and training and research institutes with an interest in local government, on a common platform. This reflects an understanding that local government needs effective central government and vice versa if decentralisation is to be truly successful, and that research, training and practice need to be brought together in a constructive and creative way. CLGF’s developmental work can be divided into three main categories: Promotion and advocacy of local democracy and good governance, Exchange of experience and Capacity building.This article provides a brief overview of the activities and projects which CLGF has underway in respect of these objectives. It will be complemented by more detailed papers on specific programmes and projects in this and future issues of the Commonwealth Journal of Local Governance.

Author: Lucy Slack Publisher: Commonwealth Journal of Local Governance Publication year: 2008


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