Commonwealth Local Government Forum

Local economic development

Local economic development is a central part of developmental local government. It is a process which brings together different partners in the local area to work together to harness resources for sustainable economic growth and poverty reduction. Local economic development is increasingly being seen as a key function of local government and a means of ensuring that local and regional authorities can address the priority needs of local citizens in a sustainable way. There is no single model for LED; approaches reflect local needs and circumstances. Themes include local economic development guides, tourism, support to small, medium and micro enterprises, microfinance and credit and public-private partnership.

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Local Politics of Local Economic Development Strategy in Nepal

The local government has to be productive and able to offer economic opportunities to the poor, create wealth, generate jobs, increase incomes, and ultimately improve the quality of life for the long term prosperity and welfare of locality. A strategic plan for sustainable development is needed to change existing local conditions, mindsets by building capacity, organizing participatory processes and empowering stakeholders. The New Constitution of Nepal 2015 has delegated full authority to local government regarding the overall development of the locality such as a municipality. However, many questions about stakeholders’ participation, transparency, accountability, openness, the capacity of people and local governments, inclusiveness, and equality are being raised. In this context, a case of economic development strategy set by Chaudandigadhi Municipality has been studied to answer these questions. Both primary and secondary data collection methods have been used to justify qualitative and quantitative research methods. This study has concluded that municipal authorities have to be empowered and development actors have to be harmonized and consolidated in local economic development activities.

Author: Dev Raj Rai1 Publisher: International Journal of Scientific & Engineering Research Volume Publication year: 2021


The politics of actor involvement in local economic development in Ghana: Empirical evidence from the Accra Metropolitan, Keta Municipal and Shai Osudoku District Assemblies

The main objective of the article was to examine the forces that shape the behaviour of the actors in the local economic development implementation process in Accra Metropolitan, Keta Municipal and ShaiOsudoku District assemblies. Using qualitative data from multiple sources combined with multiple case studies, the study found that the three Metropolitan, Municipal and District assemblies implemented somewhat different LED strategies with multiple actors’ involvement. Lack of due diligence, weak and lack of institutional independence, absence of political leadership commitment, and political expediency negatively impacted LED implementation in the Accra Metropolitan and Keta Municipal Assemblies while Shai-Osudoku District Assembly had smooth local economic development implementation. Dynamics such as the land tenure system, micro and macro politics, administrative and institutional procedures, and political leadership shaped the behaviour of the actors in the three assemblies. Based on these, the study recommends that politicians should desist from interfering in LED issues; governments should consider the interests of local government units’ development needs in introducing local economic development interventions and broad consultations should be done before initiating local economic development initiatives.

Author: Akpeko Agbevade Publication year: 2020


A CASE STUDY OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT IMPLEMENTATION OF THE WARD BASED LOCAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (LED) PROGRAM

The local economic development (LED) had been in existence prior to the advent of democracy in 1994 government. At that time there was a strong focus on the agricultural sector. The apartheid government at that time fully supported the LED initiatives but not all citizens of South Africa benefited from that support. The Acts and policies of the apartheid government such as the Group Areas Act forced black people to move out of places with resources and placed them into areas with poor resources. After 1994 the South African government adopted LED as a strategy to deal with the disparities of the past such as poverty, unemployment, and poor standards of living. Several strategies were put into place to overcome the challenges that was as a result of the apartheid past. The Zululand district with similar intention of the post-apartheid government embarked on initiating the ward based LED program to deal with the consequences of the past. The status quo report of the Zululand district still identified high levels of poverty and unemployment and a slow growth in the local economy as a major concern. This study aimed to investigate the ward based LED program in order to establish if the program has made the achievement towards its objectives and also to establish what challenges are encountered by the local government in the implementation of the program. The study used a qualitative research method which was conducted with the adoption of one on -one interview as a tool for data collection. The researcher prepared an interview schedule of open ended questions to allow the liberty and a flexible expression of perceptions, experiences and understanding of participants on the phenomenon under investigation.

Author: N. L. Nxumalo, L.D. Naidoo Publisher: International Journal of Public Policy and Administration Research Publication year: 2018


ENHANCING THE CAPABILITIES OF MUNICIPALITIES FOR LOCAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT THROUGH SKILLS TRAINING

The purpose of this study is to investigate the extent to which the existing training interventions in municipalities can be able to build skills capacity for municipal staff to promote local economy, with special focus on two municipalities (Stellenbosch and Drakenstein), in the Cape Winelands District. Thus, it seeks to answer the following primary research question: To what extent can the existing training interventions help to build skill capacity for LED projects in two of the Cape Winelands’ municipalities? To do this, the study seek to analyse LED training for municipal staff carried out in the two municipalities for the past five years with special focus on the transfer of the acquired skills into job in the work place. The study is situated within the interpretivist paradigm, which focuses on meanings and attempts to understand the context and totality of each situation by employing the qualitative method of interviews which were conducted with staff and representatives of the municipalities and other key LED stakeholders in the two municipalities. The methodological finding reveals the following mixed results: Although the two Municipalities seems to be making great strides in providing trainings, there are some contextual issues in their working environments which disenables transfer of skills to the job. These issues are: Limited supports, limited opportunities to career progression, lack of motivation, working in silos and limited opportunities to practice. However, this conclusion does not invalidate the promise of capacity building to transform the two municipalities into an efficient developmental agent, but highlights the importance of the critical factors which tends to shape the positive outcomes of capacity building initiatives.

Author: Kamara, Richard Douglas ; Leonard, Samantha ; Haines, Richard Publisher: ARMG publishing Publication year: 2017


Local Economic Development Training Module; Introduction to Local Economic Development

This module provides condensed information on local economic development and the role of local governments as well as practical exercises that will serve as examples for planning local economic development in their municipalities. 

Author: UCLG ASPAC Secretariat Jakarta Capital City Government Publisher: UCLG ASPAC Secretariat Jakarta Capital City Government Publication year: 2016


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