The Handbook of Research on Sub-National Governance and Development is a pivotal reference source for the latest scholarly material on the intersection between local and national politics, analysing how this relationship affects nations’ economy and administration. The new book aims to expand the knowledge-base of alternative approaches to local, regional, and national governance and development, and fills the void in current research and policy literature by exposing theoretical and practical ideas about the contribution that subnational political institutions can make to national development. 

This profile of the local government system in Namibia is structured to enable easy comparison across the countries of the Commonwealth. The profile includes an overview of the government system, the legal basis for and structure of local government, elections and women’s representation, intergovernmental relations, systems for community involvement, organised local government, intergovernmental relations, monitoring systems, finance, staffing and resources, and distribution of service delivery responsibility. 

This paper begins with an explanation of the nature of local government in Botswana, its structures, and their functions and accomplishments since independence. It then proceeds to look at the challenges, and considers measures for meeting them. It ends by looking at future prospects and draws some lessons.