Hot off the press: Issue 28 of the Commonwealth Journal of Local Governance is now available and can be accessed here.  

Edited by Professor Graham Sansom, this issue coincides with the lead-up to the 2023 Commonwealth Local Government Conference being held on 14–17 November in Kigali, Rwanda.

The theme of the conference is Building Local Resilience: how local government can be better prepared for current and future challenges and ensure sustainable development for all. Discussions will address various aspects of resilience, the importance of local democracy, and the role of local government in addressing these multifaceted challenges, including achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Our next issue in March 2024 will include coverage of conference papers, presentations, and outcomes.  

Given that the conference this year is being held in Africa, seven of the articles in this issue come from continent, all providing valuable insights into dimensions of resilience, local democracy, and sustainability. Overall, they highlight the fragility of local government. Recurring themes include the continued dominance of central governments despite formal commitments to decentralisation; the struggle to secure sufficient resources at the local level; the need to ensure effective governance by tackling the pervasive risks of corruption and improper influence over decision-making and strengthening community engagement and empowerment. 

Please share the issue widely across your networks as we are always seeking high quality contributions to the journal and welcome any input, We also ask you to contact us if you would like to be added to our Peer Review Group to help us maintain the quality of the research articles by acting as an occasional peer reviewer. 

Join us at the Commonwealth Local Government Conference

If you are interested in attending the Commonwealth Local Government Conference - CLGC2023 - please visit the official conference website.