Review of literatures on financial arrangement and challenges in the tanzanian local government local government authorities in tanzania play a major role in the central government s public finances, this is seen from the fact that for the fiscal year 20062007, a substantial share of the government spending were done by local government. In this article we employ a diagnostic framework to draw these dimensions together in a coherent manner to focus on analyzing local government discretion and accountability in tanzania. Local level service delivery, decentralisation and governance tanzania case report. The government of tanzania was a relatively early adopter of decentralization reforms, in keeping. Tanzania seems to have a deconcentrated local government system with central appointees having large powers at the local level. British new elements of nationalism secretary of state for the reinforced after wwii colonies, creechjones, announced a democratic and efficient system of local government was to be set up 1945 enactment of the local repealed native.
Decentralisation and health services delivery in 4 districts. This act shall apply in respect of all local government authorities established under the local government district authorities act and the. Making decentralization promote empowerment of the local. Dissatisfaction with the results of national planning and administration and change in the. A study of local government taxation in tanzania oddhelge fjeldstad and joseph semboja published in forum for development studies, vol. Government of tanzania, government of kenya, government of uganda or any other official organisations that have contributed to this document.
Review of the decentralization process and its impact on environmental and natural resources management in tanzania november, 2001 by eugene mniwasa and vincent shauri introduction decentralization is commonly viewed as the transfer of legal and political authority from the central government and its agencies to the field organizations and. In some cases, decentralisation may increase accountability, but in others it can lead to minimal change or simply the transfer of corrupt practices from national to local governments crawford and hartmann 2008. In 2000, a dedicated local government reform program lgrp was established to support the decentralization reform process through a basketfunded program. Uganda and tanzania are local governments that have councils, whereas in kenya, districts are nothing more than local administrative units that are local. Relative weight of local government budget in selected west african cities.
A sampling of definitions page 3 joint undp government of germany evaluation working paper of the undp role in decentralization and local governance october 1999 national, and local. The decentralization policy for education in tanzania. Supporting decentralisation and local governance in third countries. Lgrps original aim was to reform the legal framework and the local government. The local government reform programme in tanzania taylor. Such arguments under look the discrepancy between the legal provisions and the practice thereof hence do not have a universal application. Local governments and public service delivery and accountability marcossy albanie, phd d by d training 2016 mstcdc arusha, tanzania local government authorities essentials of public services poverty takes many forms, and demands a corresponding breadth of responses. Centrallyfunded mandatessuch as constructing secondary schoolsdominate local government plans and budgets. Local government district authorities act, 1982 act number 7 of 1982. In the context of decentralised local government system in tanzania, the ward is technically an administrative unit responsible for coordinating development activities, planning and linking plans. As such, a survey was conducted with 153 bureaucrats across 16 councils in. Decentralization in tanzania a situational analysis this chapter presents a brief overview of the lg system and the status of decentralization in tanzania.
Summary of local government finances tanzania 2006 07. The concept of decentralization in tanzania is not a new one. Pdf decentralization, local governance and path dependency. The term attracted attention in the 1950s and 1960s when british and french colonial. Introduction the existence of local government has always been defended on the basis that it is a crucial aspect of the process of democratization and intensification of mass participation in the decisionmaking process. Decentralization of central government functions to the local authorities in.
The publication entitled local democracy and decentralization in east and southern africa. An overview of decentralization and local governance in. Under resources, the local government authorities were given powers, among other things, to collect taxes from different sources mponguliana, 2007. Central control over administrative functions has ensured that administrative decentralization is yet to occur. Experiences from uganda, kenya, botswana, tanzania and ethiopia will critically discuss three dimensions of local democracy and decentralization. Decentralization, local governance and the democratic. With decentralisation, health services were characterised by a number of shortcomings that. As such, a survey was conducted with 153 bureaucrats across 16 councils in four.
A large part of the decentralization literature is fragmented along political, fiscal, or administrative lines. Local taxes represent less than 6 per cent of total national tax revenues in tanzania. When local governments lack capacity, an appropriate balance needs to be found between central oversight and local autonomy. During the 1990s, the government of tanzania introduced the decentralization by devolution d by d approach involving the transfer of functions, power and authority from the centre to the local government authorities lgas to improve the delivery of. Many countries have adopted the concept of decentralisation in one form or the other. Like others, in the past two decades, tanzania government also engaged on local government reforms program which aimed at among other things increasing efficiency in the recruitment and management of local personnel through empowering local councils to recruit and discipline their own personnel. Timeline for decentralisation in tanzania year event comment 1926 enactment of the native indirect rule established authority ordinance cap. Local level service delivery, decentralisation and governance.
In this context, the financial sustainability of lgas is considered as an important aspect for decentralisation to succeed, especially in enhancing horizontal equity and public services in general. This refers to the transfer of power and authority from central government to subnational tiers of government. Good governance, local government, accountability and service. This act may be cited as the local government finances act. Review of the decentralization process and its impact on. The practice started to unfold during the 1970s and early 1980s.
Decentralization is highly linked with local government system and has been practised in the country in varying degrees since colonial times. This problem, coupled with insufficient government support in terms of financial, human and material resources, limits the head teachers ability to increase the quality and. Tanzania has undergone several local government reforms. Historically, the concept of decentralization has never been a new concept in countries across the globe. Explaining the performance of decentralized recruitment in. Beginning in 1972, tanzania adopted decentralization policies focused on decentralizing key authorities and functions of government from the national level to the periphery to improve community. Jun 07, 2018 devolution connotes political decentralization or transfer of powers from central government to local government units.
This is the main government level responsible for the delivery of decentralized public services in the country, including the delivery of local health services. The research was confined to literature survey, including different laws relating to local government in tanzania, i. Decentralization by devolution initiatives started in 1982 with the reintroduction of local government administration, and tanzania is currently implementing. With the passing of the 2019 local government act, a greater understanding is needed of how decentralization has progressed thus far in zambia and political economy dynamics how have constrained the process. Regional administration and local government to the uncdf conference on decentralisation and local governance in africa, cape town, 26 30 march, 2001 massoi and norman 315 city to undertake planning process. The matrix of accountability for health care has become very confusing, with multiple and cross. Local government is that part of the whole government. Manual, which notably required each local authority to. Much of the debate, and perhaps the policy choices, regarding african local government has been structured by terminology first developed by james fesler in the 1950s. Decentralization of government administration interim provisions amendment act, 1982 extinction of customary rights order, 1987 gn. In uganda and tanzania, it has been shown that central government retains much control over local government through limiting revenue generation awortwi, 2011. Most political decentralization is associated with devolution gregersen et al. In 1982, the parliament of the united republic of tanzania passed the local government no 7 cap 287 act and the city authorities act no.
Making services accessible to the poor is integral to the effort to achieve the mdgs. In tanzania, decentralization can be traced back during the british rule in which various efforts to establish local government were undertaken starting with introduction of self rule, native authorities, municipal council and establishment of local government training school for training native authority workers and the councilors marx, 1991. Tanzania has been implementing decentralization bydevolution dbyd since 1990s. Ddecentralization and ecentralization and llocal governance. Decentralization, local government authority, local autonomy 1. One approach, which is usually adopted in comparative studies, is to regard all such national structures below the central. This report assesses whether the current decentralization processes in tanzania will ensure better management of the environment and natural resources, which the majority of tanzanians are dependent upon for their livelihood. Local government decentralization and the health sector in. Moreover, decentralization can help national government ministries reach larger numbers of local areas with services. The policy shifted from the former centralized system to the decentralized local governance system max, 1991.
However, the outcome was the establishment of authoritarian government which still maintained many powers at the centre, despite the call for decentralisation by devolution dbyd as pronounced through the local government policy paper 1998, local government reform programmes lgrp i and ii 19992008 and 20082014, respectively. Strengthening local government and civil society institutions through a process of decentralization, participation and capacity building for local governance is considered an essential precondition for. Charged with operationalizing the local government reform, and now concentrating on implementing decentralization by devolution dbyd policy is the local government reform programme. Decentralisation by devolution since 1999, the tanzanian government has been actively pursuing an incremental strategy of what is referred to as dbyd. Decision making and fiscal decentralization introduction in 1982 the government of tanzania made a very crucial decision of reintroducing local government in the country after abolished in it in 1972. State of local democracy and good local governance in.
This study focuses on analysing the financial sustainability of local government authorities lgas in tanzania with reference to decentralisation. Such commitment is evidenced on the policy paper on local government reform of october, 1998 which aimed towards the shared vision for local government in tanzania, and the main strategy of achieving it was through decentralization by devolution. In tanzania, the decentralization of recruitment and selection is stated in the policy paper of 1998 which aimed at delinking local government staff from their respective ministries and increasing. Fesler argued it was important to distinguish between devolution and deconcentration in analyzing local government systems, and in describing patterns of decentralization reforms. More than a decade of decentralization in tanzania.
Chapter 2 overview and analysis of decentralisation in the. Decentralisation by devolution in tanzania academic journals. Decentralization by devolution policy in tanzania ijrte. The last two decades have witnessed the spread of decentralization and local government reforms in the entire eastern and southern africa region. The constitution of the united republic of tanzania accords each local government authority in tanzania mainland the status of government urt, 1998. In addition different textbooks, articles, journals. The trend of adopting and implementing decentralisation policies is said to have partially, emanated from the inability of central governments in delivering services effectively to local areas2. These emerge from a broader study, involving six months of field work in nine municipalities chosen to broadly represent bolivia in terms of size. The strategy is informed by a situational assessment with a focus on children, a government needs assessment and an analysis of unicef s comparative advantage. Program lgrp was established to support the decentralization reform process through a basketfunded program. Governance from below a theory of local government. Despite the mounting concern, tanzania is currently implementing a local government reform within the framework of the reform of the civil service.
Constitution of central government transfers to local governments. The local government level is divided into 158 districtlevel urban and rural lgas. Jul 29, 2010 a large part of the decentralization literature is fragmented along political, fiscal, or administrative lines. An assessment on the implementation of local government. Presidents office, regional administration and local. Introduction decentralization is the practice engrossed by many countries worldwide. The national decentralisation policy provides for the strengthening of local government to facilitate more effective citizen participation in governance and accountable, delivery of public services as the basis for decentralization. Decentralisation involves political, administrative, and fiscal reforms aimed at increasing the decisionmaking capacity and development efficiency of local. Unicef tanzania decentralization and local governance support strategy. During the 1990s, the government of tanzania introduced the decentralization by devolution d by d approach involving the transfer of functions, power and authority from the centre to the local government authorities lgas to improve the delivery of public goods and services, including health services.
The study reports of jica are available in pdf format on the jicas website. Decentralization and the delivery of water and sanitation. This chapter focuses on the question of when, and why, decentralisation fulfils its promise to enhance local accountability. For instance, the local government code of 1991 ra 7160 devolve to local governments the administration of five 5 basic services heretofore conducted by the national government. It should be noted that several detailed studies refer to the reference list have been conducted in the past on decentralization. Decentralization and financial management in the tanzanian. Good governance, local government, accountability and. Theoretical perspectives countries across the globe have opted for a decentralised policy for diverse reasons. Tanzania, a case study of kilosa district council in fulfillment of the requirements for. Tanzania saw the significance of moving to local government financial decentralization from 1990s. An average lga has approximately 300,000 residents and is led by an elected local government council. The transfer of managerial responsibility for specified functions to other public organizations outside normal central government control, whether provincial or local government or parastatal agencies ferguson and chandrasekharan. The local government district authorities act no 7 of 1982 2.
Fiscal decentralisation the devolution of taxing and spending powers to lower. Currently, reform of local government involves the following five main areas. These grants include a discretionary local administration. The interviews also revealed that, in tanzania, community support for schools varies because of either poverty or the communities many other obligations.
Hence, it can be narrated that dec ntr a l iz oby v u means transfer of authority functional responsibilities, 4 see article 146 1 of the constitution of the united republic of tanzania and resources to all local government levels. The societal actors include government, the private sector and civil society. Despite widespread advocacy and praise for the decentralization ideology, the implementation and outcomes of the process have been different from one country to another. The following acts of parliament provide for the establishing local government authorities in tanzania mainland. State of local democracy and good local governance in tanzania. Administrative legal framework of centrallocal government.
751 735 682 1120 1483 32 958 139 1249 308 828 1178 1098 1234 1298 166 1443 925 1452 1582 633 1547 213 575 1117 499 1334 1519 1578 129 969 322 573 1455 386 1267 343 275 404