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id21
viewpoints Local
government is key in development says Samantha Page, formerly
with the UK Local Government Alliance for International Development.
Those involved
in international development - national governments, development agencies,
funders, UN agencies, community organisations, the private sector and
others - are beginning to recognise what those of us working in local
government have known for some time: we cannot eradicate poverty, achieve
sustainable development or the Millennium Development Goals without
the active involvement of local government. Both in the developed
and developing countries, local government is often maligned with headlines
and attention only when things go wrong - child abuse, fraud or poor
service delivery. What is often ignored is that the job of local councils
is to focus on the needs of their communities and deliver basic services
that can make a huge amount of difference to people's quality of life
- water, housing, primary education, health care, refuse collection
and disposal and other environmental services. Good local government
is therefore, key to sustainable communities, to tackling poverty and
delivering the MDGs. It is the form of government closest to the people,
able to consult people directly and assess people's needs and provide
practical solutions to meet local circumstances. This was highlighted
recently in the report of the Commission for Africa which recommended
that there should be more institution and human capacity building at
local level in the developing countries of Africa. The UN has also seen
the need to get local government involved and set up the Millennium
Commission to look at local delivery of the MDGs rather than just seeing
them as national targets. That is why we believe
that local government must be included in development strategies and
a proportion of development funding should be channelled through local
councils. I visited Uganda
recently and saw for myself the City Community Challenges (C3) project
developed by Ugandan local authorities in partnership with local communities.
C3 is tackling urban poverty by helping districts to build capacity
and make best use of local resources, nurturing local businesses and
supporting social services. But to address different needs in different
areas, each project is unique to its district. In Jinja, the poorest
people and the most disadvantaged had received training and skills in
small business management, environmental practices, primary health care
and construction, with small loan funds for micro-enterprises and new
homes being built. I was impressed by how this has really improved people's
opportunities and brought a much greater feeling of community cohesion.
Through its UK
partners and members, the UK Local Government Alliance for International
Development is helping to boost local government in developing countries
by encouraging UK local authorities to themselves get involved in international
development. They have a great deal to offer in terms of skills, knowledge
and practices so that newer local governments with less experience do
not have to reinvent the wheel. UK councils have
much expertise in areas such as service provision - including essential
environmental services, education and social care - contract management,
financial management, staff and councillors development, local government
structures, accountability, consultation and preventing corruption and
fraud. Some have already formed partnerships with councils where they
have traditional links or strong links through the communities they
serve. Research by the UK Local Government Alliance has found that where
strong partnerships have been created it benefits everyone - the governments
and the people in the developing countries, the staff and councillors
of the UK authority involved for whom it provides additional skills
and personal development, and the local communities in the UK who benefit
socially and economically. At our recent national
conference there was a huge enthusiasm amongst UK local authorities
to be involved in international development. Yet many find the financing
of such projects, including the resources to release the necessary experts
from their day-to-day work are too much of a barrier. The continuing
squeeze on their resources and the pressure to provide services for
their own communities and to achieve their own targets in the areas
prescribed by the government mean that international development activities
are often the ones that drop off the list at crucial budget-making times. We are looking at
ways in which this can be addressed and hope to bring together the Office
of the Deputy Prime Minister, which oversees local government, and the
Department of International Development to discuss with them some of
our ideas on how UK local authorities can bring international development
in their mainstream activities. In the meantime, I would urge all of you involved in policymaking, financial planning or research on development issues - please remember that local government is a key player. Contributor Further information Other links What's
your viewpoint? Click here to go back to previous id21 viewpoints Submit
your research to id21
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