Local Government, Decentralisation, Devolution, and Service Delivery in Zimbabwe

Abstract

Zimbabwe is one of only a handful of countries in sub-Saharan Africa that have taken part in the wave of decentralisation and devolution. The process differs from the efforts of the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s in that this time the government of Zimbabwe seems ready to cede real power to the lower levels. It is also taking place alongside broad economic and political reforms. Devolution of power is enshrined in Zimbabwe's 2013 Constitution as one of the country's founding values and principles. However, as was the case with in the 2000s, it is sometimes easy to romanticise about the benefits of devolution, thus, fail to take into account the detailed work required before it benefits people at the local level. The devolved administrations exercise considerable autonomy when it comes to tackling poverty: for instance, major areas of economic development, education, health, and housing policy are the responsibility of the devolved institutions. Moreover, the devolved bodies have complete autonomy over how they allocate their budgets.