Organisational citizenship behaviour and service delivery in urban local governments in Uganda

Wilberforce Turyasingura Wilberforce Turyasingura,Lazarus Nabaho Lazarus Nabaho

doi:10.5130/cjlg.vi24.7752

Wilberforce Turyasingura Wilberforce Turyasingura, Lazarus Nabaho Lazarus Nabaho

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.5130/cjlg.vi24.7752

Copy DOI

Abstract

The quality of service delivery in decentralised local governments (LGs) in Uganda remains largely unsatisfactory, despite central government’s efforts to improve resource allocation and develop supporting legal frameworks. This has been partly linked to the extent to which LG staff exhibit ‘organisational citizenship behaviour’ (OCB). Extant literature has not given adequate attention to OCB in the decentralisation discourse, especially in sub-national governments within developing countries such as Uganda. This paper tackles the issue of OCB among LG employees and its relationship to service delivery by addressing the following questions: (a) what is the level of OCB among LG employees and (b) to what extent do various dimensions of OCB relate to the quality of service delivery in the decentralised LG context? The study is a cross-sectional survey of 165 LG staff in central Uganda. Both quantitative and qualitative data were collected. Using content analysis and correlational analysis, the study found that OCB among LG employees is too low, and that higher levels of OCB are associated with improved service delivery. The study recommends that LGs should prioritise effective leadership and supervision, a client-centred performance culture, and empowerment of staff in order to promote OCB among employees and thereby enhance service delivery to local communities.

Highlights

In the last three decades or so, there has been increasing adoption of ‘decentralisation’ as a way of managing the public sector in both developed and developing countries (Smoke 2003)
RQ1: What is the level of organisational citizenship behaviour’ (OCB) among public sector employees in the decentralised local governments (LGs)?
Research question 1: What is the level of OCB among public sector employees in decentralised LGs? To answer this question, the questionnaires were analysed and cross-checked against the findings from Key informant (KI) interviews

Summary

Introduction

In the last three decades or so, there has been increasing adoption of ‘decentralisation’ as a way of managing the public sector in both developed and developing countries (Smoke 2003). The ‘new public management’ phenomenon, which emerged in the 1990s, emphasises two main drivers of effectiveness in public service delivery: decentralisation of power and human resource management and development (Hope 2001). Since independence in 1962, Uganda has experienced – and continues to experience – major challenges in delivering critical services to its population. Such challenges were initially attributed to central government’s inefficiency and lack of flexibility (Tindigarukayo 1988). When the National Resistance Movement government came to power in 1986, it favoured a process of decentralisation as a means to bring service delivery nearer to the people. The major focus of the decentralisation policy was on empowering citizens to participate in decisions that affect their localities (Kiyaga-Nsubuga and Olum 2009)

Methods

Results

Conclusion