Devolution Of Power Research Articles

South Sudanese Crisis and Its Foreign Intervention, 2013-2021

The purpose of this study was to explore the dynamics of South Sudanese crisis from 2013 to 2021. Descriptive research design that anchored on the judgmental sampling technique was adopted. The secondary sources (books, journal articles, conference papers, internet materials and monographs) were sourced from Nigerian libraries and internet, subjected to content analysis, before qualitatively analyzed for the study. Findings revealed that political exclusion, proliferation of small arms and light weapons, corruption and weak institutions triggered grievances that led to December 2013 South Sudanese crisis. The crisis had impacted negatively on security, humanitarian needs, human rights, as well as economy. United Nations Mission in South Sudan, Inter Governmental Authority on Development, African Union Mission in South Sudan, United States, Canada, Uganda, Sudan, Kenya, Ethiopia and Eritrea had intervened. Though these findings have deepened the understanding of Group theory, the fear of South Sudanese crisis reoccurring immediately after general election in 2024 is looming. The study the recommends, rotational presidency, devolution of power, mental disarmament and development assistance to avert the incoming crisis.

AN ASSESSMENT OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT DYNAMICS IN KHYBER PAKHTUNKHWA: 2015 AND 2022 ELECTIONS

This paper has explore the power dynamics of local-level governance in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa after the 2015 and 2022 elections. Labaree’s typology is used as a framework for examining literature through historical and theoretical perspectives employing a case study method. Moreover, interviews with experts, stakeholders, and the public were conducted to gain further insights into the research. This research contributes to a deeper understanding of the power dynamics within local governance systems, particularly in the context of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The research findings explore the impact of the electoral process at the local level on power sharing and the functioning of local governance. The study also emphasizes the issue of addressing power imbalances and promoting the presence of local institutes for more representation. Based on the analysis, the study recommends more decentralization and less intervention from Provincial governments to give the real essence of power-sharing at the grass root level. Overall, it also contributed to a deeper understanding of the power dynamics in local governance and the hurdles faced by the system in the devolution of power. In addition to this, findings suggest more devolution of power to local governments and less interference by the provincial government that will increase public service efficiency, and the spirit of democracy will be witnessed by the general public as well. keywords: Local Governmment Elections, Election Commision of Pakistan, Local Governance, Local Government in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

School Level Teacher Management System in Nepal: Prospects and Challenges

This paper highlights teacher management in terms of prospects and challenges in the Nepalese school system. The paper argues that the existing teacher management model adopted by the government is both an administrative model and a grassroots model. The paper aims to explore the existing teacher management system of the government and its prospects and challenges from the quality perspective. To achieve a critical reflection on the teacher management system, the paper utilizes qualitative content analysis as a method of generating empirical evidence. The Teacher Service Commission (TSC) functions as a centralized agency for selecting and recommending teachers for permanent appointment, and the SMC at the local level is working with a grassroots model of teacher management as a decentralized agency. As a result, the quality of school education is deteriorating because of this contradictory policy provision for teacher management. The devolution of power to the local level to hire teachers with different names opened a gate for under-qualified and less competent teachers to enter school education through an indirect path. The paper explores that the contradictory policy provision, unclear roles, and responsibilities between local and centers, extreme politicization, teachers’ hierarchies, and categories all are the challenges for and problems with teacher management in school.

Corporate power, urban governance and urban law

Given the growing role played by corporate power in urban governance, this article considers how, in structuring the interplay between corporations and the local state within contemporary urban governance arrangements, urban law can enhance public values and public accountability. Drawing on examples from different cities and legal systems, the article points to the commonality of hybrid public/private governance arrangements at city-level and highlights common challenges pertaining to coordination, democratic participation and accountability. It then engages with some of the common legal underpinnings of these challenges and considers ways in which urban law may address them. These include the shaping of urban autonomy through the legal devolution of state power, the legal structuring and regulation of urban decision-making fora and governance instruments, and the horizontal application of human rights law in local governance settings.

Expanding narratives of governance constraints to improve coral reef conservation.

To understand and address the failures of reef governance, it is critical to understand the perceptions of diverse policy makers and practitioners about the challenges they face in achieving their goals. Examining the discourse of policy makers and practitioners can reveal the extent to which these perceptions capture the full spectrum of potential governance challenges, including those related to management, institutional structures and processes, the values and principles underpinning governance, and the social and environmental context. We conducted semistructured interviews with 110 policy makers and practitioners across multiple sectors, scales, and contexts in Barbados, St Kitts and Nevis, Belize, and Honduras. We used thematic qualitative analysis informed by theories of interactive governance and governability to examine the challenges perceived by governance actors. Perceived governance challenges were broadly consistent across countries, but differed by sector (V = 0.819, F6,60 = 1.502, p = 0.01) and by level (community compared with national) (V = 0.194, F1,10 = 2.178, = 0.026). Management inputs and outputs, challenges relating to the socioeconomic context, issues of leadership and power, and stakeholder engagement were commonly cited challenges (>75%). Few respondents discussed challenges relating to the ecological context, governance processes, or the values and principles underpinning governance. We argue that examining perceptions can inform efforts to improve governance and assess the appropriateness of particular management tools under context-specific governance constraints. Furthermore, expanding the narratives of governance challenges to encompass the subtle values and images underpinning governance, and the scale of the challenges faced, can help identify a wider set of opportunities for change.

Proper purposes and directors’ duties - time to slay the chimera?

ABSTRACT The statutory statement of directors' duties contained in the Companies Act 2006 imposes a duty on directors to ‘only exercise powers for the purposes for which they are conferred’. The duty has been equiparated with the equitable fraud on a power doctrine. This paper challenges the correctness of this approach, and argues that the unwarranted ‘merging’ of the duty and the doctrine has resulted in a legal chimera standing in the way of a proper understanding of the roles of each of the duty and the doctrine. It is submitted that this erroneous linking of two entirely different concepts is the result of a failure to (i) separate the different measures that have evolved to control directorial exercise of corporate powers, and (ii) pay due heed to the distinctive nature of the devolution of corporate power.

Multi-scale politics in climate change: the mismatch of authority and capability in federalizing Nepal

ABSTRACT Nepal’s transition to federalism in 2015 involved a significant redistribution of authority across three levels of government, with a greater level of autonomy granted to provincial and local levels. We examine multi-scale climate policy and politics in Nepal, focusing on three elements that are important for policy development and implementation: (a) the authority to make decisions; (b) the knowledge and expertise to develop and implement policies; and (c) the ability to access and mobilize resources, primarily external funding, by government bodies at different levels. Our findings show that the newly decentralized local governments are constrained in their ability to develop and implement climate change-related policies and practical responses by a mismatch between the authority granted to them and existing institutional capabilities. These governmental bodies have limited opportunities to develop, access and mobilize knowledge of climate and development and financial resources, which are needed to put new policies into action. Based on this analysis, we argue that decentralization of governmental authority is not likely to produce effective climate policy outcomes if this mismatch remains unaddressed. KEY POLICY INSIGHTS The ability of the provincial and local governments in federal Nepal to respond to climate change has been constrained by a pervasive mismatch between authority granted and institutional capabilities, in terms of opportunities to access and mobilize knowledge and financial resources. The devolution of power is not adequate for effective climate change responses; rather, there is a need to strengthen the institutional capabilities and opportunities of the decentralized local governments to address climate change. Formal allocation of authority is always blurred in practice, as agencies at different levels of governance engage in power struggles within and beyond formally delineated boundaries. This suggests the need for more operational clarity on policy implementation procedures. There is a need for a clear exchange of knowledge and a flow of resources to the level where responsibilities lie to respond to climate change.

EVOLUTION OF THE BUREAUCRACY IN SINDH: THE ROLE OF SDGS IN EMPOWERED LOCAL GOVERNMENT OF KARACHI

Article 140 (A) of 1973 Constitution of Pakistan clearly provides basis for the establishment of an empowered elected local government by covering all the domains of devolution of power i.e. political, administrative and financial. However, ethnic, political and federal interests constrained the practical implementation of it in Karachi, an economic hub of the country and provincial capital of Sindh.
 Karachi is the one of most populated metropolitan cities of the world including suburbs that faced the challenges in the absence of viable local government. Covid-19 that hit globally in the year 2020, has shaken the socio-economic conditions of the countries and more importantly their metropolitans. This research study is an attempt to investigate lacunas of Karachi’s LG System. Does local government of Karachi was empowered, both administratively and financially, enough for coping the Covid-19 challenges that city faced during the phase of pandemic? Do the weaknesses and issues of metropolitan expose during the said time span, are due to ineffective local government of the city? Does the weaknesses and issues of metropolitan are due to negligence of the responsibility by local government of Karachi? Do the Constitutional provisions safeguard the empowerment of LG? Do the political and ethnic factors constrain the reformation of LG system in desirable need of the city? Does the recently passed - The Sindh Local Government (Amendment) Bill 2021, hinder the UN’s 2030 Agenda for the Sustainable Development goals by creating structural and procedural controversies and controversies over empowerment? The research methodology includes literature review. Apart from it, questionnaire survey conducted from academia and journalists, approximately fifty from each community will serve as a voice for resolving the appropriate LG system’s problems with adequate empowerment in the challenging circumstances.

Rethinking regional politics: Beyond the 2021 West Bengal elections

The question of region dominated the 2021 West Bengal elections in a way it did not in states where elections were held alongside. Subsequently, the victory of the Trinamool Congress has been hailed by commentators and scholars as a successful instance both in regional politics and in the defence of federal polity. However, this article contends, the implications of this mandate for the politics of region and federalism cannot be grasped with reference to its own details, but only in a comparative reading of a series of assembly elections held in the recent past and the general elections of 2019. Considering how regional politics gets constituted and elections produce results today, this paper makes an argument that the emergent pattern of mandates indicates rather a problem – that of neutralization of regional politics and federal structure into a devolution of power instead of their elaboration as domains of contestation of an expansionist regime.

An assessments on the impacts of educational functions decentralization to local council in the Tonkolili District-Yoni Chiefdom

In recent years the topic of decentralisation has received great attention. The increased interest is not only because of its theoretical appeal, but it is related to the rising number of countries adopting a more decentralised system. The widespread economic liberalization along with political change towards openness and democracy is one of the driving forces. In transition economies, including the transition countries in Europe and Central Asia (ECA)2 such trend was largely driven by the limited administrative and financial capacity of the center, while in some other regions the policy shift may be prompted by the collapse and erosion of central control. However, decentralization is not about weakening central authority. The important goal is to make the local government more responsive to the needs of local population. Most discussions about decentralisation accordingly center on attempts to improve the delivery of services. The countries in ECA region started the transition process with wholesale restructuring of their political systems. The discontent with welfare state institutions and the challenges that globalization processes triggered have modified the professional discourses on state, governance and democracy. The need for decentralization and devolution of power from central to local authorities has become one of the priorities in changing the state in these countries. The devolution of power necessarily intervenes with service delivery responsibilities, public finances arrangements, rebuilding central state capacities and institutions. While reasons for decentralization in the region vary, decentralization reform has been one of prevailing common prescriptions for addressing a wide range of other issues, including economic inefficiencies, macroeconomic instability, governance deficiencies, and poor delivery of public services. Interrogating some of the basic definitions on decentralization, decentralized governance and good governance and their significance for the ECA region, this paper focuses on the recent decentralization efforts made by the transition countries in ECA, concentrated around the implementation of the current decentralization agenda. It further explains why there are different approaches on the decentralization processes in these countries. At the same time, it recognizes that the decentralization everywhere is considered as a necessary mechanism to address a number of critical issues, including delivery of services. The section on legal, institutional capacities and financial resources at local level, attempts to underline the problem of limited capabilities that exists in local governments in these countries. The paper also addresses the importance of accountability and community empowerment in enhancing and improving service delivery. It suggests establishment of institutions and mechanisms to promote accountability in order to control government’s abuses and increase governments’ responsibility. Recognizing the predominant role of the public sector in delivery of services in ECA countries, the paper also explores the potential of different forms of public-private partnership, as well as the role of the civil sector in providing service delivery. Finally, while some of the challenges these countries are facing with in improving their governance systems are addressed in the concluding remarks (e.g. the fight against corruption), they are not further elaborated in this paper.

Local Government System in Punjab: Clientelism and Failed Devolution of Power (2015-19)

Pakistan is a federal republic with three administrative tiers: national, provincial, and local. The local Government system (LGS), the third tier, is viewed as a harbinger of democracy in developing economies including Pakistan. Since coming into power in 2008, democratically elected governments agreed to devolve power from federal level to provincial level, but slow-walked the formation of local governments until 2015—after an order by the Supreme Court of Pakistan was passed to conduct the election. In Punjab, the local government laws were more centrist, and relations between the local and provincial governments were explicitly asymmetrical. Although the LGS dissolved in Punjab in 2019, this article will attempt to explore the causes of the failed devolution of power (2015-2019). By particularly focusing on the "Punjab local Government Act 2013" and “Punjab Local Government Act 2019" and failure of devolution of power, this study will investigate a range of administrative and political issues in local governance in Punjab.

The Novelist as a Historian: A Study of the Nigerian/Biafran War Account from the Perspective of Chukwuemeka Ikeh’s Sunset at Dawn

The novelist is a creator and a creative writer whose foundation is lodged in imaginative thinking. It is in the creative writer’s ability to recreate events, which had either taken place or could take place, through the use of fictive characters, and creative use of language. This study therefore introspects the events of the Nigerian/Biafra civil war from the perspective of the novelist as a historian, in doing this the study examines the events of the civil war from the literary perspectives and accounts of a literary giant Chukwu Emeka Ikeh’s Sunset at Dawn. Data for the study is collected from secondary sources, the text under study and other Nigerian/Biafran war novels, historical books about the civil war, and internet sources. The study adopted the theory of historicism as a frame work. It highlighted the civil war era from the perspective of the writer under study, from the beginning of the conflict to when it became a full-blown war, the killings, starvation, hunger and the end of the war. The study identified some of the remote causes of the war to be the fear of political domination among the three major ethnic groups in Nigeria, deep seated ethnic resentment and acrimony among others. This study recommends that similar situation in future can only be averted through power devolution, all- inclusive leadership style and equitable distribution of the nation’s resources.

Governance of forest resource use in western Nepal: Current state and community preferences.

Improved governance of natural resource use is critical to the sustainability and maintenance of environmental quality. In western Nepal, unsustainable resource extraction is seen by the local community as a major threat to forest sustainability. While most respondents to a survey of 243 households inside and outside a protected area (PA) thought the laws for managing resource use were adequate and appropriate, a far smaller proportion thought they were achieving their objectives. Disenchantment with the existing governance regime was strongest outside the PA, probably because there was greater investment in community engagement within the PA. The most likely reason for this failure is the deeply embedded corruption within the forest governance system. Devolution of power to local communities by increasing governance participation is one of the most likely means of containing corruption. It was therefore not surprising that governance participation was rated as the most important governance principle by respondents in a best-worst scaling experiment. Respondents also regarded effectiveness, accountability and transparency as important governance principle to improve management of forest resource extraction from red panda habitat.

(2021) Volume 2, Issue 4 Cultural Implications of China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC Authors: Dr. Unsa Jamshed Amar Jahangir Anbrin Khawaja Abstract: This study is an attempt to highlight the cultural implication of CPEC on Pak-China relations, how it will align two nations culturally, and what steps were taken by the governments of two states to bring the people closer.

(2021) Volume 2, Issue 4 Cultural Implications of China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC Authors: Dr. Unsa Jamshed Amar Jahangir Anbrin Khawaja Abstract: This study is an attempt to highlight the cultural implication of CPEC on Pak-China relations, how it will align two nations culturally, and what steps were taken by the governments of two states to bring the people closer.

Impact of Devolution of Power on School Education Performance in Sindh after 18th Constitutional Amendment

Impact of Devolution of Power on School Education Performance in Sindh after 18th Constitutional Amendment

Trends of Power Devolution in South Asia: A Comparative Appraisal of Pakistan’s Local Government System under the Civil-Military Regimes

In the South Asian countries, the trends of power sharing, decentralization and power evolution have not only always remained a pertinent debate for the consolidation of democracy and good governance, but also static political systems due to their multiethnic realities, multilingual differences, multicultural diversification, and their authoritarian orientation in the respective countries. Historically, the transfer of power through the local system of government (LGS) was seen as an important tool to accelerate the transition to representative democracy on the subcontinent. However, it was largely aimed at creating a new political class that would support colonial rule and meet the political demands of the local population for power sharing within the boundaries of the colonial government structure. Due to their embedded interests, the colonial legacies in South Asian states offered non-representative state institutions such as the military enough space to influence the transformation process of democracy. The paper has two main objectives: (1) to explore the concepts of power devolution and their associative nomenclature; (2) to analysis of the political and administrative dimensions of decentralization to underpin the structure of decentralization in South Asia in general and Pakistan in particular. The results of the study are that the lack of the weakest local government system in the South Asian region in general, and in Pakistan in particular, is due to the colonial legacy of an ongoing controlled political mindset in the form of bureaucracy, frequent military coups, a lack of political will to develop a welfare state in Pakistan. It uses the qualitative research methods of phenomenology and correlation, which sheds light on the meaning of relative terms often used to explain delegation of authority for political and administrative purposes.

Financing Devolution in a COVID-19 Environment: The Status of Devolution in Zimbabwe

Background: The concept of devolution has always presented significant controversy in African unitary states. It is often viewed with inherent suspicion and skepticism based on the lack of mutual trust between the people and the government. While proponents see it as a form of empowerment, resistant groups in society view the decentralization of government powers and responsibilities as a gateway to success. Despite the devolution agenda being a major component of local governance in the Zimbabwean Constitution of 2013, it would not be practically implemented until the new dispensation that rose into power in 2018. However, the coming in of the COVID-19 pandemic has significantly marred the take-off of devolution implementation in Zimbabwe. Whilst COVID-19 cases continue to escalate on the globe, African countries continue to battle not only with the second wave of the pandemic but also with the new COVID-19 variants. Already fragile economies of these countries, the governments were forced to prioritize the national budgets in response to the pandemic; consequently, other social and developmental issues were left behind.
 Objective: This study discusses the contemporary status of devolution in Zimbabwe to ascertain the extent of implementation; provide supportive legislation for devolution structures through recommendations; analyze devolution disbursements from 2019 before COVID-19 to date; assess the local authorities’ initial requests versus the disbursements in 2019 and 2020.
 Method: The researcher carried out a desk review and followed the principles of case study design by analyzing financial statements, reports and data coming in from the Councils and relevant Government ministries. The meaning was also derived by critically reviewing, organizing and interpreting related information from books and articles published in newspapers and journals.
 Result: Despite Section 264(1) of the Constitution providing for devolution of power to the three tiers of the Government, there is no supporting legislature in place as yet to actualize this key element. The Government Budgetary Allocation of 5% is not meeting local authority demands.
 Conclusion: The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in late 2019 reduced the pace of the devolution process because the funds were channeled to fight against the virus. If properly practiced, devolution may be one of the solutions to the development of the Zimbabwean economy since the devolution program is largely founded on the principle of empowering provincial government councils and Local Authorities to spearhead economic and social development projects in their areas by leveraging on local resources. It may also solve issues of corruption in many local councils in Zimbabwe by improving accountability mechanisms, especially where sub governments are permitted to progressively compete with each other to establish innovative ways of delivering public services efficiently and inexpensively.
 Implications: The findings imply that the Government policies can affect the social and economic well-being of citizens, however, the COVID-19 pandemic has far outweighing impacts. Secondly, the coronavirus outbreak has proved how much the Government of Zimbabwe is ill-prepared to deal with a pandemic of this dimension. Policymakers should ensure that finances are set in the national budget for unseen events so as not to derail other Government projects.
 Originality: This paper is original and not sent anywhere for publication.

TOWARDS FEDERALIZATION OF NIGERIAN UNITARIZED JUDICIARY

This paper examines federalism as a concept, its adoption to governance in Nigeria through the constitution. The constitution is examined with a view of showing elements of unitarism instead of the federalism the constitution proclaims for Nigeria. In this regard, we examined the creation of federation account, statutory allocation of revenue to states and local government and what it portends for a federation. Conduct of general Election on a date for the central government and all the states of the federation is observed as an aberration in a federal state, so also is the creation of a National electoral commission for both the central and state governments. Creation of central judiciary for both the National and state government with institutions like Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) is also an aberration in a federation. The paper is concluded by contrasting Nigerian federation with American federation with a recommendation for true federation modeled along American system so as to ensure peace, order, good governance and security of the nation. This will be a form of devolution of power which can ensure Nigeria’s unity and erase agitation for balkanisation of Nigeria.

ДРУШТВЕНИ КАПИТАЛ У ФУНКЦИЈИ УНАПРЕЂЕЊА РЕГИОНАЛНОГ РАЗВОЈА

Regional development strategies should be based on the sound assessment of regional resources, capabilities, competences and core competences, as well as on dynamic capabilities aiming to develop the resource configurations in order to form their regional competitive advantage. Therefore, new regionalism is basically a bottom-up process, because the prerequisites for its successful implementation are the leadership and vision of local actors and administrations, civic participation, the growth of social capital and administrative decentralization and devolution of power. In that sense, the paper deals with important issues regarding the intangible determinants of regional economic development. The research method that will be dominantly used in this paper is the case-study method which aims to fully and thoroughly reconstruct the presence and role of social capital (primarily its structural dimension - social network platforms) in the regional development of world-famous and successful regions such as Silicon Valley, Baden-Wurttemberg and Emilia-Romagna. The overall conclusion of the paper is that regional growth is a function of the social capital stocks of respective regions to a significant extent. Social capital is positively linked to regional development and economic prosperity by reducing transaction costs, articulating collective actions, encouraging innovation and technology dissemination, discouraging opportunism and increasing monetary and non-monetary cost of fraud.

Participation in Community Development Micro Projects in Niger Delta Region of Nigeria: Implications for Social Work Education and Practice

This study sought to investigate factors militating against community participation in development projects executed under the Micro Projects Programme and how to reduce such factors to the barest minimum in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria. A cross-sectional survey design was adopted for the study. A questionnaire, an in-depth interview (IDI) guide and a focus group discussion (FGD) guide were used for data collection. Borehole water, generator-house, health centres, staff quarters and markets were the projects executed. Inadequate devolution of power to the grassroots, among others, was the major problem that hindered involvement of community members in the development process of the Micro Projects Programme in the study areas. To enhance active participation of beneficiaries in the development process of the programme, suggestions are proffered.