Local Governance Processes Research Articles

Monica Tennberg, Else Grete Broderstad, Hans-Kristian Hernes (eds.), Indigenous Peoples, Natural Resources and Governance: Agencies and Interactions (London: Routledge, 2021)

As Indigenous Peoples around the world face new and increasing forms of extractive pressure in their traditional territories, what opportunities do they have to exercise agency and protect their interests in local resource governance processes? In Indigenous Peoples, Natural Resources and Governance: Agencies and Interactions, editors Tennberg, Broderstad and Hernes seek to broaden their readers’ understanding of Indigenous resource governance dynamics by showcasing a wide range of case studies from settler States in the circumpolar Arctic (Norway, Sweden, Russia, Canada) and Oceania (New Zealand, Australia). Throughout this interdisciplinary collection, the editors’ and contributors’ focus is on the diverse and evolving interactions between Indigenous Peoples, State actors, and extractive industry players, which are shown to vary significantly across geopolitical and socioeconomic contexts.

An Exploratory Study of the Determinants of the Decision-Making Process of Local Government During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Indonesia

This study aims to answer how complex decision making is and what factors determine the decision making process in regions to manage the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. This study uses the perspective of decision-making theory in crisis. However, this study is not intended to prove one specific theory. This study is an exploration type. It is intended to explore the practice of decision making in crises. The unit of analysis for this study is the highest officials, both executive and legislative, at the provincial and district levels, where it has been awarded as the best province in handling the COVID-19 pandemic. The total of respondents who completed the online questionnaire form were 45 percent of all DPRD members in the province and district; and 41 percent of provincial and district government officials. This study found new findings that executive leaders, rather than legislators, believed that pandemic-era decision-making was complex. The second new finding of this study is that the crisis has encouraged the emergence of transformational leadership. The last new finding is the consideration of the consequences of decision making that affect executive leaders in making decisions. Other factors that determine the extent of the complexity of the decision-making identified are organizational and management capacity and government innovation capacity.

Local variation and central-local relations in China’s pandemic management

The COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated the importance of state capacity and organizational structure in responding to public health emergencies. The variegated outcome of response mechanisms across the world requires a comparative approach to policy response and learning as well as public governance. The Chinese case has so far been discussed in the literature with regard to its initial delay in launching pandemic management process, and later effectiveness in providing healthcare solutions at the epicenter of the pandemic. This research offers a three-dimensional approach to pandemic management: patient treatment, case containment, and welfare provision to compensate for public health measures. The variable policy processes of local governments outside the epicenter aimed at slowing down the spread of COVID-19 and alleviating the burden of lockdown. The research question is whether these policies were central government-led or cases of local variation? The dataset is composed of over 1000 documents published in the initial stages of the pandemic. The documents include local government policies for patient treatment, case containment and welfare provision from 10 provinces and 10 provincial-level cities across China, excluding the autonomous regions. Analysis of the data indicates that localities selectively implemented central directives and those localities that are critical in terms of geography, demography or economics took initiative for policy innovation. Inter-locality rivalry also played a role in the policy process. This research contributes to the literature on central-local relations in China, and public policy and governance in the post-pandemic era. China, Covid-19, local governance, local variation, emergency governance.

Unsatisfying Transfer of Climate Research to Urban Planning: The Regulatory Trap in the Triple Helix

Abstract Making urban areas more sustainable by transferring scientific results into the building, shaping, and governance of cities is a complicated process which involves – amongst other dimensions – science, local governance, and regulatory processes. There are non-linear interactions within each of these three dimensions which are influenced and enhanced by interactions between the three dimensions. After a short analysis of different sustainability concepts, this conceptual paper considers each of the three dimensions and finally tries to find some suggestions as to how these dimensions could interact more smoothly also considering Triple Helix theory. One basic suggestion is that without updating laws, norms, and standards, urban administrations will often not be able to integrate new scientific findings into procedures for more sustainable cities. That is, all three dimensions need to be aligned in the process of building sustainable cities.

The role of urban regeneration to improve community development in a metropolitan municipality

Background: The purpose of this article was to explore the role of urban regeneration to improve community development in a metropolitan municipality. This is important in light of the current strenuous socioeconomic situation, due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Some of the pandemic’s consequences on communities include socioeconomic challenges, loss of income, business disruption and health concerns. Therefore, it is important to evaluate the different mechanisms government uses to promote community development, and one of these mechanisms is urban regeneration.Aim: The study aims to establish whether urban regeneration can be used as a mechanism to promote community development.Setting: The article is based on South African metropolitan municipalities, mainly the three biggest municipalities in the country. These municipalities include the City of Johannesburg, the City of Cape Town and the eThekwini municipality.Methods: This research is based on unobtrusive qualitative research techniques or methods in order to collect and analyse information. The techniques used include conceptual, content, documentary and comparative analysis. Therefore, the contents and information used were collected from various secondary sources such as journal articles, books and government documents such as White Papers. In addition, political, economic, social, technological, environmental and legal analytical framework is also used.Results: Urban regeneration is not a new phenomenon in South Africa; however, the mechanism is not fully embraced by municipalities in the country. The practice of both urban regeneration and community development goes hand in hand. Different metropolitan municipalities in the country have developed plans to incorporate urban regeneration as part of their community development programmes. Community development and urban regeneration are implemented in South Africa under different developmental policies. However, it is the sole mandate of the local government (municipalities) to promote this programme in their communities. The study also found that urban regeneration was also impacted both positively and negatively by the COVID-19 pandemic. The negative impact of COVID-19 is that various projects were postponed in order to redirect resources towards the COVID-19 response. Some of the projects affected municipal infrastructure grants to provide water to households and sanitise public transport facilities in municipalities that do not receive the public transport network grant. South African metropolitan municipalities lack a common shared plan on urban regeneration and community development.Conclusion: The main finding of this research study is that there is no concrete plan put in place to promote urban regeneration in municipalities. Hence, the study recommended that in conjunction with the national government, local levels should develop such a plan.Contribution: This research study will contribute to the decision-making process in local government. The research will also contribute to policy development and design on the topic of urban regeneration and community development.

IMPACT OF ICT IN STRENGTHENING TRANSPARENCY IN RURAL LOCAL GOVERNANCE: A CASE STUDY IN FOUR GRAM PANCHAYATS IN WEST BENGAL, INDIA

The use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in local governance and public service delivery systems has added a new dimension in the recent times. In West Bengal, processes of decentralisation and institutional issues were assisted by special projects like SRD (Strengthening Rural Decentralisation) and ISGP (Institutional Strengthening of Gram Panchayats) respectively supported by DFID (2005-2011) and World Bank (2011-ongoing). Emphasis on GIS based monitoring of decentralised planning process, tracking key services provided by Gram Panchayats, use of GPMS (Gram Panchayat Management System) software for administrative and financial management are few of these key measures which rely on the use of ICTs in the local governance system. Apart from that, Ministry of Panchayati Raj has issued several guidelines on use of uniform portal like e-Gramswaraj for uploading Gram Panchayat Development Plans online. It is widely believed that issues like accountability and transparency can be ensured in the institutions of Gram Panchayats with advent of such measures. In this article we will analyse the effectiveness of ICT in bringing transparency and strengthen institutional accountability in the Gram Panchayats. Four Gram Panchayats in the District of Birbhumwere selected to understand how the effective implementation of ICT measures impact on the overall institutional strengthening of Gram Panchayats. For the purpose and the rigour of the study the GPs were selected on the basis of identified socio-economic and other important methodological indicators. Elected Representatives and local residents were selected as respondents. Gram Panchayats were visited for this purpose. For the collection of data structured questionnaire, personal interview, FGDs and case study methods were also used.The finding shows that the role of ICTs in the rural local governance process is limited. The administrative practices, monitoring of planning cycle, GPs financial management has improved undoubtedly but it is not a panacea as viewed by some experts. The study argues that limited involvement of the local residents in the process with low attendance in Gram Sabha and Gram Sansads meetings cannot be compensated with the modern technologies.

Youth Participation and Disaster: Examining Suggestions on Disaster Risk Reduction Management in Metro Manila, Philippines

Communication is critical in all areas of disaster risk reduction management (DRRM). Efficient and comprehensive information is essential to minimize unanticipated and unexpected economic and social repercussions and increase the response's effectiveness. Furthermore, the local government unit should discuss youth involvement in DRRM to develop inclusive policies. Thus, this study examines 752 typhoon-and-flood-related textual suggestions of youth leaders and volunteers from different typhoon and flood communities in Metro Manila, Philippines to discuss emerging themes on DRRM. Using Google Forms, this study gathers suggestions regarding the disaster governance measures of the participant's respective communities. Youth leaders' and volunteers' suggestions for better disaster preparedness revealed seven thematic recommendations including the need for more robust early warning systems, information campaigns, capacity building and tactics for increasing personal preparedness. Filipino values such as damayan (to give sympathetic support), pakikipagkapwa (having a sense of shared identity) and bayanihan (a spirit of communal unity) have also emerged from the suggestions. The role of women and persons with disability was also a repeated theme that will empower them in times of disaster. Overall, this study provides initial insight into youths' role in increasing inclusivity in local government and communities' decision-making processes on disaster risk reduction management.

Multiplying Faces and Amplifying Voices: Do Women’s Lives Matter in Local Governance Politics in Gwanda, Zimbabwe?

Women’s invisibility in political spaces is a glaring reality, particularly in patriarchal polities characterized by misogynistic attitudes towards feminine leadership. This article unpacks the socio-cultural variables that hinder women’s participation in politics and other masculinized spheres of influence. The article focuses on the advocacy efforts of Women’s Institute for Leadership Development in Gwanda, Zimbabwe. The article also details the successes and challenges scored by the lobbying effort. The article uses a qualitative research approach. It discusses the extent and effectiveness of women’s involvement in local governance and how their participation relates to Sustainable Development Goal 5. It was established that the project has greatly improved ordinary women’s participation in local governance in Gwanda Central. Capacity-building strategies implemented improved participation, competence, confidence, and effectiveness of women’s local governance processes. Women are increasingly participating in leadership at various levels. The training and mentorship programmes inspired some women to contest in the 2018 elections. We recommend the government of Zimbabwe and civil society organizations facilitate the implementation of structural reforms that address systemic and institutionalized gender-based discrimination.00263

Beyond land rights registration: understanding the mundane elements of land conflict in Ethiopia

ABSTRACT While land registration may increase the sense of security amongst landholders and provide a mechanism for resolving boundary disputes, its interaction with social, political-economic and ecological dynamics can actually generate conflicts by creating new opportunities by which some actors can assert claims or expand their landholdings, often at the expense of others. Conflicts over land cannot be understood without understanding the local dynamics with which they are intertwined. Drawing from case studies in the Amhara region of Ethiopia, this paper shows that, despite land registration and certification, there are widespread conflicts within and between households and state authorities regarding the usufruct of individual and communal lands. The paper argues that conflicts over land are complex and political and are linked to and embedded in the processes of commercialization, as well as in local social processes and power relations. These, in turn, influence and are shaped by the political economy of local governance and land administration processes, particularly in relation to the implementation of land registration. The paper highlights that land conflicts are attributed to a range of issues, including not only the challenges of governance in land registration but also population growth, commercialization, urbanization, inheritance and gender inequality, all of which intersect with corrupt land administration systems .

Intercultural Communications and Community Participation in Local Governance: EU Experience

This article deals with the identification of the most effective mechanisms, methods and tools for local governance in the EU through a high-level community participation in these processes in the context of building existing systems of intercultural communication. The essence and substance of intercultural communication is revealed with the help of well-known research methods, as well as the logical structure and systemic analysis. The main interdependencies in their implementation on the community structure are determined. The issue of determining the place of local governments in the system of intercultural communications at the territorial community level occupies an important place in the study. The main features of intercultural communication and their impact on community participation in local governance are revealed. An important conclusion is drawn that public demand is the main product of intercultural communication, while social capital is the main result. The relationship between the breadth of community coverage by intercultural communication processes and the depth of community participation in local governance processes is studied. This inclusiveness allows determining the civil society development level, the activity of its institutions, as well as the extent at which the goal of implementing good governance concept in a particular community is achieved. The intercultural communication is proved to be able to form a public demand system that the community presents to local self-government bodies as programme requirements for the state of territorial development. All this determines the further need to study social capital as an independent resource and additional potential that the community can offer through the network of social communications to local self-government bodies to improve the effectiveness of territorial development.
 
 Received: 27 June 2022 / Accepted: 28 August 2022 / Published: 2 September 2022

The clustering of public values in local educational governance: the case of inclusion

ABSTRACT In this article, we explore and discuss how the clustering of values in local educational governance manifests in the case of inclusion. Public values and the role that these play as mediating factors are important in local governance processes; however, they are often overlooked in empirical studies. Inclusion is interesting because it is currently one of the most dominant political aims in education. Based on extensive data from interviews with municipal administrators in Norway, the following three aspects were important in their meaning-making around inclusive education: (1) an assumed common understanding of inclusion, (2) a general approach to adaptation and (3) a broad view on school development. These largely reflected public values, such as equality and participation, rule of law and accountability, professional autonomy and innovation. However, because the values are clustered in particular ways, inclusion largely becomes a practical and didactic issue. This is important to discuss as the municipal level arguably needs to be involved in analytical discussions to enhance inclusive education. Professional autonomy and accountability are both emphasised and may create value conflicts. How public sector values are mediated and clustered with each other should be discussed, as how this is done give directions for educational practices.

Learning from Neighbors: The Spatial Spillover Effect of Crisis Learning on Local Government

Accident prevention is an important prerequisite for achieving sustainable development, and effective crisis learning is a necessary path to it. This article focuses on whether local governments in non-accident areas learn from crises in accident areas, that is “learn from the mistakes of neighbors” and “grow in wisdom.” Using panel data from 2006–2017 for 30 provinces in China, our empirical test discovered that there is not a one-to-one relationship between “learning from neighbors” and “growing in wisdom”; it is a U-shaped relationship between the frequency of major accidents and the crisis learning effect of local government. When the occurrence frequency of major accidents is low, the regulatory effect caused by major accidents leads to the effective crisis learning of local governments. However, when major accidents occur frequently and reach a certain threshold, the crisis learning effect will deteriorate due to an excessive deterrent effect. In this non-linear relationship, the impact of political pressure occurs on two fronts, a gentle U-shaped curve and a shift in the inflection point to the left, implying that political pressure plays a dual role in the crisis learning process of local government. Accordingly, local governments should fully seize the window of time to initiate crisis learning with regulatory effects and delegate political authority to supervise local crisis learning with reasonable compliance.

Local Government Governance Path Optimization Based on Multisource Big Data

With the development of Internet technology, multisource big data can collect and analyze information so as to provide people with a good vision. In the process of governance, local governments will have problems of incomplete information. With the development of big data, multisource and big data will have advanced nature. Therefore, based on multisource big data, this paper analyzes the multisource big data algorithm in detail and establishes a local government governance model based on multisource big data. Then, the proposed model is applied to the local government governance process of Beijing, Shanghai, Chongqing, and Tianjin, and the local governance situation of each city is compared and analyzed so as to provide some reference for the optimization of the local government governance path. The experimental results show that the local governance model based on multisource big data can optimize the local government governance path and point out the direction for the local government governance path.

To Adopt CCU Technology or Not? An Evolutionary Game between Local Governments and Coal-Fired Power Plants

Carbon dioxide capture and utilization (CCU) technology is a significant means by which China can achieve its ambitious carbon neutrality goal. It is necessary to explore the behavioral strategies of relevant companies in adopting CCU technology. In this paper, an evolutionary game model is established in order to analyze the interaction process and evolution direction of local governments and coal-fired power plants. We develop a replicator dynamic system and analyze the stability of the system under different conditions. Based on numerical simulation, we analyze the impact of key parameters on the strategies of stakeholders. The simulation results show that the unit prices of hydrogen and carbon dioxide derivatives have the most significant impact: when the unit price of hydrogen decreases to 15.9 RMB/kg or the unit price of carbon dioxide derivatives increases to 3.4 RMB/kg, the evolutionary stabilization strategy of the system changes and power plants shift to adopt CCU technology. The results of this paper suggest that local governments should provide relevant support policies and incentives for CCU technology deployment, as well as focusing on the synergistic development of CCU technology and renewable energy hydrogen production technology.

The Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) and local institutions in Ghana’s mining communities: Challenges in understanding barriers to accountability

SummaryMotivationThe Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) is a global standard that promotes transparency and accountability in resource‐rich countries to improve governance of the extractive sector. Despite improvements in the subnational disclosure of royalty payments, a significant problem is the failure of these efforts to improve accountability and benefits to mining communities.PurposeThe article asks how institutions of local governance affect national efforts to improve accountability to mining communities in Ghana on the use of mineral revenues for development. It contributes to the broader theoretical literature on EITI by clarifying what outcomes, if any, can be directly attributed to the disclosure of royalty payments.Methods and approachThis qualitative study employs a case‐study analysis of EITI adoption in Ghana, one of the first countries to join the initiative. The article contextualizes local governance institutions and dynamics in relation to the royalty disbursement process. It draws on original field research to analyse their role in impeding the expected benefits of royalty disbursements to mining‐affected communities.FindingsThe research identifies deficiencies in local governance structures and processes as they relate to the use of mineral royalties, but also instances of variation in how officials react to EITI. The range of individual actors, institutions, and complex processes on which the subnational disbursement of royalties depends, makes it problematic to attribute the absence of improvements directly to Ghana's EITI. The findings demonstrate that EITI's role in participating countries is best understood as facilitative and indirect when addressing development outcomes for mining communities.Policy implicationsDisclosure of royalty payments to local governments is unlikely on its own to result in improved development outcomes for local communities, even when the national government is committed to the goal. There is a need for policy interventions aimed at specific communities to ensure royalty payments reach the intended beneficiaries. These interventions should be tailored to the differences in national governance dynamics in countries participating in EITI, paying attention to contestation over the distribution and expenditure of royalties that disclosure helps bring to light.

Relational leadership in local governance: the engagement of mayors with citizens, public managers and politicians

ABSTRACT This paper studies how mayors engage with citizens, public managers and politicians across the policy cycle and specifically in four local governance processes: agenda setting, decision-making, public services design and delivery. Drawing from a survey of 1,067 Italian mayors, we identify four clusters of engagement: Centralized Leadership, Semi-Inclusive Leadership, Conventional Leadership and Multi-Actor Leadership. We find that some mayors prefer to engage with politicians for issues related to public service design and delivery, rather than with public managers, and that if mayors engage citizens in local governance, this is generally done across all the stages of the policy cycle.

Aadhaar and social assistance programming: local bureaucracies as critical intermediary

ABSTRACT Digital identity platforms are a recent e-governance innovation for improving social assistance programming in the development context, the most well-known of which is India's Aadhaar. While a significant number of studies have accumulated on Aadhaar, so far under-researched is the importance of local government practices and processes in shaping usage of the platform to support social assistance programming. In this paper we theorize how local government intermediation on digital identity platforms can improve social assistance programming through a case study of the Aadhaar-enabled Fertilizer Distribution System (AeFDS) in Andhra Pradesh. Our findings show how the relevance of the platform for low-income farmers depends crucially on the proactive adaptation of the technology by key local government intermediaries. From a policy perspective, this result emphasizes the importance of supporting efforts to acknowledge the role of responsive local government agencies in ensuring that centralized digital identity platforms remain relevant for implementing social assistance programming.

Factors Affecting Citizen Participation in Local Development Planning in Murewa District, Zimbabwe

Local governments are the bedrock for sound public administration because of their role in promoting bottom-up socio-economic development. Although Zimbabwe has made strides in ensuring citizens’ participation in local government processes, local authorities and other stakeholders still rely on the top-down approaches, marginalising the needs of the local citizens. The purpose of this paper is to determine the factors that affect the active participation of citizens in local governance in the Murewa District in Zimbabwe. Based on a multistage sampling approach, involving purposive sampling and stratified random sampling, interviews were conducted with 30 local government officials, while a questionnaire survey was administered to 396 citizens in four wards within the district. Complementary data were collected through focus group discussions and field observations. Thematic analysis was employed on data generated from interviews, focus group discussions and field observations, while the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (Version 16) was used to analyse quantitative data from the questionnaire survey. The results show that more than 50% of the residents in the district felt that local government leadership side lined them in development planning. Some citizens reported that officials used development planning meetings to further their political agendas. The study recommends enhancement of citizen participation through citizen empowerment programmes such as educational and political leadership training programmes that transform the marginalised communities into autonomous communities that are capable of determining their own destiny.

Building Trust and Reciprocity through Citizen Participation and Transparency: Lessons from Municipal Governments of Uganda and Thailand

New governance dynamics are pushing government and its agencies to explore and enhance participatory governance practices at all levels as well as developing and encouraging new partnerships with civil society organizations and other non-state actors. This arrangement however takes participation for granted and does not illustrate how and when it can be meaningful. This article was informed by a study that examined, in a comparative framework and in relation to the expectations created by theory, the extent to which citizen participation reciprocates into trust and transparency in Uganda and Thai municipal governments. Although citizen participation and empowerment are interrelated governance concepts, the study established considerable overlaps between the two. Empowering citizens to understand their stakes and leverage in the local governance processes, and how to make their voices count was concluded to be the missing link in Uganda and Thailand municipal governments. Moreover, without providing citizens with relevant and complete information in user-friendly formats, participation may remain a public display but in reality a surrogate for mere politics with little in terms of citizen trust and reciprocity

Effective guide for behaviour of farmers in the withdrawal of rural homesteads: An evolutionary game-based study.

In this study, we determined how farmers can be effectively encouraged to withdraw from their idle homesteads, in addition to revitalising the rural construction land stock and realising the market-oriented allocation of land resources. We constructed an evolutionary game model under three scenarios: without penalty mechanism; with a static penalty mechanism; and with a dynamic penalty mechanism. Further, we explicitly describe the strategic behaviours and dynamic evolution processes of local governments and farmers during withdrawal from their rural homesteads. According to the results of the evolutionary stable strategy, under effect of the dynamic penalty mechanism, the strategy systems formed by local governments as well as farmers can gradually converge and stabilise after short-term shocks, compared with that under the no penalty and static penalty mechanisms. Overall, the penalty mechanism mitigates the instability in the game process during participants' incremental changes and strategy choices, while the dynamic mechanism is optimal. Both static and dynamic penalty mechanisms influence the binary equilibrium strategies of local governments as well as farmers, and farmers' strategies evolve towards this state of withdrawal from their homesteads with increasing penalty. When the model is dynamically improved, the probability of farmers' withdrawal of their homesteads increases with increasing penalty. Thus, clearly, the establishment of a penalty mechanism can promote stability of the participants' system; higher penalty implies higher motivation for farmers to withdraw their idle homesteads, enabling revitalisation of the rural stock of construction land and promotion of the optimal allocation of land resource elements.