Local Government System Research Articles

Ethical Dilemmas and Their Impact on Accountability in Local Governments: A Study of the Greater Kigezi Sub-Region in Uganda

This study examines the impact of ethical dilemmas on accountability in local governments within the Greater Kigezi sub-region of Uganda comprising of Kabale, Kanungu, Kisoro, Rubanda and Rukiga local governments and therefore, sufficient enough to represent and enable generalization of findings to other local governments in the country. Over the past few decades, public sector reforms have sought to enhance transparency, efficiency, and service delivery. Despite these efforts, Uganda continues to face challenges in maintaining strong accountability systems, particularly at the local government level. Ethical dilemmas—stemming from conflicts of interest, political pressure, resource constraints, and cultural norms—undermine accountability and transparency, leading to corruption and diminished public trust. The study investigates these dynamics by exploring how ethical challenges affect governance in local governments through the aid of questionnaires and interviews with stakeholders drawn from the local governments and opinion leaders who represent the voices of the grassroots. Focusing on the Greater Kigezi sub-region, the research highlights widespread governance issues such as nepotism, political interference, and weak institutional oversight. Findings reveal that ethical dilemmas hinder public sector performance by compromising decision-making and oversight processes. To address these challenges, the study suggests enhancing ethical training, strengthening oversight institutions, fostering civic engagement, and developing clearer policies on ethics and accountability. By implementing these policy reforms, stakeholders can create more transparent and accountable local governance systems that better serve community needs

Citizens’ Political Knowledge and Participation in Monitoring Local Government Programs in Two Districts of Uganda

Broad political knowledge better equips citizens to discharge the responsibilities of good citizenship, such as monitoring local government programs. Empirical studies show a connection between citizens’ political knowledge and their participation in monitoring activities in contexts other than a decentralized local government system in a developing country. Thus, in this paper, we set out to provide new empirical evidence by assessing the link between citizens’ political knowledge and their participation in monitoring local government programs in Buliisa and Kampala districts of Uganda. We employed a convergent parallel research design. We gathered data using survey questionnaire, key informant interviews, and focus group discussions. We analyzed quantitative data using STATA and performed thematic analysis for the qualitative data. Generally, results showed that the level of political participation of citizens in monitoring local government programs was significantly and positively associated with their level of knowledge of local political affairs. This was especially marked in Kampala compared to Buliisa district. Conclusively, the nature of the association between the aforesaid variables could differ depending on the form of local political knowledge and/or the nature of political participation being measured.

Societal Adaptation to Pandemic Challenges: Analysing the Role of Local Governance and Healthcare Systems in Madhya Pradesh

The COVID-19 pandemic posed unprecedented challenges, compelling communities globally to adapt rapidly to protect lives and maintain societal functions. This study examines the role of local governance and healthcare systems in Madhya Pradesh in addressing these challenges and fostering societal resilience. Drawing on quantitative data from government health agencies and qualitative insights from community feedback, this research explores how local governance structures facilitated public health response, resource allocation, and pandemic preparedness. Findings indicate that decentralized decision-making and robust healthcare infrastructure were instrumental in managing health crises, providing essential services, and supporting economic resilience at the grassroots level. Key results show that regions with stronger local governance exhibited a 30% lower infection rate compared to less governed areas, while areas with well-resourced healthcare systems saw a 20% higher recovery rate. Resource distribution, however, varied significantly, with urban areas receiving 60% more medical supplies than rural regions, creating disparities in healthcare access. Data analysis revealed that healthcare facilities that integrated digital solutions, such as telemedicine, were able to serve 45% more patients remotely, mitigating the risk of virus spread and reducing hospital overload. The study identifies the need for capacity-building initiatives, infrastructure strengthening, and data-driven decision-making to enhance future pandemic preparedness. Future prospects include continuous training programs for healthcare workers, increasing community awareness of health protocols, and leveraging technology for real-time data monitoring. These insights contribute to a comprehensive framework for building resilient healthcare systems in Madhya Pradesh, better prepared for future public health crises.

Pay As You Go (PAYG) Pension Scheme and Employee Performance in Anambra State Local Government System (2012 - 2021)

Pay As You Go (PAYG) Pension Scheme and Employee Performance in Anambra State Local Government System (2012 - 2021)

Grounded governance: Cultivating social justice through community-engaged learning with PEPAKEṈ HÁUTW̱ (Blossoming Place)

By deepening student relationships to local governance systems, they become better equipped to envision and enact the worlds they seek to create. This paper discusses a community-engaged learning initiative facilitated by a University of Victoria instructor that centered on the theme of “Grounded Governance” to anchor student learning about governance and social justice theories, movements and practices. The overall approach draws inspiration from bell hooks who explains the value and significance of engaged learning. Specifically, this paper discusses the experience of teaching place-based learning through engagement with Indigenous-led ecological restoration efforts, including collaboration with PEPAKEṈ HÁUTW̱ (Blossoming Place). The author reflects on community site visits with a W̱SÁNEĆ nonprofit organization to learn about ecological restoration and decolonial governance. This grounded approach to teaching is inspired by Indigenous-led place-based learning. As a collaborative effort between the Studies in Social Justice program, the School of Public Administration and community partners, this pedagogy aims to integrate community-engaged learning more deeply into the study of public administration. Doing so in practice emphasizes relationship-building with local Indigenous-led community organizations while supporting student learning objectives by teaching about social justice through collaborative and meaningful public engagement.

Aligning local governance with SDGs: a study of local government systems in Pakistan

ABSTRACT This study examines the experiences of local government councilors between 2013–2020 in four provinces of Pakistan. The study addresses three key questions: Firstly, it investigates the differences and commonalities in the local government structures across provinces and explores the potential for synchronization to enhance the implementation of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at the local level. Secondly, it examines the main challenges local councilors face in effectively delivering basic services, including water, sanitation, health, education, waste management, and transport, within both rural and urban contexts. Lastly, the study analyses the necessary changes or reforms at the provincial level within the existing local government system in rural and urban areas to ensure the delivery of basic services in alignment with SDGs. The findings reveal that a powerful bureaucracy and political influence at the intermediate to upper levels of the government hierarchy exert significant control over administrative, fiscal, and political.

The ‘Great Survivor’ lives on? Resilience, austerity and devolution in English local government

ABSTRACT This article explores interpretations of resilience within English local government. Using a historical and multi-scalar framework, it argues that previous accounts of resilience in English local government have neglected the effect of sub-national institutional restructuring and compounding the impact austerity has had on local government capacity to navigate this complex landscape. The article situates resilience in the broader context of decentralisation, illustrating the benefits of adopting a broad spatial perspective to focus on resilience within local government systems. Continuing austerity and inconsistently applied institutional reorganisation are highlighted as potential twin threats to the ‘survivability’ of English local government.

MEASURING GLOBALIZATION: ANALYZING INTERNATIONALIZATION OF HIGHER EDUCATION (IOHE) THROUGH STEM EDUCATION IN PAKISTAN

The concepts of 'internationalization' and 'globalization' are closely intertwined, impacting both tangible and intangible aspects of higher education. Internationalization refers to the internal transformations that occur within an educational setting as a result of frequent cross-border interactions within a local governmental system. Currently, developing countries like Pakistan are adapting and shaping their higher education systems in response to the global knowledge economy but neglecting the introduction of STEM education in the areas of social sciences like mathematics, statistics, entrepreneurship, IT, and other courses that are considered the need of time may leads to lack social scientist’s ability to estimate & forecasting and critically evaluate the situations as these deficiencies lead to reduce the cognitive skill of the workforce. This qualitative study employed Wallenstein’s World System analysis framework to examine student mobility and educational policy aspects in Pakistan critically. The findings suggest that the internationalization of higher education may lead to unequal exchange of educational services between core and peripheral countries in the global system.

지방자치단체의 감사제도와 자치권 보장

Currently, local governments operate various types of auditing systems. Audits by the National Assembly, the Board of Audit and Inspection, external audits by the central government, internal audits by local assemblies and internal audit bodies, and so on. In the case of foreign countries, since the autonomy of Korea is guaranteed, the internal audit system is well developed rather than the local or federal government. However, in Korea, rather than assuring the autonomy of the local autonomous entities, auditing at the central level is taking place, and self--audits by local assemblies and internal audit bodies are often carried out at the formal level. Local governments operate these types of auditing systems, but there are still many problems with the auditing system of local governments. Especially, there are many kinds of auditing system and there is insufficient division of the scope of auditing, and audits are conducted to make duplicate audits or unnecessary affairs. Self-audit There is also a lack of independence and expertise, so insufficient effectiveness of auditing and lack of support from self-audit bodies limits the ability to influence However, in order to guarantee the autonomy of the local autonomous entities of the local autonomous entities, Korea will examine the ways of improving the external audits and strengthening the self - audit, and discuss the audit system to guarantee the autonomy of the local autonomous entities.

Деятельность Н.И. Буланова на посту городского Головы Ставропольской городской Думы

In 1873, the City Duma was established in Stavropol (now Tolyatti) as the highest body of local government. It was in charge of various issues: the formation of the external appearance of the city, the organization of cultural events, the development of education and healthcare. The functioning of the local government system remains one of the main issues today. Having studied this problem, it can be noted that, based on the accumulated experience, there is a transformation of the relationship between the government and the heads of local government. The authors made an attempt to address the history of the Stavropol City Duma of the 19th century and analyze one of the key figures in the system of self-government – the city Mayor, who occupied a fairly high status due to the concentration of both legislative and executive power in his hands. The focus of the study is on the activities of the City Head of the Stavropol Duma, Nikolai Ivanovich Bulanov, who was born into a merchant family and was able to receive a higher education, which made him very different from his fellow officers. Nikolai Bulanov worked for more than 30 years in the Stavropol city government and during this time made a significant contribution to the development of city infrastructure. The source base is includes materials from the Tolyatti archive: journals of City Duma meetings on issues of city improvement, formal lists, ballot papers for city mayor election, reports of city councils.

Risks of using digital technologies in the activities of local government bodies

The subject. The article analyzes the existing practice of implementation and use of digital technologies at the municipal level. The choice of the research object is conditioned by the fact that currently most acts in the field of digitalization of public authority affect the federal or regional level, meanwhile, the digital transformation of local self-government has its own specificity, due to the peculiarities of this level of social management, which should be taken into account in the legal regulation.The purpose of the study: identify the risks that have a negative impact on the process of digital transformation of local governance, and propose measures to minimize or eliminate the identified risks by legal means.Methodology. The research utilized integrated and interdisciplinary approaches. The methodological basis of the study was formed by a set of methods of cognition, the main of which were: methods of formal and dialectical logic and analysis, comparative-legal and system-structural methods, as well as sociological methods of research.Conclusions. The following conclusions were made based on the results of the research:1.The main risks of introducing digital technologies in the activities of local government are: the risk of violating the security and confidentiality of personal data of citizens during their processing and storage in the digital systems of local government; the risk of cyberattacks, hacking or unauthorized access to information systems operated by municipal authorities; the risk of insufficient legal regulation of the introduction and use of digital technologies; the risk of using inappropriate or low-quality digital technology.2.The following measures are proposed as measures to minimize the identified risks: systematic mandatory informing of both local government officials and the public on the correct procedure and liability measures for the implementation and operation of digital technologies, transmission, storage and processing of personal data, etc., which will contribute to the formation of the necessary level of legal literacy; revision of the system of penalties for deliberate violations in the field of operation of digital technologies by local government officials; organize control over the acts adopted by local government bodies with the involvement of the population and the use of digital technologies to receive feedback from the population on the acts adopted by local government bodies; develop and consolidate the principles and procedures for the introduction and use of end-to-end digital technologies in the activities of state and municipal authorities; provide for the possibility of revising any decision made in case of a technical failure that occurred in the course of the decision-making process; provide for the use of digital technologies in the activities of state and municipal authorities; and provide for the use of digital technologies in the activities of local government bodies.

MEASURING GLOBALIZATION: ANALYZING INTERNATIONALIZATION OF HIGHER EDUCATION (IOHE) THROUGH STEM EDUCATION IN PAKISTAN

The concepts of 'internationalization' and 'globalization' are closely intertwined, impacting both tangible and intangible aspects of higher education. Internationalization refers to the internal transformations that occur within an educational setting as a result of frequent cross-border interactions within a local governmental system. Currently, developing countries like Pakistan are adapting and shaping their higher education systems in response to the global knowledge economy but neglecting the introduction of STEM education in the areas of social sciences like mathematics, statistics, entrepreneurship, IT, and other courses that are considered the need of time may leads to lack social scientist’s ability to estimate & forecasting and critically evaluate the situations as these deficiencies lead to reduce the cognitive skill of the workforce. This qualitative study employed Wallenstein’s World System analysis framework to examine student mobility and educational policy aspects in Pakistan critically. The findings suggest that the internationalization of higher education may lead to unequal exchange of educational services between core and peripheral countries in the global system.

The politics of beneficiary selection: A case study of Ghana’s Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty (LEAP) cash transfer programme

In communities of Sub-Saharan Africa, where local elites participate in the selection of households for cash transfers, there is a tendency to deviate from laid down rules for various reasons. Using qualitative data from selected districts where Ghana’s Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty (LEAP) programme is implemented, this study investigates the reasons why district and community elites deviate from prescribed selection processes of the LEAP programme. Drawing on the concept of competitive clientelism, the findings suggest that elites are deeply guided by political patronage to fulfil one primary goal, protecting their role in office. Such ambition is facilitated by the discretionary power accorded to elites by the local government system and socio-cultural values deeply rooted in Ghanaian society. In conclusion, the study draws out key lessons from the analysis and suggests a design of beneficiary selection frameworks that acknowledges the nature of domestic politics, institutions of power and powerful actors at the subnational level. The article also highlights the implications of the findings for the broad politics of social protection literature.

A review of E-Governance of Municipal Corporation in Urban Local Bodies

Modern states, regardless of their prevailing political ideology or national government structure, always have a system of local governance. The importance of local government cannot be minimized in any political system, whether it be a unitary or federal one, a parliamentary or presidential one. People are showing a surprising tendency toward optimism in regards to their communities' local governments. E-governance refers to the use of more minimal electronic systems in government operations, with the goal of storing, gathering, recognizing, and disseminating bandwidth and data affecting daily operations to the civilian population on demand. In this paper give review on e-governance in urban local bodies.

Imagining Just and Sustainable Food Futures: Using Interactive Visualizations to Explore the Possible Land Uses and Food Systems Approaches in Revelstoke, Canada

Food systems are linked to multiple critical sustainability issues such as climate change, environmental degradation, and growing socioeconomic inequalities, and there is a clear need for transformative changes in how food systems are imagined and enacted. For transformations to occur, local governments and stakeholders must be able to consider achievable and desirable futures that involve radically different reconfigurations of space and land use. Based in Revelstoke, Canada, this study uses interactive visualization methods to engage local government and food systems stakeholders in an exploration of three future food systems scenarios that center on changes in food supply, food affordability, and food governance. An interactive visualization tool was developed using the Unity3D game engine, which visualizes how transformations of an underutilized railway site in Revelstoke may appear in 2100. The visualizations were presented to the study participants (n = 10) through an online, Zoom-based workshop, where ‘walkthroughs’ of the scenarios were performed by the researchers and the participants subsequently provided feedback. The results of this study indicate that visualization tools can elicit emotional responses, convey human relationships with food and nature, communicate power dynamics, and incorporate social justice considerations. The results also show that the visualization’s representation of local infrastructure and services, the completeness of a virtual environment, and the plausibility of a depicted future affect the user assessment of the visualized scenarios.

Conflict and coexistence: analysing the dynamics between traditional leadership and democratic governance in Dukuduku, KwaZulu-Natal

This paper examines the conflicts arising from the coexistence of traditional leadership and democratic local governance in Dukuduku, KwaZulu-Natal, a region marked by overlapping authority and contested land claims. Despite constitutional recognition, traditional leadership in post-apartheid South Africa remains ambiguously defined, leading to clashes with democratically elected structures over roles, responsibilities, and territory. This study uses a qualitative methodology to analyse archival materials, media sources, and meeting records and conducts semi-structured interviews with 25 stakeholders, including traditional leaders, senior citizens, and subsistence farmers. The findings reveal that introducing a local government system under the Amakhosi jurisdiction precipitates confrontations, particularly where duties intersect. In Dukuduku—proclaimed a state forest—the recognition of traditional authority creates disputes over land ownership and governance, complicating the administration of land and impacting service delivery. The analysis suggests that the institutional "invention" and subsequent "recognition" of traditional leadership in areas like Dukuduku not only challenge the perceptions of state land but also exacerbate power struggles, thereby affecting local development and governance. The study contributes to understanding the dynamic interplay between traditional and democratic governance systems in rural South Africa. It highlights the implications for policy and local administration in managing such dual governance structures effectively. This study explains how hard it is to combine traditional structures with a modern democratic framework. It also gives us a better understanding of what this means for rural governance and land management in changing societies.

The Study on The Direction of Local Government System and Direction of Innovation City in Gyeongnam and Busan

The Study on The Direction of Local Government System and Direction of Innovation City in Gyeongnam and Busan

PENGARUH EFEKTIVITAS DAN EFISIENSI PENGELOLAAN KEUANGAN DAERAH SERTA SISTEM PENGENDALIAN INTERN TERHADAP KEANDALAN LAPORAN KEUANGAN PEMERINTAH DAERAH

The research aims to obtain empirical evidence that the effectiveness and efficiency of local financial management, as well as the internal control system of local governments, influence the reliability of local government financial reports. This research utilizes secondary data in the form of financial reports from districts/cities throughout Indonesia, with a total population and sample size of 524 district/city governments. The data used is cross-sectional data for the year 2022. The results of the testing indicate that the effectiveness of local financial management has a significant positive effect on the reliability of local government financial reports, and the internal control system measured by weaknesses in the internal control system has a significant negative effect on the reliability of local government financial reports. However, efficiency does not have a significant effect on the reliability of local government financial reports.

관광과 지역 정체성 정치

Despite being one of Korea's six major cities during the Japanese colonial era, Mokpo has declined to a small local city post-liberation. Since the establishment of the local government system, Mokpo has aimed to reinvent itself as a tourist destination. Over the past 20 years, the city has implemented six major tourism development and promotion projects, including night scenery lighting, a marine music fountain, urban regeneration of the old city center, a suspension cable car, hotel construction on Samhakdo Island, and branding Mokpo as a “romantic harbor city.” Throughout this process, there have been conflicts, competition, and cooperation with various civic and local interest groups. This research, based on related studies and Logan & Molotch's (2007) growth machine theory, analyzes how different groups formed growth and anti-growth coalitions and how they struggled over six key projects. Newspaper articles documenting these conflicts, competition, and cooperation were reviewed. To enhance reliability and validity, peer review and an interview with a local newspaper editor were conducted. The findings show that while the growth machine theory is useful in examining Mokpo's coalitions and their conflicts, it has limitations in fully explaining the phenomenon's complexity. The study concludes by discussing future research directions and the role of deliberative democracy in sustaining Mokpo's development as a tourist city.

Evaluation of Local Government Digital Governance Ability and Sustainable Development: A Case Study of Hunan Province

Strengthening the governance capacity of local governments in the digital domain is crucial to the modernization of the national governance system and the process of sustainable development. This paper integrates the concept of sustainable development drawing upon the principles of systems theory and adopts the logical analytical framework of “resource input–process transformation–result output” to construct a digital governance capacity indicator system for local governments. The focus is on three dimensions: basic resource input, network public opinion management, and digital service effectiveness. Using statistical data from the digital governance capacity indicators of 14 cities and prefectures in Hunan Province from 2018 to 2022 as a case study, we base our analysis on the index system constructed herein. Employing the entropy-weighted TOPSIS method and the obstacle degree model, we evaluate and analyze the digital governance capacity of the government in Hunan Province. Our findings indicate that the government’s digital governance capacity in Hunan Province has been on a rising trend overall. However, there are noticeable regional disparities in the strength of digital governance capacity across western, northern, central, and southern Hunan, particularly in terms of digital service effectiveness, which presents the most significant barriers to improvement. These results suggest that local governments should tailor their efforts to enhance digital governance capacity around resource allocation based on regional differences, the establishment of an online public opinion monitoring system, the optimization of government information disclosure mechanisms, the performance of government service platforms, and the strengthening of a two-way communication mechanism between the government and the public.