DECENTRALISATION IN THE CONTEXT OF CDF
“… President Hakainde Hichilema is truly a champion of Community Development.”
26th November, 2022
DECENTRALISATION refers to the transfer of responsibilities, authority, functions, as well as power and appropriate resources from central government to lower-level administrative units such as local authorities to deliver services to the local people.
Decentralisation takes four major forms:
Deconcentration (transfer of functions and resources to lower level units of the same administrative system while authority over decision-making and use of such resources remains with the centre i.e from headquarters of an institution or an administrative system to the lower levels;
Devolution (transfer of some powers and authority, functions and resources through legal and constitutional provisions to lower levels -within formal structures and institutionalised by constitutional means e.g from central government to local authorities or councils);
Delegation (transfer of functions and resources to a subordinate authority with the capacity to act on behalf of the superior authority without a formal transfer of authority in the same structure e.g from central government to a parastatal); and lastly
Privatisation (the divestiture of state interests in public enterprises and the subsequent sale of such to the private sector).
The importance of Decentralisation manifests itself in a number of ways: decongesting the centre by freeing key officials from routine and detailed tasks -many of which deal with purely local issues – ultimately improving efficiency and effectiveness of administration at all levels; enabling people and institutions at the periphery to make own decisions regarding matters which directly affect them – the people and institutions who otherwise would not have much influence on decision making at both national and local levels; empowering local institutions to adequately manage local affairs by providing them with both well-defined roles and accompanying resources; fostering developmental equity by integrating lagging areas into regional economies; and by decentralising functions and reassigning central government officials to local levels, their knowledge and sensitivity to local problems and needs are increased.
The recognition of the need for decentralised governance prompted the Zambian Government to formulate the National Decentralisation Policy (NDP) launched in November 2004 whose implementation has been limping over the years. Therefore, it is gratifying to note the practical steps being undertaken by the United Party for National Development (UPND) Government under the able leadership of President Hakainde Hichilema to implement the NDP.
The highly increased Constituency Development Fund (CDF) is one milestone towards implementation of the policy. By increasing CDF from K1.6 million to K25.6 million and a further K28.3 million in the 2023 National Budget, the Head of State and his Government are actually saying,
“We have moved money from central government to local government so as to enable local people in different jurisdictions make their own decisions pertaining to matters affecting them.”
It is worth noting that CDF in Zambia was introduced in 1995 as an instrument to facilitate the delivery of public developmental goods and services directly to local communities; and it is a non-political fund that can be accessed by any Zambian regardless of political affiliation.
Over the years, CDF was inadequate to meaningfully enhance the socio-economic status of communities in the country. The huge increase of the fund to K28.3 million in the 2023 National Budget is thus commendable as it actualises key aspects of the National Decentralisation Policy and has a direct link with local economies and communities, on which it has a positive impact. President Hakainde Hichilema is truly a champion of Community Development.
N.B: Authored by Ntazana Mutungwa Musukuma (MPA, BA -UNZA), former Senior Local Government Officer for Lusaka and Eastern provinces
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