The Local Government Councils

Scorecard Initiative (LGCSCI)

By
Jonas Mbabazi
Research Officer
jmbabazi@acode-u.org

ACODE
ACODE is an independent public policy research
and advocacy think tank registered in Uganda
with operations in the Eastern and Southern
Africa sub-region.
Registered in 1999 as anNGO
ACODE is non-partisan and independent.

Vision
To become a premier public policy research and
advocacy think tank working for social justice
and good governance in Africa.

Mission
To make public policies work for people.
Programmes at ACODE
Trade, Innovations and Biotechnology
Environmental Democracy Programme (EDP)
Peace and Democracy
Local Government Councils Scorecard
Initiative(LGCSCI)
Citizens Budget Trucking and Information Centre
(CBTIC)

For details visit: www.acode-u.org

Local Government Councils Scorecard
Initiative (LGCSCI)
Launched in 2009
Implemented by ACODE in partnership
ULGA.
The initiative was first implemented in the
10 districts in 2009, 26 districts in 2011 and
will be covering 30 districts in 2014.
Objective of LGCSCI
LGCSCI mainly aims at strengthening
government efforts in deepening democracy
and service delivery in decentralised
entities.
It focuses on building capacity of local
government leaders to deliver on their
mandate and strengthening citizens
demand for effective public service delivery
and accountability.
Project Components
The in initiative is being implemented
through a number of Components including:
Annual assessment of the performance of
local government councils;
Publication and dissemination of annual
score-cards;
Capacity building , Outreach and Advocacy.
Local Government SMS Platform
Intensive Dissemination
Who is targeted by the Scorecard?

The LGCSCI assessment focuses on :
the district council ;
the district chairpersons ;
the district speakers ;
individual councilors.
Roles of the District Council
The level of implementation of the
Legislative function
Accountability to citizens
Planning and budgeting.
Monitoring service delivery in the district by
the different standing committees
Roles of the District Chairperson,
Political leadership
Participates in legislation for the district
Regular contacts with the electorate.
Initiating or participating in development
projects in the district
Conducting monitoring of Services .

District Speaker
Presiding and preservation of order in council
Attending council meetings of Lower local
governments.
Contact with the electorate and;
Monitoring at least half of service delivery
units in the electoral areas they represent in
council.

District Councillor
Participating in legislation in council
Attending council meetings of Lower local
governments.
Contact with the electorate and;
Monitoring service delivery units in the
electoral areas they represent in council.

Methodology
Literature Review
One-on-one interviews with district
leaders
Focus Group Discussions
Verification visits to SDUs
Performance of LG Leaders
Refer to the report
Observations in Implementation of the
Project
Decentralisation Policy Vs. Practice
Inadequate Financing of LGs
Indicative Planning Figures by MoFPED
Budget Cuts
Local Revenue
Disengaged Citizenry in the first years of the
project
Elected leaders had little or no knowledge of
their roles and responsibilities
Poor Record Keeping
Politicians Vs. Good Leaders

Observations Cont
Weak performance in Legislation
Quality of debates
Level of participation
Motions and Petition
Intra-Local Government Conflicts (personal and
administrative)
Weak downward political accountability
Inadequate Staffing (56% for DLGs and 57% MCs
staffing level, and 39% at strategic level )
80% of the filled posts are mainly administrative and
support staff.
Staff ceilings
Failure to attract and retain skilled and experienced
manpower



What has the project done?
Research and Publication of findings
Dissemination of findings at various Levels
Capacity Building of local leaders
Trainings (LCV chairpersons, Speakers, Clerks to
councils, RDCs, Information Officers and CAOs)
Councillors Diary
Capacity building for local CSOs
Policy outreach and Advocacy on LG challenges
through, ULGA, MoLG, and MoFPED
Conflict resolution
Peer-to- Peer Visits
Intensive Dissemination
Key message: Get Involved!
Focus : 20 Districts
A citizens calendar for 2013 and 2014 giving
information on:
Scorecard performance
Roles of councilors
National minimum standards of service delivery for key service
sectors
Roles and responsibilities of citizens
Community meetings
Community champions (the local opinion leaders
Regional Radio talk shows

SMS Platform
Short Code : 7300
Focus: 20 Districts
Conduct community Meetings to popularize
the platform

Media Reporting
Has not picked up on some of service delivery
and governance issues highlighted in the
annual reports
Inaccurate reporting
Ignored Corruption scandals at LG level
Shoddy work, Procurement etc
Do not have specific programmes to engage
the citizenry


END