0w2010 01 RESUM EJECUTIVO 03 DEFcarta ang
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AFRICA Executive Summary
Fiscal decentralization in Africa largely determines the contribution of local governments to local development, as well as the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and poverty alleviation strategies. As highlighted in the 1st GOLD report, the majority of African countries made significant progress in political decentralization in the last twenty years. Reforms continue to be undertaken and are expected in a number of different countries to reinforce local government, notably in the area of finance (Algeria, Cameroon, Kenya, Morocco, Mauritania, South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe). Progress, however, has differed across countries and it is rarely linear. In many countries this process is also facing difficulties. Globally the share of public expenditure managed by local governments remains low, and certain national governments are slowing or backtracking on their commitments to the process. In Mali and Burkina Faso, for example, the principle of simultaneity between transfers of responsibilities and transfers of resources was recently questioned. In Uganda, the management of local personnel has been recentralized and the status of capital cities modified in order to create a metropolitan authority named by the central government. In Malawi and Togo, local elections have been suspended or postponed for long periods. In many countries the portion of local income coming from the national budget has been reduced over the last years (Benin, Côte D’Ivoire, Mali, Uganda, Senegal, Tanzania, and Togo).
At the same time, the African continent is currently facing rapid urbanization, with the increase of one million plus cities and medium-sized towns, and to varying degrees, with the impoverishment of its suburbs, insufficiency of infrastructure and difficulty in delivery of basic urban services. To respond to this challenge, local authorities need adapted resources and responsibilities and they need to work together with national governments. The study focuses on five aspects of fiscal decentralization: structure of States and territorial organization, responsibilities and expenses of local governments, revenues, transfers, and access to loans.
Main issues and challenges for local government finance Territorial organization A great diversity can be observed in the territorial organization, as far as levels and range of local authorities are concerned. With regard to territorial organization, three issues are worth raising: partial decentralization that, in some countries, does not cover the entire national territory, the overlapping of different levels of decentralization, and the parallel development of mechanisms that circumvent local governments.
Limited spending autonomy and insufficient expenditure responsibilities definition Overall, African local governments have limited spending autonomy. In addition, the sharing of
François Yatta, Independent Researcher, Niger François Vaillancourt, Université de Montréal, Canada