Local government administration in nigeria is classified as the third tier of. Local goverment administration and the 1976 local government. They are thus subject to public accountability and therefore, it is important to focus on local government democracy. Therefore, local government is the third tier of government in nigeria that is nearest to the people at the grassroots. Local units must have clear and legally recognized geographical boundaries. The local government in nigeria is an indispensable tier of government in the nigerian federal system. It is truism that local governments are very important in a heterogeneous nation. The local government areas in nigeria are subdivisions of the states created to bring the government benefits closer to the people, also to ensure for the effective administration of resources. Local government lg is an intermediary player between the federal authority and the grassroots in a given society. Where there is a government that is closer to the masses, there is usually unity and rapid development because the local masses are allowed to. Financial management in nigerian local government system. The problems of autonomy and control in local government in nigeria. The local government service commission has been empowered to handle staff matters. The paper concludes with a treatment of the imperatives for optimizing the effectiveness of local governments in nigeria.
Historically, the development of direct taxation in local government in nigeria can be traced the british precolonial period under this period, community taxes were levied on communities rabiu, author. The list below shows the states and the total number of local governments in nigeria. Local government is the most important tier of government among the three tiers being the closest to the people if well harness, funded and sustained. For effective performance, the local government will not only be assigned functions but fund enough to enhance its service delivery to the clientele. The challenge of local government financing in developing. Local government system in eastern nigeria the local government ordinance of 1950 which ushered in modern local authorities in the eastern nigeria was fashioned after the english system of local government. Upon completing this lecture unit, students would be able to. Local government administration, rationale, challenges. Local government helps to ensure effectiveness in government implementation of policies. Introductionthe local government is the grassroots government in the nigerian federal system of government.
Local governments in nigeria have developed over a number of years. Th e role of local government in the process of economic development has been extensively studied. Since the paper concerned with nigerian local government, its important. Impact of internally generated revenue on performance of. In that light, it is obvious that local governments are truly ineffective. In all, there are 774 local governments in nigeria including the four area councils in abuja. So far the local government system in nigeria has not been stable and thus its future remains bleak, uncertain and insecure. Local government as an agent of transformation in nation building. One of such controls is the right exercise by the state government through the house of government.
They exercise an important influence over the central administration through their members of parliament and through their. Presently nigeria is made up of 774 local government with constitutional assigned functions and responsibilities. Functions of local government local governments are responsible for providing many important services. The expediency for the creation of local government anywhere in the world stems from the need to facilitate development at the grassroots. Project topic the impact of local government on rural. The minimum number of wards per local government in nigeria is 10 and the maximum number is 15.
Efficiency, effectiveness, local government administration, borno state, nigeria introduction local governments in nigeria have acquired renewed significance in the nations social, political and economic existence since 1976 when the local government system was overhauled at the instance of the federal military government. It is important to observe that the basic amenities which. Challenges%20and%20strategies%20for%20local% 20governments. Internal auditor and local government administration in. There shall be 36 states in nigeria, that is to say, abia, adamawa, akwa ibom. Problems of local government in nigeria and solutions. The internal auditor is directly responsible to the chairman of the local government who doubles as the chief accounting officer of the local government. According to the local government economic reform of 1976, inadequate funding has hampered the effective administration of the local government system in nigeria. However, the creation of state and local government joint account as proscribed by the 1999 constitution of nigeria suggests that the federal government lacks the power to do so. It was from then we have local government as a third tier level of government with a. An analysis of the evolution of local government administration prior to the major 1976 local government reforms is in ncema 1990 and gboyega 1983. Definition, importance, functions and structure a local government is the administrative body for a small area, typically a community and exists as the lowest tier of government in a federal state.
Department of accounting faculty of management sciences. Section 71 of the constitution of federal republic of nigeria backs the operations of the third tier government. Dec 07, 2020 improvement in local government remains a high priority in most countries, but unless the relationship between citizens and government is more fully developed the actions of local government will. The 1976 local government reform fixes the population of a local government not less than 150,000 and not more than 800, 000. Much of the previous research has focused on larger, urban jurisdictions. The importance of local governments the sun nigeria. The role of local government in economic development. I mean, in nigeria, local governments are just instructions of the state and federal government because they lack autonomy. There are 768 local governments, and a further six area councils in the fct, totalling 774 authorities. Since the paper concerned with nigerian local government, its important to give brief about nigerian. But having three spheres of government operating each with a degree of autonomy makes for complex relationships. According to the encyclopedia of social sciences, local government may be loosely defined as a public organization authorized to decide and administer a limited range of public policies within a relatively small territory which is a subdivision of a regional or national government. Local government administration, rationale, challenges, and. Many reasons, ranging from the political to the socioeconomic, have been given for the creation of local government.
Brief history of local government in nigeria legit. Local authorities in all parts of the world play an increasingly important. Pdf local government autonomy and its effectiveness in. Local government is the third tier of government and ideally, should be the closest rung to the people but more often than not, the nigerian voter tends to hold his elected executive in far away. It is empowered by the constitution and rooted in the laws of the land. Among the notable feature of local government in nigeria is that it operates a unified administrative system and expected to have an elected. This paper examines the local government system in nigeria, its relevance and impact in poverty reduction, economic growth and sustainable development. Pdf in the general discourse on the local government system in nigeria, two major. Their abilities are usually very restricted by the central government. The need for participation of women in local governance. The purpose of local government is to provide an organized system where councils exercise their power and responsibilities to work together for. The place and role of local government in federal systems. Received 11th january, 2010, accepted 29th may, 2010 abstract the study assessed the economics of maize production among farmers in mangu local government area of plateau state, nigeria.
The 1976 reform represented a fundamental change in the development of local government in nigeria. It reduces the work load in administering the affairs of the people. Thus, the subsequent local government decree of 1989, 1990 and 1992 have all intended to operationalize the third tier status of local government in nigeria, therefore, granting it a high degree of autonomy as well as increase in their revenue allocation. Securing local government funds for national development. Local governments have however been criticisedby many local dwellers in various parts of nigeria fornot living up to its expectation and actualising the purpose for which it was created.
This aside, it should be emphasized that this was a significant inroad or breakthrough in the nigeria local government system. Nov 04, 2016 the failure of local government in the area of service delivery over the years has made the citizens to loose faith and trust in local government administration as an institution in nigeria. Developing alternative sources of funding local governments. The current number of local government in nigeria is 774. The interrelationship or complementary nature of these two subjects underscore their relevance and study within. The importance of local government is a function of its ability to generate sense of belongingness, safety and satisfaction among its populace. Pdf local government autonomy and its effectiveness in nigeria. In other words, the existence of local government in nigeria were tied willynilly to the apron strings of the precolonial, colonial and post colonial successes or failures nigeria or nigerian state. The law provided for a threetier structure country councils, urban and rural district councils and local councils. Significantly, the instrumentality of local government to the sustainability of sociopolitical and economic development of a state is considered very important. There is a consensus of opinion that the lg is an important and inevitable. Tax is a compulsory levy imposed by government on individuals and companies for the various legitimate function of the state olaoye, 2008. Among all the reforms, the landmark of a modern local government in nigeria came into being through the 1976 local government of 1976.
Where there is a government that is closer to the masses, there is usually unity and rapid development because the local masses are allowed to participate in the political affairs of the nation too. Structure and functions of local government in nigeria legit. The importance of the creation of local government anywhere in the world reveals the need to aid development at the grassroots. Local government, local governance, political participation, affirmative action, women. It was from then we have local government as a third tier level of government with a clear call charge to develop the local areas in nigeria agbakoba, 2004. You should know that the local government in nigeria is the third level of government in the nigerian government. The significance of local government will be addressed. Would you like to get the full thesis from shodh ganga along with citation details. The purpose of this paper is to examine ways of diversifying.
It is important to note that the federal government has over the years joined in ensuring that the local government have its autonomy. Importance of local government in a statecountry bscholarly. These local governments do not have a lot of rights and most of its decisions are made according to the central governments rules. Since the inception of the system of local government in nigeria, there had been persistent clamour for the autonomy of the local government as the third tier of governance in the federation.
In most developing countries, including malaysia, decentralization and participation could not solve the various rural problems faced by. Improvement in local government remains a high priority in most countries, but unless the relationship between citizens and government is more fully developed the actions of local government will. Local government administration in nigeria and community. The reform therefore advocated an increased funding for the third tier of government particularly through increased internal revenue efforts. Local administration in nigeria has passed the four distinct stages of development. Local government is the government closet to the people. As the third tier of government in nigeria, the local government is often paid scant attention by political pundits, the media, policymakers and the general public alike. The simplest definition of local government is that this kind of governance is. In addition, to examine the laws of the local governments and further analyses the hitches and loopholes in the legal relations between the local governments in nigeria and the states. Once elected, local governments are empowered to serve the people who live within the municipality or neighbourhood democratic council and constituencies to which they were elected.
Local government exercises such power as in theory makes the local government a unit of permitted by the other spheres of the government, administration with defined powers and authority imbued especially the state government. The status of internal audit at local government level in nigeria. In the more recent constitutions of spain, brazil, india, nigeria and switzerland, local government has been entrenched. It is a matter of polemics if local governments in nigeria are raising sufficient revenue. Nigeria shall be a federation consisting of states and a federal capital territory. Nigeria is one indivisible and indissoluble sovereign state to be known by the name of the federal republic of nigeria. For the first time, the country was given a common, singletier. The instrument used for the research was the questionnaire. Apr 24, 2012 in examining the deficiencies of the local government system in nigeria one of the major issues seem to be a problem of accountability of local governments along with serious capacity issues. The importance of effective and efficient local governments. Local government administration in nigeria and the localist theory.
In nigeria, a number of factors have contributed to the financial setback experienced by most local governments and these include. Local government reduces the centralization of power in the central government. According to mackenzie professor in public administration local government is the efficient agent of government for providing services that are local in. The concept of local government the performance of local governments has been receiving increasing attention in nigeria over the past decades, from both academic and civil society sectors. With these aspects of local government in mind, attention will be directed towards the typical. Jul 04, 2014 the evolution of local government in nigeria has followed very closely the precolonial, colonial and neocolonial political development in nigeria.
The status of internal audit at local government level in. List of local governments in nigeria and their states. Local governments in nigeria relevance and effectiveness in. We therefore know very little about what smaller cities, towns, and counties are doing to promote economic development. The role of local governments in economic development. Revenue generation in nigeria local governments is principally derived from tax. It is important to note that the federal government has over the years joined in ensuring that the local government. All over the world and especially in africa, local government is seen as a means of enhancing development and service delivery, improve governance and. Describe the characteristics of local government 3. What are the reasons for the creation of local government in nigeria. It is important to note that there is never a time in nigerias post colonial political history that local governments operated independent of both the state and federal.
250 1786 1553 938 518 205 1790 301 9 1386 1485 1051 575 667 1457 1335 155 1707 1486 277 441 1662 1254 1415