Republic of Rwanda Ministry of Local Government LOCAL DEMOCRACY AND LOCAL GOVERNANCE: BENCHMARKING RWANDA AGAINST THE ABERDEEN PRINCIPLES Kigali, April 2013 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT Sincere appreciation goes to the Commonwealth Secretariat that initiated and supported the study. The success of this study is attributed to the vital facilitation role played by the Commonwealth Local Government Forum (CLGF). Rwanda Association of Local Government Authorities (RALGA) was privileged to locally organise and coordinate the study on benchmarking Rwanda local government system against the Aberdeen Principles. I appreciate a great opportunity provided by this study to local governments in Rwanda to assess themselves against Commonwealth recognized said principles, whose objective is to enhance local democracy and good governance. The outcome of the study, has contributed to good understanding of the strides reached towards building strong local democracy and local governance and the gaps that need further strengthening. Institutions and individuals are recognized for diverse and vital contributions that led to the success of this study. They include, National Electoral Commission, Kicukiro district staff and Private Sector Federation. Special thanks go to the Ministry of Local Government for the high level political support and valuable inputs. Thanks go to all Local Government Authorities, which in one way or another made invaluable contributions. I appreciate the work of the consultant, Mr. Aimable KABANDA who did a commendable job in conducting the study. The recommendations of this study will be used by all stakeholders in the sector to enhance local democracy and good governance in our respective Local Governments for the wellbeing of the citizens of our Country. Cllr Justus KANGWAGYE, Chairperson, Rwanda Association of Local Government Authorities Mayor, RULINDO District i LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS Nº Abbreviations/Acronyms Definition 1 CB Capacity building 2 CDC Community Development Committees 3 CLGF Commonwealth Local Government Forum 4 DDC District Development Committee 5 DDP District Development Plan 6 EDPRS Economic Development and Poverty Reduction Strategy 7 EICV Integrated household living conditions survey 8 GoR Government of Rwanda 9 HH Household 10 JADF Joint Action Development Forum 11 LG Local Government 12 LGA Local Government Authorities 13 MDGs Millennium Development Goals 14 MRND National Republican Movement for Democracy & Development 15 MIFOTRA Ministry of Public service and Labour 16 NDIS National Decentralisation Implementation Secretariat 17 PED “Programme Paix et Decentralisation” 18 PFM Public Financial Management 19 PSCBS Public Sector Capacity Building Secretariat 20 RALGA Rwandese Association of Local Government Authorities 21 RGB Rwanda Governance Board 22 RPPA Rwanda Public Procurement Authority ii TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ..................................................................................................... i LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS ............................................................... ii TABLE OF CONTENTS .......................................................................................................iii LIST OF TABLES ................................................................................................................... v COUNTRY BASIC FACTS .................................................................................................. vi EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ................................................................................................... vii 1. INTRODUCTION................................................................................................................ 1 2. METHODOLOGICAL APPROACH ................................................................................ 2 Desk review ............................................................................................................... 2 Field research ............................................................................................................. 2 CHAPTER ONE: THE ENABLING ENVIRONMENT FOR LOCAL DEMOCRACY AND GOVERNANCE IN RWANDA .................................................................................... 4 I.1. Constitutional & legal recognition for local democracy in Rwanda ............................... 4 I.1.1 Political freedom to elect local representatives for local governments in Rwanda ... 5 I.1.2 Decentralization implementation phases ................................................................... 8 I.1.3. System used to elect local representatives .............................................................. 10 I.1.4. The frequency of local government elections......................................................... 10 I.2. Partnership and cooperation between spheres of government....................................... 11 I.2.1. The National Dialogue Council .............................................................................. 12 I.2.2. Other partnership frameworks ................................................................................ 12 I.3. Defined legislative framework ...................................................................................... 13 CHAPTER TWO: OPENNESS AND CITIZEN PARTICIPATION IN DECISION MAKING ................................................................................................................................ 16 II.1. Citizen Participation in decision making ..................................................................... 16 II.1.1. Civil society participation in local government decision making process ............ 19 II.2. Open local government – Accountability..................................................................... 19 II.2.1. Local government accountability for its actions to the local community ............. 20 II.2.2. Open local government – Transparency ................................................................ 22 II.3. Scrutiny of the Executive ............................................................................................. 26 II.3.1. Internal structures which provide for formal scrutiny of the political executive .. 26 II.3.2. Scrutiny by non-executive councilors, civil society organizations or community individuals ........................................................................................................................ 27 iii CHAPTER THREE: EQUITABLE RESOURCE ALLOCATION AND ACCESS TO SERVICES BY ALL CITIZENS IN LOCAL GOVERNMENTS .................................... 29 III.1. Mechanisms in place to promote effective inclusiveness ........................................... 29 III.2. Adequate and equitable resource sharing ................................................................... 32 III.2.1. Local governments adequate funding to fulfill their basic mandates .................. 32 III.2.2. Mechanism for financial equalization between local authorities ......................... 35 III.2.3. Local government finance commission ............................................................... 36 III.2.4. Predictability and timeliness of local government transfers ................................ 37 III.3. Equitable services ....................................................................................................... 37 III.4. Access to services ....................................................................................................... 38 III.4.1. Community development processes: Ubudehe and HIMO ................................. 38 III.4.2. Community Based Health Insurance Scheme ...................................................... 39 III.4.3. Vision 2020 Umurenge Program (VUP).............................................................. 39 III.4.4. One cow per poor family program ( Girinka Programme) .................................. 40 III.4.5. Decent shelter and “Bye Bye Nyakatsi” Programme ......................................... 40 III.5. Relationship between local priorities & national priorities and standards ................. 41 CHAPTER FOUR: CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT OF LOCAL GOVERNMENTS THROUGH CAPACITY BUILDING ................................................................................. 43 IV.1. Capacity building for effective leadership .................................................................. 43 IV.1.1. The policy responsible for building the capacity ................................................. 43 IV.1.2. Standardized national capacity building materials for councilors and officers ... 45 IV.1.3. The impact of capacity building on LGs ............................................................. 45 IV.1.4. The role of international organizations in supporting LG capacity building ....... 46 CHAPTER FIVE: RECOMMENDATION ........................................................................ 48 SUMMARY OF KEY STUDY FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS .................... 48 ANNEXES .............................................................................................................................. 52 ANNEX: 1. GOOD PRACTICES IN LOCAL DEMOCRACY AND GOVERNANCE IN RWANDA............................................................................................................................ 52 ANNEX 2: RESEARCH QUESTIONS .............................................................................. 73 ANNEX 3: REFERENCES ................................................................................................. 77 ANNEX 4: