Download or read book Reforming the City written by Ariane Liazos and published by Columbia University Press. This book was released on 2019-12-17 with total page 237 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Most American cities are now administered by appointed city managers and governed by councils chosen in nonpartisan, at-large elections. In the early twentieth century, many urban reformers claimed these structures would make city government more responsive to the popular will. But on the whole, the effects of these reforms have been to make citizens less likely to vote in local elections and local governments less representative of their constituents. How and why did this happen? Ariane Liazos examines the urban reform movement that swept through the country in the early twentieth century and its unintended consequences. Reformers hoped to make cities simultaneously more efficient and more democratic, broadening the scope of what local government should do for residents while also reconsidering how citizens should participate in their governance. However, they increasingly focused on efficiency, appealing to business groups and compromising to avoid controversial and divisive topics, including the voting rights of African Americans and women. Liazos weaves together wide-ranging nationwide analysis with in-depth case studies. She offers nuanced accounts of reform in five cities; details the activities of the National Municipal League, made up of prominent national reformers and political scientists; and analyzes quantitative data on changes in the structures of government in over three hundred cities. Reforming the City is an important study for American history and political development, with powerful insights into the relationships between scholarship and reform and between the structures of city government and urban democracy.
Download or read book Local Governance in Africa written by Dele Olowu and published by Lynne Rienner Publishers. This book was released on 2004 with total page 324 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An exploration of why some decentralization reforms have led to viable systems of local governance in Africa, while others have failed. It outlines the key issues involved, provides historical context, and identifies the factors that have encouraged or discouraged success.
Download or read book Understanding Modern Nigeria written by Toyin Falola and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2021-06-24 with total page 691 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An introduction to the politics and society of post-colonial Nigeria, highlighting the key themes of ethnicity, democracy, and development.
Download or read book Democracy Good Governance and Development in Africa written by Mawere, Munyaradzi and published by Langaa RPCIG. This book was released on 2015-10-24 with total page 422 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Questions surrounding democracy, governance, and development especially in the view of Africa have provoked acrimonious debates in the past few years. It remains a perennial question why some decades after political independence in Africa the continent continues experiencing bad governance, lagging behind socioeconomically, and its democracy questionable. We admit that a plethora of theories and reasons, including iniquitous and malicious ones, have been conjured in an attempt to explain and answer the questions as to why Africa seems to be lagging behind other continents in issues pertaining to good governance, democracy and socio-economic development. Yet, none of the theories and reasons proffered so far seems to have provided enduring solutions to Africa’s diverse complex problems and predicaments. This book dissects and critically examines the matrix of Africa’s multifaceted problems on governance, democracy and development in an attempt to proffer enduring solutions to the continent’s long-standing political and socio-economic dilemmas and setbacks.
Download or read book Democratic Practice and Governance in Nigeria written by Ebenezer Oluwole Oni and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2020-06-08 with total page 382 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book examines the challenges confronting the practice of democracy and governance in Nigeria. The book examines the theoretical underpinnings and the procedural and institutional components of democratic practice in Nigeria, including the challenges associated with elections, the legislature, the media and gender issues. Approaching the pluralistic characteristics of the Nigerian state and how they impede democratisation through contributions by experts and scholars in the field, the book analyses the issues and nuances inherent to governance and democracy in Nigeria, as well as domestic policy process, global governance and human security. Democratic Practice and Governance in Nigeria will be of interest to students and scholars of African politics and democratisation.
Download or read book Developmental Local Governance written by Eris D. Schoburgh and published by Springer. This book was released on 2016-01-26 with total page 273 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The primary purpose of this edited collection is to evaluate critically the relationship between local government and national economic development. It focuses on how the relationship between local government and development is structured, and the specific institutional arrangements at national and subnational levels that might facilitate local government's assumption of the role of development agent. In light of the contradictory outcomes of development and implied experimentation with new modalities, post-development discourse provides a useful explanatory framework for the book. Schoburgh, Martin and Gatchair's central argument is that the pursuit of national developmental goals is given a sustainable foundation when development planning and strategies take into account elements that have the potential to determine the rate of social transformation. Their emphasis on localism establishes a clear link between local government and local economic development in the context of developing countries.
Download or read book Waiting for Democracy written by Jesse Craig Ribot and published by . This book was released on 2004 with total page 156 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: References pp. 115-132.
Download or read book Local Government Reforms Democratic Development in Nigeria written by Michael Abiodun Oni and published by . This book was released on 2019 with total page 818 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Principles for Local Government Legislation written by Graham Sansom and published by Commonwealth Secretariat. This book was released on 2013 with total page 94 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This study is designed to help local government practitioners in Pacific island countries review and strengthen their existing legislative and regulatory frameworks. It identifies best practice, examines case studies of Fiji, Solomon Islands and Samoa, and presents ten key principles for effective legislation.
Download or read book OECD Fiscal Federalism Studies Reforming Fiscal Federalism and Local Government Beyond the Zero Sum Game written by Blöchliger Hansjörg and published by OECD Publishing. This book was released on 2012-02-15 with total page 139 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book describes and examines reforms of fiscal federalism and local government in 10 OECD countries implemented over the past decade.
Download or read book Infrastructure Development in Nigeria written by Michael O. Onolememen and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2020-01-22 with total page 165 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book examines the politics and economics of infrastructure development in Nigeria from Independence in 1960 up to 2015, and the role of good governance in promoting the socioeconomic wellbeing of citizens. Arguing for the need for transformational leadership in infrastructure development, the chapters examine policy issues and survey the various administrative, economic, and social-political reforms that have impacted infrastructure development in Nigeria. The author also discusses current national development plans and Vision 20:2020; challenges to infrastructure development, including corruption; and the future potential of a strong infrastructure network for the economy and citizens. Drawing upon his experience within government departments, as well as existing models of leadership and governance, the author explores the role of infrastructure development in promoting the wellbeing and growth of Nigeria. Combining theory with practical examples of good governance, this book will be of interest for students and researchers of political science and infrastructure development in Africa.
Download or read book Nigeria s Economic Reforms written by Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and published by . This book was released on 2007-06-01 with total page 28 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Following years of economic stagnation, Nigeria embarked on a comprehensive reform program during the second term of the Obasanjo administration. The program was based on the National Economic Empowerment and Development Strategy (NEEDS) and focused on four main areas: improving the macroeconomic environment, pursuing structural reforms, strengthening public expenditure management, and implementing institutional and governance reforms. This paper reviews Nigeria's recent experience with economic reforms and outlines major policy measures that have been implemented. Although there have been notable achievements under the program, significant challenges exist, particularly in translating the benefits of reforms into welfare improvements for citizens, in improving the domestic business environment, and in extending reform policies to states and local governments." The authors argue that the reform program must be considered as 'initial steps on a long journey'; consequently, they have outlined a number of outstanding issues that need to be addressed by future Nigerian administrations.
Download or read book The Theory and Practice of Local Government Reform written by Brian Dollery and published by Edward Elgar Publishing. This book was released on 2008-01-01 with total page 336 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 'Structural reform has been one of the most important, and yet one of the most neglected, aspects of modern local government. This book represents the first attempt, since the early seventies, at providing a comprehensive account of both the theory and practice of structural reform in local government in developed countries. Using recent policy experience from seven different countries, the authors present seminal theoretical perspectives on structural reforms in local governance and the policy implications deriving from them. Written by well-known scholars of local government from around the world, this volume is a "must-read" for all academics, practitioners, students and policymakers.' - Giorgio Brosio, University of Turin, Italy
Download or read book Democratic Decentralization Local Governance and Sustainable Development written by Prince Osei-Wusu Adjei and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2022-11-14 with total page 308 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Drawing on field-based data and experiences from the practice of democratic decentralization and local governance over the last three decades in Ghana, this book examines whether and how democratic decentralization and local governance reforms in developing countries have produced the anticipated development outcomes. In seventeen related contributions, the authors present four relevant focal themes, including conceptual and historical trajectories of decentralization and local governance; institutional choice, democratic representation, and poverty reduction; local governance, resource capacity, and service delivery; and non-state actors, local governance and sustainable development. The book blends perspectives of scholars, practitioners, and policy-makers to provide a holistic analysis of linkages between decentralization, local governance, and sustainable development efforts, presenting a novel and useful guide for science, policy, and practice of bottom-up governance and development. It provides relevant lessons and experiences for scholars, policy-makers, and development practitioners in Africa in particular and developing countries in general.
Download or read book Nigeria written by Omano Edigheji and published by . This book was released on 2020-11-18 with total page 226 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: There is a paradoxical relationship between democracy and development in Nigeria. In the twenty years of electoral democracy, poverty, inequality, unemployment, underemployment and insecurity have increased. The hopes of citizens that democracy would lead to improved living standards have been dashed. Social justice and inclusive sustainable development have also been elusive. The economy has remained dependent on 2 primary sectors - agriculture and oil - and low value added services.The aspiration that by 2020, Nigeria would become one of the twenty leading economies in the world has not been achieved, the political elite have captured the state for personal gains and unsurprisingly, Nigeria remains one of the most corrupt countries in the world.
Download or read book Democratization in Africa written by National Research Council and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 1992-02-01 with total page 94 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The global movement toward democracy, spurred in part by the ending of the cold war, has created opportunities for democratization not only in Europe and the former Soviet Union, but also in Africa. This book is based on workshops held in Benin, Ethiopia, and Namibia to better understand the dynamics of contemporary democratic movements in Africa. Key issues in the democratization process range from its institutional and political requirements to specific problems such as ethnic conflict, corruption, and role of donors in promoting democracy. By focusing on the opinion and views of African intellectuals, academics, writers, and political activists and observers, the book provides a unique perspective regarding the dynamics and problems of democratization in Africa.
Download or read book Learning from West African Experiences in Security Sector Governance written by Alan Bryden and published by Ubiquity Press. This book was released on 2015-11-05 with total page 184 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Many efforts have been undertaken to address dysfunctional security sector governance in West Africa. However, security sector reform (SSR) has fallen short of radical – transformational – change to the fundamental structures of power and governance in the region. Looking more closely at specific examples of SSR in six West African countries, Learning from West African Experiences in Security Sector Governance explores both progress and reversals in efforts by national stakeholders and their international partners to positively influence security sector governance dynamics. Written by eminent national experts based on their personal experiences of these reform contexts, this study offers new insights and practical lessons that should inform processes to improve democratic security sector governance in West Africa and beyond.