Governing and Managing the Delivery of Local Basic Services in Africa

United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG) is an international organization that represents and defends the interests of local governments on the world stage. The Global Observatory on Local Democracy and Decentralization (GOLD) was launched by UCLG in 2006 as part of its objective to become a main source of information on local self-government, local authorities, governance, local democracy, and the exchange of know-how. The Capstone team supported UCLG’s Africa Section on the third GOLD report (GOLD III), providing an analysis of service delivery and local governance in various cities of Africa, with particular focus on Accra, Ghana and Kampala, Uganda. The team collected data and conducted interviews with local government officials in Accra and Kampala. The GOLD III report will offer policy recommendations on strengthening local governments’ ability to meet their responsibilities for providing basic services: water, sanitation, solid waste managements, public transport, and electricity.