Tips and tricks for your work in decentralisation

Engaging in the decentralisation process may seem a huge and scary task. But a number of organisations have already tried it out - and succeeded. Here comes encouragement and sound advice from your colleagues who have already learnt a lot of lessons by working at different levels of decentralisation

By Maja Halleen Graae, SHRA

We expect!

Recreation and Development for Peace (RDP) has managed to secure 5% of their funding from all sub-counties where they have conducted lobby and advocacy, for sports and cultural activities. This is a historical feat, as it is the first time that funding has been made available to community groups for sports and cultural activities.

RDP started their campaign by sensitising their Recreational Committees (RCs) about their entitlement to be budgeted for. The next step was that RCs at sub-county level were advised to invite local government for lobby meetings. At these lobby meetings, local government would be sensitised about RDP and the importance of co-operation in their local areas on sports and cultural activities. RDP emphasises the importance of timing in relation to these lobby meetings, as the aim of them was to be invited and represented at the budget conferences. The success rate was 100% RDP was invited to attend all budget conferences in the sub-counties where lobby meetings had been held. At these budget conferences the councillors were this time sensitised about RDP and the importance of co-operation with local government. Once again it was a success story and money was allocated for community sports and cultural activities in all sub-counties were RDP attended the budget conferences.

As well as timing RDP emphasises the importance of being prepared well in advance, before approaching local government. Know your facts, have your arguments prepared, analyse the possible counter arguments and be prepared to respond to them. Use role-plays as a way of building confidence and getting the language right before you meet with the local officials. For example, when in a meeting with local government don’t say "we would very much appreciate it if..." In stead say, "we expect that..." Don’t be afraid of using your power, if you are an organisation with huge grass-root support such as RDP. Use this to your advantage; this is especially potent during election times. Use your personal contacts, but do it in a constructive, rather than corruptive way.

Use your rights for checking tender boards

Procurement is the area within the Ugandan decentralisation process where there is most disillusionment, according to Jens Peter Dyrbak, advisor in the Danish development agency, Danida.

The tender boards, through which all funding related to government works and services passes, are according to Jens Peter Dyrbak, corruption nests. Not only is the tendering process riddled with corruption, but also many boards are set up for the sole purpose of generating "corruption" money at the sub-county level. This as the tendering could just as well be done at district tendering boards.

Because of the huge amount of money lost or misspent each year as a result of corruption in the tendering process, this is an important entry point for civil society intervention.

Minutes produced by the tender boards and the technical reports relating to the tendering process are available to the public. Everyone has a right to see them.

When an individual or organisation wants to challenge the tendering process after having studied the relevant minutes and reports, it is important that they have done their homework and know the facts. If questions are based on fact and are not unconfirmed allegations, the tender boards will be obliged to answer. If answers are not forthcoming or are unsatisfactory, a further step would be to write to the Public Accounts Committee or the Inspector General of Government.

Decentralise your own organisation

Apac Sustainable Development Initiatives (ASDI), strongly believes that to be able to work effectively in the decentralised system you have to look at yourself and your own organisation fast. Is your own organisation decentralised? If a board of directors make the daily decisions in an organisation, why is this? Why is the co-ordinator or secretariat not doing this? The power within organisations should be decentralised. ASDI gives the example of their member organisations, which are autonomous organisations. ASDI does not dictate the needs and activities of these partners, but rather encourages them to come forward with their own ideas, which ASDI will then attempt to facilitate in different ways. This is also the way that ASDI works with other organisations and local government. For example, weekly radio programmes funded by ASDI, are planned and implemented together with the local radio station and local government, these are seen as equal partners. Similarly when ASDI receives funding from NARO, they demand to be part of the budgeting and planning of the project, which they are to implement. ASDI does not believe in being given a plan by someone and simply told to implement it.

Transparency is another area where organisations have to look at themselves firstly. If an organisation doesn’t report and inform their partners and beneficiaries regularly, then how can they expect their partners to send regular reports and be accountable? Transparency and accountability should also be decentralised in that government and organisations cannot only expect that information should flow from the bottom to the top. Information has to come from the top down as well.