Importance Of Local Government In A State/Country
In this essay, all the relevant information about local government and its importance in the particular state is given, and no details are left out. That is, for those most likely to be scholars and have been looking online for articles like benefits of local government to the states, this is the post for you. I encourage you to pay attention to this particular post, as I shall elaborate upon the subject matter, going into great detail.
The other day, one of my good friends and I got into an interesting debate regarding local governments – are they really needed in states? To begin with, the argument was more like a sport. However, in the end, we got a conclusion. In the opinion of my friend, local governance units in a state are of no value when they lack autonomy. However, in a sizable way, he made his point in that the establishment of local government is costly and prone to corruption.
The logic in this case does not seem to be correct. In every multi-ethnic country, local administration is of vital importance. Nevertheless, when I reiterated my friend’s thesis, I found out that he was using Nigeria as the country of the tropics in order to substantiate his argument. Therefore, it is clear that city governments truly can not come to any real effectiveness. That is, because of the interferences by the federal and the state governments, the local authorities in Nigeria do not have influence or power to function independently.
What is a local government?
It was the local government that was established for the purpose of managing certain problems at the grassroots.
As per Wikipedia, local government can be defined as a sub-system of administration that is among the lowest tier state entities in the polity.
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The definition Britannica gives to the local government is far much better. The local government is the power system, which is smaller than the state area, is designated as a specific territory, and the power system makes the decision on what policies to carry out within that territory.
Features of Local government
- A predefined territory
- Tax collection
- Autonomy
- Low level Government
- Policies making and preparation of budgets
1. A predefined territory
This is an important dimension when it comes to local governance. Local government must possess a defined area of jurisdiction since it is an institution of governance at the periphery. It is not responsible for the overall supervision of the entire country. Regional self-regulation allua only within a certain territory. Therefore, the most essential attribute of the local government is the limited area of its activities.
2. Tax collection
Tax collection is one of the local authority’s key roles and its functional aids. The local authority should have been authorized to levy direct taxes from the residents within its jurisdiction. The local government expends the revenue it earns from taxing the populace for purposes of broadening its jurisdiction.
Nonetheless, it must be noted that local governments also have other sources of income apart from taxes. For instance, the provision of services such as the registration of births, marriage certificates, and the issuance of driver’s license.
3. Autonomy
It has been mentioned that for local governments to function effectively, there is a need for autonomy as it can not be managed from the national level. This is because too much involvement in the administration of the local government by the government at large will result in the inefficiency of the local government.
For instance, there will be no politics in the communities if the central authorities are allowed to appoint the local officials. As you can observe, autonomy is very important for the efficiency and effectiveness of operations of the local government.
4. Low level Government
Because it is local self-government, it also holds the advantages of local power. In other words, people are nearest to local governance. It plays the role of the people in the government, and the local community participates in all the activities.
5. Policies making and preparation of budgets
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Consequently, a local government requires the mandate to formulate regulations, policies, and financial plans for its area. All these point out to the fact that a local government requires independence and control over its issues.
Importance of Local Government
- The government is closer to the people.
- It is the form of politics that gives power to the people.
- Local self-government mitigates the concentration of authority in the central government.
- It rather lightens up the administrative burden of the government in looking after the needs of its people.
- Local government plays a role in supporting the effective implementation of government policies.
- The local government fosters the democratic process within the country.
- Local government prepares the individuals for future leadership positions at the national.
- It serves as a practical means of communication between the people and the central government.
