The Devolution Dividend

The Devolution Development Dividend

By Dumisani O. Nkomo

The argument that was and is still propounded by some sections of the Zimbabwean ruling elite that devolution of power is expensive is both frivolous and vexatious for a number of reasons which I will discuss in this instalment.

It must be remembered that the failure to implement devolution of power was one of the reasons that was cited for the attempted impeachment of Robert Mugabe, which was then overtaken by his subsequent resignation. Is our collective amnesia so effective that a whole government can choose to ignore such a critical governance tenet?

The Minister of Finance, Patrick Chinamasa infamously declared that devolution of power was costly and government could not afford to implement it. I would like to argue that failure to implement devolution of power will be costlier for the government and indeed the people of Zimbabwe .

Devolution of power is not necessarily creating new structures, new employees and so forth but rather ensuring that structures at local and provincial level have the power to implement decisions at their level for the benefit of local communities. Although section 270 of the constitution envisages Provincial and metropolitan councils’ creation of structures and staff, this is not the main thrust of devolution of power to provincial and local level tiers of governance.

Devolution of power will necessarily make governance easier as it enables citizens to have access to government which in itself contributes to the type of governance reflected in section 194 0f the constitution. Section 94 envisages public administration which amongst other things is responsive to people’s needs, transparent and encourages people to participate in policy making. For this to happen and to happen more effectively it is important to have public administration and governance that is localized with sufficient power to make decisions that can make a difference in the lives of people in that particular locality, community, district or province. Devolution of power is methodology of governance that facilitates this effectively.

Ownership and Benefit of Local Resources

Devolution of power allows communities to manage their own affairs and to benefit from their own resources. The objects of devolution of power in the constitution adequately capture this in section 264 paragraph d which states “to recognize the right of local communities to manage their own affairs and to further their own development”.

In actual fact development processes in Zimbabwe are premised on the imperative of bottom up development epitomized by the role of Village Development Committees (VIDCOs), Ward Development Committees (WADCO) created under the Traditional Leaders Act and the Rural District Councils Act.  VIDCOS and WADCOS are supposed to formulate annual development plans which are then channelled upwards to the District Development Committees and then the Rural District Development Committees. There is then a development process disconnect because there is no link between local, district level and provincial development processes since the old Provincial Development Committee structures do not have adequate decision making powers to ensure that plans developed at micro level are actualized through budget processes. From a development planning perspective, devolution of power becomes essential as it enables aspirations of citizens expressed through their micro level plans to be manifested. Tragically VIDCOs and WADCOs have become commissariat structures of the ruling party and needless to say the whole imperative of bottom up planning has been lost in the jungle of political expedience.

Devolution of power to local/municipal and provincial structures is key in national development as developmental planning assumes a bottom –up paradigm.

Management of Local Resources

When locals are fully in charge of their own resources and are able to make decisions on resource governance communities are thus fully developed. The people of Gwanda must benefit from their Mopani worms and gold deposits, the people of Chiadzwa must benefit from the diamond deposits in their vicinity and the people from Matojeni must benefit from the wildlife at the Matobo National Game Park in the same manner that the communities in Lupane must benefit from methane gas deposits. If benefits cannot be accrued directly there must a devolved system of ensuring that locals are employed and downstream or upstream economic activity gravitates locally.

It does not make sense for people in Marange to be wallowing in poverty when there are diamond deposits all around them or the people of Nkayi to see trucks moving in and out of the district timber logging whilst children in the district do not have desks or chairs. A devolved resource governance and public finance dispensation addresses such anomalies.

I would like to posit therefore that if Zimbabwe is a democratic developmental state devolution of power is best positioned to facilitate this for the following reasons;

1.It brings governance processes closer to the people.

2.It increases accountability and access to decision making and policy processes.

3.Makes revenue collection more efficient.

4.It is essential in development planning.

5.Creates a greater sense of ownership of the national cake as communities have access to their own local slice and hence access to the bigger cake unlike a highly centralized system were people do not even know that there is a cake in the first place.

Mayibuye!

Dumisani Nkomo is the Chief Executive officer of Habakkuk Trust. He is also a writer, social entrepreneur, content producer and thought  leader. He writes here in his personal capacity.

Is Zimbabwe Open For Business ?

Is Zimbabwe Open For Business ?Service Delivery Failure Costly

By Dumisani O. Nkomo

The new government administration has adopted the term “Zimbabwe is open for business “ as  its official policy statement . I would like to argue that whilst in terms of rhetoric Zimbabwe may be open for business a lot needs to be done in order to really make Zimbabwe open for business. According to the Global Competitiveness Index produced by the World Bank Zimbabwe ranks number 124 out of 137 countries [Global Competitiveness Report 2017 -2018 ]

Importantly the Global Competitiveness Report captures issues such as internet speed , ease of doing business and corruption using the corruption index [Wikepedia] .Given this global context ,it is quite clear that Zimbabwe needs to address critical service delivery , infrastructural and  economic governance issues if the country is really be  open for  business .

The Challenge of Electricity

Last week I staged a one-man demonstration to protest against the Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority’s failure to install a   meter at my humble residence. It took roughly three months for the electricity utility company to connect electricity to my house from a pole which is about twenty metres from my house due to institutional inertia and another three months to install a meter. In the first two months the power utility company stated that this failure was due to non-availability of meters which they had ordered from outside the country. I then procured a meter from private company under ZESA’s Customer  Pre Paid Meter scheme  and it took over two weeks for the meter to be connected . If one whole state enterprise can fail to deliver such a basic service to one household how can it then deliver this critical service to a broader consumer base including industry? Is Zimbabwe ready for business when it takes over four months to connect electricity and secure meters at household level ?. Definitely this is a pointer that Zimbabwe is not open for business until there is demonstrable capacity to provide basic services .

Significantly ZESA Holdings was unbundled into over five companies a few years ago which then created the Zimbabwe Power Company, the Zimbabwe Electricity Distribution Company and  the Rural Electrification Authority among others . Obviously this created a top heavy structure at the expense of the consumer who has the added burden of bureaucracy because of the number of entities that have been created to supply electricity.

Assuming that the government wants to build 8 million houses under Command housing thus stimulating downstream and upstream  economic growth ,will this be possible given an inability to install meters to a few hundred consumers ?. It is quite clear that there is no institutional capacity to provide basic services such as electricity and as such no capacity for bigger infrastructural projects unless the government wants to build gigantic Dark cities with no electricity or water.

Network , Connectivity Issues

The advent of electronic money has assisted in easing cash shortages. This has however been frustrated by poor connectivity and slow internet speed thus affecting electronic banking including services such as internet banking etc. .If Zimbabwe is to be competitive the country has to have adequate infrastructure including Information Communication Technology to ensure that investors both local and foreign operate in an environment that encourages electronic commerce thus in the long term cutting down on operational costs .Global competitiveness entails a country having the ability to embrace e commerce and e commerce which are dependent on the extent of development of digital infrastructure .

The provision of critical services such as electricity, water, internet ,mobile networks and transport infrastructure is thus important in facilitating economic growth . No investor will invest a country where systems do not work and infrastructure is depleted or non-existent

Let’s be serious if we want Zimbabwe is to be open for business. Individual residents do not have to struggle to access services when in most instances they have paid for those services. There must also be scrapping of colonial by- laws which frustrate building of houses and provision of water. This does not mean that we should lower standards or quality but rather we take a leaf from global trends.

Institutional and Behavioural Change

There must be an effort towards institutional reform especially in parastatals and state enterprises with a mandate of providing services. There must be training of key staff in customer care so that the customer is king or queen maxim becomes corporate culture. At the moment most state institutions, government departments and state enterprises are far from providing responsive, transparent and timely services as enshrined in the constitution. It does not cost municipalities or state enterprises such as ZESA anything for their employees to be courteous to customers for example or to provide timely information on the availability or non-availability of services . I had to stage a demonstration to be heard but this must not be the case as corporates may not have time to engage in such actions but they will simply move to other countries where it is easy to do business because of efficient service delivery and minimal bureaucracy.

We have a lot to do before we are open for business but the good news is that it is still possible.

Dumisani O . Nkomo is the chief executive Officer of Habakkuk Trust .He is also an activist , content producer and writer . He writes here in his personal capacity .

He can be contacted on email – Dumisani .nkomo@gmail.com

Service Delivery Key to Human and Economic Development

Service Delivery Key to Human and Economic Development

By Dumisani O. Nkomo

Whoever wins the 2018 Elections whether its Nelson Chamisa, Emmerson Mnangagwa or whoever must grapple with critical questions around service delivery without which the “Zimbabwe is open for business” mantra would become empty and meaningless. The provision of basic services by those entities legally and statutorily mandated  to provide such services   is to  key to human and  economic development. Human development as defined by the U.N.D.P should be epitomized by access to basic services which in themselves are indicators of the level of development of the citizens of any country. To this extent the availability of services such as water, electricity, sanitation, public transport, health and education is essential to any country. Importantly I would like to argue that access to Information Communication Technology is and must be a basic service because without access to ICT ‘s communities and citizens are excluded from the global village and from critical financial transactions which are determined by access to Information Communication Technology. Without sound service delivery economic growth and development will be a perpetual mirage as investment locates itself within an enabling framework. Business cannot be done in a vacuum and that is an indisputable fact.

The following services are crucial for any country serious about human and economic development in the context of Africa:

Water and sanitation

The issue of access to clean water is enshrined in the Country’s constitution under the declaration of rights. Access to clean water is thus a fundamental human right which no Zimbabwean should be struggling to access in this day and age. Availability of water is also key to industrialization and water shortages can potentially cripple some economic activities.

It is scandalous that in this day and age we as a nation are still celebrating Blair toilets as  a  national achievement in rural areas. Why should we lower standards for our citizens by ululating the movement of people from open defecation under trees to squat holes in tiny toilets. Surely as a nation we can do more than this. Whilst I applaud the efforts of humanitarian agencies in building blair toilets I would like to strongly advocate for equal standards of sanitation for all Zimbabweans .Surely the abundance of squat holes cannot be a measure of human development in this day and age .

A well-developed sewer reticulation system must be developed in the next ten to fifteen years to ensure that there is significant human development epitomized by human dignity.

Electricity

The availability of electricity is a fundamental reflection of the level of development of any community. Additionally, availability  of electricity is key to the growth of industry and a conducive business environment. The abundant potential of solar energy must be tapped into as a viable eco-friendly energy alternative which will place the country on a path of sustainable energy provision.

Refuse Collection and Sewer Reticulation

Refuse collection is a basic service which local authorities must provide in order to ensure that our urban centres do not become gigantic dump sites. There must a conscious effort by local authorities to promote recycling and re- use of waste as a sustainable waste management strategy. Waste management strategies of local authorities must not just focus on waste disposal but fundamentally converting waste to energy for industrial and domestic use. Biogas as an alternative form of energy must thus be vigorously explored. The Environmental Management Authority, Science and Technology institutions such the National University of Science and Technology in partnership with local authorities and the private sector can form formidable partnerships to develop alternative, sustainable energy use which will unlock value for individual citizens but also importantly for economic development as well.

Roads

The country’s road network is deplorable and this is inconvenient not only for the country’s citizens but also for investors. Access to markets is determined by sound road, rail and air infrastructure and services. The country needs massive investment in the arena of development of transport infrastructure as a basis for service delivery and economic development. Most of the roads in Bulawayo for example were built by the colonial government and very few by our own black government.

ICT ‘s

The availability of information communication technology must no longer be viewed as a luxury but as a basic need without which the country’s citizens are excluded from the global community of citizens. Electronic financial transactions make it imperative for the country’s telecommunication, communication and technological infrastructure to be competitive.

Access and availability of information communication technology is thus a vital service for individual and corporate citizens without which ordinary citizens cannot participate in the mainstream economy.

Dumisani O. Nkomo is the Chief Executive officer of Habakkuk Trust , a Christian advocacy , research and information dissemination organization . He writes here in his personal capac

Hold Local Government Elections Separately in 2023

Local Government Elections Must Be held Separately[edited ]

By Dumisani O. Nkomo

It’s election year again and as usual the usual suspects are out there promising everything to everyone, everywhere they go. Pertinently below the rubble, of harmonized elections lies a very important plebiscite, local government elections. I would like to strongly argue that like in the past local government or council elections should be separated from presidential and parliamentary elections. The decision to have harmonized elections leading to the requisite legal alignment was largely a cost cutting administrative decision but it came a very big long term cost as the electorate now does not give a hoot about municipal elections because of its obsession with the presidential and parliamentary elections.

Importance of Local Government

Local government in my humble opinion is the most foundational basis of a democracy as it is that tier of government that citizens are most able to interact with. Local government should thus be afforded the importance due to it as it relates to the daily of people. However because local government elections have been lumped with  legislative and presidential elections, the importance of this vital tier of government has been buried in an avalanche of electoral infatuation. Hardly anybody takes note of local government elections when they vote since most people tend to vote in a linear fashion rather than laterally. By this I mean the voting behaviour of people in Zimbabwe is that they tend to vote for the party or in a single block fashion without laterally and cognitively taking into account the multiple level requirements or imperatives for each level of governance. Subsequently voters are most likely to vote for their presidential candidate preference and then vote for a legislator and councillor from the same party without necessarily exploring the merits or demerits of the individual councillor they are voting for. The political erotica adrenalin of the presidential candidates and the  adrenaline of the parliamentary elections reduces the local government contest to a farce. Vital issues relating to and related to local governance, service delivery and local economic development are hence compromised in the process.

Specifically at local government level there are peculiar issues which are not necessarily at stake at national level and these pertain to:

1.       Service Delivery

The primary mandate of local authorities is to provide services to residents including provision of clean water , refuse collection , roads and recreational facilities. People that contest at this level must therefore demonstrate capacity or propensity for the same. If government elections were held separately it would be easier to identify individuals and political parties that are best positioned to deliver at local level. At an individual municipal candidate level the electorate is able to measure the candidate’s personal plan or manifestoes versus the service delivery needs of residents.

Political parties with the best manifestoes to address local issues can also be then elected at such a level but in a national harmonized plebiscite they are all too often buried in gigantic electoral avalanches. Beyond elections it is also easier to hold the successful councillor to account since councillors reside locally and are accessible unlike presidential and parliamentary candidates who tend to be more distant. In the hullaballoo of harmonized elections, hardly anybody remembers the issues at stake and as such basic service delivery issues are dumped at the altar of electoral and political expedience. It is desirable at times to have smaller geo specific interest based political parties winning at local government level rather than having big parties winning at all levels. This brings about a greater checks and balances than having dominant political parties at all levels.

Local Economic Development

Local government addresses issues to do with local economic development which may differ from broader macro level issues at stake at national level . Municipal elections clearly identify those with capacity to address local economic development issues.

Political Rationale

The system of separating local government elections from legislative and presidential elections will also help political parties to assess their popularity and improve their performance at national level . Local government elections can thus be a useful instrument of measuring the political relevance, popularity and chances of  political players.

After all is said and done there must be a separation of local government elections from parliamentary and presidential elections.

Dumisani Nkomo is the Chief Executive Officer of Habakkuk Trust. He writes here in his personal capacity

Dumisani O Nkomo: Is Nkosana doing a Makoni ?

Dumisani O Nkomo: Is Nkosana doing a Makoni ?: Is Nkosana Moyo a Decoy or Real Deal ? By Dumisani O. Nkomo The arrival on the political stage of Nkosana Moyo has been received with m...

Is Nkosana doing a Makoni ?

Is Nkosana Moyo a Decoy or Real Deal ?

By Dumisani O. Nkomo

The arrival on the political stage of Nkosana Moyo has been received with mixed feelings. Just like Simba Makoni did in the run up to the 2008 elections Moyo has generated an equal amount of energy, excitement, dissention, opposition and measured confusion. The cardinal question on many people’s minds is “Will Nkosana Moyo have a Simba Makoni effect on the 2018 elections?” Is he the real deal? Can he actually dislodge ZANU P.F from power or is he a ZANU P.F project? Does the country need another super genius academic to rescue it from this 37-year-old political and economic quagmire epitomized by ZANU P.F mis-governance and legendary corruption?

What Nkosana Offers

Dr Moyo appears to offer a welcome relief to the Zimbabwean political landscape dominated by geriatrics, recycled politicians and at times clueless opposition leaders. The man has a swathe of ideas to turn around the economy and appears to have a profile fit for an American President. He has the academic credentials, the business acumen and looks some of the ladies say. But this of course is not a beauty pageant nor is country’s rough political terrain for  naïve theorist so his critics say. Regardless of this however Nkosana presents fresh challenges to opposition leaders to pull up their socks and rid themselves of a culture of political entitlement. Zimbabweans do after all have a choice to choose political leaders of their choice and it is the democratic right of every eligible citizen to aspire to the presidency. This is neither a sin nor a crime but a constitutional right .

Similarities Makoni

Moyo’s critics argue that he is an exact political prototype of Dr Simba Makoni. Makoni like Moyo also served in the government as Industry minister as a young and intelligent technocrat. Like Makoni Moyo boasts of Phd in the pure sciences. Makoni a [phd in Chemistry and Moyo in Physics. Both men have a swathe of international experience with Makoni serving as Executive Secretary of SADC for a lengthy period and Moyo leading various international organizations in South Africa including the Mandella Institute for Development [ M.I.N.D ] .  Nkosana Moyo has an apparent appeal to the middle class, urban youth, segments of academia an appeal which of course is still to be subjected to the realities of African electoral realities. Like Makoni , Moyo appears to proffer a third way. A way which is not like the ZANU way of autocracy or the Morgan Tsvangirai way which has been described by some as uncouth or lacking in political stratagem. However, is this third way  a mere mirage which will lead people into the wilderness instead of leading them to the promised land of a new Zimbabwe founded upon democracy, justice, social and economic transformation.

The problem I have is that whilst Dr Moyo has a lot of positives on his side his sudden appearance on the political scene appears to a deja vous moment. Once again there is the strong possibility that the vote will be split, that Zimbabweans will be confused at the last moment and a formidable coalition be scuttled by the emergence of this late arrival to the political scene. In the same way in which Simba Makoni attracted a lot of sympathy, energy and ultimately split the decisive 2008 vote, Dr Moyo is likely to do the same. He will be seen by some if not many as a ZANU P.F project. Whether or not he is one may be difficult to disprove to millions of Zimbabweans especially those in the rural areas. Actually Dr Moyo’s assertion that those who know him will campaign for him in the rural areas is the height of political naivety. The Zimbabwean presidential election is won and lost in the rural areas since the majority of the voting electorate resides there. ZANU P.F knows this well so their strategy will be to divide the urban vote and go all out for the rural vote.

I have nothing against Dr Moyo and I actually think he is a great person but he may not be what the country needs right now. He is too soft and apologetic to appeal to the mass of Zimbabweans who want to see Mugabe’s back. His messaging is so ambiguous in  such in a manner that confuses the ordinary Zimbabwean. Whilst the Mugabe must go mantra is not sufficient in this day and age, ambiguous messaging which is silent on the desirability of democratically  dislodging ZANU P.F is worrying .Moyo is an ideal candidate for the 2023 or 2028 elections . He is most relevant in a political landscape where ZANU P.F and Mugabe have  already been removed .Furthermore Moyo signalled his advent into mainstream politics by ranting against coalitions as being undemocratic . He may be right in other contents globally but in Zimbabwe right now a formidable coalition is imperative in achieving long term socio economic and political transformation. Moyo must not do a Simba Makoni on us especially at this eleventh hour .He may have noble intentions but noble intentions but noble intentions are not enough to win elections .

Mayibuye !

Dumisani O Nkomo

Nkomo is the Chief Executive Officer of Habakkuk Trust and Spokesperson of Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition. He writes here in his personal capacity.

Bad governance major setback for Zim : Crisis Coalition