Examining the effect of financial decentralization on rural roads maintenance and accountability in Kanungu District.
- October 5, 2021
- Posted by: rsispostadmin
- Categories: IJRISS, Social Science
International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS) | Volume V, Issue IX, September 2021 | ISSN 2454–6186
Dr. Benard Nuwatuhaire, Mubehamwe Janan
Valley University of Science and Technology, Uganda
This study sought to examine the effect of financial decentralization on rural roads maintenance and accountability in Kanungu District. The study adopted a cross-sectional design using both quantitative and qualitative research approaches on a sample of 104 respondents. Quantitative data involved the use of descriptive statistics particularly frequencies, percentages and the mean. Inferential analysis methods were correlation and regression. The main findings of the study were that financial decentralisation had a positive influence on rural feeder roads maintenance and accountability in Kanungu District. Therefore, it was concluded that financial decentralisation is a necessary requirement for rural feeder roads maintenance. Thus, it was recommended that financial decentralisation should be made apriority in implementation of rural feeder roads maintenance by making sure that financial needs of specific areas, making road projects fit specificities of the local conditions, get people’s input, attract teamwork and win legitimacy and approval of projects by the stakeholders.
Key words: financial decentralization, rural roads maintenance and accountability.
I. INTRODUCTION
Roads play a significant role in development where majority of the population depends on farm production (Suisheng, 2019). Rural road maintenance is extremely important for the survival of the economy especially in rural areas and this can be best achieved through decentralization (Mejia & Tillin, 2019). Indeed, the provision of a high quality road maintenance system is a pre-condition for the full participation of remote communities in the benefit of national development (Olamigoke& Adebayo, 2013). Financial Decentralization as one type of decentralization under local governance is mandated to be a mechanism to increase this service delivery (Zhang, Miehling & Başar, 2019).Therefore this research was carried out to find out if this is the case in Kanungu District,Uganda
II. THEORETICAL REVIEW
The study was guided by Fallet’s theory of sequential decentralization which emerged in 2004.This theory states that decentralization should be defined by three main characteristics. (a) As a process, (b) territorial interests of bargaining actors and, (c) by incorporating policy feedback effects. It provides a dynamic account of institutional evolution. Fallet says that decentralization should allow maintenance of rural feeder roads to be completed sooner by giving local managers greater discretion in decision making so
