The concept and practice of participatory budgeting has gained currency in Africa in the last three years and it is being talked about everywhere in local government. The biggest impact has been on enhancing participatory local governance.
Participatory Budgeting has turned out to be a campaign tool in promoting good local governance as well as energizing decentralized governance in service delivery, poverty reduction and promoting solidarity and local investments. In every municipality that participated in participatory budgeting initiatives, there was unequal distribution of public services between rich neighborhoods and underprivileged neighborhoods in relation to services such as: garbage collection, water and sanitation, power supply, street lighting, recreational facilities to mention a few.
The system of having budget consultations and conferences at community and city levels addressed the issue of social exclusion and spatial discrimination and provided space for residents in poor neighborhoods to have their voices heard in allocation of budget expenditures.
This was particularly the case in Mozambique, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia. Local authorities working closely with civil society organizations also established mechanisms for participatory monitoring and evaluation of projects that were meant to benefit the poor. In places like Ilala in Tanzania, Nansana and Entebbe in Uganda, Kabwe in Zambia residents with support of civic organizations became vigilant in consultative meetings to ensure that their needs and preferences are taken on board in budget allocations.
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