The Challenges of Central Government Fiscal and Financial Policies on Local Government Programmes in Ghana

Abstract

Growing interest in the area of participation especially at the local level stems from the belief that democratic approaches to governance achieve better development outcomes. Over the past decade, World Bank has been promoting Community-Driven Development (CDD) programs, an approach that is believed to give local people total control over development projects. Using the qualitative approach to research, the study relies on secondary data and extant literature on decentralization theory and practice.  Various legal frameworks in Ghana underpinning decentralization and local governance were utilized to extrapolate challenges of central government fiscal and financial policies on local government programmes, drawing very much on the history, structure and policies of decentralization in Ghana.

Keywords: Decentralization, Local governance, Local participation, Fiscal policies, Local government.