Citizen Participation and Service Delivery at the Local Government Level: A Case of Ise/Orun Local Government In Ekiti State, Nigeria

Abstract

Service delivery is an essential function in the relation between government bodies and citizens. According to Eigema(2007), Service delivery is the government’s key task.The best yardstick to measure government performance of good governance is through service delivery to the people. A government is expected to deliver better services to its people, and the indices of measuring service delivery to the people include low inflation, better education, provision of improved health care at affordable rates, provision of clean water, provision of good roads and good road networks to the rural areas for the transport of agricultural products and raw materials etc. (Akanji et al, 2011). Despite Nigeria earning over $800 billion in oil revenue in 56 years since oil was first discovered in the country in the South-South in 1956(Izuora,2013), poverty index remain very high. According to African Development Bank, “The proportion of people living below the national poverty line has worsened from 65.5 per cent in 1996 to 69.0 per cent in 2010. “Poverty is higher in rural areas at 73.2 per cent than in urban area at 61.8 per cent.” (theeagleonline,com.ng/news/nigerias-poverty-level-has-worsened-afdb/).

The creation of local government anywhere in the world stems from the need to facilitate development at the grassroots. The importance of local government is a function of its ability to generate sense of belongingness, safety and satisfaction among its populace. The Nigerian state therefore created local government as the third tier of government whose objective is to ensure effective, measurable and efficient service delivery to the people (Arowolo, 2008). The need to improve local government service delivery cannot be overemphasized.Mathoho argued that government’s service delivery is a response to moral obligation and is attached to the economic growth and the alleviation of poverty(Mathoho, M.).The demand for social service at rural level is on the increase because of the increase in population. More than 70 percent of the Nigerian population reside in the rural areas and are directly or indirectly affected by services rendered by the third tier governments(Agba et al, 2013).