EFFECTIVENESS OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Introduction:
Bangladesh has repeatedly experimented with decentralization in the post-colonial and post-
independence period. Every successive regime between 1957 and 2001 attempted to reform the
local government structure. The induction of local government, however, failed to ensure access
and participation to the poor. The absence of tangible rewards for participating in local affairs
often resulted in apathy and frustration to the villagers. The main concern of this essay is to
evaluate the process of decentralization that took place under different regime in Bangladesh and
analyze to what extent decentralization has been ensured.
Definition:
Local Government is meant for management of local affairs by locally elected persons. If
Government's officers or their henchmen are brought to run the local bodies, there is no sense in
retaining them as Local Government Bodies.
According to Business Dictionary: Local Government Means an administrative body for a small
geographic area, such as a city, town, county, or state. A local government will typically only
have control over their specific geographical region, and cannot pass or enforce laws that will
affect a wider area. Local governments can elect officials, enact taxes, and do many other things
that a national government would do, just on a smaller scale.
Evolution of Local Government in Bangladesh:
Immediately after the liberation, Bangladesh politics fell under immense pressure from both
within and outside. Dramatic changes were brought in the structure of the local government in
accordance with changes made in the governance system to match the ideological shift of the
ruling regime.
The Presidential Order No. 7, promulgated in 1972, dissolved all existing local government
committees. In order to continue local administration, the government appointed designated
committees to replace the defunct committees. The Union Council was renamed as Union
Panchayat (later Union Parishad) and the District Council was renamed as the District Board
(later Zila Parishad).
The Thana and Divisional Councils were not replaced by such ad hoc committees. The
Presidential Order No. 22 specified that each union composed of several villages would be
divided in three wards; three UP members would be elected from each ward. Besides, provisions
were made for the Chairman and Vice Chairman to be directly elected by all eligible voters
living within a UP. The Order further stipulated that the Sub-divisional Officer (SDO) and the
Deputy Commissioner would be ex-officio chairmen at thana and district level local bodies
respectively.
During Zia regime, the Local Government Ordinance 1976 was promulgated that introduced a
three-tier local government system: Union Parishad, Thana Parishad, and Zila Parishad
hierarchically arranged in ascending order. The structure and functions of the UP remained
1|Page
almost same as they were under the Presidential Order No.22, with exceptions that the post of the
Vice Chairman was abolished and four additional nominated members (two from women and
another two from peasants) were included. But the Ordinance conferred significant control of the
central government over the UPs. For example, the SDO was given the veto power against any
decision of UPs. Under the Local government (Thana Council and Thana Administration
Reorganization) Ordinance 1982, considerable authority was delegated to the Upazila Parishad.
The Upazila Parishad was entrusted with the power to impose tax, rates, fees and tolls. The UP
lost its authority again in this process to accommodate transfer of responsibilities and authority to
the Upazila Parishad.
After the changeover to the parliamentary system of government in 1991, the first Khaleda Zia
government (1991-1996) abolished the upazila system. A Local Government Reorganization
Commission was constituted on 24 November 1991 to review the effectiveness of the
contemporary structure of the local government and recommend on possible reorganization in
accordance with the 12th amendment made to the constitution. This Commission proposed a two
tier system for the rural area: Union Parishad at union level and Zila Parishad at district level.
The Sheikh Hasina government (1996-2001) formed another commission to suggest the structure
of local government consistent with democratic spirit and with sustainable base. This
commission suggested for a four-tier system: Gram parishad at village level, union parishad at
union level, upazila parishad at thana level, and zila parishad at district level. One significant
achievement of this government was holding of election in reserved women seats at UPs.
Structure of Local Government:
In Bangladesh, two types of local government systems exist - rural and urban. The rural local
governments are:
(a) gram sarkar,
(b) union parisbads,
(c) IIpaziia parishads and
(d) zila parisbads.
The urban local governments are:
(a) porashavas and
(b) ciry corporations.
The three types of porashavas are:
(a) class I,
(b) class II, and
(c) class III.

2|Page
11 City corporations have been constituted in the divisional headquarters (Dhaka, Chittagong,
Rajshashi, Khulna, Sylhet and Barisal), Three hill districts local government parishads have been
set up in Rangamati, Khagrachari and Bandarbans Hill Districts.
 Local government within the state Bangladesh has 64 administrative districts, and below
these a tiered system of local government comprising three levels of rural councils known
as parishads, as well as single-tiered unitary urban municipalities.
 Ministerial oversight The local government division (LGD) within the Ministry of Local
Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives (MLGRD&C) is responsible for
development and implementation of legislation regulating local government, with the
exception of the Hill District Local Government Parishad Act 1989, which is
administered by the Ministry of Hill Tract Affairs. The LGD is undertaking work and
implementing programmes in order to attain Vision-2021, the seventh five year plan and
the SDGs.
 Council types Local government is divided into rural, urban and hill districts, which all
have similar functions. Urban authorities are single-tier and include 11 city corporations
and a number of town pourashavas. Rural local government has three tiers: 64 zila
(district) parishads, 492 upazila (sub-district) parishads, and 4,573 union parishads. There
are also three hill district parishads. Alogside the 11 city corporations, other towns are
governed by municipalities, which provide services to towns with populations of at least
15,000.
 Urban councils: The heads of city corporations and municipalities are called mayors.
Members are called councillors, and mayors and all councillors are directly elected every
five years. There are specific numbers of reserved seats for women, who are elected
directly.
 Zila parishads: The law stipulates that there shall be a council for each district, except in
the three hill districts. A zila parishad will consist of a chairperson, 15 open seats and five
additional women’s reserved seats. Bangladesh has never had elections for zila parishads
 Upazila and union parishads: The chairpersons and all the members of these bodies –
including women holding reserved seats – are directly elected. The chairpersons and
members work fulltime and receive an honorarium, which is fixed by the government.
According to existing legislation upazila parishad councils must consist of a directly
elected chair, representative members and women members in reserved seats. The
representative members are the upazila parishad chair, two vice-chairs including one
woman, municipality mayors of the area, union parishad chairs from within the upazila,
and one-third of the women elected at municipality, union or upazila parishad level. All
heads of government departments working in the upazila can attend and participate in any
council meeting but are not entitled to vote.
Constitutional and Legal Basis of Local Government:
The 1972 Constitution (Chapter Ill) provided the legal basis and powers of local government
bodies in independent Bangladesh. Article 59 of the Constitution states:

3|Page
 I. Local government in every administrative unit of the Republic shall be entrusted to
bodies composed of persons elected in accordance with the law.
2. Every body such as is referred to in Clause:
(i) shall, subject to this Constitution and any other law, perform within the appropriate
administrative unit, such functions as shall be prescribed by Acts of Parliament, which
may include functions relating to:
a. administration and the work of public offices;
b. the maintenance of public order; and
c. the preparation and implementation of plans relating to public services and
economic development.
Article 60 states:
For the purpose of giving full effect to the provision of Article 59, Parliament shall by
law confer powers on the local government bodies referred to in that Article, including power to
impose taxes for local purposes, to prepare their budgets and to maintain funds. However, under
the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution in 1975, this provision was abolished.
In Chapter II of the Constitution, corrected up to 28 February, 1979, there is only one
sentence on local government. in Clause 9:
“The state shall encourage local government bodies composed of representatives
from relevant areas and in these bodies, there shall be as far as possible, special
representation of peasants, workers and women.”
Under the Twelfth Amendment of the Constitution in 1991, it has been stated:
“Local government in every administrative unit of the Republic shall be entrusted
to bodies composed of persons elected in accordance with law. Every local body shall
perform within the appropriate administrative unit such functions as shall be prescribed
by Acts of Parliament, which may include functions relating to:
a. administration and the work of public officers;
b. the maintenance of public order; and
c. the preparation and implementation of plans relating to public services
and economic development.
National urban policy:
A draft national urban sector policy was produced by the local government division in 2011 and
redrafted in 2014. It is currently awaiting formal adoption.
Systems for Community Involvement in Local Government:

4|Page
Legal requirement and 5.2 Implementation There are elaborate systems and procedures for
community participation. The community can participate in the planning, budgeting and scheme
implementation process, for which provision is made in law. The Government of Bangaldesh has
taken steps to improve systems for community engagement, including through the World Bank
supported Local Governance Support Project (LGSP) and the Upazila Governance and
Development Project.
Women’s representation:
Following elections in the 2014–16 period, 25.2% (14,763/ 58,543) of councillors were women,
up from 23.4% in the 2011–13 period, see table 3.1b. This reflects the reservation of seats: with
25% of union parishad seats reserved for women. Also, a third of upazila parishad seats are
reserved for women.
Pic-1: Women councilors and mayors of three local elections:

Pic-2: Women councilors and mayors of three local elections:

5|Page
Organized Local Government:
There are three main associations of local government: the Bangladesh Union Parishad Forum
(BUPF), the Upazila Parishad Foundation of Bangladesh (UPFB) and the Municipal Association
of Bangladesh (MAB).3.6 These give support to the chairpersons of union parishads, upazila
parishads and municipalities on their rights, privileges and welfare. Membership is voluntary.
Legislation does not provide for any formal establishment of associations.
Finance, Staffing and Resources:
Local government expenditure: In 2016-17 local government expenditure was estimated to be
8.0% of total government expenditure, up slightly from the previous two years. (table 3.2b).
Locally raised revenue: All local governments have the power to levy taxes and rates. The main
sources of local government revenue are as follows:
 income from taxes, rates, tolls, fees and other charges
 rents and profits from property
 grants made by national government
 profits from investments
 donations and
 transfers of private or public funds.
Local authority staff: In the upper tiers of local government each council recruits its own senior
staff. The government recruits the staff in lower tiers of local government. Powers of discipline
and dismissal remain with the original recruiting authority. From time to time national
government staff are seconded to local government to fill senior positions such as the chief
executive. The larger authorities are required to have a chief executive, secretary and chief
finance officer. The districts, sub-districts and municipalities have engineer(s), either recruited
locally or deployed by government agencies. The head of the paid service is normally referred to
as the chief executive officer. Local authorities may propose their own internal organizational
structure, but the MLGRD&C must give approval.
The role of local government in achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs):
The Bangladesh National Development Plan is aligned with the SDGs. The LGD has arranged
workshops on the SDGs, and the role and contribution of local government in achieving them
under the Union Parishad Governance Project (UPGP), with financial support from the European
Union, (EU), Danida, UNCDF and the UNDP. The local government division is leading and
participating in the data gap analysis of many of the SDG indicators.
The Problem of Local Government:

6|Page
1. Lack of proper legal authority in carrying out public programs and deliver public services is a
major practical constraint identified in FGD, Survey and IDI.
2. Lack of public awareness on different issues related to functions such as sanitation, violence
against women, family welfare, etc. creates problem for functioning.
3. In the absence of institutionalized relationship between the UP and its residents, there is lack
of cooperation between them that in turn, affects service delivery both qualitatively and
quantitatively. This is because most of the residents do not have clear knowledge about the UP
activities and its role in local development.
4. Lack of coordination between the UP and field level government agencies, and between the
UP and other non-government agencies in terms of respective programs is a major threat.
5. There are many cases where the UP gets obstructed by the locally influential people in
implementing its programs. The UP does not have legal power as well as administrative support
to challenge such illegal influences.
6. Persistent tendency of the bureaucracy to control the UP is another major constraint. Such
control is manifested through frequent promulgation of the executive orders curtailing the
authority of the UP.
7. Party and political pressure on the UP is endemic. There is no clear demarcation between
jurisdiction of the members of the parliament and the local government representatives.
8. Monopolistic dominance of the chairman over the UP and internal conflict between chairmen
and members severely affect UP functioning.
9. There exists serious capacity gap within the UP in rendering its responsibilities in terms of
manpower, training, and supply of logistics.
10. Gender discrimination in delegating authority and responsibility to the UP members is
evident that results in demoralization of the reserved seat members.
11. Politics of vote is a major constraint to the effective functioning of the UP. The UP
representatives give preference to attract voters through patronization rather than delivery of
better public services.
12. Financial insolvency is a major threat to the effective performance of the UP. Most of its
potential sources of revenue have been taken away from it. It is now completely dependent on
the central government grant. This dependency obstructs long-range planning and sustainable
program implementation.
Recommendations:
 The LG has to be conferred with meaningful autonomy. It must have its own fund, rules
of procedure, and budget. It will undertake and carry out local development activities
independently and without any outside interference.

7|Page
  The structure of the UP manpower needs to be rearranged in order to increase its working
capacity. Some new posts like assistant secretary, tax assessor, and accountants should be
created. Once these posts are created their incumbents will assist the secretary. These
new recruits should be computer literate.
 The relationship between Members of Parliament (MPs) and the local government should
be cooperative and complementary instead of domination and subjugation. MPs should
not in any way interfere in the affairs of UPs.
 If UPs are given adequate fund and manpower, they would be able to better identify local
needs and problems and devise development plans accordingly.
 It is imperative to devise social accountability mechanisms to make the LG accountable
to the local people.
 Proper coordination of UP activities is necessary for effective performance. Emphasis has
to be given on anti-corruption measures and their compliance while establishing
coordination relationships among various actors.
 Instead of present phased allocation and disbursement of funds in favor of the UP, lump-
sum disbursement should be practiced. The disbursement has to be made directly in favor
of the UP. The date and amount of disbursement have to be widely publicized through
newspapers, television, and radio so that local people are aware of them.
 Honorarium should be increased to a respectable level. It should be no less than tk.
15,000 per month for the chairman.
 Administrative complexities have to be removed as far as possible from decision making
process. Care has to be taken to insulate this process from political and party influences.
 Appropriate training for the elected representatives as well as appointed officials should
be given to develop their capacity and enhance efficiency.
Conclusion:
In Bangladesh there have been six major attempts to reform local government under six different
governments. The objective of all, at least at the level of rhetoric, was to introduce participatory
and accountable local governance through decentralization of functions and powers to locally
elected institutions. All these governments also recognized the relevance of the role of
decentralized local institutions in planning and implementing need-based development projects
for poverty alleviation and reduction of socio-economic inequality. However, the objectives were
not realized and the governments failed to keep their commitment towards grassroots democracy
and to devolve power to the people at lower levels to manage their own affairs.
References:
I. National web portal www.bangladesh.gov.bd 3.1b Women in national parliaments. Inter-
Parliamentary Union www.ipu.org/wmn-e/classif.htm 3.2a Constitution of Bangladesh
II. http://bdlaws.minlaw.gov.bd/pdf_ part.php?id=367 3.2b Hill District Local Government
Parishad Act 1989 3.2c Zila Parishad Act 2000 3.2d Local Government (Municipality)
Act 2009 3.2e Local Government (Union Parishad) Act 2009 3.2f Local Government
(Upazila Parishad) Act 1998 and amendment in 2009

8|Page
III. Local Government (City Corporation) Act 2009. 3.2h UN Human Settlements country
paper: www.unescap.org/hues/ lgstudy/country/bangladesh/ bangladesh.html 3.3a 2011
Census
IV. http://bbs.dhaka. gov.bd/sites/default/files/files/bbs. dhaka.gov.bd/law_policy/6ed6b42
c_2015_11e7_8f57_286ed488c766/ Socio-Economic%20and%20 demographic
%20Report%202012.pdf
V. Local government division of the Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development and
Cooperatives www.lgd.gov.bd 3.4 Election Commission
www.ec.org.bd/English/index.php

9|Page