Support for the All Africa Ministerial Conference on Decentralization and Local Development (AMCOD)

Programme description

Title: Project to support the All Africa Ministerial Conference on Decentralization and Local Development (AMCOD)
Commissioned by: German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ)
Country: Africa, transnational; headquarters: Cameroon
Partner: All Africa Ministerial Conference on Decentralization and Local Development (AMCOD)
Overall term: 2007 to 2014

Context

Decentralisation processes in Africa are combined with efforts to engage in responsible good governance. Decentralisation enables citizens to take part in governmental decision-making processes. It offers opportunities to put democracy into practice at the local level and to use public funds in a needs-orientated and more efficient way. Decentralisation can contribute to improving framework conditions for economic investment, thereby reducing poverty.

The project supports the All Africa Ministerial Conference on Decentralisation and Local Development (AMCOD), which was founded in May 2000 and is based in Yaoundé, Cameroon. AMCOD is a pan-African forum that promotes social and political reform processes and decentralisation throughout Africa.

As well as supporting AMCOD, the project also supports local government associations, particularly the United Cities and Local Governments of Africa (UCLGA), which promotes the inclusion of the interests of African cities and local governments in developing political decentralisation processes.

Objective

The reforms in the African Union (AU) Member States and the political dialogue between them on the subjects of decentralisation, regional and local development are guided by jointly agreed principles and standards.

Approach

The project provides AMCOD and UCLGA with strategic support in their organisational and institutional development and with technical and logistical support in preparing and implementing their activities. In so doing, the project benefits from the experience of 19 African countries already supported by GIZ bilateral projects. Networking in dialogue platforms and specialist working groups enables experience to be exchanged between different decentralisation ministries.

Support for AMCOD: The project supports the All Africa Ministerial Conference on Decentralisation and Local Development in developing processes and standards for successful decentralisation, in establishing the Secretariat General and in strengthening its management competence.

Support for UCLGA and local government associations: The project supports the United Cities and Local Governments of Africa (UCLGA) and other local government associations in areas including cross-border cooperation, local economic development and participative budget management. It develops training measures for administrative experts from local governments and ministries and promotes the integration of these measures in reforms of the public finances and their inclusion in university curricula.

Results achieved so far

AMCOD has drawn up the draft of an African Charter for Decentralisation, Local Governance and Local Development. A vote will be taken on this draft at the AU Summit in June 2014. The Charter is to be passed as a pan-African set of rules applying to all AU Member States.

The transformation of AMCOD into a Specialised Technical Committee for decentralisation and local development and its integration into the all-Africa governance architecture are the subject of coordination with the AU at regular intervals.

A resolution has been drafted for the establishment of an AU High Council of Local Authorities to represent the interests of cities and local councils. It will be put to a vote at the AU Summit in June 2014.

Since 2012, an Africa Day for decentralisation and local development has been celebrated each year on 10 August in the AU Member States.

As a result of an AU resolution, AMCOD is developing a system for recognising and acknowledging special achievements in decentralisation and local development. The aim is to inspire other countries to follow such examples to positive effect.

The AU’s Member States publish a status report every three years on the situation regarding decentralisation and its progress (starting with a report on 2014).