Kaduna residents call for improved LG performance despite rating officials well

While the 1976’s local government reforms granted more autonomy, power, and functions to local governments, they still have a long way to go before they can perform their tasks satisfactorily in many areas – this was the crux of a newly published report by YMonitor.

YMonitor, an initiative of The Future Project which highlights crucial accountability and governance issues at the State and Federal levels, assessed the performance of chairpersons of the 23 local governments in Kaduna State.

The report outlines the tasks expected of local governments and how much the officials have fared in delivering public services in Kaduna. The survey discovered that Kaduna residents are satisfied with their LGs’ performance in providing essential services; however, they still need to do more.

“This is our sixth publication on Local Government Performance Report; this is a clear statement that we are pursuing a society where all arms of government, including Local Governments, are held responsible. Of the six states surveyed, Kaduna had the most favourable responses,” Omidiji Olamilekan, YMonitor Team Lead, commented. “However, the people of Kaduna still want improvement in the provision and maintenance of public conveniences, sewage and refuse disposal and many more,” Omidiji added.

The report indicated a high level of awareness of LG administrators and activities among the residents of Kaduna State; however, there is a relatively low level of political participation.

“The people need to start participating and taking an interest in local government elections in their environs; LG elections should not be treated as an afterthought,” Omidiji said in a statement issued to the press on the publication.

The Net Promoter Scores indicated a negative recommendation rating for local government chairpersons in Kaduna, suggesting that residents might not recommend their chairpersons for higher posts.

Among the recommendations of the survey was that local government councils of Kaduna State need institutional and human capacity building to adopt modern methods of local governance.

Download the full report here – https://bit.ly/LGSurveyKDS