Insights into the Governance and Management of Ward Development Committees in Zambia 2023

This publication, produced by the Local Government Association of Zambia (LGAZ) with support from GIZ, provides insights into the governance and management of Ward Development Committees (WDCs) in Zambia. It highlights key lessons from case studies and makes recommendations to address the challenges affecting the operations of WDCs. WDCs have been established in all the 1,858 wards countrywide and are key to facilitating structured community participation as espoused in the Republican Constitution and key policy documents such as the National Decentralisation Policy. Community participation is at the core of actualising decentralisation.

Although similar in terms of their organisation structure and ascribed functions, WDCs’ performance varies due to distinct approaches being adopted to streamline their operations. As such, understanding the different approaches and their implications is crucial especially in the quest for measures to enhance the performance of WDCs.

Thus, the publication highlights useful insights from selected districts on the operations of WDCs focusing on community service, development coordination, leadership, economic empowerment, organisation of meetings and capacity building. It further highlights challenges and offers alternative measures to enhance the operations and performance of WDCs.

We hope that you will find the publication useful.

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