Ethiopia : Enhancing Human Development Outcomes Through Decentralized Service Delivery
This report on enhancing human development outcomes through decentralized service delivery in Ethiopia seeks to identify changes in human development outcomes in a period of deepening decentralization and to suggest how the country's decentralized governance structure could be improved to increase access to, as well as the quality of, relevant services. A key message of the report is that the decentralized governance structure helped facilitate improvements in service delivery and human development outcomes, but also, that weaknesses in that structure can derail these gains. The report argues that while policymakers, providers, and citizens must work together to strengthen accountability mechanisms, there is a particular need to strengthen local government and enhance the role of service beneficiaries. The report focuses on key actors and their roles in accelerating progress toward achieving the Millennium Development Goals in Ethiopia. It complements rather than duplicates other recent studies. The report is organized as follows. The first chapter reports on trends in human development indicators and government social expenditures in Ethiopia over the past 15 years. Chapter 2 describes the phasing in of Ethiopia's decentralization plan and presents a framework of mechanisms of accountability for providing services. Chapter 3 examines the scope of decentralization in Ethiopia and the use of intergovernmental transfers. Chapter 4 presents some of the data collected for this report on changes in budget allocation behavior at the woreda level before and after decentralization and the effects on allocations for the social sectors. It also examines changes in key service delivery outcomes at the woreda level. Chapter 5 examines some of the constraints to improved service delivery and proposes ways of increasing resources at decentralized levels, of improving the capacity of local governments and service providers, and of involving citizens in service delivery in a more robust and effective way.
Summary: | This report on enhancing human
development outcomes through decentralized service delivery
in Ethiopia seeks to identify changes in human development
outcomes in a period of deepening decentralization and to
suggest how the country's decentralized governance
structure could be improved to increase access to, as well
as the quality of, relevant services. A key message of the
report is that the decentralized governance structure helped
facilitate improvements in service delivery and human
development outcomes, but also, that weaknesses in that
structure can derail these gains. The report argues that
while policymakers, providers, and citizens must work
together to strengthen accountability mechanisms, there is a
particular need to strengthen local government and enhance
the role of service beneficiaries. The report focuses on key
actors and their roles in accelerating progress toward
achieving the Millennium Development Goals in Ethiopia. It
complements rather than duplicates other recent studies. The
report is organized as follows. The first chapter reports on
trends in human development indicators and government social
expenditures in Ethiopia over the past 15 years. Chapter 2
describes the phasing in of Ethiopia's decentralization
plan and presents a framework of mechanisms of
accountability for providing services. Chapter 3 examines
the scope of decentralization in Ethiopia and the use of
intergovernmental transfers. Chapter 4 presents some of the
data collected for this report on changes in budget
allocation behavior at the woreda level before and after
decentralization and the effects on allocations for the
social sectors. It also examines changes in key service
delivery outcomes at the woreda level. Chapter 5 examines
some of the constraints to improved service delivery and
proposes ways of increasing resources at decentralized
levels, of improving the capacity of local governments and
service providers, and of involving citizens in service
delivery in a more robust and effective way. |
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