What are links between poverty and good governance

UGANDA CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY – MUKONO
MA DEVELOPMENT STUDIES
NATAMBA SHADRACK



Question: ?

The conceptual understanding of the Key words- poverty and Good Governance

According to the World Bank Organization poverty is described as: “Poverty is hunger, poverty is lack of shelter, poverty is being sick and not being able to see a doctor, poverty is not having access to school and not knowing how to read. Poverty is not having a job, is fear for the future, living one day at a time and not having right
Poverty has many faces, changing from place to place and across time, and has been described in many ways. Most often, poverty is a situation people want to escape. So poverty is a call to action -- for the poor and the wealthy alike -- a call to change the world so that many more may have enough to eat, adequate shelter, access to education and health, protection from violence, and a voice in what happens in their communities (Nuwagaba A 2007).
In addition to a lack of money, poverty is about not being able to participate in recreational activities; not being able to send children on a day trip with their schoolmates or to a birthday party; not being able to pay for medications for an illness. These are all costs of being poor. Those people who are barely able to pay for food and shelter simply cannot consider these other expenses. When people are excluded within a society, when they are not well educated and when they have a higher incidence of illness, there are negative consequences for society. We all pay the price for poverty; the increased cost on the health system, the justice system and other systems that provide supports to those living in poverty has an impact on our economy.
While much progress has been made in measuring and analyzing poverty, Nuwagaba A (2009), argues that 80% of the people in Masaka district in Uganda use “Munaku Tadoba” candles for lighting. The World Bank Organization is doing more work to identify indicators for the other dimensions of poverty. This work includes identifying social indicators to track education, health, access to services, vulnerability, and social exclusion. It is therefore, important to note that this animal called ‘Poverty’ can easily be identified than defining and there is no single factor that can be attributed to causing poverty, and that its results are different in every case. Poverty varies considerably
depending on the situation for instance, feeling poor in Canada is different from feeling poor in Uganda. The differences between rich and poor within the borders of a country can also be great despite the many definitions, one thing is certain; poverty is a complex societal issue.
According to UNDP (1997); UNDP'S Experience in Mozambique, Governance can be defined as "the exercise of political, economic and administrative authority in the management of a country's affairs at all levels. Good Governance comprises the complex mechanisms, processes and institutions through which citizens and groups articulate their interests, mediate their differences and exercise their legal rights and obligations. Good governance has many attributes. It is participatory, transparent and accountable. It is effective in making the best use of resources and is equitable. And it promotes the rule of law." Good governance has eight major characteristics and these are; participatory, consensus oriented, accountable, transparent, responsive, effective and efficient, equitable and inclusive and follows the rule of law. It assures that corruption is minimized, the views of minorities are taken into account and that the voices of the most vulnerable in society are heard in decision-making. It is also responsive to the present and future needs of society.
Source: UNDP (1997) Governance for Sustainable Human Development. United Nations Development Programme.

Good Governance is the exercise of politico-administrative and managerial authority and order which is legitimate, accountable, transparent, democratic, efficient and equitable in resource allocation and utilization, and responsive to the critical needs of promoting human welfare and positive transformation of society. It manifests itself through benchmarks which include a constitution, pillars of the state derived from the constitution, mechanisms for checks and balances on governments, efficient mechanisms of delivery of services by government, security, good leadership, the rule of law, participation by the people, freedom of expression, transparency, accountability, legitimacy, devolution of power, informed citizenry, strong civil society, protection of basic human rights, regular free and fair elections, good international relations, political stability, protection of property and life.

Despite improvements registered in recent years in terms of economic growth, which President Museveni, during his Independence Day message on October 9 2009 said was growing at 7% GDP, many seem to be living in the shadows of these impressive figures. But Mr. Museveni said 23 years ago, the average annual income of a Ugandan was $264, today every citizen, he said has some $1.4 (about Shs3,500.) in their pockets daily, adding to some $504 a year. For example, the latest Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS) report titled “Spatial trends of poverty and inequality in Uganda 2002-2005” shows that the proportion of Ugandans still living in absolute poverty is 31 percent (about 9 million people), with the majority of these found in the east and northern regions. This, however, according to the report is an improvement from 39 per cent of people who were living in abject/horrible poverty in 2002.

Development experts think the fight has not reached the poverty heartland. According to Prof. Augustus Nuwagaba from Makerere University, who has done wide consultancy on poverty eradication in Africa said “the rapid economic growth that the country is experiencing is not translating into better life for most of its citizens, the economic growth which should be benefiting the whole country is being enjoyed by a few people. It hasn’t been distributed evenly,” Monitor Saturday, October 24, 2009
According to the UBOS report, in all the four regions of the country, the rural poverty rate is higher than the urban poverty rate, usually ranging between 19.3 per cent and 65 per cent for rural areas and less than 25 per cent for urban areas, except northern Uganda where urban poverty is at 39.7 percent. In terms of the poverty gap, the report says the north still reported a high gap of 23.5 per cent compared to only 4.52 per cent in western Uganda.

A 2007 UNDP midterm report on Uganda’s performance on the MDGs shows that the country is on track to meet its goal of cutting poverty by 2015, but it’s threatened by several factors including low agricultural production and a fast growing population. The population growth stands at 3.2 per cent annually. This means that the population doubles every 20 years, and by 2025, it is expected to have grown to 56 million people.

The theoretical link between good governance and poverty is that Good governance is founded on citizens’ ability to claim entitlements in three broad areas: the right to participate in public decision-making; the inclusion of people’s needs and interests in policy; and the allocation of resources (Baden 2000. The level of each of these above characteristics will determine the level of poverty alleviation.
The linkages between good governance and poverty;

First of all, accountability at the national and local level is very important as far as poverty is concerned. Through general elections all citizens, including the poor and marginalized, can exercise their basic democratic right to make their voice heard and influence the direction of public policy. Accountability, however, comes not only from voting every few years, but also through the establishment of appropriate systems of monitoring and control that allow for a fair and transparent allocation of government resources. Lack of accountability means that the poor pay a particularly high price for corruption, as they often lack the power and the knowledge to avoid paying bribes and to defend themselves and their own rights.

Another way of promoting accountability is through participation mechanisms, as the poor are likely to benefit mostly from programs that they have helped design and implement, and over which they have some degree of control (Mette, A.K. 2004)).
Related to the above, the Human Development Report (2000) states that accountability is about power; it is not just about having a voice in decision making but about making the leaders accountable. When leaders became responsible about the decisions and actions they make which should be pro-poor. The World Bank for example estimates that over $300 million dollars is lost to corruption annually in Uganda. . This has perpetuated poverty in many ways and it is the reason for the persistent poverty in the country. If people held leaders accountable, then they would not squander or misallocate resources and if these resources are put into right use, then there will be reduced levels of poverty in Uganda

Secondly, Participation; is very paramount in as far as poverty reduction is concerned. The level of participation determines how much the planners can be able to put into implementation and off-course this is a road map to economic development (UNESCAP 2009). This could be either direct or through legitimate intermediate institutions or representatives. It is important to point out that participation does not necessarily mean that the concerns of the most vulnerable in society would be taken into consideration in decision making. It also gives the people a sense of ownership thus making policies and development programmes more sustainable.

Human development; it is good governance that facilitates human development which is a core principle in development. Human development is about expanding people’s functioning’s and capabilities (Human Development Report; 2000) and it goes beyond mere/sheer rights to freedom, to education, to health, among other basic needs to a level where one is able to participate in decision making and the general development process. If there is good governance, services like health, education and population growth and employment will be provided to the people and the moment they are empowered to know what should be done, then poverty will be gradually reduced. A high population for example puts a lot of strain on the available resources, services and facilities which directly hampers economic development (Abdellatif, 2003:15).

Legal Rights and Access to Justice; Good governance requires fair legal frameworks that are enforced impartially. It also requires full protection of human rights, particularly
those of minorities. Impartial enforcement of laws requires an independent judiciary and an impartial and incorruptible police force. Poor and disempowered groups such as women encounter discrimination within legal governance systems at three levels: 1) laws (discriminatory laws on property ownership or absence of anti-violence legislation); 2) legal systems (information requirements or evidence procedures); and cultural attitudes (male bias of judges and lawyers). However, reform of democratic structures and the drawing up of constitutions in the developing world have provided women’s movements with an entry point in which to ensure their rights are embedded in legislation (Baden 2000). Nonetheless, such legislation often adds to ‘parallel’ legal systems where new sets of legal rights co-exist alongside other formal and informal or customary laws. The use of customary law is more common the farther individuals are from the centre of the state – both geographically and in terms of their socio-economic position. It will therefore be more likely to impact on the lives of poor people than ‘formal’ law. Customary law is also particularly significant for women’s access to justice since it tends to govern family or domestic issues such as marriage, divorce, adultery and gender-based violence.
Research indicates that when cases are tried through customary law there may be even less chance of women receiving justice than in the case of formal legal systems (Nyamu-Musembi 2005).

Decentralization has generally been considered to be a positive step towards making governments more accountable to the poor by bringing decision-making down to a local level. Research has show that where resources are available, decentralisation has resulted in the greater participation of poor and marginalised groups of people such as women in decision making, and in monitoring the activities of local governments. However it must be remembered that local service providers are not in charge of national budgets and some commentators have argued that poverty reduction measures are therefore better dealt with at the national level. It has also enhanced service delivery and the development of a culture of participation by the people and accountability toward the people. Thus, decentralization and local governments play important roles in a number of the key priority areas including: 1) Promoting democracy; 2) Improving local ownership of development efforts and; 3) Enhancing accountability and the fight against corruption.

In addition, democratic opportunities depend significantly on the Poor’s access to information and communication, especially in the light of the great potential created by more recent technologies, access to which remains highly unequal. Expanding such access can enhance people's capacity to understand issues, to participate in public life more constructively, and to create important linkages that can result in coalitions for change. In this sense the potential role of information and communication in the democratization of governance structures is great.

Good governance promotes stability of governments and this creates a good environment for investment, and this is a source of revenue for the country and provides job opportunities. The level at which government can attract both foreign and local investor determines how much jobs will be created, the production of goods and services and how much revenue that will be collected. On top of the above, when a country is politically stable, its people can participate in production of goods and services and at the end this can boost the country’s economy.

Efficiency and effectiveness; Good governance means that processes and institutions produce results that meet the needs of society while making the best use of resources at their disposal. The concept of efficiency in the context of good governance also covers the sustainable use of natural resources and the protection of the environment (UNESCAP 2009). Similarly, under good governance, public sector reform is necessary to create and maintain an effective government structure and procedures to formulate and implement development policies and programmes. Public sector reform also includes providing training to employees, improvement in the delivery of public services like health and security leads to efficiency and effectiveness (Kuotsai, 2007). Improvement in all the aspects mentioned above leads to efficiency and effectiveness and thus economic growth.

Finally, good governance is Consensus oriented; there are several actors and as many view points in a given society, good governance requires mediation of the different interests in society to reach a broad consensus in society on what is in the best interest of the whole community and how this can be achieved. It also requires a broad and long-term perspective on what is needed for sustainable human development and how to achieve the goals of such development. This can only result from an understanding of the historical, cultural and social contexts of a given society or community.
Observations and conclusion;

It is also important to note that though democratic good governance is very crucial in development, it also has some limitations in that the views of interest groups can submerge the implementation of major decisions in the development process. On top of that, too much political freedom can cause chaos just like what has been happening in Uganda.

Nevertheless, as earlier stated, good governance is a very vital aspect in the development process because it gives the public the freedom to choose what they deem is best for them. It also helps curb the most dreaded evil-corruption. Needful to point is the fact that for democratic good governance to thrive there must be strong institutions. Free and fair elections, mechanisms and systems for accountability, transparency and participation, decentralization, access to information and communication. These four elements constitute, according to UNDP, the main avenues through which the promotion of good governance can result in the reduction of poverty levels. Governance is therefore seen as the "missing link" between anti-poverty efforts and poverty reduction, just as is democracy in the title of this workshop.

From the above discussion it is clear that good governance is ideal, which is difficult to achieve in its totality. Very few countries and societies have come close to achieving good governance in its totality. However, to ensure sustainable human development, actions must be taken to work towards this ideal with the aim of making it a reality. Finally, no matter how poverty is defined, it can be agreed that it is an issue that requires everyone’s attention. It is important that all members of our society work together to provide the opportunities for all our members to reach their full potential. It helps all of us to help one another.


REFERENCES:

Ananda, M. Bhattarai (2006) Problems of Developing Countries in Promoting Good Governance.
Baden, S., 2000, ‘Gender, Governance and the Feminization of Poverty’, Women and Political Participation: 21st Century Challenges, New York: UNDP
Human Development Report, (2000); Good Governance and Human Development
Mette, A.K. (2004). Governance: Key Concepts. Cambridge: Polity Press Goetz, A.M and Jenkins, R., 2005, Re-thinking Accountability
Nuwagaba A (2007); “Transforming Common Wealth Countries to achieve Political Economic and Human Development"
The United Nations Economic Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) (2009), Good Governance and Its Relationship to Democracy and Economic Development.
Uganda Bureau of Statistics (2002-2005) Spatial trends of poverty and inequality in Uganda
UNDP (1997); Governance for Sustainable Human Development; UNDP'S Experience in Mozambique
UNDP (1997) Governance for Sustainable Human Development. United Nations Development Programme
Internet sources;
http://unpan1.un.org/intradoc/groups/public/documents/CAFRAD/UNPAN008710.pdf Saturday, October 24, 2009
http://www.monitor.co.ug/artman/publish/news/Poverty_bites_as_Ugandans_struggle_t _live_another_day_93478.shtml Saturday, October 24, 2009
Uganda-Is it a Model for Good Governance in Africa? Muwonge, Dona October 31, 2009.
What is Good Governance? 2009. United Nations Economic Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP).
http://www.unescap.org/pdd/prs/projectactivities/ongoing/gg/governance.pdf October 31, 2009