This book is the first to analyse the multi-level or decentralised system of government enshrined in the 2013 Constitution of Zimbabwe and to provide comprehensive description and analysis of the law, policy and practice relating to provincial and local government in Zimbabwe. The book is an important tool for the purposes of reforming these provincial and local governments in Zimbabwe’s bid to realise development, economic growth, democracy and peace.

This book examines the role of the law in the constitution and contestation of state power in Zimbabwean history. It is for researchers interested in the history of the state in Southern Africa, as well as those interested in African legal history.

The book provides a comprehensive analysis of local government in federations. It fills the gap in current legal research and positions local government in federal studies through the lenses of comparative law, adopting a more nuanced approach to local government. The book considers the shortcomings between the black-letter constitution and its operational rules. Whether (and how) the regime of local government is implemented is more relevant than its formal-but-ineffective recognition. The comparative survey discloses the variety local institutions take in different federal contexts. Divided into three parts, the book comprises chapters investigating local government in systems that, to various degrees, have been examined and classified as federal. Scholars throughout the world have examined the federal-local connection in aggregative federations, (the USA, Canada, Switzerland, Germany, Australia, and Austria), devolutionary ones (Belgium, Bosnia Herzegovina, Italy, Spain, the UK, Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, and the Russian Federation), as well as in federations beyond the West, where federalism-as-a-colonial-legacy has undergone a process of reinvention affecting the federal-local connection (South Africa, Ethiopia, India, Nigeria, Comoros, Democratic Republic of Congo, Nepal, Palau, Federated States of Micronesia; St. Kitts and Nevis; United Arab Emirates; and Pakistan).

In practice, most education systems have both centralized and decentralized elements. Planners involved in a decentralizing reform must identify which components of the system are more appropriately managed at the central level and which at the local level. This book is intended to inform education policymakers, planners, and practitioners about international experience in the legal aspects of decentralizing basic education. It also provides a basic understanding of how laws and regulations can be used for education reform. For purposes of the discussion, decentralization is used to describe efforts to transfer decision making power in basic education from the administrative center of a country to authorities closer to users. The term is also used in a more technical sense to describe one of the many forms this type of reform can take, and in this sense it is contrasted with deconcentration and devolution as educational reforms. The first section examines the general legal aspects of decentralization, and the second looks more closely at decentralization laws and regulations. The third section is, in effect, a checklist of items that should be included in decentralization laws, and the fourth section provides a road map to help the planner prepare and implement the laws required for reform. Although an effort has been made to keep the discussion general enough for use in many countries, the analysis is based on the legal systems of the Western world or those that they inspired. (Contains 35 references.) (SLD)

'Decentralization and Local Democracy in the World' constitutes a global reference on decentralization by presenting the contemporary situation of local governments in all regions of the world. The report analyzes local authorities in each continent under three main themes: the evolution of territorial structures; responsibilities and power, management and finances; and local democracy. An additional chapter is dedicated to the governance of large metropolises, where rapid growth presents major challenges, in particular in the fast-developing countries of the South. This report also offers a comparative overview of the different realities concerning the state of decentralization, and how the basic indispensable mechansims for local democracy do, or do not exist in come countries. Relationships between the state and local authorities are evolving toward innovative forms of cooperation. In this context, the role of local authorities in the development of global policies is increasingly recognized. The first Global Observatory on Local Democracy and Decentralization (GOLD) Report is one of the main products of United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG). The GOLD Report is the first of what will be a triennial publication. UCLG represents and defends the interests of local governments on the world stage, regardless of the size of the communities they serve. Headquartered in Barcelona, the organization's stated mission is: To be the united voice and world advocate of democratic local self-government, promoting its values, objectives and interests, through cooperation between local governments, and within the wider international community.

Challenges the commonly held myths about Zimbabwe's land reform.