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This study examines the factors affecting decision making in village councils with the case of Kiteto District Council, Tanzania. Specifically, the study explored the factors affecting village councils in decision making; examined impact of decision making by the village councils; and found out the knowledge of the village councils on their roles in decision making at Kiteto District Council.
The study was conducted at Kiteto District Council. Respondents to the study included all the residents and some administrative officials with sample size of 117 respondents who were randomly and purposively selected. Questionnaires were circulated to the residents of Kiteto District Council and the researcher interviewed some administrative officials (i.e. village executive officers, chairpersons and council members, wards’ executive officers, district commissioner and district executive director).The findings were analyzed using descriptive statistical analysis techniques (frequencies and percentages) and the Multiple-Dichotomy Method with the aid of the software tool “SPSS version 16”.
The study found that, the decisions made by the village councils of the Kiteto district councils were not effective and efficient. This is because the village councils were affected by the various factors such as lack of enough knowledge and experience, readiness, commitment, motivation and willingness, enough freedom (i.e. free from any interference/resistance), enough meeting’s time, enough and required information, and recognition of village structure in their process of decision making.
The identified factors caused the decisions made by the village councils not to have positive impact on the socio-economic development of the respective villages in terms of supervising and maintaining peace and tranquility, protecting public and private properties, planning, coordinating and promoting social and economic development, enacting and enforcing bylaws, managing village lands, regulating and monitoring the collection and utilization of revenue.
The knowledge of the village councils on their roles in decision making was rated low in terms of supervising and maintaining peace and tranquility, protecting public and private properties, planning, coordinating and promoting social and economic development, enacting and enforcing bylaws, managing village lands, regulating and monitoring the collection and utilization of revenue.
It is therefore recommended that, the local government and other stakeholders should look for the ways forward to solve such challenges in order to smooth decision making process of the village councils in district councils in Tanzania. The differences in the responses of the wananchi and village councils’ members in some findings are not yet settled hence a further study can be done in order to settle the differences in terms research methods’ applications. |
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