17th Economics & Finance Conference, Istanbul

BUDGETING FOR COMPETING GOVERNANCE LOGICS IN LOCAL GOVERNMENT

ABEID FRANCIS GASPAR

Abstract:

This paper investigates how budgeting practices interact with the competing governance logics in the context of Local Government Authorities (LGAs) in Tanzania. The study uses an interpretive methodology and data was collected from two LGAs through documentary review, in-depth interviews, and observation in meetings. Data were analyzed using grounded theory coding procedures. The study revealed that budgeting practices in the LGAs influenced and are also influenced by the co-existing but competing bureaucratic and participative governance logics. The interaction is mainly shaped by several macro and micro institutional factors, which also contribute to the variations in both governance and budgeting practices. The existing budgeting practices are largely driven by the dominant, bureaucratic governance logic. The paper identifies selective coupling, compromise, decoupling and segmentation as strategies employed by the local and central government actors in managing the competing governance logics in budgeting for the LGAs. The paper shows how the competing governance logics interact with budgeting prcatices in the LGAs in the context of a developing country, where scant empirical literature on the subject exists. It also contributes to the knowledge on the macro and micro factors associated with the competing governance logics as well as the strategies used by the actors in managing the logics in the process of budgeting for the LGAs.

Keywords: Tanzanian Local Government, Budgeting, Competing Governance Logics

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