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Increasing effective participation

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Increasing effective participation of citizens’ and”
CSOs engagement in governance in Mbale District.

The change project “Increasing effective participation of citizens’ and CSOs engagement in Governance in Mbale District “was therefore designed in response to the restrictions and the demand of the citizens, local leaders and technical leaders and covers 6 Sub-counties in Mbale District and to follow-up on the previous project, benefitting from its impacts and deepens the lessons learnt especially with regard to the involvement of all stakeholders in the consultation and Budget Planning Process, including CSOs
The project conducted a civic education campaign and worked with cooperating partners like community voluntary groups, certified media houses, traditional leaders and religious leaders.
During the implementation of the project local governments, CSOs and Networks, Community–Based Organizations (CBOs), Faith-Based Organizations (FBOs), women and youth groups were involved as stakeholders.
The project was implemented in the Six Sub-counties of Namabasa in Namabasa Parish (4 Villages) and Bwana Parish (4 Villages), Bukasakya in, Nabitiri Parish (4 Villages) and Doko Parish (4 Villages) Lukhonje in Namawanga Parish (11 Villages) and Nabweye Parish (7 Villages), Busano in Bwikhonje and Busano Parishes,Lwasso in Lwasso and Kihuno Parishes and Bungokho in Bubilabi and Bushikori Parishes
PACODEF received technical support from GIZ/CUSP and co-funded by the European Union and the Federal Government of Germany.

Training notes and modules on Civic Education Campaign of Increasing effective participation of citizens and CSOs engagement in Governance focussed on the following topics

  • Governance
  • Gender sensitive governance
  • Understanding Service Delivery
  • Roles and Responsibilities of Political Leaders
  • Roles and Responsibilities of Citizens
  • Citizen’s effective participation
The draft notes were summarized and distributed to participants as handouts during the training sessions. These training notes were used during Training of Heads of Department both political and technical leaders and Community Agents.
Some of the immediate impacts of the project

Citizens had been empowered on their rights, roles and responsibilities, for example in Busano Sub-county the women who had formed their groups have now approached the sub- county authorities to demand for women Enterprise programme. In Lwasso and Bungokho Sub-county the citizens have raised concerns on the health staff absenteeism and late reporting on duty to their leaders

The technical leaders were then reporting on duty regularly contrary to the previous times. This was as a result of empowering citizens who have now demanded that the leaders should always be at their service. The Sub- county leaders are now being accountable to the citizens.

There was change in leaderships at the Sub-counties where this project had been conducted. This was observed in the project Sub-counties whereby citizens were able to understand their rights, the qualities of a good leader and were in position to choose good leaders who would represent them.

At the District level, the speaker Mbale district who regularly attended PACODEF’s meetings and trainings representing the LCV Chairperson, was elected as the LCV Chairperson Mbale district in 2021- 2026, this was a result of citizens who were empowered with knowledge on effective and participatory leadership.

Some of the Citizens who attended trainings and meetings on effective and meaningful participation in leadership, planning and budgeting have become LC V Councillors of Mbale district.

One of the strategies we used in the implementation of the project was emphasizing and stressing the issue of Parish Chiefs establishing administrative units at the parish level, little did we know that government was in the process of establishing Parish Development Mode(PDM) applicable at the parish level.