- Title
- Rethinking the role of councilors in a digital era governance:: a critical analysis of Shinyanga Municipality and Nzega District Council in Tanzania
- Creator
- Linje, Anna Peter https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1990-3309
- Subject
- Internet in public administration
- Subject
- Information technology Political aspects
- Date
- 2021-10
- Type
- Doctoral theses
- Type
- text
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/10353/21759
- Identifier
- vital:51749
- Description
- This study endeavored to rethink the roles of councilors in a digital era governance. The essence of councils’ role according to Adams (2013), is that they are the only level of government with a legislative mandate for the well-being of people and responsive to local risks and opportunities. Therefore, it is important to rethink their roles as they require a full range of interactions which can now be facilitated by the use of digital potentials (Adams, 2013). The study explored the councilors’ undertakings to understand the current situation and if they embrace the new forms of digital governance. Also, the researcher reviewed the laws and policies guiding the councilors in their undertakings and if they accommodated the digital era requirements. Moreover, the researcher examined the capacity of councilors and the challenges they face in their undertakings. The study employed a qualitative approach, whereby semistructured interviews, observation and documentary review were used to collect data. The findings revealed that councils’ practices and processes continue to be outside the digital age. One of the major factors was a dearth of limited practical experiences to upkeep the digital governance opportunities and tailor their decisions accordingly. Regarding legislatives, the findings showed that there was evidence of formulation of new legislatives including the current ICT policy (2016) that respond to the digital governance. Yet, it was indicated that the digital legislatives were not well captured by the individual councilors, while the enforcement mechanisms were still at its infancy. Also, councils could not provide a clear digital platform framework. The capacity of councilors was found to be insufficient, they were not well equipped in terms of facilities, skills and digital technicalities. Generally, lack of political readiness, spirit of fear and poor digital infrastructure were major challenges. The study recommended councils adopt new ways in parallel with the existing ones, this should be inclusive of frequent trainings.
- Description
- Thesis (PhD) -- Faculty of Management and Commerce, 2021
- Format
- computer
- Format
- online resource
- Format
- application/pdf
- Format
- 1 online resource (253 leaves)
- Format
- Publisher
- University of Fort Hare
- Publisher
- Faculty of Management and Commerce
- Language
- English
- Rights
- University of Fort Hare
- Rights
- All Rights Reserved
- Rights
- Open Access
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UFH Department of Public Administration
| Thumbnail | File | Description | Size | Format | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| View Details Download | SOURCE1 | Linje AP 201823148. Public Administration.PhD.pdf | 1 MB | Adobe Acrobat PDF | View Details Download |