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145 Chapter Eight Decentralisation and Regionalization: Recipe for Sustainable Local Development Regional policy in the sense of planning is an on-going process in a political system, which is concerned with spatial organization in an integrative manner, and incorporates the design, establishment and implementation of desired structural organization of land. In Cameroon, like many sub-Saharan African countries the state is yet to play this role. The role of the state is exclusively economic in character, without reference to space – spatial planning is absent. The formulation of guidelines for spatial development at the overall level of a state is inadequate. In the age of globalization, there is a visible trend in Cameroon towards decentralization. Unfortunately, this is a slow process requiring both institutional and human capacity building. The allocation of roles between the state, local district organization and civil society is still very slow. This long anticipated changed framework can open up new possibilities for regional and multi-disciplinary spatial planning in rural areas in which all sections of the population participate. Decentralization Transfer of decision-making powers to the more directly concerned, lower levels of government and administrative authority is termed decentralization. The general arguments for decentralization are: - The primary objective for reform from a centralized government to a decentralized one is to bring government closer to the people in the interest of efficiency. People become more aware of the cost of the services they use, and the administration can take better account of their socio-economic wishes. - It has also been presented as being beneficial to the economy as a whole, mainly by means of a more equitable distribution of national resources and fiscal advantages such as easier tax collection. - It promotes the democratic involvement of citizens in local government decisions. Local democracy is more effective than national democracy, because citizen’s participation in local decision-making continues beyond the ballot box. - It may also support and develop a social and cultural identity at local level. The local authority as service providers is defined in part by its social and cultural functions. 146 Regionalization The region is a significantly practicable level of spatial planning. In an area usually defined by multiple functions, comprising a territory with a subnational demarcation but covering many localities, supra-local and multidisciplinary regional planning facilitates spatial policy and problemsolving for a lasting improvement in structure. The term local government is used in this connection. It is used to designate the regional level of government as well, for example the government of a province or region. In Cameroon, the focus is placed on the region as the level at which spatial policy action is implemented. When viewed by people below (grassroots), this level still enables people to identify with it and to have sufficient freedom to feel commitment within a manageable framework (participatory element), whilst, when seen from above, the region achieves the critical mass (the size) which is sufficiently large for the implementation of economic and social policies. The region is therefore the midway between individuality and globalization. Regionalization versus globalization The increasing trend towards regionalization is not unique to Cameroon. It is a world-wide phenomenon and many African countries in the democratization process are adopting it. The policy of decentralization brings the regions more prominently into the forefront. This process requires that the government delegates administrative, fiscal and policy responsibilities to regional administrative bodies at sub-national level. This is a learning process and the outstanding regulations for implementation are lagging behind political rhetoric. This learning process must lead to the recognition that the state is not the overriding authority, but functions as one player alongside other regional players. Although the state determines the general framework, regional players can nevertheless influence the substance of regulations. Globalization and regionalization have the effect of multiplying the number of actors involved in development. Generally, in the age of globalization the country’s development policy is the result of dialogue conducted with multinational development agencies, international nongovernmental organizations and sub-national regional bodies such as regions or provinces, divisions, subdivisions, districts or municipalities. These institutions, organized on a territory basis, are the appropriate partners, for planning purposes in the development process. Regionalization which reflects local people’s growing demand for a right to participate in shaping the conditions, in which they have to live, thus turns out to be an expression of regional identity. In consequence, government institutions taking responsibility for negotiations, coordination and [18.116.63.236] Project MUSE (2024-04-19 20:44...

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