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Local versus national change

Governments cannot possibly deal with all street-level issues that arise on a daily basis. So they appoint representatives, such as local authorities, to deal with or channel such issues so they get attended to.

This presents a paradox. How can an institution interested in national, long-term, wide-reaching policy work with an institution that is interested in street-level, shorter-term policy?

A few variables are at play, such as:
(1) The number of people who you consider constituents;
(2) The level of resources required during implementation;
(3) The amount of time it would take for implementation; and
(4) The number of changes possible in a given timeframe.

I'm sure this paradox is a daily consideration for those policymakers who mediate between the national government and local government authorities. But a presentation this morning at Twaweza on declining access to water amidst rising population (thanks Ruth!) got me thinking twice about this set up.

Perhaps what we need to do is assess how much authority local government authorities actually have. Can they make a decision on policy? Can they implement that policy? And are they awarded/faulted when results of that implementation are out?
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