Levels of decision-making authority in government

Levels of decision-making authority in government

The decision-making authority is the ruling system established in accordance with the Constitution of the United Republic of Tanzania. Government leadership starts from the village or street level to the national level.

Decision-making authority at village or street level

This is the lowest government authority. Villages are found in rural areas and streets in urban areas. A village is made up of several hamlets which are headed by chairpersons. Streets are headed by leaders who are elected by those living in such streets. The Village Executive Officer (VEO) is the highest leader at the village level and the Chairperson is the highest leader at the street level. The street or village government has a mandate to make and enforce decisions falling within its authority.

Decision-making authority at ward level

In ward level, Ward Executive Officer (WEO) who is the head of all government activities. Also, there is Ward Councilor who is representative of all citizens at the Ward. All decisions at the ward level are made through Ward Development Committee whose chairperson is the Ward Councilor and the secretary is Ward Executive Officer. The committee involves chairpersons of the villages which made up a Ward or Mtaa chairpersons for the wards found in urban. Also, the committee involves experts from different departments found in the Ward for consultation. Decision-making authority at district level: The decisions relating to a district's development plans are enforced by the local government authorities as agencies of the central government. At the district level, the local government is known as a district, town, municipal or city council. The district councils operate in rural areas, while the municipal, town or city council operate in urban areas. The district, town, municipal or city councils are responsible for developing various programmes which are implemented in their areas.

Decision-making authority at regional level

The government at the regional level is responsible for implementing various development programmes at the regional level. Through the development committee, the regional government interprets policies and orders from the central government. The regional government is headed by the Regional Commissioner (RC), the Regional Administrative Secretary (RAS) and the heads of such departments as education, health and infrastructure.

Decision-making authority in the central government

The central government is responsible for all matters relating to the Union and Mainland Tanzania. For example, it makes decisions on the provision of rights, law making and supervision of the implementation of various public programmes. All national plans and activities are implemented and controlled by the Government of the United Republic of Tanzania and the Revolutionary Government of Zanzibar