Local Impact Annual Work Plan Year 1 and Year 2

The activity is funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and has a contract period of November 2, 2020, to November 1, 2025. The activity's overall goal is to enhance the responsiveness of the subnational governance system to citizen needs, generate and accountably expend revenue, and improve service delivery outcomes. The activity's strategy for Year 1 and Year 2 focuses on consolidating on inception phase assessments and studies to create a solid foundation for generating sustainable results. In Year 1, Local Impact will partner with the Government of the Republic of Zambia (GRZ), Civil Society Organizations (CSO), and private sector counterparts to prepare for the delivery of targeted grants and develop tools that strengthen their capacities to productively engage in the delivery of key services. Local Impact will also establish a Learning Lab (LLab), develop the Activity Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Plan (AMELP), conduct learning activities throughout Year 1 to improve implementation, communicate results to stakeholders, and roll out technical assistance to GRZ national and subnational partners to strengthen policies, regulations, and plans for advancing decentralization. The activity's objectives are threefold. Objective 1 aims to improve citizens' collective skills to effectively assess service delivery needs and performance and constructively engage with government. Objective 2 seeks to make the subnational governance system more responsive to citizen needs, generate and accountably expend revenue, and improve service delivery outcomes. Objective 3 focuses on generating learning, facilitating problem-solving for subnational governance systems for devolved services, and making them capable of national scale. Local Impact has developed a glossary of key decentralization terms used in the Annual Work Plan, which includes definitions of local government, local authority/administration, council, provincial authority/administration, and district commissioner. The activity has also established a participatory work planning process, which involves consultations with USAID and GRZ partners, including the Ministry of Local Government (MLG), Decentralization Secretariat, and Ministry of Finance (MOF). The activity's work plan for Year 1 and Year 2 includes several key activities, such as establishing a Learning Lab, developing the Activity Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Plan (AMELP), conducting learning activities, communicating results to stakeholders, and rolling out technical assistance to GRZ national and subnational partners. The activity's budget for Year 1 and Year 2 is also outlined in the work plan, which includes funding for personnel, travel, and other expenses. Overall, the Local Impact Governance Activity aims to improve governance at the subnational level in Zambia by strengthening the capacities of GRZ, CSO, and private sector counterparts to deliver key services, establishing a Learning Lab, and rolling out technical assistance to GRZ national and subnational partners. The activity's objectives are aligned with GRZ priorities and aim to create a solid foundation for generating sustainable results.