Good Governance Practices and Challenges in Local Government: The Case of Ambo Town Administration

Abstract

This study examines the implementation and challenges of good governance within the Ambo Town Administration, focusing on key principles such as accountability, transparency, effectiveness, and public participation. Primary data were collected through questionnaires and interviews targeting local leaders, municipal staff, and community members, while secondary sources supplemented the analysis. Descriptive statistical techniques, including percentages, means, and graphical tools, were applied using SPSS to analyze the data. The quantitative results of the study point to a complex set of governance practice and challenges in Ambo Town, reflected in respondents’ concerns about transparency, accountability, and the overall effectiveness of public service delivery. These numerical patterns suggest that administrative structures face significant operational limitations. Insights from the qualitative phase help explain these patterns, revealing that the shortage of professionally competent officials and the frequent reports of corrupt practices contribute directly to the administrative weaknesses identified in the survey. Socioeconomic conditions also emerged prominently in the quantitative findings, particularly in relation to poverty, unemployment, and limited educational opportunities. The qualitative evidence provides clarity on how these conditions weaken public engagement in governance, as residents with constrained economic and educational resources have reduced capacity to participate actively in local decision-making or demand institutional responsiveness. Factors identified in the survey, such as low participation, political interference, concerns over electoral integrity, and broader instability, were further elaborated in the qualitative discussions. Participants described a sense of marginalization and mistrust toward political institutions, indicating that these political dynamics reinforce the governance difficulties highlighted numerically. Institutional and legal limitations were likewise evident across both data strands. While the quantitative results pointed to ineffective law enforcement and institutional corruption, qualitative explanations showed that these problems stem from restricted institutional autonomy, inconsistent rule application, and limited resources to uphold legal standards. Taken together, the integration of quantitative patterns with qualitative explanations demonstrates that governance in Ambo Town is shaped by the interplay of administrative capacity gaps, socioeconomic constraints, political tensions, and institutional fragility. This combined interpretation underscores the need for coordinated efforts to strengthen transparency, accountability, service delivery, and the legal-institutional environment in order to improve overall governance performance.