Towards a normative framework for local authorities in facilitating foreign direct investment

Download This Article

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Abstract

Using two local authorities (LAs) (Windhoek and Walvis Bay) in Namibia, this study problematises their negative and neutral developmental experiences with facilitating foreign direct investment (FDI) as concerning (Jauch, 2020). The absence of a normative framework for LA FDI facilitation in Namibia’s multi-level government (MLG) system creates a developmental quagmire for LAs. This study develops a normative framework for LA FDI facilitation to avert the negative and neutral developmental experiences of LAs with facilitating FDI. Using the qualitative method, this study interviewed 13 key respondents that were sampled through the purposive/judgemental technique. Data were interpreted and presented through thematic analysis. The key findings point to the development of a normative framework for LA FDI facilitation that ascends the need for 1) sufficient decentralised functions of FDI facilitation in an MLG system; 2) policy and legislative harmonisation to avert challenges of coordination and implementation in an MLG system; 3) institutional structures for an efficient MLG system at the LA level; and 4) broader legal and policy framework for efficient governance at the sub-national government (SNG) level in an MLG system. This study recommends the application of this normative framework in MLG systems to ascend LAs’ developmental role in facilitating FDI for development.

Keywords: Normative Framework, Local Authority, Foreign Direct Investment, Facilitation, Namibia

Authors’ individual contribution: Conceptualization — R.V.M.; Methodology — R.V.M.; Validation — R.V.M.; Formal Analysis — R.V.M.; Investigation — R.V.M.; Resources — R.V.M.; Writing — Original Draft — R.V.M.; Writing — Review & Editing — R.V.M., L.B., and O.K.-M.; Visualization — R.V.M.; Project Administration — R.V.M.; Supervision —L.B. and O.K.-M.

Declaration of conflicting interests: The Authors declare that there is no conflict of interest.

JEL Classification: G38, H11, H79, H83

Received: 05.10.2021
Accepted: 28.02.2022
Published online: 02.03.2022

How to cite this paper: Marenga, R. V., Blaauw, L., & Kakujaha-Matundu, O. (2022). Towards a normative framework for local authorities in facilitating foreign direct investment [Special issue]. Journal of Governance & Regulation, 11(1), 312–326. https://doi.org/10.22495/jgrv11i1siart11