Constituency Development Fund (CDF) is a decentralization initiative that allocate funds from the central government to local constituencies for development projects tailored to local needs. Widely used in developing countries like Zambia this program aims to improve social infrastructure and enable community development through fiscal decentralization. CDF directly supports constituencies, promoting inclusive development and local participation. In Zambia, CDF was introduced in 1995 to enhance the socio-economic well-being of communities. Over the years, its scope and budget have grown significantly, with allocations increasing from K1.6 million in 2021 to K30.6 million per constituency in 2024. The fund now supports community projects, youth and women’s empowerment, and educational bursaries for secondary boarding schools and skills development.

CDF has played a significant role in financing community-based projects, including the construction of small bridges, road grading, market buildings, classroom blocks, and health facilities, among other local facilities and infrastructure. Nevertheless, there has been concerns about, equity, transparency and accountability in the acquisition, allocation, and utilization of CDF. Specific concerns include lack of equity in the allocation of the funds, lack of community participation, undue political influence exerted by elected representatives, the implementation of poor or inappropriate projects, political clientelism, and of fund misuse. In this article I discuss the need to address equity and fairness in the allocation of CDF in Zambia, ensuring that all constituencies, regardless of their socio-economic status, benefit proportionately. The central question is whether the current allocation effectively addresses socio-economic and geographic inequalities across Zambia.

Currently, Zambia allocates an equal amount of funds to each constituency. This model, however, emphasizes equality over equity and fails to recognize the significant disparities in development levels across the country. Significant differences in population across constituencies mean that equal shares do not lead to per capita equality. The current CDF allocation model violates key equity principles in public resource allocation. It violates the “need principle,” which emphasizes the allocation of resources based on specific needs so that most public resources are allocated to the constituents or citizens who need them most. Likewise, it violates the “capacity principle,” which emphasizes the need not to do for people what they can do for themselves. In public resource distribution, both principles entail those areas with higher poverty rates, poor infrastructure, inadequate healthcare or education, and generally less financial capacity to pay for more services should be prioritized and receive more funds to bridge these gaps.

Unfortunately, under the current model, a constituency in Lusaka with numerous private schools and high-income families receives the same amount of support and resources as a constituency in Shang’ombo with inadequate public schools and families struggling to pay for basic educational needs. This is against the backdrop of significant rural-urban inequalities in access to education, healthcare, infrastructure, employment opportunities, and social services.

To address this, a fiscal decentralization policy and/or program like CDF must be allocated in a fair and equitable manner to all regions based on their needs and development priorities. Zambia can draw valuable lessons from Kenya and Tanzania, which have incorporated equity and redistribution factors into their CDF legislation. In Kenya, 75% of the fund is equally divided among constituencies, with the remaining 25% allocated to the poorest areas. Tanzania’s approach is even more comprehensive, considering geographic size and population in addition to poverty indices in their allocation formula.

Zambia should adopt a needs-based and/or weighted CDF allocation formula to ensure that constituencies receive CDF funds in proportion to their socio-economic needs. This formula should consider geographical and socio-economic factors such as poverty level, population size, infrastructure deficits, and remoteness. The choice of geographic and socioeconomic factors to include and their respective proportions must be subjected to wider stakeholder consultations. To ensure dynamic adjustments to allocations, the socio-economic indicators should be reviewed periodically. Furthermore, the formula should seek to reward constituencies that demonstrate effective and efficient fund utilization and adherence to good public finance management practices by considering high burn rates and low audit queries to incentivize good governance and accountability. Nevertheless, before applying other distribution principles like need, capacity, or efficiency, the allocation formula should ensure that every constituent is guaranteed minimal allocation, exhibiting a sense of inclusion.

Equity is the soul of inclusive development. As Nelson Mandela once said, “A nation should not be judged by how it treats its highest citizens, but its lowest ones.” By adopting a needs-based or weighted allocation of CDF, Zambia will ensure that CDF contributes to balanced and inclusive development across all regions. Ultimately, this will not only promote equity and fairness but also enhance the overall effectiveness of the CDF program in addressing socio-economic and geographical inequalities and driving sustainable local development.