Decentralisation and Public Service Delivery in Plateau State

This study evaluates the impact of administrative decentralisation on public service delivery in Plateau State, situated within Nigeria's North Central geopolitical zone. Decentralisation has been advanced as a strategy to bring governance closer to the people and improve the responsiveness of public institutions, yet its benefits are unevenly distributed across Nigerian states. A descriptive research design is employed, using structured questionnaires to gather data from 295 civil servants and community beneficiaries across four local government areas in Plateau State. Data analysis involves the use of simple percentages, mean scores, and analysis of variance (ANOVA) to compare service delivery outcomes across local government areas. The Decentralisation Theory of Development Administration frames the study, emphasising fiscal, political, and administrative dimensions of decentralisation. Findings indicate that local government areas with greater fiscal decentralisation and autonomous decision-making powers recorded measurably better outcomes in primary education, road maintenance, and waste management. However, capacity deficits at the local level, manifested in poor planning skills and limited technical expertise, constrain the benefits of decentralisation. The study recommends sustained capacity building for local government officials, the introduction of performance grants linked to verifiable service delivery targets, and stronger intergovernmental coordination mechanisms. The research adds to the body of empirical literature on decentralised governance in the Middle Belt region. Keywords: decentralisation, public service delivery, Plateau State, local government, administrative reform.