Knowledge and understanding of people on local government and sub-district administration in Kantharawichai District, Mahasarakham Province

Abstract

This research is on knowledge and understanding of people on local government and sub-district administration in Kantharawichai District, Mahasarakham Province. The purposes of this research are as follows: 1) To study the knowledge and understanding of people on local government and sub-district administration in Kantharawichai District; 2) To study causes or factors that created knowledge and understanding of local government and sub-district administration to local people in Kantharawichai district; and 3) To recommend suggestions to improve local knowledge and understanding of local people by using the concept of local government as a framework of this study. The questionnaires were distributed and group interviews were conducted to 400 villagers in Kantharawichai District. 30 in-depth interviews with 30 key informants were also conducted.  The research results Shows that most villagers had knowledge on organization, area, and personnel of local government and sub-district administration while they seemed to have difficulty in understanding the roles and responsibilities of local government and sub-district administration. As a result it is important for the local government officers to realize and accept the fact that they had bad images in the eyes of the villagers. They need to improve their images by showing their ability in solving problems for villagers, making good relationships with villagers, improving their service system to serve people faster and more effectively, promoting people participation in local government activities, and creating good relationships with sub-district administration to be able to get closer to the villagers.