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LED units within local government (and regional government) structures and local economic development agencies which are often 'arms length' structures with public and private setor membership are two types of institutional delivery systems for LED. In many cases there is a tendency for strategic local economic development planning and control to be centred upon local government economic development or strategy units, whilst specific projects or programmes are found in specific agencies (e.g. investment attraction agency, enterprise support agency etc). Every LED practitioner almost has a different idea on where and how LED should be organized, within local government units and outside. We have drawn together some resources on different types of LED institutions here http://www.ledna.org/resources/led-institutions

As with all our resources we have divided them into three areas: Rationale, Methods and Examples. Take a look, we need lots more experiences from Africa. You will see across the World that LED and RED (regional economic development) has very many governance arrangements. With LEDNA we want to bring many different approaches and examples to your attention so you can select and adapt to your specific needs.

This conversation is key and instructive for all our members so please, others chip in with their views and perspectives.

I tend to agree. From my current research on LED in Mozambique I get the impression that LEDAs, although institutionalised through national legistlation and policies, tend to work/plan in isolation of provicincial and district public services and entities. In South Africa, activities that are distinctively LED in nature are not labeled LED because they do not orignate from a designated LED unit or project. In many cases LED is considered a separate (economic) sector (in the same line as agriculture, manfucaturing, transport, tourism) rather than a cross cutting sector.

I regard the LED Units within Local Government as a critical component of the municipal institutional arrangement. There seems to be no common understanding as to what its role and responsibility should be in the promotion of integrated good governance in the local economies. The tendency is to constrain this Unit of resources, e.g. human capital, finance, voice/power, etc. Generally, the location of the Unit creates confusion within the institution. Sometimes an established LED Agency (LEDA) is in competition with an existing LED Unit because there is no clarity on the roles and responsibilities, especially when it comes to investment retention and attraction. Normally, the LED Unit and the LEDA - a 3rd Generation Investment Promotion Agency - are in conflict with the Provincial Investment Promotion Agency (PIPA)  which is a 2nd Generation Investment Promotion Agency. Thus, the roles and responsibilities of the LED Unit, the LEDA and the PIPA have to be clarified. In fact, we need to promote and consolidate the Public-Public Partnerships (PUPs) or Public-Public Cooperation (PPC) before engaging into Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) or Public-Private Cooperation.