Employee Perspectives on the Effectiveness of Internal Control Systems on the Performance of Lusaka City Council Service Delivery

Effective internal controls are important in ensuring that organizational performance is achieved. Local municipalities play a key role in the provision of different services to the citizens. This study explored employee perspectives on the effectiveness of the Internal Control Systems on the performance of Lusaka City Council on service delivery. The study used a qualitative research methodology to collect data through interviews and employed reflexive thematic analysis for interpretation. A sample of 5 participants, participated in the study. The findings of the study revealed that the internal controls present at the local authority are not very effective due to unnecessary bureaucracy, inefficient systems lacking effective monitoring by management and political interference in the enforcement and implementation of internal control systems at the local authority. Furthermore, this paper highlights inadequate policies and procedures in the internal control systems, indicating the need for an effective and efficient internal control systems to be integrated in the current systems in place. Based on these findings, the study recommends that the local authority enhances its internal control systems by ensuring that they have a strong internal control environment where internal control activities in form of policies and procedures are adequate.