International Journal of Research Publication and Reviews, Vol (5), Issue (3), March (2024), Page – 4628-4637 International Journal of Research Publication and Reviews Journal homepage: www.ijrpr.com ISSN 2582-7421 Civic Education and Citizen Participation in Local Governance: A Case of Lusaka District, Zambia Chanda Chansa Thelma Chreso University, Lusaka, Zambia, Department of Humanities and Social Sciences Email Address: channdathelma1@gmail.com Corresponding Author: Chanda Chansa Thelma, Department of Humanities and Social Sciences Education ABSTRACT: Citizen participation in local governance refers to the involvement of community members in decision-making processes, policy formulation, and implementation at the local level. It embodies the principle of democracy by giving residents a voice in matters that directly affect their lives and communities. Hence, the study focused on the effect of civic education on citizen participation in matters that affects their society especially matters to do with local governance. Specifically, the study explored the process of citizen participation in local governance, identified the levels of citizen participation in local governance, challenges that hinder active citizen participation in local governance and identify the means of enhancing the citizen participation in local governance. The study population included general citizens, civic teachers and non-civic teachers, Counselors and the council secretary in Lusaka district. A sample composed of 95 respondents who were selected using purposive and simple random sampling technique. Interviews and questionnaires were used to collect data. This study used descriptive analysis to analyze the data. Qualitative and Quantitative techniques of data analysis were used, and data was presented on the analytical tools such as tables, figures and charts. The study indicated that civic education has an effect on citizen involvement and participation in local governance. One thing to note is that the civic knowledge enables citizens to make sound decisions towards their civic rights, which helps them know their roles in governance systems. Furthermore, the study reviewed that when there is lack of civic education at all levels citizen involvement in local governance cannot be there because citizens are not empowered. The study therefore recommended that civic education should be provided at all levels starting from junior secondary school to community levels so that citizens are empowered. Keywords: Civic Education, Citizen Participation, Community Engagement, Democratic Values, and Local Governance. INTRODUCTION : Education is the key to the doors of success for most of people in Africa and the world at large. Without education people cannot productively, care for their health, sustainability and protect themselves. Therefore, the quality of civic education has been a concern of those interested in the health of our system of government and the well-being of the citizenry (Chanda, 2023). It can be noted that civic education programs provide detailed instruction to ordinary citizens about democratic institutions, values, and procedures. They include voter education programs, programs that provide instruction about the social and political rights of women, neighborhood problem-solving programs that bring individuals in contact with local authorities and promote local collective action, programs combatting election violence and vote-buying, and programs promoting tolerance and the peaceful resolution of political disputes in post-conflict settings. One effort made by the Zambian government was the introduction of civic education in the school curriculum. The reason for the inclusion of civic education to the Zambian curriculum was part of the decisions that the Zambian government made after the attainment of independence in 1964 (Afronet, 2002). After the attainment of independence, the Zambia Government through the Ministry of education made all possible efforts to become a democratic state. These efforts were realized when the country adapted democratic principles and people began to elect their own leaders. It is obvious that democracy cannot be achieved in the absence of citizen participation. And what better way to create active citizenship than through civic education. Creating an active and participatory citizen is instrumental in the flourishing of democracy. Chanda (2023) narrates that civic education means all the processes that affect people’s beliefs, commitments, capabilities, and actions as members or prospective members of communities. Civic education (also known as citizen education or democracy education) can be broadly defined as the provision of information and learning experiences to equip and empower citizens to participate in democratic processes. Active citizenship in this sense is the ability of the people “to exercise and defend thei r democratic rights and responsibilities in the society, to value diversity and to play an active part in democratic life” (Deth, 2013). It is obvious that democracy cannot be achieved in the absence of civic education in the country. The promotion of democracy should be accompanied by massive civic education for the citizens of every nation. For example, Democracies in Europe faced the problem in sustaining themselves. As a remedy, all the democracies have been convinced of the importance of having active and informed citizens who will