This study seeks to explore the role and implications of corporate governance practices in the
performance of public sector institutions in developing countries, taking two capital cities in
the East Africa region – Kampala and Kigali – as case studies. This study is motivated by the
need to examine how corporate governance practices can be used to explain the performance
of cities that have adopted similar governance practices. Moreover, the existence differences
in stability and performance of the two cities (Kanyeihamba, 2012; Kanyamanza, 2005) make
it imperative for an empirical study, especially in comparative terms. The emergence of the
New Public Management (NPM) doctrines of the 1980s necessitated public institutions such
as cities to adopt, in their running, corporate governance practices from the private sector.
While several applications of NPM doctrines have been applied in city governance, empirical
studies attempting to examine the contribution of corporate governance practices to city
performance are rather limited. This has often left a knowledge gap and yet it is such
information that policy makers and managers need to fix the urgent performance and service
delivery challenges of cities.