The importance of governance rearrangements (reassignment of positions, roles, and responsibility among actors in governance processes) and their implications on flood risk management has gained currency in evaluative environmental governance literature. However, much work has concentrated on building and applying frameworks to evaluate impacts of decentralisation, such that frameworks to evaluate impacts of recentralisation are still lacking. This paper uses the case of Bwaise III informal settlement in Kampala, Uganda, to assess the impacts of local government rearrangements on flood mitigation. We adapted a Water Governance Assessment Framework and conducted 22 in-depth interviews with stakeholders, searched documentary sources, and carried out transect walks. We generated qualitative data on stakeholder experiences and perceptions regarding governance quality and flood mitigation prereform and postreform. The data were analysed using thematic content analysis to produce a scoreboard measuring changes in governance dimensions against progress in flood mitigation. In a follow-up survey, 24 structured interviews were conducted to validate the data. Results show that the rearrangements led to time and cost savings, increased revenue, and sped up the implementation of flood management strategies and measures. The findings can be useful to policymakers at the interface of governance and flood management. K E Y W O R D S centralisation, efficiency, flood management, governance rearrangements, WGAF

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This work was not going to be possible without the help of local contacts in Kampala. Thank you, Professor Shuaib Lwasa, for connecting me to a great team of research assistants and helping in the first briefing session in which we discussed translation and logistic issues. I would also like to appreciate my team of research assistants in Kampala -Hakimu, Teddy, Isaac K, Isaac N, Susan, Juliet, Daniel, and Lilian. Thank you for the sterling job you did in administering questionnaires that needed translation 'on the fly,' in places that either had poor accessibility or required walking for long distances on foot. Hakimu, thank you once more for sharing with me the Uganda shapefiles.The KCCA deserves a big applause for allowing me to do this study and also because some of their employees participated in my interviews. This work would not have succeeded without gaining access to the case study areas. Special thanks to Harriet, Isaac, Jude, and Abel. Flavia, thank you so much for the Uganda shapefiles which you shared with us in 2015 -they were again very helpful in this project.Community leaders in Bwaise III, Natete, and Ntinda permitted us to carry out the study in their areas and I am grateful for their cooperation and understanding. Special mention goes to the Slum Dwellers Federation committee in Bwaise III for introducing research assistants to the community and helping them to find walkways in the area. In Natete, the Chairperson for Central B helped in the same manner and I would like to thank him for the fantastic job! ii My sincere appreciation also goes to my wife, Emerita who, over and above the usual support and encouragement, had to work to keep us afloat financially, when changes in the economy in Zimbabwe resulted in a drastic reduction in our income in value terms. Words fail to adequately express my appreciation for you Emerita.The PhD journey can be very lonely, but that was not the case with me, thanks to my colleagues who kept me company in diverse ways. Special mention goes to my officemates -Adish, Lydia, Rosa, Zaid, Deepshika, Sven, Sergio, and Vicky. Thank you, guys, for sharing ideas and resources, and for the encouragement. I would also like to appreciate Alice -having graduated with the same MSc. Class and going ahead to PhD studies in the same department meant that we exchanged notes at various stages of our PhD research projects.To reach this level, there are many stages that I accomplished. I would, therefore, like to appreciate all the people who contributed to my entire education career to date. I would like to thank my Brother, Dr Admire, for being an inspiration and for encouraging me throughout my studies. Special mention goes to my parents who sacrificed their resources and energy to send me to school. I still vividly remember how my mother Mary sold her only goat when I was sent away from school because of school fees, in my 4th year in secondary school. I will also not forget how my father Jameson Alex, would travel distances, buying and selling, even though he was slowly losin...

Mixed methods surveys using multilingual assistants in areas without clear pre-defined sampling units are often difficult to manage and unpredictable, thereby threatening data quality. More so when such surveys are executed in unfamiliar territories where cultural and language barriers prevent direct communication between the principal researcher and the respondents, and field assistants act as cultural/language brokers. This paper provides a method to enhance data quality in such contexts through a reflection on the research design and data collection experience in our study on flood damage mitigation processes among households and businesses in Kampala. Associated field challenges included different disciplinary and language skills levels of assistants, their multiple positionalities when translating concepts from the inquiry language to the source language and vice-versa, low settlement permeability/accessibility, multiple households per sampling unit, and socio-psychological issues among respondents and research assistants. The available literature lacks comprehensive systematic methods to address the challenges above, using detailed research fieldwork management experiences in which data collection is outsourced from field assistants. Our application of an extended version of the briefing and debriefing technique closes this gap. As a guide to apply this approach, we conceptualize social science research into four interrelated dimensionsparadigm, people, process, and presentation.

Households in many Global South cities endure the loss of lives, illness, and property damage due to floods. Floods are the most frequent and damage-inflicting disasters worldwide (Chai et al., 2020;de Koning et al., 2019). Of all disasters, they represent 69% in Africa, 46% in Europe, and 47% in Asia (CRED, 2021). Although in Africa the proportion of flood damage is still relatively low at 17% compared to 46% and 49% for Europe and Asia, respectively, their impact on both private homeowners' and residents' livelihoods, and local economies is high considering