The concept of a method or mechanism for improving service delivery is by no means new. Indeed, when Plato first conceived of the state, comprising different groups of people whom he classified according to metals, the aims at that time were to develop the city, improve service delivery and to allow for stability within the city state.
In the case of Trinidad and Tobago, the earliest incarnation of local government in the 1800s was of course the Cabildo system which was established under Spanish rule. The Cabildo had a number of functions including ecclesiastical and parish functions.
By 1840 under Ordinance 16, the system was changed under British rule to resemble more closely the local government system which we have in place today. Even then, however, the experimentation with a method of delivery did not end. Rather, from as early as 1903, a number of Commissions and Committees were established to arrive at a proper method of operation. These included the Clifford Commission (1903) and later the Golan Commission in 1915.
During the transition from colonial administration to self-government and then independent government, what was established was not local government as we know it today, but rather the delivery of services via the use of Wards. Indeed, the Warden's office was the hub of activity, which included treasury functions as well as responsibilities for roads, drainage, collection of taxes as well as a number of ancillary functions.
http://www.guardian.co.tt/digital/new-members