Rethinking Decentralization in Developing Countries

Rethinking Decentralization in Developing Countries PDF

Author: Jennie Ilene Litvack

Publisher: World Bank Publications

Published: 1998-01-01

Total Pages: 52

ISBN-13: 9780821343500

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In an effort to reduce poverty and improve nutrition, this Bank operation assisted the Indian program Operation Flood to develop the dairy industry in India. This study examines the policy changes instituted to support the aid flow to the dairy sector and discusses the lessons learned and benefits realized through improved dairy production. It also presents suggestions for improvement. This program differs from other Bank efforts in that it focuses on a single commodity to alleviate poverty and raise living standards.

Fiscal Decentralization and Local Finance in Developing Countries

Fiscal Decentralization and Local Finance in Developing Countries PDF

Author: Roy Bahl

Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing

Published: 2018-03-30

Total Pages: 512

ISBN-13: 1786435306

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This book draws on experiences in developing countries to bridge the gap between the conventional textbook treatment of fiscal decentralization and the actual practice of subnational government finance. The extensive literature about the theory and practice is surveyed and longstanding problems and new questions are addressed. It focuses on the key choices that must be made in decentralizing, on how economic and political factors shape the choices that countries make, and on how, by paying more attention to the need for a more comprehensive approach and the critical connections between different components of decentralization reform, everyone involved might get more for their money.

Decentralization & Development

Decentralization & Development PDF

Author: G. Shabbir Cheema

Publisher: SAGE Publications, Incorporated

Published: 1983-05

Total Pages: 330

ISBN-13:

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Disillusioned with the results of centralized government planning, many countries have recently tried placing planning authority with state, regional or district agencies. The authors in this volume examine experiences in Asia, South America, and Africa to review the varieties of decentralization policies and programmes. They identify the social, economic, and political factors that seem to influence their success or failure. Alternative approaches to decentralization of development planning are discussed, and prescriptions for improved implementation are made. Different concepts of decentralization are explored throughout the book, and the advantages and disadvantages of different forms of decentralization are also detailed.

Decentralization in Developing Countries

Decentralization in Developing Countries PDF

Author: Jorge Martinez-Vazquez

Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing

Published: 2011

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9781849805087

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This insightful study examines the decentralization experiences from 15 countries in different regions of the world. All of these countries have actively attempted to decentralize, or continue to do so, and have faced obstacles serious enough to either derail or significantly delay their decentralization objectives.

Decentralizing Governance

Decentralizing Governance PDF

Author: G. Shabbir Cheema

Publisher: Brookings Institution Press

Published: 2007-08-01

Total Pages: 338

ISBN-13: 0815713908

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The trend toward greater decentralization of governance activities, now accepted as commonplace in the West, has become a worldwide movement. This international development—largely a product of globalization and democratization—is clearly one of the key factors reshaping economic, political, and social conditions throughout the world. Rather than the top-down, centralized decisionmaking that characterized communist economies and Third World dictatorships in the twentieth century, today's world demands flexibility, adaptability, and the autonomy to bring those qualities to bear. In this thought-provoking book, the first in a new series on Innovations in Governance, experts in government and public management trace the evolution and performance of decentralization concepts, from the transfer of authority within government to the sharing of power, authority, and responsibilities among broader governance institutions. This movement is not limited to national government—it also affects subnational governments, NGOs, private corporations, and even civil associations. The contributors assess the emerging concepts of decentralization (e.g., devolution, empowerment, capacity building, and democratic governance). They detail the factors driving the movement, including political changes such as the fall of the Iron Curtain and the ascendance of democracy; economic factors such as globalization and outsourcing; and technological advances (e.g. increased information technology and electronic commerce). Their analysis covers many different contexts and regions. For example, William Ascher of Claremont McKenna College chronicles how decentralization concepts are playing out in natural resources policy, while Kadmeil Wekwete (United Nations) outlines the specific challenges to decentralizing governance in sub-Saharan Africa. In each case, contributors explore the objectives of a decentralizing strategy as well as the benefits and difficulties that will likely result.

The Political Economy of Democratic Decentralization

The Political Economy of Democratic Decentralization PDF

Author: James Manor

Publisher: World Bank Publications

Published: 1999

Total Pages: 152

ISBN-13:

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Nearly all countries worldwide are now experimenting with decentralization. Their motivation are diverse. Many countries are decentralizing because they believe this can help stimulate economic growth or reduce rural poverty, goals central government interventions have failed to achieve. Some countries see it as a way to strengthen civil society and deepen democracy. Some perceive it as a way to off-load expensive responsibilities onto lower level governments. Thus, decentralization is seen as a solution to many different kinds of problems. This report examines the origins and implications decentralization from a political economy perspective, with a focus on its promise and limitations. It explores why countries have often chosen not to decentralize, even when evidence suggests that doing so would be in the interests of the government. It seeks to explain why since the early 1980s many countries have undertaken some form of decentralization. This report also evaluates the evidence to understand where decentralization has considerable promise and where it does not. It identifies conditions needed for decentralization to succeed. It identifies the ways in which decentralization can promote rural development. And it names the goals which decentralization will probably not help achieve.

Fiscal Decentralization in Developing Countries

Fiscal Decentralization in Developing Countries PDF

Author: Richard M. Bird

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2008-12-04

Total Pages: 320

ISBN-13: 9780521101585

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Fiscal Decentralisation in Developing Countries features important, original and up-to-date research from leading scholars assessing fiscal decentralization in developing countries. It has rich and varied case-study material from countries as diverse as India, China, Colombia, Bosnia-Herzogovina and South Africa.

Fiscal Decentralization in Developing and Transition Economies

Fiscal Decentralization in Developing and Transition Economies PDF

Author: Anwar Shah

Publisher:

Published: 2016

Total Pages: 50

ISBN-13:

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Shah discusses the revolution in public sector thinking that is transforming the public sectors of developing and transition countries. Countries are reconsidering their fiscal systems and searching for the right balance between central government control and decentralized governance. Political decentralization has advanced in most countries. Subnational expenditures in developing countries as a percentage of total public expenditures have also increased over the past two decades. However, the process is far from complete. In many countries, the central government is still involved in the delivery of local services, local governments have few sources of own-revenues, local governments have limited access to borrowing for capital projects, and the design of intergovernmental transfers does neither address regional fiscal equity nor convey appropriate incentives for fiscal discipline, improved service delivery performance, and accountability to citizens.Decentralized public governance can help realign public sector incentives through greater accountability to citizens, and attenuate the quot;democracy deficitquot; caused by globalization and the role of supranational institutions and regimes. However, this requires careful examination of the entire fiscal system. Elements of a comprehensive package of fiscal system reforms would include:- Clarifying roles of various levels of government in public service delivery.- Reassigning taxing responsibilities to ensure local revenue autonomy, accountability, and efficiency without endangering an internal common market.- Designing fiscal transfers to ensure regional fiscal equity and to create an enabling environment for innovative and competitive service delivery.- Facilitating responsible credit market access to subnational governments.- Designing institutional arrangements for intergovernmental fiscal relations to better coordinate policies.- Aligning operational capacity with the authorizing environment through the quot;accountability for resultsquot; framework of public management.This paper - a product of the Poverty Reduction and Economic Management Division, World Bank Institute - is part of a larger effort in the institute to disseminate ideas in strengthening responsive, responsible, and accountable public governance.