This paper investigates the causal effects of central-to-local government transfers on local economic activity in Ecuador, utilizing exogenous variation from a reform in the intergovernmental transfer formula implemented in 2018. Addressing gaps in the fiscal decentralization literature, this...

Decentralization is a process that allows local governments to play a more active role in decision-making and the management of public policies. This process involves transferring responsibilities, resources, and authority from central to local governments, bringing the decisions and provision...

This editorial introduces the Special Issue on Emerging Digital Platforms and Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs). The collected articles explore how disintermediation through blockchain technology is redefining value creation, ownership models, financial stability, and decentralized governance. Key...

This study investigates the dynamics of healthcare mobility in Italy, where citizens have the freedom to access medical treatment across regions. More than half a million patients, primarily from the Southern regions, engage in healthcare mobility, resulting in a total inter-regional transfer of...

In recent decades, decentralization reforms have surged across the Global South, aiming to bring governance closer to citizens. Despite extensive debate on their effectiveness, systematic methods to assess local government performance remain underexplored, particularly in data-constrained...

This paper examines the fiscal and extra-fiscal effects of decentralizing the collection of Brazil's rural land tax from the federal level to local governments. Using a difference-in-differences research design, we assess the impact of local tax enforcement on revenue, land use, and...