Canada, Russia, Nigeria, Indonesia, Macedonia, Switzerland, South Africa, China, Belgium, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Spain, Uganda, the Philippines, Tanzania, India, Rwanda, Sri Lanka, the United Kingdom, Ethiopia, Turkey, Serbia, Algeria, Sudan, Moldova, Morocco, Cameroon, even France…What can such...

South Africa is at a crossroads in its decentralization policy. On the one hand, it has declared its intention to strengthen the fiscal powers of local governments. On the other hand, the institutional arrangement necessary to guarantee fiscal decentralization, the power to raise local revenues,...

This paper reviews the current knowledge on an issue of increasing policy interest: what impact fiscal decentralization has on economic growth. Fiscal decentralization may indeed have a direct impact on economic growth but the theoretical underpinnings for this relationship remain largely...

In this report we highlight some of the progress that has been made in the reform of the system of intergovernmental fiscal relations in Macedonia, but we dedicate more space and attention to those areas of the system where challenges still remain. The report is structured along the main pillars...

Recent socio-spatial studies point out a number of ongoing trends in the “scale division of labor of the state,” including among others, “destatization,” "denationalization, and “internationalization.” We draw on the literature in public economics to review several approaches to...

Rule #1 Fiscal decentralization should be viewed as a comprehensive system.Rule #2 Finance follows function.Rule #3There must be a strong central ability to monitor and evaluate decentralization.Rule #4 One intergovernmental system does not fit the urban and the rural sector. Rule #5 Fiscal...

Rule #1 Fiscal decentralization should be viewed as a comprehensive system.Rule #2 Finance follows function.Rule #3There must be a strong central ability to monitor and evaluate decentralization.Rule #4 One intergovernmental system does not fit the urban and the rural sector. Rule #5 Fiscal...

The People’s Democratic Republic of Lao (Lao PDR), landlocked between Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, China, and Viet Nam in the core of Southeast Asia, accounts for a population of some 5.8 million over a total surface of 236,800 square kilometers. Latest estimates would place poverty rates at...

Although there are obvious differences in the political systems of China and India, there are surprising similarities in their respective approaches to decentralization. Both countries face similar design issues with their intergovernmental systems, such as the lack of clear expenditure...

Vietnam is a poor country with large and increasing needs in infrastructure, education, health, and other areas of the public sector. The current policy of the Government of Vietnam (GOV) is not to increase tax effort, but actually to reduce it. Recently, the GOV has cut the rates of several...