Decentralisation

Although there is no overall accepted definition of decentralisation, the most common approaches orient themselves at the different functions or dimensions of decentralisation and distinguish between political, administrative and fiscal decentralisation. In this understanding decentralisation denominates the transfer of political, administrative and/or fiscal powers to units at the middle and/or lower level of state. In a fully decentralised state, sub-national units possess their own political institutions and administration, are attributed with their own decision-making powers, deliver services to the citizens, and have own sources of revenue. This comprehensive transfer of political, administrative and fiscal powers is often called devolution. (In the Anglo-Saxon tradition, however the term devolution is only or at least mainly used if the powers are transferred back to territorial units that in history already once had such powers (de-evolution)). Decentralised systems of state organisation can be, but need not necessarily be, entrenched in the constitution. Normally, they are established by statutory law. While it makes sense to make the conceptual distinction between political, administrative and fiscal decentralisation, in practise the three are closely interlinked and successful decentralisation builds on all three dimensions.

There are certain other processes and forms of state organisation that are related and sometimes even considered part of decentralisation. In some contexts, the term decentralisation is also used in the meaning of transferring competencies to local branches of central institutions or agents of central government (deconcentration), to the private sector (deregulation) or para-state or private organisations (a form of delegation), and sometimes even federal arrangements (federalism, federation) are termed decentralised. However, more and more donor agencies clearly distinguish between these terms and the respective concepts.

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Decentralisation in Client Countries November 2007 An Evaluation of World Bank Support 1990-2007 (118 p.) Since the 1990s, the World Bank has devoted an increasing share of its financing to support its client countries’ decentralisation efforts. To assess the results of such interventions, IEG reviewed Bank support for decentralisation in 20 developing countries between fiscal years 1990 and 2007. Keywords: world bank, bank support Download (PDF, 1508 KB): [en]

Decentralisation in SDC's Bilateral Cooperation January 2007 Author: SDC Relevance, effectiveness, sustainability and comparative advantage The primary focus of this evaluation is the analysis of SDC's decentralisation measures in the agency's bilateral cooperation in the South and in the East and it includes decentralisation projects and programmes as well as decentralising approaches in sectoral projects (operational dimension). A secondary line of inquiry concerns the support provided by SDC's thematic department including backstopping mandates and how processes of learning are organised. Keywords: decentralisation, bilateral cooperation Download (PDF, 1988 KB): [en]

Decentralisation in Client Countries November 2006 Author: The Independent Evaluation Group (IEG) An Evaluation of World Bank Support, 1990-2007 IEG assessed the effectiveness of Bank support for decentralisation provided to 20 countries between fiscal 1990 and 2007. These countries were selected to ensure regional representation, and they accounted for 47 percent of all Bank commitments containing decentralisation components during the period. The aim was to examine what worked and what did not to inform the design and implementation of future Bank support. Keywords: bank, bank support Download (PDF, 112 KB): [en]

The limits of decentralisation November 2006 Author: SNV Netherlands Development Organisation - Patrick Chabal The lecture is in two parts: The first will give a brief account of the postcolonial State in sub-Saharan Africa. The second will address the issues of the relationship between the State and ‘good’ governance. Keywords: Africa, good governance Download (PDF, 278 KB): [en]

Decentralised Governance for Development March 2004 Author: UNDP A Combined Practice Note on Decentralisation, Local Governance and Urban/Rural Development. Keywords: decentralisation, local governance, urban / rural development Download (PDF, 161 KB): [en]

Lessons learned on Decentralisation: a literature review January 2003 Author: Jeremias Blaser / Dirk Besdziek / Sarah Byrne Summary of lessons on the role of Donor, Agencies, Civil Society and NGOs Report written by the International Research and Consulting Centre (IRCC), Institute of Federalism, University of Fribourg Keywords: lessons learned, donor, agencies, civil society, ngo Download (PDF, 78 KB): [en]